/~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ BITIUM RIBBON /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\
\~/~\~/ \~/~\~/ \~/~\~/ \~/~\~/
"Life isn't about how many steps you take in a day.
It's about how many milestones you pass by in a lifetime.
Live for the adventure, breathe for the experience."
/~\~/~\JUMP TO SECTION/~\~/~\
Recent News - About The Author - Project Status - Abbreviation Key - Inner Debate
Name: Kyle J. McGiverin
Age: 20
Location: St. Catharines, Ontario (Brock University)
Current Project: The Restoration: Part XIV
Current Inner Debate: None
/~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ RECENT NEWS/~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\
(Return To Top)
March 19: Next chapter of Zacharias is finished, and I have to say I really like it. I like where the story is going overall, actually. Stay tuned, there will be more where that came from!
I know, short update... yeah.
/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ ABOUT THE AUTHOR/~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\
(Return To Top)
Bio - My Writing - My Reviewing - My Reading
Bio: I could write something abstract here. I could talk about how I was born in the Yukon and raised by pink and yellow viking manservants with green eyes, and then sent to boarding school in Taiwan with a bunch of teachers who had huge feet where I met the love of my life whose name I never learned how to spell and then, after his death, travelled across the ocean to Australia where I climbed Ayers' Rock with both hands tied behind my back and a boulder chained to my neck, after which I flew to Ontario and fell out of the plane, impaling myself on the CN Tower and being rushed to the hospital where they told me with squeaky Jigglypuff voices that I would never walk again, whereupon I rolled along the freeway to Brock University where they gave me a pity education and a pair of booty shorts.
But I won't.
I was actually born and brought up in Brampton. I've been reading stories all my life and writing them since I was about seven years old. I've been inspired by a great many authors including Gordon Korman and Philip Pullman, both of whom are excellent and captivating. I may someday add here a favourite authors list, but I haven't yet gotten around to brainstorming them.
When I don't write in my spare time (of which I have very little these days), I have a great many other hobbies to occupy myself with. I have played piano since I was four years old (for those of you who can't do the math there, that's 15 years), and piano is just one of those things for me that I can do without worrying about whether it's really going right. I can play and just relax, and sometimes relaxation is a difficult commodity to come by.
(Return To Top) (About The Author)
My Writing: I can't really say much about what I write and how I write, because that varies depending on the context. However, I tend to put in a lot of work with keeping characters in fanfics in character. For story purposes, I may vary from this (for example, Shadow's behaviour in The Restoration, Part I). I'm also fond of using descriptive elements to their full extent when writing. I believe that to create the image in the reader's head, most of the picture must be there to read. I'm fond of referring to Philip Pullman when I talk about it, because he believes that to make a story truly full and rich, even the angle of the light is important.
I have written several stories of several different genres. For detailed updates on project progress and slightly more detailed commentary, please scroll down to the Project Status section.
Most of the fanfics I've thus far written has been based upon fairly obscure games, because in most cases everything else has been done. I try to be a writer that challenges game universes to squeeze out everything they can offer. I love to try and find common threads between games (hence the premise of The Restoration), because that puts the task to the reader as well as the author to think outside the box, something I believe all writing should do.
In short, my writing goes everywhere, and if your reading goes everywhere along with it, you and I will become fast friends.
(Return To Top) (About The Author)
My Reviewing: If you see a review from me, you are likely one of a chance few. For those fellow Final Fantasy buffs out there, think of me as the Red Mage: someone who does a bit of everything but doesn't focus intensely on any one of those things. Consequently, I write when I have time between my other hobbies and, of course, school. I write because it is one of the few things that really relaxes me, makes me truly calm and keeps my mind working at the same time.
This means, of course, that I rarely have time to actually read FanFiction works. I know, I'm very fickle that way, and I plan on changing that very soon. However, since I seem to always have so many unfinished projects and new ideas spinning through my head every which way, I often don't get around to acting on those plans. When I review, though, I will be fairly meticulous (at the very least about grammar, spelling, sentence structure etc. if I don't know the subject of the fanfic). Despite that, I never let those little things get in the way of the big picture. I may poke at little things here and there, but if I tell you I like the story, it means keep writing it.
