I am craving interaction.

[valis2]

Ask me a question. Some questions. Fic. Fanfic. RL (though I might be circumspect, of course). Anything.

Comments

[atdt1991.livejournal.com]

How do you keep from going insane on your very long road trips? Do you find yourself craving more personal contact?

[mnemosyne-1.livejournal.com]

Have you ever had a fic idea or plot that you just don't think you'll be able to write?

[iamrighthere.livejournal.com]

Have you read any of my fics?

[sigune.livejournal.com]

How does DH influence your fanficcing?

[aubrem.livejournal.com]

How's The Last Sanguimagus coming along? : D

[randomspectator.livejournal.com]

did you go to university? where did you go? what did you do?

whats your favourite thing to eat? best meal you ever had? why?

MOAR QUESTIONS THAN YOU NEED!

(i don't know why I'm particularly curious about this sort of thing at the moment...)

[marginaliana]

What's your dream thing to accomplish with your life? Do you think you'll ever do it?

[summerborn.livejournal.com]

What have you got in your pocket?

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Whew! I should have known that you'd step up to the plate with a great question.

How do you keep from going insane on your very long road trips?

Usually I'm so busy that it precludes the insanity; I have no time to be crazy. I keep my mind focused on "What is happening next" and that is my surefire method of keeping sane.

See, for many years I would obsess over the little things, and I would build myself into a fever pitch because of some upcoming event. The anticipation (and resultant tremendous anxiety) would end up eclipsing the actual event.

Now, I try to ignore the event. I try to pay attention to the positive aspects, instead of the negative, which is a HUGE leap for me--I usually get caught up in the "wah" portion of things and that's what starts causing the anxiety. I just concentrate on what is going on that day, what should I do, etc., so that I don't overload and HULK SMASH when big things come up.

It doesn't always work, of course. Before my big trip this year, I ended up bawling my eyes out (I wasn't feeling well, so that was part of it) and having a total meltdown in the car on the way. Once that had passed, however, I felt better, and even though I was on the road forever, I just stepped off and did it. Not getting caught up in thinking about it is the best thing.

Do you find yourself craving more personal contact?

I am a bit of a hermit in RL, so the solitude of the road can sometimes be wonderful. I listen to music, I think about writing, and I find that I have "space" to really imagine a lot of things. I get very motivated, but then when I get back to cramped reality, it doesn't always work out.

As far as personal contact--I get anxious about it, sometimes, and then when I do hang out with people, I enjoy it. Later I wonder why I was worried in the first place, lol.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Oh, absolutely. I have had several. I can't remember most of them, because when they pop up, I think, wow, that's just too ambitious, and then they go away.

Usually they have to do with writing in some sort of specific genre where I'd have to do loads of research. Most commonly this occurs when I'm reading about some incredible historical figure with some sort of amazing backstory; I just know that I won't be able to do it justice!

Fortunately, my mind has several ideas in it that I might actually be able to pull off, so that makes me feel better, at least. ;)

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Oh, dear, that's difficult to answer--I can't ever remember names of authors or titles. I've read so much fanfic at this point that my brain is overloaded.

If you have written anything Snape-centric, that's what I would have most likely looked at. Where are you archived? I usually only read on LJ, or occasionally on ffnet.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

It just about squashed it! No, really!

I have this overwhelming feeling of "completion" now. In fact, it's hard for me to read post-DH Snape stuff, and, since I only read Snape-centric fics (generally), that pretty much has ruined my fanfic reading as of late.

I just can't feel good about Snape staying alive. For me, in my head, he feels...dead. And any fics I have read where he's somehow saved--it just lays bare the phantom ick of fanfiction for me--that we're just manipulating someone else's puppets.

I know, an unpopular opinion. But I had a very bad feeling that this was going to happen. Sure, I'll probably feel different some months down the road, but for right now, I feel like I did post-HBP, only worse. (Post-HBP did develop into a "Silver Age" of fanfiction, as far as I'm concerned. I hope that happens again.)

It does motivate me to finish tLS. I'm very excited about it, and it's actually set off more plot points (yeah, I know, I already had too many, hee).

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Oooh, I'm really geeked about it. During the long trips a lot of unanswered things started gelling for me. I'm really wanting to finish it, very, very badly.

I have (what I hope is) a great conclusion, and I need to squeeze in a few more things that I'm determined to write. I have one cheapo plot trick that I (unfortunately) must rely on to advance things; I don't want this to get much longer, many people "feel" like the end is near, and I do want to finish it. It's been too long already!

I can't tell you how sad I will be when it's over, though. Honestly, I've really begun to love the story. I had problems with it before, but at this point I'm starting to really feel like it's something worth having.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

bwahaha!

I did go to college. I went to a teeny private school that no longer exists, and I received a degree in Fine Arts with a major in English and a totally useless but fun minor. ;)

I love my mom's cooking--I love her chicken wings and finger potatoes, it's the most "homey" meal ever. It reminds me of being a kid, and it makes me so happy. She makes a lot of other great food, but her chicken wings rock. They're not fried, but they're incredibly crispy and fantastic.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Write!

That's what I really like doing.

I like music, I like crafting, I like singing--but I don't think I have tremendous skills in any of those. Writing is what I think I do best, and even though I'm not the best, I think there's room on the charts.

I'd love to write and be published and sell decently enough that I can rely on it for a living.

I might be able to do it--I worked in the book industry for a while, and there is a tiny chance, honestly.

*hugs*

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Let's see, my precious.

Car keys, key ring with house keys/car keys/bottle opener (yes, I have two sets of car keys on me at all times), two quarters, three fives, a nail clipper, and my wallet.

I don't carry a purse, you see.

[josanpq.livejournal.com]

1. How did you ever get started in squid p0rn?

2. Why?

[droxy.livejournal.com]

Terminus or Portus or both?

[valis2.livejournal.com]

I think it's all violet_quill's fault--there was a squid war on one of her entries, and it was just so hilarious and delightful.

Plus I've always loved squid. And octopuses. So when I got into fandom, I laughed when I read some squid stories.

Then when I was on Maui, I found a plush octopus, and thought, oh, I'll bring him to Lumos! And he came in so handy--he's a terrific icebreaker.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Y'know, I'd love to do both, but I'm thinking about buying a house/condo, and also, I should try scaling back my infanity.

So I'm thinking of just doing Terminus. It's only a four hour drive from my house, and several friends seem to be going. I have to make certain that the date doesn't interfere with anything, but once I know that, it should all work out.

[randomspectator.livejournal.com]

oh yay! you americans and your plethora of little colleges- I wish I could come and do my masters at some little liberal arts place y'know, but FEES. eep. we have it so easy in england. and yay for english. i wish i'd carried it on for longer.

and your mum's cooking sounds ace too, i know exactly how you feel about home cooking :D

[sylvadin.livejournal.com]

Any plans for another roadtrip through Seattle?

[marginaliana]

I think you're definitely good enough! *hugs*

Do you have an original piece in the works, or is this more of a "someday I'll write something for publication" thing?

[valis2.livejournal.com]

I think the Big Trip has now officially been put to rest. Last year was not truly...profitable, unfortunately. Short term, perhaps, but definitely not long term--not with taxes involved.

That said, I LOVED Seattle tremendously. I'm really trying to figure out how to make a business trip out of it, or at least just a visit. It really was an awesome experience!

I've been entertaining very vague thoughts of actually moving there, even. The weather, the people, and the vibe really appeal to me to no end.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

I have a lot of things "on the back burner," but one more than the others--I have a fantasy trilogy in my head that I would LOVE to write. I've been thinking about it more and more, and I think it'll be my next "project" after I'm finally done with tLS. :)

Aw, thanks for the sweet compliment! *hugs in return*

[valis2.livejournal.com]

I was REALLY lucky about college--I had a couple scholarships that helped me pay for a lot of it. Thank goodness, too, because it was an expensive college.

It was a lot of fun, though. I loved the fact that sometimes I would have classes with only three students TOTAL in them.

[iamrighthere.livejournal.com]

No Snape-centric fics. I'm in SGA. Anyhoo, I was just curious. Also, yeah, my brain is soggy with fanfic. Have switched to other things over the summer, which was a welcome break.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Oh, sorry, I know absolutely nothing about SGA--have never watched it. :(

[jen-deben.livejournal.com]

What - and please describe this in sumptuous detail - do you find most alluring about Oded Fehr? ;-D

[todayiamadaisy]

Probably a bit late (curse the time difference), but who is your favourite muppet?

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Hmm...I always liked Animal, I think. And Gonzo, a bit.

(Grover, however, is my favorite puppet ever.)

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Where do I begin?!

Seventy-four inches of delicious masculinity really gives me too much to choose from.

His dark, expressive eyes...the beautiful mane of hair...his full, sensual lips, the color of a smoky glass of wine...his incredible voice, with his terrific accent...his long, bronzed fingers...his sable goatee...his muscular arms...white teeth...he is delicious in so many, many ways.

*dies*

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

How did you come across my LJ(if you remember) and is Harry Potter the only fandom you have written fanfic for?

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Hee...you friended me, that's how I found you! *grins*

And I went and checked out your fic, and friended you back. I adore h/c fics, and Faramir is my fave LotR character, so I keep rereading your stories. (In fact, I've been stalking your website all this week, rereading my favorites...hee!)

The only other fandom I've written for is the Mummy fandom. You can find that stuff here at ffnet (http://www.fanfiction.net/u/491033/) if you're into the Mummy at all.

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

Now I recall, I think you answerred one of my polls,so I friended you.

I love h/c fics so much that it is my reason for writing them !I'm delighted you enjoy my stories and my site.