I’m completely guilty of trying this coffee/tea shop because of its name. Now, it’s one of my favorite places to stop over & write for a bit. ::twinkle::
You had me at …
Category: Random Asides
Plants vs. Zombies
Plants vs. Zombies. I’m not much of a gamer. Most of the things I’ve picked up over the years have been because my kids played, and having fun is a group sport at our house. Yu-Gi-Oh, Boom!, Pokemon. League of Legends. And … Plants vs. Zombies, which recently released a remastered edition called Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted. But before I could check out the new game, I was determined to beat the old one. Okay, honestly, I’ve played through the original version of Plants vs. Zombies dozens (and dozens) of times. I find it relaxing, I guess? But I never unlocked the modes the come if you grow your Tree of Wisdom to 500 feet and 1000 feet. Until now. #SoProud
Is the new game worth nabbing? A lot of it’s the same. However, if you play through to the end of the main game, you unlock a tidy pile of new stuff. I especially like the Cloudy Day levels, in which your sunflowers only give half a sun under passing clouds, then drop off to sleep completely whenever heavy clouds roll through. Suddenly, it’s very important to conserve your resources!
Have you ever unlocked PINATA mode? Nice, right? ::twinkle::
Starmark Pajamas
Found in the Wild. This is the best time of year for finding new pajamas, since all the stores are bringing in tons of holiday coziness. Scanning through options at our local Walmart had me doing a double-take. Boy, do these look familiar.
Not exactly the same, but close enough to count. If you want ’em, too, best nab a pair in your size before the holiday rush. ::twinkle::
ART: cropped from a fun piece called “Hold Him Down” by FoxOfTwilight
May the Forth
Be with You. I’m home, and I’ve mostly taken care of my post-travel necessities. Laundry handled. Fridge restocked. To be honest, my internal clock still seems to think I’m on the east coast, but hey … nothing wrong with getting an early start to a writing day! ::twinkle::
I spy a 4. (I’m always snapping pictures of fours.)
The writing part of my retreat has given me a solid start on the next novel on my writing docket (Hadwin is the second book in CJ’s Journeymen of Stone series.) It went from zero to 30k with about a week’s worth of full attention. Wish I could keep up that pace on the daily, but I have other responsibilities. One of those is responding to emails (many of them book orders, so thanks for that!), and my serial stories will be back this coming week.
::twinkle::
Wait. What?
How have I never heard the term “hopepunk” before?
Screen-capped from my google search (because I have noticed the term in a couple of book ads and finally looked it up).
Kinda suits, right?
Kimi2
Worth It. Took a day to comb through upcoming events in Kimiko and the Cycle of Moons. Plotting twelve kisses requires creativity and coordination (and continuity checks). I fussed until I was satisfied with the pacing. Now to write this month’s installment!
Pokemon GO!
Vivillon Patterns. Every so often, I’ll remind followers that I’m a pokemon trainer. ::twinkle:: Since I just completed the Vivillon collection challenge this morning, I thought I’d brag a bit & see if anyone needs a friend. I play daily, participate in raids, and send gifts from the High Plains region.
I added the elusive Sandstorm patterned Vivillon to my collection thanks to a new friend in Jerusalem. ::blows kiss::
If you also play Pokemon GO, drop me an email with your friends code: always.forthright at gmail.com
Release Day Festivities
LMM. I don’t usually do much on release days, since I’m a homebody & I’m usually up to my twinkles in “next things.” But yesterday was a happy exception, and the day was crowned by a trip into a fancy little gelato shop. Their flavors change daily, so I was especially pleased to find Jacques’ personal favorite amidst their offerings.
. . .
. . .
It’s kinda funny, because just last week, we were out-and-about and followed a billboard advertisement to a creamery, where I ordered bubblegum ice cream. ::twinkle::
Both serendipitous finds *after* I’d written about Jacques’ remedy for heartbreak in LMM. ::twinkle::
Do you have favorite flavors for either ice cream or gelato? Do tell!
Tweeted
This came across my Twitter feed, and it was a little too easy to respond accurately. ::twinkle::
How about you?