Here's hoping time slows down a little!
(Return To Top) (About The Author)
My Reading: Again, when I get around to it, I'm a big fan of fantasy works in general, which is part of what lures me to FanFiction.net. However, considering most of the fanfics I take the time to read will be based on games, books, etc. that I know inside and out, I shall warn you of one thing in particular that may push me away from your work. I am a stickler for characters being in character, except for the sake of the intended storyline (and in this case, the change in character should be justified and make sense). Therefore, if I suddenly see Umaro from Final Fantasy VI lounging in a robe, wearing half-moon spectacles, and reading a copy of War and Peace, I may not stick around for it. That is, unless it's a pure comedy, which I can appreciate... because let's face it: Umaro the sasquatch with half-moon spectacles and a book fatter than the Bible. That's just funny.
I'm not a huge fan of slashfics unless they're justified, along with random smut scenes (both of which I could go to the Nifty archive for, thank you very much). I might read the occasional one, but in general those aren't the types of stories I would come here to read. If you want me to review any of your work - haha, as if my opinion is that valuable - then please keep that in mind.
/~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ PROJECT STATUS /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\
(Return To Top)
The Restoration - Nova - A World Internal - Zacharias - Day After the Tentacle - The Endeavor - Choco's Rescue - The Seeds of Treason
FFCTSD: The Restoration
In Progress: Part XIV
Status: CP
Last Updated February 12
Official Description
-RECONSTRUCTED-Final Fantasy IV, V, VI, Chrono Trigger, Seiken Densetsu 3- Series that brings together the above game worlds. Completion of each is recommended for full reader understanding.
Commentary
The story is actually much more complicated than I was able to indicate in the blurb, but I won't give it away. Suffice it to say that it involves five different games. Kind of an ambitious project, I know, but I'm having a lot of fun writing it. The FFCTSD, in case you were wondering, stands for Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger, Seiken Densetsu. The games used are specifically Final Fantasy IV, V and VI, Chrono Trigger, and Seiken Densetsu 3 (otherwise known as Secret of Mana 2).
What makes this story so much fun to write is exploring the parallels between the different game worlds. Just start reading and you'll see what I mean. It took a lot of time to feel out all the implications and comparisons until I could shape them into a reasonable storyline, and I'm sure I would have had a much more difficult time of it if I hadn't been intimately familiar with all five games... but I suppose that's the way all fan fiction is.
A note to reviewers: though you may have all sorts of ideas of your own as to the different parallels and where they could go, and though I sincerely appreciate the input you have to offer, please refrain from mentioning them in your public reviews. I say this for two reasons. Primarily, backseat writers can get very annoying. Secondly, you could very easily touch on something that will be or has been written in, spoiling it for future readers. I'm happy to get ideas, but if you're going to give them, please send them in a private message or an e-mail. Thanks!
(Return To Top) (Project Status)
Nova
In Progress: Chapter 11
Status: --
Last Updated Feb. 12
Official Description
-Escape Velocity: Nova- Warning: Contains mild homoerotica and coarse language. Tells the story of a teenager from the Kane Band, Nova, and his escape from the brutal life he once knew. Some details do not adhere to the game.
Commentary
It's unfortunate that I had to include that line of caution in the blurb, but considering some of the sketchier subject matter, I felt that I should. The story also happens to be among the 'M' rated, although I'm considering knocking it down to 'T'. I'm not sure.
Whatever the circumstances of its posting, however, it's still one that I'm very, very proud of. It takes place within the game universe of Escape Velocity: Nova, but the basis is actually pretty loose. There are, of course, a lot of elements in it that are taken directly from the game, but nothing essential to understanding the story. Someone who doesn't know the game shouldn't have any trouble. It was originally written as a series of its own, and thus it was written to accomodate a crowd that didn't know the basis.
I think I'm most proud of the character work in this story. All the characters (with the exception of a select few) are original, and I feel as though I've given them a decent character make-up, something that's not necessarily easy to do, especially in a game where character is rarely addressed. Continuity with the game is sketchy in places - the basis is loose, like I said - but I'm not too worried about that, and to those of you who do know of Escape Velocity, I've written in the disclaimer not to take the details too seriously.
