So, apparently, I still write fan fiction. I consider it a very helpful way to improve creative writing skills, but it's embarrassing nonetheless. I don't read fan fiction, though, although I make exceptions for my friends, and occasionally on request (I also beta-read very aggressively). Someone who writes fan fiction but doesn't read it? Crazy? Or maybe it's because I'm busy reading:

The Princess Bride, The Phantom Tollbooth, All Quiet on the Western Front, Death in Venice, Cassandra, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Song of Solomon, The Stranger, The Plague, To Kill a Mockingbird, Othello, The Things They Carried, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Everything is Illuminated, Interpreter of Maladies, The Namesake, Life of Pi, The Kite Runner, The Cider House Rules, A Prayer for Owen Meany, A Widow for One Year, The World According to Garp, The Hotel New Hampshire, The Grrl Genius Guide to Life, The Gendered Society, The Feminine Mystique, The Body Project, I Never Called it Rape, Women and Violence, Public Vows, Body Outlaw, Gender Outlaw, Middlesex, Geek Love, Atonement, People of the Book, Seabiscuit, Black Dog of Fate, Deerskin, Beauty, BONE, Watchmen, Y: The Last Man, Olive Kitteridge, Midwives, Revolutionary Road, She's Come Undone.

Stephanie's not-even-remotely-Comprehensive List of Fan Fiction Stuff that Annoys Her to No End:

- Fluff

- Bad spelling and grammar

- Male pregnancy (don't even get me STARTED)

- Fluff

- Plotless "random/insanity!" stories

- Pairing wars

- "Constructive criticism" that's not actually constructive criticism

- People who review without logging in so I can't send them my usual thank you

- Badly written summaries

- Fluff

- Summaries with pairings in them

- Purple prose

Necessary disclaimer: I don't own anything. If I did, that would be awesome.

Ridiculously Irregular Story Updates: 8/24/09
Newer laptop, which has Dahlia on it went in for repairs on August 8th. On the 21st, I finally found out that the fan is not broken, nor was it filled with dust. My motherboard is broken. RAGE. So, that's been sent out (beginning today) to get fixed. 400-500 and however many days later, I'll have my little, newer laptop back, complete with my updated iTunes library and Dahlia, along with all my notes.

Dahlia is looking to end sooner than I had originally planned, in terms of the length of the story. Everything was just getting too out of character and overly mushy-dramatic, and that can't happen. If you're worried about whether or not the story is going to keep rambling on, like so many stories do, or that I'm just never going to finish because I won't know what comes next, don't fret. I never start a story without a clear idea of how it ends, or how I'm going to get there, character-wise. I just have to find just the right situations to put my characters in to get the right story. Meanwhile, LOOK! A bird!

Contact me if:

- you are curious about any of the books on my book list,

- you have questions about my fan fiction,

- you are interested in utilizing my beta mad skillz,

- or you are confused about my not-even-remotely comprehensive list.