C James

Hrmmm, no consensus on some! Hrmmm... sometimes, the biggest question is the one no one sees.

Hrmmm! This explains much! I drove by that site around 2000 (I didn't go near it when i went to Pompeii in 2007), and I wasn't paying much attention (I had no idea it would be in a story) I don't remember the marina, but thought it was just I hadn't noticed it. To be honest I should have, but didn't, use the google earth feature that shows older sat photos. Ah, okay, I see it under construction in 2005. The next image shows it complete in 2007. I am hopeful that the piers (temporary, at least) were in place, at least partially, by August, 2006. Otherwise, I goofed, bigtime! However, this has taught me a lesson; when writing something about a prior time, be sure all items existed then! Otherwise, it's sort of like having a scene where Union soldiers, during the civil war, are standing around on the Mall in Washington, admiring the Lincoln Memorial...:wacko: Jim's special cigar? ROFL!!!!!!! Hrmmm, I have a theory! If Rob was on a boat, using a dock rented from a woman very much like Bridget, then it is quite possible that the boat is to do with the antagonist, and the antagonist of the story is none other than Rknapp himself! Rob, please don't hurt Trevor or Joel! Why is everyone assuming that Jim is going to Naples for something to do with Trevor? He might just have a hankering for some really, really good lasagna. And, um, the 20k? Maybe he likes really expensive restaurants? Rob raised some great points and questions. :2thumbs: One thing I can say for sure; there are a LOT of unanswered question in the story. Some will be answered very soon, others will take a while. Good point on the attorney-client privilege. I don't see why y'all are so sure there could be an antagonist in the story. Isn't it possible that I wrote a story where everything is all rainbows and unicorns, with nothing bad happening? What we do now know is that Jim didn't know what Dirk was hiding, and therefor wasn't a part of it. We have, however, firmly established that Jim likes pizza.

Yes, goats have balls. The male ones, at least... Steve, stuff like this keeps me on my toes, so please, don't stop! I'm glad you bought it up. Sometimes, I do make mistakes, such as Levies still being measured in inches in Europe. It bugged me when I did that, because I should have known that. I'm also delighted to have it pointed out, because it allowed me to correct it. Also, there have been times when someone has raised a detail in the thread and it's allowed me to clarify it in a coming chapter. Heh, I've wanted to kick myself a few times when writing this story, because of opportunities I've missed. I've driven literally right by Trevor's home marina in Fort Peirce (the bridge just a few yards north of it). I could have so easily stopped and walked around, took a few pics, etc. Same with Marina di Stabia, and a few other places yet to come. But I didn't know when I was there that it would be in one of my stories. Another issue I face; I'm lucky in that I've traveled a lot, but I certainly haven't been everywhere. Atlantis will go to at least a few places I've never been. Hrmm, I think I'll mention this after posting one of them; I'd love to see if I can convincingly write a place I've never been. And on the fiction issue... Before The Frog leads us into a veritable minefield here (which would qualify as a cliffhanger from him, no?) regarding whether or not Circumnavigation is fiction, have I ever said it was? I might, after all, just be writing the biography of Atlantis. CJ

Here's the map from the bottom of the chapter; The bay of Naples is called the gulf of napes on the map, but it's one and the same. It is indeed a spectacular area, and I highly recommend it. I'll only mention one thing though; don't go there thinking you'll get good pizza. If you want good pizza, go to Chicago or New York, not Italy. BTW, Wildone raised an issue I forgot to address; the fences at marinas. Some have gates at the top of the piers, others don't. Generally, you'll find gates more often on the piers with rental slips and not on the public pier (where we've seen Atlantis docking). But, it varies from place to place. The problem I have is that while I've been to Naples and Pompeii, I haven't been to Marina di Stabia except to drive by it once on my way south, and I barely remember doing it. I have no clue whether, or where, it has gates. So, I tried (and failed) to find photos, and so, I guessed regarding the public dock. (a gate won't show up on Google Earth in most cases) Similarly, I've had to guess on things like the aerial tramway price in Gibraltar; I've ridden it, but that was before 2006. I also can't remember for sure what I paid. The internet is great for finding a current price, but not what it was in July, 2006. So, I took my best guess. Usually, in a case like that, I'll leave it vague as to how much it cost, but when I have to specify it for plot reasons, I sometimes have no option but to take a good guess based on what bits i do know. What this means is that in a case like a pier in Marina Di Stabia, it might have a gate where I didn't show one. Some other details, like the layout inside the marina office, are also just guesses. I also tend to sweat it a bit on details, worrying I've missed something.

Huh? But.... hut... but... we all know that a goat would NEVER have ANYTHING to do with a cliff... right? Ahhem! We don't actually know that Jim's planned trip to Naples has anything to do with Trevor. In fact, I can show conclusively that there is a more likely explanation! Jim is clearly, and unarguably, shown as being fond of Pizza. Therefor, maybe he just had a hankering for a pizza in Naples? So, no cliffhanger!

Huh? Now who would ever think that sweet, innocent me could be devious in any way?

Why? Surely even the frog can see that this is not a cliffhanger? Great point on Trevor feeling alone; he's alone and on the run. But I think Joel and Lisa are letting him know he's not alone... but, as you say, will all that be undone if Joel goes home? Boys, beer, boats, Jim on the way.... What could possibly go wrong? Me? Throw a curve ball? Awsome pics, thanks!! As for Capri.... would it help if I mention that the title of chapter 19 is still being decided; it will either be "Preludes" or "Capri". It's written, the content won't change, only the title. Huh??? A cliff? Where?!?!?!

Would i do such a thing as that?