The reason it landed in the 'M' section was because of mild homoerotica (very mild; it's not a sex story at all) and a smattering of foul language. If you can stand that type of content, have at you!
(Return To Top) (Project Status)
A World Internal
In Progress: Segment 6: Terra Branford
Status: --
Last Updated February 25
Official Description
-Final Fantasy VI- A series of interludes based on the characters of Final Fantasy VI.
Commentary
The blurb doesn't quite say it all with this one, but it was either write something really short, or attempt to write something accurate and run out of room. I'll take a moment here to mention that the idea for this series came from Empress-Eerian-Sadow and her Final Fantasy IV Interludes (and, now that I look at her profile, I notice that she's got some other interludes up as well, so check them out). My variant on this idea, however, resulted in much longer pieces with a somewhat different approach.
I don't like using the word "interlude," and quite frankly I'm not sure why, because that's what they are, pretty much. But I prefer to think of them as moments of self-exploration at an important, pivotal stage. I like writing these because I seldom get the opportunity to monologue a character, really delve into them and turn them inside out. I get to explore what they're feeling, what they're thinking, how they're changing. It's a unique sort of fiction, and they seem so rare...
Another part of it is that I get to express my own interpretation of who the character is and why. Everyone thinks of a character in a different way, and I enjoy showing people what the character means to me. That's actually one of the reasons I write to begin with: to share my perspective and my ideas. So, you're looking at a piece that holds symbolic and nostalgic importance to me, and I hope you enjoy each of them.
(Return To Top) (Project Status)
Zacharias
In Progress: Chapter 6
Status: --
Last Updated February 23
Official Description
-Final Fantasy IV- The story of a Black Mage from Mysidia whose life is forever altered when the Water Crystal is taken by Cecil and the Red Wings.
Commentary
Ohhhhhhh, that was a hard brief-and-to-the-point description to come up with. It doesn't go anywhere near the real meat of the story, but I didn't really want it to.
Why am I writing Zacharias? Because I wanted to do a different take on the storyline of Final Fantasy IV outside of the view of the main characters. I wanted to give it some depth, make Cecil out to be anything but the golden good guy, and put a twist on the story that nobody has before. Now, don't get me wrong, I love Cecil, but he's so two-dimensional that I feel he needs a bit more exterior depth.
The story so far is coming along very well. Please read it if you have a moment!
(Return To Top) (Project Status)
Day After the Tentacle
In Progress: Chapter 2: The Old Edison Mansion
Status: NG, WB
Last Updated Nov. 29, 2006
Official Description
-Day of the Tentacle- Bernard, Hoagie and Laverne, a year after the tentacle madness, go to a friend's wedding and end up entwined in yet another mess with Dr. Fred and the ChronOJohn.
Commentary
I never did figure out why any dashes put into the blurb automatically disappear... FanFiction.net has given me a hard time in a lot of my text formatting.
At any rate, Bernard, Hoagie, Laverne, Dr. Fred and the Chron-O-John all come from a very old but brilliant DOS game called Day of the Tentacle. It's the sequel to another DOS game called Maniac Mansion, which was also released for the Nintendo and featured Dave and Sandy, as well as the first appearance of Bernard. The game was always one of my favourites growing up. It's entertaining and funny. What more can one ask for?
I wrote Day After the Tentacle more as a tribute to childhood nostalgia than anything else. I wanted to draw on the humour in Day of the Tentacle, and see if I could take the story in any bizarre new directions. It's been a fun process thus far. I rarely attempt anything humour related when I do fan fiction, but this was just too irresistable. I highly recommend playing Day of the Tentacle and its precursor Maniac Mansion before reading these. They're fun.
(Return To Top) (Project Status)
Arc the Lad 4: The Endeavor
In Progress: Part III
Status: NG
Last Updated Nov. 28, 2006
Official Description
-Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits- Diekbeck, the robot exleader of the UltraMech Squad and helpful hero from the battle with the Lord of the Black Abyss, awakens to find himself in a familiar place, but an unfamiliar time.
