28 April 2008

Second installment of NightRain is being developed, albeit slowly: very, very slowly. Don't know whether it's the writer's block, or that I'm having so much fun researching sword forging and purification, but no estimated post date as yet.

I'll be getting back to fixing all the formatting messes created by the last FF.net upgrade within the week.

By the kind offices of Pouasson (/u/616431/Pouasson on FF . net), the Adoption series is being translated into French. I am completely thrilled, and a little stunned, that someone would undertake this. Made my month!

23 March 2008

Arggh! Not sure what FF.net did in their last upgrade, but it looks like all the punctuation and formatting has dropped out of all of my stories. So, looks like I'm going to be gradually working through reformatting every single one of my stories. Not my favorite way to spend my keyboar time.

A Bit About Me

Like swords. Hate chardonnay. Write haiku. Train horses. Old enough to be your grandmother, probably. Can cuss in four languages. Pretty good cook, and have no shame when it comes to Hagen Daz Dulce de Leche ice cream. Sometime professional editor with an obsession about consistent tenses.

Interest in anime is pretty much just InuYasha and Rurouni Kenshin, plus whatever I happen to catch on Anime Unleashed. Make that "and Otogi Zoshi, too." Fascinated by the relationship between Sesshomaru and ‘Yasha. Intrigued by the complexities of Himura Kenshin, one man with a gentle soul and a killer'’s resolve.

Formatting In Spite of QuickEdit

Yes, I know that I get funny characters everywhere I try to use an apostrohe. It's the ever-present FF.net QuickEdit gremlin, and short of casting spells, I can't find any rhyme or reason as to when it happens and when it doesn't. I do try to correct the format. Really. Drives me crazy that I can't. If the glitchy characters make it hard for you to enjoy the stories, you can also find me on MM org, as Murasaki-chan (no H in there).

Love That Canon

Manga canon, that is. So in my RK stories, Kenshin's gi is a faded red, and I do believe I've kept my stories Suzame-and Ayame free. Also, although Kenshin's concerned that his enemies might go after Kaoru to strike him he doesn't belabor himself about being "unworthy" of her. In fact, he pretty much jumps on the opportunity when she makes her feelings for him known (manga vol. 20). Well, jumps on it for Kenshin,, anyway. In the manga, he is a very reserved and mannerly person, even dignified, but no one can accuse him of being indecisive or unable to seize an opportunity. Except of course for Hiko, but I believe one of Hiko's personal crusades is to make sure his deshi gets as many normal life experiences as possible. In other words, he just loves getting Kenshin's goat, but usually has some kind motivation. Oh yeah, one more thing—Sessho Hen never happened. That production had so much potential: beautiful design, music, voice acting. If only they'd gotten a writer who hadn't confused Madame Butterfly with Rurouni Kenshin.

A Few Good References

The ex-editor in me recommends these as the minimum, quintessential writer's reference bookshelf. Between a good spell checker and the elegant, brief Elements of Style, there is no excuse for mixed tenses, mixed cases, and general grammatical pain. If you are serious about improving your writing, learn to know and love these basic tools.

Replace the words SLASH and DOT with the equivalent charactersin the URLs listed below to surf to these sites. If the URLs don't show up, point your browser to wwwDOTbartlebysDOTcom and search for these titles

Best American English Dictionary: American Heritage Dictionary, Fourth Edition. educationDOTyahooDOTcomSLASHreferenceSLASHdictionary This is the one careful American writers use, not Merriam-Webster. The latter is complete as to vocabulary, but loses the usage race badly.

Best (and simplest) Usage Guide: The Elements of Style (AKA "Strunk & White") wwwDOTbartlebyDOTcomSLASH141SLASH

Complete & Clear Human Anatomy: Gray's Anatomy wwwDOTbartlebyDOTcomSLASH107SLASH Please, please read this before writing about bones, muscles or maidenheads.