time out!!
Okay.
First of all, I want to thank those of you who left comments on Zoe's latest chapter--and, for that matter, on many, many chapters in the past. I appreciate your thoughts and honesty. Half of the reason we started the Romany Epistles project was so that we writers could grow in our art, and your feedback helps us do just that. I'm eager to grow in my abilities as a writer, and for that reason I have opened myself, and my work, up to criticism and encouragement both.
That being said, I'd like to reply to a few of the comments left for me here. There are quite a few "anonymous" comments, so hopefully you'll be able to sort through which ones are addressed to whom. :)
Anonymous #1: I completely understand what you are saying about me drawing out the ending. Many comments have been left to that effect, actually. Allow me to make it very clear to everyone out there--I KNOW THE ENDING IS TOO LONG AND DRAWN OUT. There. Was that loud and clear enough? I am not, and never have tried to, set myself up as the next Tolkien, who can write thousand-page books with long endings and multiple character stories to conclude. Nor, for that matter, have I written along the same lines as C. S. Lewis. Though I write Christian Fantasy, as did those two illustrious authors, I believe my style is quite different from theirs, and therefore any comparison is a little premature. Regardless of that, though--let me get back to the too-long ending of Zoe.
Something that I have not shared with many of you is that I have tried ending Zoe three different times, at different points earlier in the story. Each time, it came out so wrong, it would have been a disfavor to me and to my characters to post it. Therefore, I continued writing until I was able to write some sort of conclusion that was satisfying to me and Zoe and Tancred. Keep in mind that this is a First Draft of the story, and much of what you have read here over the last months will inevitably be cut in the final edition. I realize that I will have to shorten it a lot in order to get a decent Second Draft. I'm prepared to do that. But also give me a little grace, for though you may find the ending of my First Draft drawn-out, ridiculous, or just boring, it has been very difficult to pen (or...type). Not just because my characters are stubborn, but because this is my time to say goodbye to two very wonderful people who have become exceedingly real to me. Tancred is just as real to me as Zoe; and Zoe technically IS real because she's me. :) So, though you might be sick of them and their lengthy conclusion, and Zoe's stubbornness, please understand that 1) the Second Draft will cut a lot of the ending, and 2) I need time to say my goodbyes and right now, I'm doing that through a longer ending.
Anonymous #2: You wanted Aiden to be the one saving Zoe? LOL, I never would have thought of that. It WOULD have been an interesting, I'll give you that, but it would also break the rules we laid out at the beginning of the Romany Epistles project. One of the first rules was that the characters must never meet during the three years they are separated. Obviously you see Charissa and I walked a very, verrrry thin line with Aiden and Zoe--I mean, they practically DO meet, but in the end, it's still not a proper reunion. Zoe sees Aiden in the battle; Aiden's sent to assassinate Tancred. The whole story they're so close...but we never broke the rules laid out. So I'm sorry to disappoint, if you were hoping for Aiden, but that would have been blatantly violating some rules laid out early on.
I'm sorry that you're finding the ending boring. As I wrote above, the ending will be worked on. Right now I must say that my top priority is bidding my characters farewell. Then, I will go back and begin dissecting the story and making it better than it is now. Although, I must say you're making me a little nervous how you're writing to me-- "I know you will make the conclusion special just for Tancred and Zoe, not your typical hero/saviour idea." Hmm...well, okay! Hope your confidence is adequately placed it me.
Michelle: Thanks. I know you're all trying to help. I'm simply trying to make my point of view clear too. I appreciate everyone's input, though.
solagratiasolafide: I will definitely let Brittany know you want Sam! We're working on it. Slowly. But working on it. :)
Thank you all again for you input on Zoe. I've been very grateful for it. I'm sorry to those of you who have not been satisfied with it--but please remember this is only a First Draft.
Later and God Bless,
Emily
First of all, I want to thank those of you who left comments on Zoe's latest chapter--and, for that matter, on many, many chapters in the past. I appreciate your thoughts and honesty. Half of the reason we started the Romany Epistles project was so that we writers could grow in our art, and your feedback helps us do just that. I'm eager to grow in my abilities as a writer, and for that reason I have opened myself, and my work, up to criticism and encouragement both.
That being said, I'd like to reply to a few of the comments left for me here. There are quite a few "anonymous" comments, so hopefully you'll be able to sort through which ones are addressed to whom. :)
Anonymous #1: I completely understand what you are saying about me drawing out the ending. Many comments have been left to that effect, actually. Allow me to make it very clear to everyone out there--I KNOW THE ENDING IS TOO LONG AND DRAWN OUT. There. Was that loud and clear enough? I am not, and never have tried to, set myself up as the next Tolkien, who can write thousand-page books with long endings and multiple character stories to conclude. Nor, for that matter, have I written along the same lines as C. S. Lewis. Though I write Christian Fantasy, as did those two illustrious authors, I believe my style is quite different from theirs, and therefore any comparison is a little premature. Regardless of that, though--let me get back to the too-long ending of Zoe.