Commentary
What is it with me and writing for games that barely anybody knows about? It doesn't make for good publicity. I must also check to see if there's a Canadian spelling variant for the word "endeavor."
At any rate, another fun one to write, in part because Diekbeck (the main character and a robot) is arguably my favourite character of all the cast in the game, whose platform this time is PlayStation 2. There is just so much that is cool about him. I wanted to write something about him, and at the same time do something that hadn't been done before. So I started thinking about things particular to a robot, and I realized that he'd still be around after a long time, where a human would not.
The "long time" ended up being a mere three decades, but I still think the story has merit (according to one hyperactive reviewer, anyway). I like writing it because I still get the degree of artistic licence despite being tied to the universe of the one game. I've taken the opportunity to turn that game world into something very different than what it appears to be in-game, and that's always a fun process. That, plus the opportunity to take some side-characters and make them important, always makes it worth writing in my books (no pun intended).
(Return To Top) (Project Status)
Arc the Lad 4: Choco's Rescue
Complete
Last Updated July 19, 2005
Official Description
-Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits- Choco's innate curiosity catches the team of Deimos right in the middle of the critical mission to assassinate Darkham, and the end result takes them to places that they have never been to before.
Commentary
This piece holds a special place in my heart, because it was the first piece of writing I ever put up on FanFiction.net. I also had a fun time writing it. The cast of Arc the Lad 4 are entertaining people to work with.
The inspiration for this one came from an actual line of dialogue from in-game combat. The title character, Choco, upon picking up gold or an item, will sometimes say "I wonder how it tastes!" A funny line indeed, and when I looked at it from an author's point of view, it was far too good to pass up. Of course, the result wasn't entirely a comedy. It actually touches on some very important character details in some of the more important characters, which is one reason I'm proud of it.
Of course, at the time I wrote this story I was hooked completely on the game. I don't know the details of it as well as I did then, and I haven't played it in a long time. The storyline was excellent, though, as were all the characters, and I think any fan fiction author who's played it and passed up the opportunity to write about it has some mental issues.
(Return To Top) (Project Status)
Final Fantasy VI: The Seeds of Treason
Complete
Last Updated Feb. 28, 2007
Official Description
-Final Fantasy VI- A story told from the perspective of Celes Chere and details the events that lead from her desertion of the Empire to her arrival at South Figaro.
Commentary
Another situation where I'd like to say a lot more in the blurb but run out of room far too quickly. Still, the story is one of my self-proclaimed prouder moments of writing, sort of as an intermediary step between monologue and account.
This one was inspired by Guardian-381 and a story of his called War. He and I talk a lot now, so I guess I have both this story and his to thank for that. Mine is a look at the events that led up to Celes' defection from the Empire, carrying on until the moment she's seen in South Figaro in the game. It was a great one for me to do, because at the time I felt I needed the practice getting inside a character's head. It was partly the fact that I did this that led to writing A World Internal.
Of course, it's similar in that she's given a pivotal moment and the goings-on of her mind are brought out and expressed. The overall layout and style, though, as well as the type of content, is all very different. There's an actual plot to this, and it's more of a justification story than one of internal expression. I originally started this out as one big chapter, but changed it to a three-parter at a hint from Valkyrie Celes (appropriately enough). It's better as a trilogy, though. I'll always look fondly on it.
(Return To Top) (Project Status)
/~\~/~\ ABBREVIATION KEY /~\~/~\
(Return To Top)
CP = Current Project. This will appear next to whichever story I'm focusing on at a given time.
WB = Writer's Block. It happens to the best of us.
NG = Neglected. I haven't put any work into these stories in some time. If this appears next to any project, I am aware I've delayed on it and it will be up eventually.
LP = Lost Progress. Due to circumstances beyond my control, all or part of the story has been lost.
UR = Under Renovation. If this appears next to a story title, it means that I'm currently improving or editing the existing content.
ID = Inner Debate. These stories will appear below and will be put to public opinion.
/~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ INNER DEBATE /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\ /~\~/~\
(Return To Top)
Nothing at the moment. Stay tuned!
FanFiction.Net - unleash your imagination
Poll: Which story should be updated next? Vote Now!
