Progress Report 4/14

[lomonaaeren]

Time for another one of these.



I have 12,500 words on my hds_beltane fic, and that should be finished tomorrow.

I’ve decided that I’ll begin splitting up the Inter Vivos chapters into smaller chunks (so, say, parts 1 and 2 of chapter 28). One of the reasons my updates on that story have slowed is that they’re so long I dread working on them and half-killing myself every third day to get an 8000- or 10,000-word chapter up. Plus, RL is getting busier and I simply can’t write chapters that long in a single day anymore. Working in smaller chunks is much more comfortable for me.

Providence will have seven, eight, or nine more chapters; I haven’t decided yet.





“Draco’s Keeper”: After the war, Harry feels sorry for Draco, who’s a social outcast and has lost a lot of money in lawyers’ fees. So he makes small donations to his Gringotts accounts—never enough for Draco to feel suspicious—and “arranges” for him to receive good chances. Draco does eventually figure out that it’s Harry supporting him, of course, and gets deeply angry because he doesn’t want to be in anyone’s debt but can’t figure out how to pay Harry back. Harry, meanwhile, tries to persuade him that he doesn’t want anything, that it’s enough for him if Draco accepts the gifts and uses them to make his life better, but Draco won’t listen. The story is about trying to come to terms with people owing each other and those debts you’re never able to repay.

“Heraclitean Fire”: On his first “real” field mission as an Auror, Harry is hit with the Withering Curse, which will gradually shrivel parts of his body away, killing him in a long, agonizing process over months. There’s no cure for it except to murder another person in cold blood, and use the power of splitting one’s soul during the murder to dispel the curse. Needless to say, Harry refuses to do this. He has about two weeks before the first effects of the curse show up, so he makes his will—and helps Draco Malfoy, who is dealing with a house he inherited on his father’s death which turns out to be haunted by something other than ghosts. Harry thinks he might as well do this as anything else, have one last adventure. But the adventure turns unexpectedly ghastly, and drives Harry to acts of courage and strength that convince Draco he can’t allow him to die. Lucky for Harry that he has a Dark magical artifact that might provide the answer. Or perhaps not so lucky for Harry.

“Departure”: Harry and Draco have both returned to Hogwarts after an absence of five years, since Neville has become Headmaster and a lot of the older professors are retiring, and Neville wants experts in their fields among the new professors. Draco is still coping with the aftermath of the war. He notices that Harry seems to have got over it rather better than he has. In fact, Harry is very calm now, not impulsive, and very gentle with everyone else. As Draco watches him, he comes to the conclusion that the calm is a little too deep to be real. But the only clue he can find as to what’s going on is a calendar page for the coming August in Harry’s rooms.

“Vessel of Life”: This would be my mpreg story—or rather, since I don’t like mpreg, my razoring of it up one side and down the other. After Harry becomes pregnant, he notices that he’s become pretty much invisible to everyone around him; all they seem to see is the baby. Inspired by my extreme distaste for stories that turn a pregnant character into a container for the baby, or that assume that someone’s death in childbirth is a low price to pay for a child.

Comments

[nimue-8.livejournal.com]

It all looks amazing!

Draco's keeper seems to offer a twist on the Draco's indebt to Harry's trope, and it seems touching, too.

Heraclitean Fire and Departure sound creative and captivating.

As I don't usually enjoy mpreg fics either, I will look at your(desapproving?) vision of it!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Draco's Keeper will be interesting, I think, because so many fics (mine included) assume that life-debts must be paid back, and don't deal with the consequences of someone simply refusing to accept that.

[iluxia.livejournal.com]

Oh finally, we see a tinge of day to day life in you! *laughs* Sorry; it's just that you write so much in so little time it's hard to believe you even do anything else apart from write~. But anyway, I don't blame you for slowing the updates down, or cutting them into chunks -- we readers are just lucky to even have a semblance of regularity in your updates. So yes.

