Monday 30 December 2013

Home for Christmas is finished


I wrote a blog post back in June 2013 about how I was going to finish working on this story. And that I would try hard NOT to write 200k words. [*banner by goldengirl]
Yeah, right…
Oopsies.
It ended up 187,764 words which isn’t 200k – just.
And it has (at the time of writing) 3,425 reviews which is HUGE for such a rare pairing. I just cannot believe it. It has overtaken Apologies and is now my second biggest story in reviews but not for views. It is way behind on views.
To explain: fanfic counts each page visit as a ‘view’ and it counts each person as a ‘visitor’ within a 24 hour period. So if they click again the next day that would be two visits from them in the month. So, on a normal day, I get 6-7k hits and about a thousand visitors. That means each person reads 7 or 8 pages. Which is good. It means that they stay or that they read a whole story while another visitor is reading the latest chapter only.
So if each person reviewed every page that they read, my ratio would be 100%. It isn’t. It’s closer to less than 1%. For Apologies for instance, it is 0.2%, but for Josh it is almost 2%. Big difference.
Josh seemed to get readers who loved it enough to review; more so than other stories. The ratio of views to reviews is much higher. Not sure why that is. Maybe it attracted the more loyal readers of mine? The ones who were willing to experiment with such a rare pairing.
Previously when I have finished a story there is a massive spike in hits as people who waited to read the completed story, read it and others may go back and reread their favourite parts. That didn’t happen with Josh either. Well a little bit, but after one story I hit 28k hits in one day. That might have been Apologies, I forget.
And the reviews are very different. They keep telling me that it is the best fanfic they have ever read. I often get ‘great story’ comments I don’t get ‘best story’.
I am not sure why that is, maybe I made them cry? I killed characters that they cared about, and that leaves an emotional shadow. A resonance that sticks with them.


Saturday 28 December 2013

eBooks

I keep forgetting that I own eBooks. I read them on my PC as I do not have (and do not want) an eReader. I often forget to write reviews for them as well and they totally count as books that I have read. I prefer to download them from Project Gutenberg because I am also totally cheap. *grins*
I spent a few hours adding my eBooks into my book database – yes, I have one. It’s from a company called Collectorz and, believe me, the price of the software is worth not duplicating items. I have a book, cd, and movie databases. But I digress.
I guess because most of them are out of print or too old for copyright laws to apply, they can be converted to eBooks. But my list sounds hugely intellectual.
I’ve got Proust in there for God’s sake. When did I think I was going to be ambitious enough to read Proust? Why do I even have vol 2 of Havelock Ellis’s Studies in the Psychology of sex? Where’s vol 1? Dante’s Divine Comedy? And a lot of them are fairy tales and Victorian gothic horror.
I loved G Heyer books as a kid – I know, I was able to borrow books from the adult section. Who knew you can download some of them for free from the Goodreads site? I have never noticed that button before. It's green in the 'get a copy' section and is labelled 'download ebook.'
So now my ‘to-read’ file has 124 books in it and to contrast, I managed to read 80 books this year.
Eek. And I thought that pile on my side table looked intimidating.