Something that I have not shared with many of you is that I have tried ending Zoe three different times, at different points earlier in the story. Each time, it came out so wrong, it would have been a disfavor to me and to my characters to post it. Therefore, I continued writing until I was able to write some sort of conclusion that was satisfying to me and Zoe and Tancred. Keep in mind that this is a First Draft of the story, and much of what you have read here over the last months will inevitably be cut in the final edition. I realize that I will have to shorten it a lot in order to get a decent Second Draft. I'm prepared to do that. But also give me a little grace, for though you may find the ending of my First Draft drawn-out, ridiculous, or just boring, it has been very difficult to pen (or...type). Not just because my characters are stubborn, but because this is my time to say goodbye to two very wonderful people who have become exceedingly real to me. Tancred is just as real to me as Zoe; and Zoe technically IS real because she's me. :) So, though you might be sick of them and their lengthy conclusion, and Zoe's stubbornness, please understand that 1) the Second Draft will cut a lot of the ending, and 2) I need time to say my goodbyes and right now, I'm doing that through a longer ending.
Anonymous #2: You wanted Aiden to be the one saving Zoe? LOL, I never would have thought of that. It WOULD have been an interesting, I'll give you that, but it would also break the rules we laid out at the beginning of the Romany Epistles project. One of the first rules was that the characters must never meet during the three years they are separated. Obviously you see Charissa and I walked a very, verrrry thin line with Aiden and Zoe--I mean, they practically DO meet, but in the end, it's still not a proper reunion. Zoe sees Aiden in the battle; Aiden's sent to assassinate Tancred. The whole story they're so close...but we never broke the rules laid out. So I'm sorry to disappoint, if you were hoping for Aiden, but that would have been blatantly violating some rules laid out early on.
I'm sorry that you're finding the ending boring. As I wrote above, the ending will be worked on. Right now I must say that my top priority is bidding my characters farewell. Then, I will go back and begin dissecting the story and making it better than it is now. Although, I must say you're making me a little nervous how you're writing to me-- "I know you will make the conclusion special just for Tancred and Zoe, not your typical hero/saviour idea." Hmm...well, okay! Hope your confidence is adequately placed it me.
Michelle: Thanks. I know you're all trying to help. I'm simply trying to make my point of view clear too. I appreciate everyone's input, though.
solagratiasolafide: I will definitely let Brittany know you want Sam! We're working on it. Slowly. But working on it. :)
Thank you all again for you input on Zoe. I've been very grateful for it. I'm sorry to those of you who have not been satisfied with it--but please remember this is only a First Draft.
Later and God Bless,
Emily
posted by The Romany Epistles at 7:43 AM
11 Comments:
Yay! I get to post the first comment! :) Emily, that took a lot of courage to write. I'm proud that you are willing to share with us why the ending is so long. I know it can't be easy to say goodbye to characters that you have spent almost two years with. Can you believe it's been that long already?! Thank you for passing the message on to Brittany. I'm thrilled that there might be something about him soon. That teaser she put up a couple months ago got me so excited, and now there's nothing new. Maybe soon...I hope. :) This is getting really long, but I wanted to let you know that at least one reader is happy with the long ending. The longer the ending the further away a good bye to the story is. *grin* Anyway, be blessed by the Father, and know that there is at least one reader out the rooting for a longish ending.
I was looking at a blog post from way back that I had on my computer and realized why I recognized your writing. *smacks forehead* Before you changed blogs on Xanga you had written a story, called "Destiny's Rider". Well, I would love to finish reading it, if you still have it. If not, that's ok. I like your writing and would love to read something that you've already finished. Ok, enough of me for now. I have stuff I should be doing besides this, but this is way more fun. *grin* Be blessed!
Emily, thank you for the nice comment on my blog. I'm glad to know that I haven't irritated you with all of my comments. I feel so dumb that I hadn't made the connection before about you being the author of both. Duh...that being said, I would love to read any or all of the stories in the Call of Courage series. Your writing is good even if it's not as polished as this story is. We all improve in what we do with practice. I didn't think the warning was at all conceited. You were just being honest. *smile* Now that I have written all three comments on this post I think I'll stop for now. *sheepish smile* Blessings from the Father
I didn't think that you were trying to imitate either Tolkien or Lewis in their writing styles or plots or anything else. I only intended to hold them up as good authors who have reached a certain degree of fame and notoriety in their field.
And I apologize. At home, I thought about how I'd feel if someone compared my Science-fiction short stories to someone like Kevin J. Anderson or Isaac Asimov. I'd be so annoyed at them...
That said, next time I'll come up with some clever analogy that will get my point across without that kind of comparison. :-)
And remember...Greater Maturity in writing will often follow greater maturity in life. I'm confident your writing abilities will only grow in time.
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEMILY AAAAAAAAAAAANNE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You need to post more.
ASAP
I WANT ZOE.
Love,
Taedonsgirl
a.k.a. Little Lady
<3
First of all, I love this story. Second of all, please post more soon!! I can't want to see what happens!
Where is Zoe?
Anonymous
So. That's the end. I'll get over it eventually.....maybe...I'll think about it.....
Betcha can't guess who.... :D
luv ya.
P.s. I have an 'ice' on Tancred....seriously! LOL!
since we've waited over a month now, do you think you might possibly be able to give us a little more. This isn't the end is it? Please please please give me more lest I perish from the waiting and anticipation.
Where is Zoe?! I'm dying!
Hmmm.... perhaps dear Emily was offended. At least that is how it appears. ***ponders the thought***
I've never posted before but I thought I would just tell you that I really enjoy Zoe's story. I've been captivated from the get go. Every time I come to the end of a chapter I'm on pins and needles waiting to see what happens next. You have done a wonderful job with it, Emily. You clearly have talent and a wonderful imagination.
God bless you and your writing.
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