DruonGrawal

Hello there, Dom! While the eating habits of your characters sure are not among the first things that come to my mind, when I am discussing your work with a friend or try to win a new reader, I agree that they are part of what defines your personal style of writing such stories. And that is quite a good thing: Humans have a history for discussing important issues of their life while sharing a meal. Just think of a large family, united around one table for dinner, sharing the events of the day. Or high school students sitting in the cafeteria making plans for both their school and private life. So far I really enjoyed what you showed us during the moments when your characters had breakfast, lunch, dinner or just a little snack in between. Personally, I really dislike it, when my heroes lack basic human needs, like eating, sleeping or going to the bathroom from time to time. You seem to have found a good ground in the middle, where those needs are visible within the context of your writing, yet they don

Hello everyone! You call 16 votes compared to 23 votes 'losing so badly'? Actually it seems that all of Dom's stories have found their audience with some being slightly more popular. I am a bit sorry to see his short stories in this poll, as they are a breed of their own and in my eyes not a fair match compared to a full grown story of 20+ chapters. Just to reassure Dom I'd like to say that I really enjoyed both 'The spirit of James' and 'Under the mistletoe' and I am looking forward to read another 'quick fix' every now and then. Also I am under the impression that it is wrong to have 'With Trust' among this competition as long as the story is still being written. There are two main reasons for this: 1.) Being the current work in progress it is natural, that 'With Trust' still provides us with a lot of suspense. We are curios what will happen next, hoping for our favourite characters to make a good move and making bets on the outcome of certain situations. In layman's terms: We are Domaholics waiting for our fix. It is natural that while we - as readers - are preoccupied with the story, it is likely to seem 'more interesting' and thus sometimes 'better' than some finished piece of work. 2.) There is still much that can happen in 'With Trust'. Some will like how the events turn out, others may dislike it. I recall several people not liking DD at first but coming around with the progress of that story. My very own listing of Dom's stories: Short stories: 1.) The Spirit of James 2.) Under the Mistletoe 3.) Valentine's Day Goes to the Dog His 'larger' works: 1.) The Ordinary Us 2.) Desert Dropping 3.) The Lo(n)g Way I'll add 'With Trust' once it is finished. Wind in your fur and stars in your eyes. LazyWolf

Thanks for a great story that keeped me entertained for months. There have been some of those magical moments in there that really leave one deeply moved. Wind in your fur and stars in your eyes. LazyWolf

Hello everyone! The dialoge isn't that interesting. That kid throws a temper tantrum trying to play Unreal Tournament. First part is him shouting at the computer to start the game - seems as if he got some sort of error message at first, which only adds to his anger. He cusses all along, making use of swearwords like 'damn' (verdammt) or 'son of a bitch' (Hurensohn), wondering what is happening to his computer (Was ist das denn? Oh mein Gott, was ist geschehn? => What's that? Oh my good, what's happening?). Finally he succeded in getting the game to load, that is the part when he starts singing 'here we go' (Jetzt gehts los). But the loading time is far to long for someone as impatient as him, so he starts freaking out again. His logic is something like this: It's loading... it's loading. I don't want it to load. I want to play. I can't play while it loads... When the game finished loading he starts to blast away his virtual enemies - soon to find out that his keyboad misses the escape button. While fixing that he states that he is in no need of help (ich brauche keine Hilfe). Then he is back in the game, shouting bloddy murder at his enemies, stating that he will kill them all (one time he suggest shooting them with a special rifle that seems to belong to that certain game). In the end he has problems with some though foe. Despite the boy yelling several time that he will crush that opponent (Ich werd dich fertigmachen), the game beats him. I can only guess that this movie was meant to be a satiric answer aimed at an ongoing discussion in local politics, namely to ban so called "Killerspiele" (computer- and videogames that revolve around killing people). Several politicians try to frame computer games as a scapegoat for aggressive behaviour in Germany's youth. Wind in your fur and stars in your eyes. LazyWolf

I would like to take a closer look. There is nothing wrong with a bit of 'Cinderella' in your story - fairy tales have their place in literature, too. And movies like 'Pretty Woman' prove that the theme is still interesting to people nowadays. I don't care much about any rating related to sexual content. I have read great stories without even the hint of anything remotely sexual and rather poor tales where every encounter was blown way out of proportion to 10000+ words of graphic sex. All that matters is that it fits the story you are going to tell and that you - as an author - are truly satisfied with the amount of verbal erotic presented in your work. If you just cut it out because you are shy about it or you feel the need to fit a certain rating, this usually tends to have a rather negative impact on your work. Would be nice to hear from you, Howie. Wind in your fur and stars in your eyes. LazyWolf