Civic Duty
Always Something. This week, my usual schedule was interrupted because I had to report to the county courthouse for jury selection. The first day, they didn’t get through the whole process, so we had to reassemble the next morning. Then (after standing in marble halls for a little over an hour) we filed into the courtroom only to have the judge announce that the case was closed. “Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your service. You are dismissed.” So having done my civic duty, I’m back in ye olde home office, trying to catch up. If things go very well, there might be two Lord Mettlebright’s Man chapters today. ::twinkle::
Pokemon GO!
2022 in Review. I received a message from Niantic with a roundup of my year. How many kilometers I walked, how many spinners spun, how many Pokemon I caught, how many raids I participated in … that sort of thing. And I also earned a … title?
Apparently, I’m a good & loyal friend, so if you need one (in-game) … comment or drop me an email with your trainer code. ::twinkle::
ART: Christmas Cozy
Hustle-Bustle. No matter how often I plan for a quiet holiday season, things get festive fast. My December is packed, but I’m sneaking in some writing around the edges & making plans for 2023. Good things today & good things to come. May your season be merry & twinkle-bright!
Christmas Cozy | art by FoxOfTwilight
Fandom Anniversary
Sixteen Years. As many of you know, I learned the ropes of writing fiction in fandom. I’ve always left my old stories, even the ones that make me cringe, posted. It’s sort of like … proof of where I came from, how I developed, what I achieved. But it’s also because I love those stories. I’m proud of them.
Forthright’s Doku-sona (from the Dokuga website)
Gift!art by FoxOfTwilight (kinda how we met!)
This week, I received a flurry of emails from folks because fanfiction.net, the only site where all of my stories are posted, is teetering on the verge of extinction. Abandoned by its administration, the dinosaur may soon vanish, taking everything with it. And my long-time readers, the ones who go back to regularly reread my fanfics, don’t want to lose their favorite stories.
It’s a shame. I’ve often joked over the years that fanfic writers are paid in reviews. Oh, there’s a stats page, too. My numbers are crazy. If you do searches for the most-reviewed and most-favorited stories in the InuYasha fandom, I have 6 titles in the top 20.
- forthright is on the favorites list of 6,700~ members
- my accumulated stories add up to over a million (1,230,000+) words
- my most popular story, Unspoiled, is on the favorites list of 10,785 members
- my most reviewed story, Lord Charming, has 24 million reads and has just shy of 20,000 reviews (uh, that’s spread over 800 chapters, for context)
Assorted gift!art | ARTISTS: lila-me, rikayu-chan, j_lianne, janey-jane
Oodles more art on dA: Forthright Fanclub & Unspoiled Fanclub
I’m so grateful that some of my long-time readers followed me here … and trust my storytelling enough to have picked up the Amaranthine Saga. In a very real way, I wrote the series to tickle my fandom friends. A “-miko” for every main character, familiar plot set-ups (an enslaved butler, two janitors with a big secret, a hoarder and a home organizer, an accidental engagement involving a comb, and even a marooned wolf on an island with a resort), and borrowed settings (apple orchard, college campus, Founder’s Coffee Shop, and even Stately House). And Hisoka-sensei, of course (he’s an OC from Unspoiled). Early on, I used to say that I plotted the entire Saga because he deserved a story of his own.
I’ve been asked (again and again) to post my fics to AO3 (An Archive Of Our Own), which is where all the cool kids hang out these days. I did claim a profile, which is “forthrightly” since someone audaciously snagged my penname ahead of me. Here’s a link. If the worst occurs, I’ll migrate my stories to AO3. Nothing of importance will be lost.
“Miroku” | Commissioned Art by PurpleRebecca
I mean it when I say … thank you for supporting my stories wherever you find them. And happy anniversary to me! ::confetti toss::
Lord, it’s gone quiet.
Lord Mettlebright’s Man. There have been a handful of private asides, but It’s been unusually quiet in comments lately, and I’m curious why.
Tongue in Cheek. You don’t actually have to comment for me to keep going. I know lots of you love Jacques and care about his outcomes. This is mostly me popping up to ask my own aside. “Hey, are you okay, over there?” If life’s been crazy where you are, please know that I care & hope my stories can somehow keep you company. :: hug ::
GO! Fest
Gotta Catch ‘Em All. Taking a little break from writing today in order to play. Yep, I’m into Pokemon GO! If you are, too, and you need a friend, message me. My email is always.forthright at gmail dot com. Always happy to play with reading friends. ::glomp::
“I Choose You!” | chibi by FoxOfTwilight
FORTHRIGHT 