The character "Ben" from chapter 2 stirred up a lot of conversation in the chapter threads for "Circumnavigation"; a lof of you were curious about him, and what would come of him. Also, I've been wanting to find a way to say "thank you" to everyone who has participated in the story threads or e-mailed, or PM'd. The feedback, and fun, in the forum is my biggest incentive for posting stories, and without it, I wouldn't do it, so I've been searching for a way to express my thanks for quite a long time. I saw an opportunity to do both by writing a short story, "Ben" a short story set in the "Circumnavigation" universe, as a private "thank you" to those who have been participating in the Circumnavigation threads. (and I'm open to other ideas for future private thank-yous; maybe y'all pick a topic for me to write?) I compiled a list of chapter thread posters, PM'ers, and emailers. HOWEVER, it was messy and I am clumsy, so if I missed you, please give me a shout and let me know where you posted so I can rectify my goof and send you the story. Thanks again, CJ

Ahhem! I can assure you, and I can prove it; there are no vilains in any of my stories!! (And typos can be sooo handy at times! 0:) 0:) )

I forgot to mention that the Pompeii photos in chapter 17 were taken by me, and my route through Pompeii (including getting confronted by a worker) was the same as in the story. When I took them, I planned to use them in a story, I just had no idea which one. LoL. Sorry if the photos aren't too good; I had to process the heck out of them to get the file size down as far as I could, and the photo quality was bad to begin with; most of these photos started out as almost totally black... The reason? There I was in a photographer's dream location, and what did I do? I stupidly forget to check the settings on my digital camera!!! Duh!! I had the wrong darn setting on the dial, and so not only were they smaller filesize, but the exposure was way low... Only by fiddling with them in photoshop did I manage to salvage anything at all.

I'm shocked, shocked, I say, to see thoughts that there might be a vilain in this story! None of my stories have ever had a vilain. I'll 100% guarantee it. 0:) 0:)

I do wish people would weigh in on this one... I can say this much; there is more than one mystery here. They may not even be related... We'll find out more and more over the next few chapters... and we'll know it all many chapters before the end, though some will be obvious before others. The next chapter, BTW, is "Discoveries".

Very well done, and indeed, how very human; making a decision for someone, fully believing they'll be delighted by it. A captivating tale. I loved. it.

I haven't read "Price of Honor", so I can say absolutely; this stands as it's own story perfectly. Cia, you painted a complex world and situation very clearly (hard to do in a short story) and made it compelling. Well done.

That's definitely a perfect fir for the theme! Thanks Sam!

Great poll!!! I love it! Hrmmm... Interesting results, too! Thanks!!!!

The coming chapter is entitled 17.... oh, wait, that's the number.. the title is "Pompeii". (I'm confused, a normal condition for me...)

That's well said! I'm pretty much the same; things occur to me, and nag at me if I don't write them down. I'll start out by arguing with you: I think you're wrong. IMHO, quite a few of your later works exceed the originality of New Brother. I'll cite The Price of Friendship for one, and Heart of the Tree for another. I think several of your short stories certainly qualify as well. I'm by no means knocking New Brother, it's definitely original and well done, but I think you've surpassed it in that regard since. You are by far the best writer I know for originality, and even when you tackle a more standard subject, you throw in twists that are jaw dropping when you unveil them. (Price of Friendship comes immediately to mind). You forgot to mention of your biggest motivation: you just like writing cliffhangers. I've never been able to do poetry; well done to you for doing so, in a format I consider the most difficult of all. Huh?? You get sex? Hrmmm, I get imaginative death threats and people plotting my painful demise... ******* Hrmm, my own motivations are complicated, often differing, and to be honest, I don't understand them all that well myself in some cases. :wacko: Writing down ideas and plot outlines; that's a compulsion for me. Things just pop into my head, and nag at me for days until written down. Picking what to work on and write out in full is harder... Some of the ideas I have get tossed back into the pile because they aren't IMHO original, or are unrealistic in too many ways, etc. Some just plain stink, but I can't bring myself to delete them. I've got a directory full of such awful things. The ones that I feel might be worthwhile go in a different directory, and some of those end up getting picked. I'm not fully sure how I pick one to work on; it's usually just what I feel most compelled and interested to work on, though I often have no idea why. For me a big part of my motivation, and the one that gets me past writer's block and pushes me to write even on those occasions I don't really feel like it, is the forum and other forms of feedback, good or bad. Or just plain fun and silliness. I love it. Another reason I write is to learn; I'm always trying to improve, and by writing, I learn a lot about writing, and also whatever I'm writing about (due to research). And, I'll save the best for last: For me, one of the biggest joys of writing is working with my wonderful team; they are the best, and I think the world of each and every one of them.

A very moving story. In my view, it well illustrates the mind-destroying and life-destroying effects of a descent into drug abuse. A true cautionary tale. Thanks, Menzo.

Cute story! For a repairman like that, I'd break the darn satellite dish myself, every few days. Thanks Rush!

I thought it might be fun to have a free-for-all discussion thread, on Rewards and Motivations. This is for both writers and GA members who post. What is your motivation? What compels you to either write and post stories online, or to be an active member of a board or forum such as GA?

That was hilarious! "Mona Lott" made me laugh out loud! Clever and witty. Thanks, Linxe, for a great story.

Quite a few unexpected twists in this one. I like it! It's fun and sentimental. Well done, HH5!

I'd like to thank our anthology coordinator, Graeme, for doing an awesome job on the anthology (Which is a great deal of work.) Thanks also to Steph, for tech support! And thank you to our participating authors and their editors and betas, too. The anthology is online here; Enjoy!