...was here long before the movie took her name.

Myself:

I write. Occasionally, my life gets in the way.

I am human, adult, female, cynical, romantic, possessed at times by creative fervor, fiercely independent yet almost pathetic when lonely, mature and immature in alternation, and dependent on words for both the expression and expansion of my beliefs, thoughts and needs.

I have a girlfriend, though the word seems too small to describe what she means to me. She is my reluctant muse, idea-bouncer-off-erer, provider of snuggles and portable body heater. She is also my biggest fan, and the reason why I started writing in the first place. If you wish to thank someone for my writing, go to her.

(I have been in love with her since I was fourteen. It is a long enough time now that I look back on those first days with something a little like awe, and I look upon the days to come with something like hope.)

I am young enough to feel grief for those lost to me, and old enough to understand it. I am, by my country’s standards, mature enough to smoke, drink, drive, watch pornography, enter the armed forces and vote (hopefully not all at the same time) though I have so far, done only one of these six things. I’m aiming for three.

I used to work in a candy store; my days were filled with sugar and sweets, though the work was not nearly as easy as it appeared through the windows. I went home spattered with toffee burns, splashes of food colouring and with glucose in my hair, and my limbs ached tiredly.

I am currently training to be a librarian; one day soon I will come into my full librarian-y powers- that is, the ability to freeze blood with the merest lift of an eyebrow and shush someone so loudly it can be heard three streets away. I look forward to my future, and hope to encourage a love of books and words in small children the way many librarians once encouraged the same love in me.

I am also learning to speak Japanese, with varying levels of success; although I can write and read it well enough, I do not seem to be able to speak it well enough to string a sentence together- hence my contributions during class mostly consist of "Mouichido ite onegaishimasu," and "Nani?", much to my sensei’s consternation.

I like the smell of fresh-picked mint leaves. Winter is my favourite season. I used to have a rat named Pandora, and much like her namesake, she had a knack for getting into mischief. I don't like walking around at night, for fear of the zombies, yet vampires fascinate me. I love trivial facts, and continuously spout them (much to the bemusement of those I love).

I talk a lot to those who know me. I don't like going up to strangers for fear of rejection. I have a slight fear of crowds and busy places, which leads to mild distress come lunch time when every restaurant as far as the eye can see is packed full. I dabble in cliques and categories, and belong to none. I have no religion to speak of, but discussions of faith rouse in me a confused urge to belong to one, though I make no attempt to do so.

I am officially a Uni Student now, and almost finished my final year of four long years of study, I have come to realise that these depths in which I paddle are starting to look terrifyingly shallow compared to the expectations the real world I now face...

My writing:

Spellcheck is my mortal enemy and has renamed characters we know and love. Thus, I now own Shimmery Aoshi, Canoe Konoka and nospellingoption Setsuna. I will adopt Mariachi Misao and Samba Sano when I can afford to open a dancing studio. Kagurazaka Sauna can be found lurking in my steamed-out bathroom, and Chimera Kenshin is chained up in my shed.

I read a lot. A ridiculously huge amount in fact, though no matter how many books I devour, I am never truly sated- I am merely satisfied for a time. This, too, interferes with my writing, although it can inspire me and lead me to create more and more writing, which in turn, affects my desire to read an ever higher amount of text... therefore, I seem to be stuck in some sort of vicious literature loop.

(I am not certain I would want to free myself, if even I could.)

My girlfriend is gently pressuring me to write the book she knows I have in me, but every idea I develop seems too shallow or impossibly common. I will get there someday, but as each day passes, I can feel that promise weighted down by passing time.

I write in many different fandoms, and I read in even more. I adore well-written alternate pairings, and am an indiscriminate shipper. That said, I do have my favourites, and those who know me know better than to disparage them within my earshot. I am a shameless romantic at heart, and this seems to permeate my work; however, I love supernatural themes and artistically rendered gore enough that they too seep into my words. I am a frustrated poet; sometimes, this too is expressed through my quirky style.

If you have written something that impresses me, be secure in the knowledge I will talk about it to my girlfriend for weeks, regardless of whether she listens or not- and the same goes for anyone in earshot.

Having recently breached the hundred-review mark for one of my stories, all I can say is that I am very, very appreciative of all the people who took the time to read and review my work. Thankyou very, very much. I am also very aware of how much it means to an author to get reviews, and if you read something of any author you like, please send him/her a review- it takes thirty seconds, and the smiles you bring to their faces will last for days. Trust me on this; most of the time my walking around with a stupid grin is due to something someone has said in a review or message.

(That said, I tend to favourite before I review, and if I have been lax in giving you much-deserved reviews, please forgive me. I am, among many things, a terrible hypocrite.)

Fanart:

This shiny new segment comes from the fact I now, officially, have fan art! (Waves pom-poms and cheers) Much thanks to PepPepPepperoni for being awesome and creating the following for Egg Belly:

http://kitsune-konno.deviantart.com/art/Konosetsu-Shower-140001167

It's a scene from Chapter Six, and rendered beautifully at that. Everyone go check it out and shower her with praise :D

Also, something else to check out by GNneko; not actually a scene from EB, but inspired by, and just a tad NSFW but awesome nonetheless:

http://gnneko.deviantart.com/#/d2snpot

Go check it out, and be sure to comment if you do! :D

And now we also have Egg Belly on Tv Tropes! http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/FanFic/EggBelly If you're a troper, feel free to add something to the page- I'm interested to see what people think! :D