Thursday, December 3, 2009

New Beginnings

Note: Completely a picture entry. These are some of the pictures I took originally for the last chapter which I ended up changing over the course of the story. But I thought they fit together perfectly to make a separate entry that tells its own very short story.

Since this is sort of the week for bonus/scraps, this is what you get for the kick off.

Warning: Highly suggestive theme if you can't guess from the preview pic, but nothing graphic.


















On to Bonus/transition piece: Killer -->


16 comments:

  1. For these two, suggestive is perfect. Edy's expression seems to swing between welcoming and wary, or at least unsure, but then even in the best of circumstances she would probably feel that way.

    Who really holds the power here?

    Lovely, lovely shots!! You make them speak.

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  2. Thank you S.B. I love how you read it all so differently from the way I do, but that's okay with me. That's what gives the story its own life.

    I see nervousness and anticipation in her face sometimes, and other times I see the wariness. But I have a favorite shot. I'll wait for others to weigh in first before I share it.

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  3. You give the reader a complex set of circumstances and multi-layered characters. I'm sure I see them through a different set of experiences, so I interpret it differently. You're a very good writer - you provide the reader the opportunity to think and interpret on their own. That's why book clubs enjoy discussing and arguing about what an author meant; the author has to be good enough to make that possible.

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  4. What beautiful pictures! I'll tell you what my favourite one is but I'm really curious to hear what yours is, Lunar.

    I really love the third one (which I guess is the fourth, if you count the title pic). I like how her fingers are just gently grazing across his skin and that she seems to be looking at him but he's not quite looking at her. She seems a tad tentative but he seems almost stoic (which I'm not sure is quite the word I'm looking for). And I sort of love that maybe their faces were telling a different story but I can't see them, so who knows?

    I'm glad you don't mind us coming up with different interpretations! Sometimes I get stuck on figuring out what the writer means (and this is with a lot of things, not just Ruin) but maybe I overestimate the importance of that at times.

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  5. Oh, and I'm saying this now because I can't remember if I said it in the last chapter but I'm really looking forward to reading how this changes the dynamic between Michael and Edy and between both of them and the rest of the group. Should be interesting!

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  6. S.B. exactly-- it's all about the experiences of the reader. Things that might mean nothing to me end up standing out to the person reading. It's so interesting to me.

    But thank you very much. *blushes* I would love this story (and hopefully stories after this) to have stuff in it people can talk about and ponder. My repeating theme seems to be relationships between people in this world.

    Carla, thanks. You have nailed my second favorite pic for a lot of the same reasons I love it. I imagine that in it, he's whispering something to her, maybe a warning of some sort. Maybe he's saying, "I'm not going to change" or he's asking her if she's sure. How I read it seems to depend on my mood.

    As for the interpretations, I think it might depend on the writer. Some probably want you to think a certain way if they've spent time crafting it. In my case, I sometimes feel like I'm just tapping into an already existing world, and so I try my best to step out of it to leave it up to the readers. Because you all will bring different experiences from it, and you don't really know my experiences. In the end, it's less frustrating for all.

    All of that is definitely something I will go back to and touch on with Gina's stories and beyond. With this story, I move back and forth a lot.

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  7. I'm not quite into the TS3 serious story scene yet, given that I play the game and can't quite look past the goofy faces they're making, LOL! But I have to say that you've done an excellent job cropping and shooting the pictures so that it's hard for me to notice. I say this not to cause offense, but simply because I'm an honest type and I know writers sometimes like feedback to grow from. As someone who clicks a link, sees its a serious TS3 story and then immediately turns away, you've kept me coming back despite that.

    1st person narrative can be a PIA and the fact that you're not only tackling a new medium and using that difficult narrative says volumes. Mostly because it's done well, I like it. Most people try to overreach, to have their characters somehow know what everyone is feeling/thinking like they are psychic or something. I don't get that here, I feel like I'm being forced to see everything through one person's perspective. I like that you explore other characters in this way, too.

    In regards to this entry, to be honest, when it comes to sims and sexuality, I like it when it's subtle. Less is more, a peek is much better than the whole shebang. It leaves a lot more to reader interpretation. Instead of forcing down ideas, you're giving the reader a landscape to wander through on their own.

    Sorry for the tl;dr comment. I'm not a big "HOMG AWESOME" commenter or the type to blow smoke up someone's butt for giggles. Unfortunately, I AM the long commenter that types out a damn email instead of a "comment".

    Suffice it to say, good stuff. I know the trials of having a story near and dear to your heart, struggling with characters that have grown to the point where you wonder when they got so much damn control. I couldn't imagine using a visual medium for mine--too many limitations. The fact you're doing it is amazing.

    I've given this link to enchanted_black, who does Simhaven's story features. So hopefully she'll use it as a feature. :)

    Okay, wall-o-text ends now. Again, good stuff.

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  8. lol, thank you very much Mao. I happen to like longer comments. They're more fun to read!

    I know what you mean, I can't play TS3 because of the silly faces, yet somehow I actually find it works out really well. I've said before that I think it has to do with the inherent creepiness of TS3 sims. It works out perfectly for this world and this story.

    But I'm glad you stuck around despite that. :)

    I've always loved first person a little too much I think. I'm glad that it is working though! Thank you very much for the positive feedback.

    I have to agree-- subtlety is key. I finally took the "mature" warning off because I've written enough to realize I'm not going to get as graphic as I worried I might.


    Thank you very much for commenting. It's always wonderful to hear from anyone who pops in.

    You too? Some characters and some stories are like that. They just hijack themselves. I'm just the poor soul trying to keep them on track and patch up any plot holes they leave in their wake.

    And thank you for passing on the link.

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  9. My favorite pic is #9 (not counting the title image). Maybe that's weird, but it looked to me like he was going to kiss the corner of her mouth, or her cheekbone--and that's an unexpectedly tender action from someone like him. Michael looks like he reveres Edy--treasures her. She looks like she's shy, and curious about this side of him. Wonderful! Thanks for posting this! :)

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  10. This one?

    Because that is my favorite. To me it looks like she's kissing his chin, making a tentative step to take some of the power and giving him her okay. "Shy and curious about this side of him" as you've said.

    You put it better than I could. Thank you, Rachel!

    ((And just think, this is all because their faces don't line up for a proper kiss because they're different age groups in game! How awesome is that? That's what I'm talking about with the subtleties of Sims 3 that I don't think I could get with TS2.))

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  11. Yes! That's the one! It's funny how we both saw it differently--you saw it as Edy taking some of the power, and I took it as an expression of tenderness from Michael. I love it!

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  12. I love the shots. You really do get a sense of tender loving here.

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  13. I can't believe i'm only seeing this now... How did i ever miss this link?

    It's gorgeous, Lunar! Very, very special. Especially, since we now know that he picks up her dreans (even if he doesn't want to) and that she can 'call' him with her mind.

    They are equals at last... :)

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  14. Thanks guys.

    Yes, in some way they are becoming equals. I'm very glad you enjoyed it. ^__^

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  15. Very sweet and so true that these shots together tell their own story.

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