Hello there, Howie! Well, if your offer is still open I would like to learn some more about this book you are working on. It has been a while since I last read a 'gay story' in my mother tongue. Beste Gr

Rating: 8/10 Favorite Character(s): Aiden, Nicky & Adam Why?: Aiden - He has so many traits that I find loveable in a significant other, being both strong and vulnerable, trying to face the world with optimism. Nicky - A true friend. He's in a class of his own. Adam - In the first third of the story the character that seemed most 'real' to me. I like to recall his discussion with Owen about being friends when they were on the drive back from the camping trip. Least Favorite Character(s): Janie, Shane Why?: Janie - She's a bitch, that is certain. But I believe it has been pushed to far: There is nothing else she is besides being a bitch. Makes the character kinda fake. Shane - He is not really a least favorite character but more like the one character that disappointed me the most. I was always waiting for Shane to have some more impact on the story. From the moment Dom gave us his middle name I was under the impression that there would be more to the character of Shane. Maybe there is... in one of the sequels to come... Best Moment: Dom has a master's degree when it comes to creating best moments, so it is hard to really focus on one. The first three that just popped through my mind are: 1. The 'This is a date?' date 2. Owen's talk with Adam about being a friend after the camping trip 3. Nicky tackling Owen and Aiden rushing in for the rescue Loose Ends?: I am still curious about what happend between Dennis & Reilly. Even after hearing Dom on that matter I still do not like how he resolved the situation with Adam, it feels rushed. Comments on the Story: It is a wonderful story. One of the best I ever found over at the Nifty Story Archive. It turned me into a Domaholic in no time. While 'The Log Way' isn't my favourite story by DomLuka, it will always have it's special place for being my first encounter with his writing.

Todays act of nature conservation: Trying to bring the discussion back to the story for the benefit of local wildlife (especially wild dogs and felines): While I don't think that Grandma Alice is an old, heartless bitch, I agree that she has lots of issues to work on. The first that comes to my mind is her inability to pursue an argument with Rory (or Eddie for that matter). I believe in demonstrating a healthy amount of respect for your elders, but that does not include a privilege to disconnect the phone whenever you are not content with the way of a conversation. I can image several good reasons for Grandma Alice's doing when she keept the letters hidden for a while - and I am sure Dom will provide us with more insight down the way. But I don't think there will be any acceptable reason for ringing off in the middle of a phonecall. But all in all that is a good thing: Characters need flaws like that to become somewhat 'real'. And I tend to love friends and family for their merits and flaws alike. Wind in your fur and stars in your eyes. LazyWolf

Oh no, keep my mother tongue out of it. I had to endure enough quotes from Castle Wolfenstein, Bavaria or Ramstein (the band, not the location), they will last for at least two lifetimes. Back to American English vs. British English: I think it is a matter of taste. Personally, I tend to prefer BE, as it kinda has more 'sound' to it, especially when you are enjoying something of artistic value, like a good novel, poetry or a speech. AE shines in those comfy moments among friends and buddies. Wind in your fur and stars in your eyes, LazyWolf

Greetings everyone. Sounds like something easy enough to finally create my first posting in here: 1. YOUR MOVIE STAR NAME: (grandmother's/father's first name + favorite snack): Josef Sarotti. 2. YOUR FASHION DESIGNER NAME: (first word you see on your left + favorite restaurant): Lazy Brauhaus. 3. YOUR SOCIALITE NAME: (silliest childhood nickname + first town where you partied): Micky Strasbourg. 4. YOUR "FLY GIRL/GUY" NAME: (first initial + first three letters of your last name): M Bra. 5. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (favorite candy + favorite musicians last name): Chocolate Turner. 6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: ( first 3 letters of your last name+ last 3 letters of mothers middle name /+/ first 3 letters of your pets name + first 3 letters of the town you live in): Bratte Arcspe 7. YOUR NORSE NAME: (first 4 letters of your name + the second of your surname) Michr. Ok... well... I can live with No. 3 & 4. Wind in your fur and stars in your eyes, LazyWolf