Fic Talk > I Challenge You....
Let the 2013 Summer Reading Challenge begin!
emilo:
Name of story: The Long Road Home by Mare
1) Are you finding it easy to follow plot wise? Yes
2) So far who is your favorite character and why? Hmm... Maybe Howie? He's pretty introspective, but still fun-loving in this story. He's such a lovable guy-- cares about everyone so much, but he still gets angry in the story, and I like that. Makes him seem more real.
3) Are you getting a sense of how it will end and if so, any guesses? (Sometimes authors get a kick out of seeing what a reader thinks will happen and how predictable they may or may not be) Well, yes. I'd guess this is going to be a happily ever after type of story, in which the guys realize how much they love each other and their careers and decide to go on as a group, maybe after a little bit longer hiatus? Mare, I can imagine you laughing evilly because it actually ends with them deciding to go their separate ways, or with the beginning of the Zombie apocalypse or something....
4) Do you feel like the summary the author gave accurately describes the story you are reading? Would there be anything you would include or omit? Yes. Short and to the point, but I don't really think I'd add anything.
5) Has there been any big surprises/plot twists or just overall observations? Nothing really big plot-wise or character-wise. One big observation I've made (which, turns out, is unintentional) is Mare's use of literary devices in the story. