D-Day Challenge 2008: The Author Reveal

[pensnest]

And now, in the final flourish, the author names have been revealed. Go to The Dragon Challenge Index to see whether you guessed correctly who wrote what!

BTW, not all the authors were explicit about author names and websites, so if I have your information down wrong, or have omitted a link to your website, please let me know. I was too inefficient busy to prod you in advance.


Okay. So Wide Eyed and Legless was the story I first thought of, and which was surprisingly awkward to write. I tried hard to think of all kinds of myths and legends, and how to adapt them for my boys, and eventually was inspired by the notion that there might be a cocktail called Dragon's Blood or Dragon's Breath. And there was! (There's another version with blackberry liqueur and absinthe, and yet another that involves hot sauce, but I think Lance would appreciate the flames.)

I did hope, vaguely, to be able to incorporate Chris's friend Eric, and a visit to SeaWorld, but couldn't figure out how. Chris's habit of popping in to provide pills and disapproval (after the first time) was quite a late arrival in the process; despite wondering if I could do something different, it inevitably had to be a Trickyfish story. I thought that, if nothing else, would be a bit of a giveaway that I was the author—but I don't *think* anyone guessed me.

Tribute, by contrast, came to me one afternoon and I wrote it that evening. It was one of those stories that just flows—as I wrote, everything was just *there* ready to be written (it was very cheering, as at that stage I was really struggling with my other story). As people did spot that I wrote this, it's obviously characteristically Me! And I kinda love it, in a quiet way.


I would just like to say that I hope everyone appreciates feedback in whatever form it may have come. I did specifically ask that people who posted comments/recs to their own LJ let me have a link, so that all the authors could find their way to it. I'm in the privileged position of seeing *all* the feedback that comes via email, because of the way I set it up - but other authors will no doubt feel as I do, that it can be very interesting and helpful to see what a reader likes in the other stories too.

Also, I've just discovered to my horror that I managed to forward turps33's feedback to the wrong email address. I *fail*. All the participating authors have received feedback via email, so if you haven't had any forwarded to you, please let me know and I will re-send, with added grovelling.

Comments

[solariana.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for hosting! You've done a most lovely job. Sometimes those stories that just come to you amost begging to be written are the best. Like you say, sometimes, they just flow. ;)

[pensnest]

It was quite strange — 'Tribute' hadn't been lurking in my mind at all. With last year's story, the Lance part was already there, and the first line was something I knew I wanted to use, but this one—it just arrived. It's so nice when a story does that, life is *so* much easier.

[rikes]

Ha, I totally guessed you for Wide Eyed and Legless, but was too chicken to say that in my feedback. And I was right about Ninjetti, too, which you obviously know, being omniscient and all. :D

Six down, six to go. Yay!

[pensnest]

Hah! I thought Wide Eyed and Legless was fairly characteristic, and I suspect the title phrase is British English rather than American usage, which'd be another Clue if you happened to know that.

Indeed - your FB to Ninjetti made me smile.

[ravenbat.livejournal.com]

Hee!

I told KC that I thought PPP was Josh's story and she told me it wasn't. HA!

And No, Seriously was written by the talented chalcopyrite who also wrote my MYTG story! Yay! Now I need to go read my MYTG story again, because ... yes, I'm thinking of it - it must be done.

Yes, I know, I'm weird and babbling.

Thanks for the challenge again this year. Next year, diamonds or demons, k? *mwah*

[pensnest]

This challenge definitely brings me a lot of fun, so I hope I'll have some volunteer authors again next time St George's Day rolls around.

[phaballa.livejournal.com]

Mine looks good :)

I forgot to tell you, I recced some stuff here: http://community.livejournal.com/popsoundboard/2837.html

[pensnest]

I saw your recs.

*beams at you*

[chalcopyrite.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for running this again; it was fun! More dragons = always good!

[pensnest]

Absolutely. One cannot have too many dragons. I'm very proud that my challenge has so increased the number of popslash dragon stories! And dolphins, too, which I would not have anticipated back in 2006 when I started doing this...

[ephemera.livejournal.com]

hurray for reveal! - there were some really lovely stories in that batch, both of yours included :D

[pensnest]

It was a very healthy crop of stories, indeed. :-)