Also, Heraclitean Fire and Vessel of Life both sound very interesting -- the former because of the magical theory it involves (by now, you probably know my love for magical theory and such), and latter because I am verily intrigued on how you will pull off a story inspired by your own dislike of the very same scenario/situation.

I'm very eager for more stories of yours (though right now, as the semester ends, I've really not much time for reading at all; but I will get to them, vow on earth and blood), so keep 'em coming~! ♥ =DD

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Hee, I understand! Most of the time, I can manage it, and last year I think I probably could have managed a 10,000-word chapter every few days. But last year I had less to do. And lately I've found that when I find something overwhelming, I tend to avoid working on it for an embarrassing amount of time. This way is easier on everyone involved.

Heraclitean Fire will probably be the next one when Providence is done, and might very well end up novella-length, at least.

[hogwartshoney.livejournal.com]

*points to icon*

I completely understand about your needing to post smaller chapters - it's better to get little bit often rather than you stressing yourself out about having to produce a mammoth chappie every other day.

*hugs*

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you! *hugs* I hope other people will be all right with it, too.

[nonajf.livejournal.com]

Those all sound really interesting. I'll admit to laughing over "Vessel of Life" as pregnant friend have complained of the same 'invisible' syndrome! ;-)

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

And oh, good, I'm glad that I'm not just making it up!

New Stories

[(Anonymous)]

I am--and I misuse asterisks in my expression of happiness--*so* thrilled to read the subjects of your new and upcoming stories. I am an mPreg fan, though I realize the impracticality and general strangeness of the subject; it will be nice to see a different take on the Harry-and-Draco-have-a-perfect-life-plus-baby-makes-three genre that floods the world of fanfiction in a deluge of utter fluff and plotlessness.
The only thing that saddens me is not seeing a continuation of "Mongoose" planned. I have more than reasonable fascination with vampires, so I can only hope you eventually write the next piece in the series. I'll even get down on my knees and beg and maybe actually get an account one of the many fanfiction sites I've spotted you on if you do? I promise to review!
In the end, I'm a fan of what you write, even when it doesn't involve the kinks, plot devices, or happy endings I may desire. And that is a true testament to your skill as a writer: that even when I don't like WHAT you write, I like your WRITING and will read it anyway.
I really ought to get an account one of these days and review less anonymously. Really, I should.

Re: New Stories

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I find it hard to suspend my disbelief in mpreg, so I simply can't really read the stories. And many of them come across as creepy to me, and strongly sexist in the way they treat the pregnant character.

"Viper," the continuation to "Mongoose," has been started, but I didn't add it to this post as I'm not currently working on it.

And thank you so much! I'm happy and proud that I've managed to capture your attention that way.

[cleo-jay.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, Draco's Keeper looks really interesting! Though I selfishly love how much you write, I also hope that you're giving yourself enough downtime - we don't want you to burn out! *squishes*

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I'm feeling a bit better currently.

[jtsbbsps-dk.livejournal.com]

Wow - these new ideas seem really dark... but could really produce some high quality stories, especially with you writing them!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

Draco's Keeper is not going to be particularly dark.

[ethelnorthbrook.livejournal.com]

I have 2 questions about 'Vessel of life': 1) will there be someone to notice Harry for himself and 2)you're not going to kill him off, are you?

can't wait for the next chapter of 'providence'!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

1) Yes and 2) no.

The next chapter is up now!

[thady.livejournal.com]

Oh, those stories sound awesome, especially “Vessel of Life”.

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[aldehyde.livejournal.com]

i particularly like the descriptions of "heraclitean fire" and "departure". so intriguing!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[lisbet.livejournal.com]

They all sound good! I will be looking forward to them! The description for "Departure" really has me intrigued:)

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thanks! The mystery in "Departure" might be obvious from early on, but I really like the concept of the story.

[invincible-sum.livejournal.com]

All of the plots sound very interesting!!

[lomonaaeren.livejournal.com]

Thank you!