New readers — welcome! This blog is where I set up feedback threads for the latest draft story in progress. Right now I’m up to story #6. You should probably start at story #1, though.
Current readers — I appear to have invented a new genre: psychological horror romantic comedy. You’re welcome.
With this posting comes some tweaks and revisions to earlier scenes. I’ve noted the changes at the top. Some details are obfuscated, other details are explained in more, uh, detail. It’s all part of the give and take of the draft process. I give writing, you take it in; you give feedback, I take it in. Ciiircle of draaaft…
The latest Project Wonderful ad campaign for CoA is coming to a close and it seems I’ve picked up a few new readers thanks to those smashing pics of Marcy, Vivi, and Cass splattered across the web. Yay! Welcome! Put your feet up, have a frosty beverage, and enjoy. I’ll probably suspend the ad campaign after this until post-Kickstarter, when it’ll be properly crowdfunded.
Speaking of which, I haven’t decided yet if I’m gonna go the KS route — if I do, it’ll be a ‘megafund’ of sorts, with a low initial goal and lots of stretches for Moar Art, Moar Ads, Moar Editing of Past Stories, and possibly even Moar Published Books. Details to come. For now: 007. Enjoye.
Heh, Smith and Jones. I was amused by it back in Chapter 6 when I thought it was just a throwaway, and I’m still amused by it. Also, Kelsey Jones makes me vaguely think of Casey Jones, but I doubt she’s going to pull on an old-style hockey mask and go fight evil ninja and mutants. Or cause there to be no joy in Mudville.
And yeah, It takes more than a recluse with a penchant for weird signals to creep Dave out, given he’s been in the Sidways and faced a Picasso. I would like to know more about her, if she’ll let us.
Also, tiny nitpick at the beginning of the chapter: generally, medical doctors go to med school, while pharmacists go to pharmacy school. They still get a doctorate (Doctor of Pharmacy, or PharmD) and the huge loan part is also true.
I know the chapters are more connected than you originally planned, but I like seeing the various viewpoint characters move in and out of each others’ stories, like Cass does here.
The idea for this story was invented on the spot when I was coming up with other nameplates for the Plaza Arms. I got the idea to put Dave in there, then figured maybe he’d have a neighbor, and Kelsey Jones developed from there. In fact, the name similarity runs deeper than you think…
Thanks for the tip. I’ll make adjustments accordingly RE: the doctorate. I did some wiki research but missed that bit.
While the original plan was to have the series largely consist of standalones with a shared setting, I’m enjoying the crossover and shifting perspective motif more. A tighter cast than I’d planned — heck, Vivi and Marcy were never gonna meet up with everyone else! but it works.
I am immensely amused by Cass muttering, “sometimes I wish things were less gonzo.” Shades of Hunter S. Thompson! (in fact, he may have been born a Picasso and only gradually become sort of human…)
Intentional. I needed some way for Cass to complain about her lot in life as the end of the cryptic prophecy delivery chain, and it felt like a very literary way to complain. :D
Penelope must’ve gone deep.
We’ll have more on Penny’s end of things in the next story. I haven’t decided how much of the resistance’s story I’m going to tell; we may join them in-progress and summarize to catch up, I might show key moments, dunno. It’s not really an action-packed explodorama thriller series.