David McLeod

"The Crisis of Islam" by Bernard Lewis. Could be very, very difficult.

Finally had a chance to really explore: it looks great! Thank you for all the hard work. Lots of new, interesting, and useful features.

Of your characters? T'Luk, of course. He's really becoming three-dimensional in your story, and even though you've never belabored (belaboured) his appearance, he seems very real in my mind. And, he's got one heck of a boyfriend. Of my characters? My favorite is Tyler in The Paladin. This is not just because he's a heroic figure, although there is that. It's because of the way he matures in the story. Tyler is based on someone I met at the hospital physical therapy unit, and Jon (in the story) is based on what I thought Tyler (not his name, really) would be like when he grew up.

I voted to keep it...it's a great welcome to the site and IMHO will encourage more contributions.

Good morning, Vietnam, and welcome to the site!

Wow, that was fast! I see you're already in the Author's Group. Please let us know when you publish. Oh, and welcome!

Okay, it's time to revive this topic. I voted for number 7...yeah, anyone who has read any of my posts knows I have something to say. Like the late Al Capp styled himself: expert on nothing with opinions on everything. But, down deep, it's the sense of community.

"Catcher..." is an excellent book and is one I regret not having read in high school. I didn't read it until about 10 years ago. My mind still holds images from it. Now that's great writing, IMO.

In the middle of Sun-Tsu, "The Art of War: (audio book); about to start "The Lessons of Terror" by Caleb Carr. Occasionally, I'll pick up Orson Scott Card's "Characters & Viewpoint." My creative writing teacher wants me to read all the great Russian authors. Sorry to disappoint him!

Welcome; looking forward to hearing your music. Do you write prose/poetry as well?

We came to USA-America from Scotland via Ireland...something about stealing horses, I think, and we were trying to break the trail. Hope that counts. Welcome, in any case.

Late to the party, once again; nevertheless, be welcome, Kavika. Looking forward to your story.

If the pun is the highest form of humor, then a story full of puns must be the highest form of story. Bravo.

IE8, which works beautifully with this site, with google, gmail, and yahoo, and with all my "secure" sites (financial, e.g.). The only thing I don't like is that after downloading a document (bank statement, e.g.) it closes and has to be reopened. I've been using Vista since the day after it came out, and had only one problem, easily solved. No, I'm not a Bill Gates robot, but I'm sure happy with Windows, Vista, and IE.

Be welcome...

Welcome, Nicole. There's a lot of information for writers and editors on the site. and a lot of members who are happy to share their experiences and knowledge. A mentoring program for authors is in the works...there's a forum/thread about that elsewhere. A "summer anthology" is in in the final stages of perparation...I'm not sure of the release date, but some of the best short stories are found at the anthologies tab. Look forward to hearing more from you.

Be especially welcome, Indie: someone who writes reviews is a treasure to be cherished! I'm pretty sure most authors live on air, feedback, and sunshine.

Welcome, Draigen. I'm looking forward to reading your stories. You'll find a lot of folks on this site willing to offer help to writers...and, I think you'll find some most excellent stories, as well.

Night Owl, Welcome to the site. If you haven't found the Anthologies tab, yet, please let me recommend it as a place to start for a sample of the best of the best. When you get ready to post on the eFiction tab, please also post an announcement in "eFiction Story Announcements" forum so we'll know where to find your stories. Again, welcome. David

Drew, Congratulations on your first post, and welcome as an author. David

Chase: first, welcome (and kudos to Drewbie for pointing you in this direction). Second, if you can write, you're not pretending. And, I suspect others than me would like to know how you, yourself, distinguish between a writer and a wordsmith. (Then again, perhaps not. You might just "break our bubbles.") (Just kidding. All writers are thick-skinned; criticism rolls off our backs.) Aside from the banter, chatter, and (albeit long-distance) friendships, this site offers writers support ranging from workshop forums to beta readers and editors. You'll likely find a dedicated core who will freely (and honestly) give you feedback on your writing as well as encouragement. I don't think you'll find as much of that on any other site. Please be sure to post notices on the "eFiction Story Announcements" forum so that we know when you've posted, and check out the offer of technical support on the eFiction "home page." Again, welcome!

What do I think? Thanks for asking. I think the article was yet another example of anecdote, apocrypha, and aphorism being touted as legitimate data for decisionmaking, and yet another bit of fluff that (intentionally or not) takes people's minds off real, important, and real important issues. For more examples, log onto Yahoo.com a few times and note what "news" is featured: mindless stories about mindless entertainment figures seem to predominate. Watch television for a few hours and *don't* skip the commercials: how many large companies are advertising not their products but are running "feel-good-about-me" ads? We complain that the people of Cuba and China are being propagandized by their governments; yet, we are subject to (and seem to be swallowing) more propaganda than either of those countries produce. What company or organization hasn't declared itself to be "green" with no concept of what that means, while we continue to consume ourselves into oblivion? Khrushchev was wrong: the capitalists didn't sell the communists the shovels with which the communists would bury the capitalists; we're too busy burying ourselves in our own garbage. Please think about what captures the attention and imagination of people today. Yesterday morning while on the treadmill for physio, I could not find a news channel that wasn't devoting more than 20% of its time to a British talent show contestant. Bravo Zulu (navy talk for "well done") to the SEALs who effected the rescue, but absolute disgust for our having allowed the piracy to progress as far as it has. ("Our" includes everyone who is or has been sentient in the past 20 years or so.) I think civilization will outlast me, but not by long. I have no offspring, yet I weep for today's teens and young adults. It is sad that although the odds of live evolving elsewhere in the universe are high, the odds of other intelligent life ever having evolved, or ever evolving again, are extremely low. It is sad that when we destroy ourselves there will be a vast silence for the rest of the life of the universe. Is this bound to happen? Perhaps not; however, we do need to off our dead donkeys and do something! All of us.

Welcome to you, and thanks to Jaydee for sending you in this direction. Yeah, to what Drewbie said: authors live for feedback! Sounds as if you know your way around; however, if you want to sample some of the better authors' work, please check out the "anthologies" tab...you'll find lots of short pieces that represent the best of the best. Again, welcome.

You've got it right...it's a great community with lots of help for folks who want to write, and a lot of folks willing to offer advice on just about anything. Welcome!

It looks as if you're already right as home. Glad to have you on board.