Sunday 15 December 2013

MTR’s Challenge list

When I posted a lot at JBNP (Jacob Black N Pack - a wolf friendly Twilight fansite sadly now closed) someone started to challenge me. ‘Hey MTR write this pairing,’ or ‘write for this song,’ they’d say. Now my mind is a very strange place. For some reason I view a limited pairing in a competition as a limitation, but tell me it is a challenge and I see it as… well… a challenge. Go figure.
Over the years, I did more than a few requests and I still get them. I had forgotten about it until the other day when someone asked me about one and I realised I had lost my copy of the file. I found it eventually. So I have cleaned it up a lot and will post it here, so that I can keep track of what I have and haven’t done.
Completed:
       Jasper-replaces-edward: I would really like someone to write a fic where Charlie does actually shoot someone ‘coz he threatens it a lot … Best friends share everything but I can’t say where or who gets shot.
       EnjoyYourJacob: My challenge? Jake stealing Bella away from Paul. Now, that!!! would be something I'd love to read. … The Wild One
        LittleFurryCannibals:  posted a techno remix of the song ‘Closer’ by the Nine Inch Nails, with this: See if you can write a sex one-shot depicting Bella and any wolf. LOL, listen closely to the tempo change and include that in the sex. The only stipulation is, the sex scene can't be linked to the characters engaging or meeting at a club. Techno Bella
        Melinda(dorme99): wanted a song fic to go with ‘Shoots and Ladders’ by Korn…. bonus - entered it in the Christmas one-shot and it won 2nd prize 'All I want for Christmas is your two front teeth' 
        LFC has requested Quil catching Bella dancing to the song YMCA... 'No man does it all by himself.'
        Melinda(dorme99): the song... Rumour has it by Adele 'Rumour has it' (Actually killed two birds with this one and it was my entry for the Paws & Art contest 2011 and won! Yay)
        Rtnnc10 challenge: Coldplay 'warning sign' …'Warning signs'
        In the chat box one day we were discussing SM vamp theory. If everything they are is enhanced after they are turned, then Bella ought to be clutzier. I challenge myself to write that one. … 'BreakingThings'
        My beta Bansidhe challenged me to write a crossover fic with Twilight and Shakespeare... ‘I'd like to see the wolf version of a Midsummer Night's Dream now there's a challenge for you!’ … ‘A Forksummernight's dream’
        Yemonja wanted a Leah/Nahuel pairing in the category of Angst/Hurt/Comfort, pretty please with lemons and sugar on top?  … ‘Freaks of Nature’
        Suz 26 wants: Maybe you should try writing an evil Seth story? Has anyone written an evil Seth yet? Maybe some screwball take on the campy, classic, The Bad Seed, where everyone thinks Leah's the bitch sib but it's really sweet little Seth masterminding everything and Seth is the evil one? ... 'The bad seed'
        tamfan wanted Billy Black to have wheelchair sex or better still a glimpse of pre wheelchair Billy... ‘Second chances’ - I healed him too, and he walked again in ‘I’ll be home for Christmas’
        soily (notashamedtobe): ‘If you're up for challenges and we know you can more than handle slash, do a Bella/Leah fic. Let them heal one another's broken hearts.’… ‘Swan’s mate for life’ one shot then extended
        stealthliberal: a Paul/Leah/Bella fetish. Something about those three makes me wanna beg you for a oneshot or a oneshot that runs rampant with you. … Swan's mate for life - extended story - rampant? Jeez *rolls eyes at self* it hit just under 220k words.
        Yemonja: a Leah/Paul … Anger Management
        Shreveport1: ‘I was listening to a favourite song of mine earlier and was wondering if you could write a fic to go with it? its Leader of the pack by the Shangri La's - … The leader of the pack
        Jake'sgirl: wants bad boy Jake - inspired by Lana del Ray's Blue Jeans music clip … blue jeans & a white shirt and then she wrote the smut I left out, for the Autism Speaks charity one shot compilation *fans self*
        Yaya: I was wondering if maybe you could write one based on the song Payphone by Maroon 5. The song has been playing on the radio like crazy and it’s been stuck in my head. I would love to see a story for it :)… Payphone
        brankel1  Can you do a Leah & Billy one? … ‘I’ll be home for Christmas’
        wolfgirlandproud wants a Seth/Bella story ... 'Almost Done Running'
        Jakejunkie wants a multi-chap fic with some twisty ending where Jake and Bella end up together… not very twisty but it WAS different ‘Offerings

Remaining challenges:
        Jbnp chat ladies wanted some Charlie Swan loving
        Golden Girl and LaPushStarlight challenge: I wanted this waaaaay back with Apologies and didn't get it - so I wanna see a paul/bella BDSM tied-up sorta thingy. like maybe she initiates, but he turns the tables?
        Taoist elf - I kinda want to see a fic where Paul either imprints (or even better) falls in love with a prostitute (who is of course a good hearted girl who's been through tons of stuff).  Wanna give that a shot?
        rororogers   I would really love to see you do a steamy Bella/Embry. A multi-chapter one please, I loved the Casper friendly ghost you did with them, but I can't get enough of this pair.
        Tamfan also wants Bella catching Jake jerking off. In his little single bed.
        WolfGirl_JB   I would love to read a Sam/Leah, preferably post imprint Emily -  to me, Sam always loves and has the total hots for Leah regardless. I would like to see where you would take that particular thought:-)
        Yemonja asks (extremely politely) for: an Emmett/Leah in their supernatural forms in colour of Angst!
        bmitw wants a fic where the Sam/Emily imprint does not result in them becoming lovers - either because Emily chooses not to go down that path, or Sam resists it and stays with Leah. I suppose that would make it an anti-Hurt. Hard to know which would be better to read - there would be angst for someone either way. And with a wolfy partner maybe he could remain Alpha... :)
        CCBTH from fanfic requests - Still wishing you would write me a hot bella/jake story...you could soooo do it... they need one... come on... pweeese? I hate jake/leah... Jake/bella/paul would be hot if you need to dilute the jake.. lol.
        Fitmom: I would love a story where Bella/Paul and Jake are in a relationship together. It would be PERFECT if Jake and Paul get it on too with Bella in the middle or at least respect and like each other in some way. I would like it if Bella and Jake are together romantically and then Paul imprints on her, but she still loves Jake and he won't imprint (I don't believe Alpha's should imprint), somehow they could be together like the three of them.
        sisteria wants: I want a Dom Bella and a Sub Paul...I know that Paul is always so Dominant but maybe he might like to give up control since he has to be all Alpha Male in everyday life.  Bella being so meek in her everyday life might like control in the bedroom.
        blahblahblahinfinity I saw a comment where u mentioned an AU of your What was he thinking fic, but I would love to see u write an AU of Hurt where Paul gets Bella for a long long time and Rachel goes the same route as Edtard and never comes back? Seriously. You made me hate Rachel in that story so much that I'm still scarred.
        Samibear9 from fanfic wants: so I want to ask you to plz PLZ write a one shot of chapter 21 when Bella wakes up to Quil making love to Embry after he hits him from Best Friends.
        Silkylove13 from fanfic wants: I think that you should do a bella/brady/collin. Not enough stories with bella and either or both of the twins. I did tell her that they are not twins any more - thank you the new twi guide. Sigh
        connect2tjb from fanfic wants: I adore your writing. Have you ever considered doing a Tara (True Blood TV version) and Alcide or Sam story? I'm a big fan of your Leah and Alcide story. I haven't found a Tara story I liked.
        ilikedirtywordz on twitter wants: I've read all your fics but have yet to read a Jared/Bella....would you take up a challenge?
        Codiroo from fanfic wants more Leah and Alcide, maybe an extension of 'Bought and paid for'? If you were ever to write them together again it would be the best thing ever!!!!!
        RealityDidMeIn  I loved your Quil/Embry/Bella, and then I kinda had a funny/sexy idea. Could you write a story where one of the wolves (Paul?) imprints on one of the other wolves, then has to convince his male imprint into various *activities* while fighting himself all the while? It would be both hilarious and hawt!
        Littlefurrycannibals wants me to write Bella the reluctant porn star...
        Fatpplarehardertokidnap wants more twilight/sookie stackhouse x-overs. Specifically, Bella with either Godric or Eric, and more Leah with Alcide… extension of ‘Bought and Paid for’
        Chamsp: looking for Jake/Emily OR Paul/Emily fic.
        Chamsp: wants Jake marrying both Leah and Bella, and all three living together. Maybe be some humour.
        butterflybitch - I so want a Sam/Bella/Paul imprint were the two of them fight over her a lot eventually learn how to share her of course saving her from an insane Edward and a physco Jacob hehe and she has to be fiery sarcastic and hot! that would be awesome
        Chamsp:-Forced marriage between one of the pack and an OC -Preferably Paul or Jake -Male-very alpha like, dominating, intimidating, anger issues etc. Doesn't like the female lead -Female-innocent, quite, shy, fun loving and not Bella like ;) (might as well have a back bone). She likes him and tries to win him over -I would love it if there is a age difference btw them. Like 6 to 8 years (older male)
        Chelsea Jay at fanfic wants a Paul/Bella/Jared story, or even just Bella/Jared or even Paul/Jared idc.. I'd just love to see you bring Jared to life since his presence is really lacking. She’s right; I haven’t ever written Jared.

Wednesday 4 December 2013

Fandom choice awards 2014

Oh my! Thank you so much to all the people who nominated me and then voted for me in the fandom choice awards. I am in the final round in four categories.
1.            all time favourite author
2.            all time favourite story - for Closer to God 
3.            best non traditional - Swan’s mate for life 
4.            best erotica - I’ll be home for Christmas 



The last two surprise me. I would not have described ‘I’ll be home for Christmas’ as erotica but I guess it doesn’t fit in anywhere else and I didn’t think Swans was a very popular story. Huh. What would I know? Lol. It absolutely hits the non trad button as a poly story of Leah, Bella and Paul and the trials they went through to actually get to a functioning relationship that worked for all three of them.
One of my betas feebes86 is nominated five times! I am so proud of her.
There are a lot of familiar names there, so please take the time to vote for your favourites! Voting closes January 3rd.

Oopsies. I need to amend that. It was five nominations, I missed Home for Christmas in the Best Non Canon Romance. Now that’s more like where it belongs.

Ps: if anyone is having trouble voting - for me, the blog post sidebar overlaid the actual voting button and you had to scroll to the right to see it at all and then it would NOT let me select it, they suggest using a different browser, like Internet explorer.

Monday 2 December 2013

Pauls

I was chatting to one of my betas (Feebes86) years ago. We were looking at the photos I had in my JBNP slideshow, as you do with your internet friends. She sent me a shot of Paul Walker from the Coolwater Davidoff ad that he did. We joked about how they managed to get two streams of water to run down both nipples simultaneously. She was writing a Paul/Bella story at the time and I was betaing it for her and I got to thinking about Pauls and water … and then I sat down and I wrote the first chapter of Apologies.

So in a way, the Paul in that story was Paul Walker. He was my inspiration. Often you don’t know what was your inspiration for a story, but I do remember that one.
So I was really sad to hear of his car accident and death this weekend. That is a horrible way to go. I love the Fast Furious movies and I watch all the extras on the disks. If there was one thing the stunt guys said, it was that Paul could drive.
And for it to be on the way home from yet another of his charity fundraising events is beyond tragic. He did a huge amount of work for world-wide charities; he was always working on humanity for homes and animal welfare.

One of the nice guys; the good guys. And a loss to us all.

Sunday 1 December 2013

Nanowrimo 2013 Done

Ermahgerd
I did it.
I am utterly exhausted right now. I have large black bags under my eyes. There is literally twenty minutes to go before my time runs out and I just validated my novel.
It’s not a novel of course; it is a rough first draft. And very rough at that. It has all kinds of crap in it: a table or two, bullet point lists, some strike through parts. It is full of this symbol %%. In my writing shorthand, that means a few different things: check this, research this, match this up with a previous mention and fix the tense. (I switch from past to present a lot. For some reason I plan in present tense and write in past - go figure. I use strikethrough when I am not certain that deleting something is right.) I can search and find all the %%s easily to fix things later without stopping writing.
I also think there are a lot of repeated things and a few errors in the story line. Things out of order. I can drag scenes around in Scrivener very easily, but the more the month went on, the less editing I did. I just didn’t have time.
Like most things in my life, I left it to the last week to get really serious. Plus, I wrote other things. My novel is 50,297 words but my total monthly world count is 78,389. Last month I wrote 58,000 so it is an improvement. I also miscalculated. Where the table says ‘days remaining’ (it shows 1 on the last day) I didn't realise that was an inclusive count. So it said I needed to write 10k in 2 days (easy) but that turned out to be 10k in one day (eek - what?), because I was looking at it before midnight.
I left the sex and the romance to this week, knowing that I would be on the home stretch and writing something that I write without difficulty would make it easier. But I still got up at 6:30 every day and it is midnight now and I am still typing. I have worked in 15 minutes bursts. Setting a timer and stopping when it went off; even in the middle of a sentence. And then I would go do something else for 15 minutes. Oddly, where I came back to a half sentence, I knew exactly what I was thinking and could just write.


I nearly gave up. At day 17 I decided that my story just didn’t have 50k in it. And then I went back and did some serious plot planning. The stuff I should have done before I started, but I only decided to enter two days before it started. That cleared a lot of things up and I saw that I needed more scenes in the first third of the novel.
I also kept getting off track doing medieval research that I could have done later. Do I really need to know the right term for male medieval underwear?** NOW?
But it will need a lot of cleaning up before it can be called a novel; I would say it is 75% done. And for that, alone it's worth doing Nanowrimo.
**They are called ‘Braies’ just in case you were wondering…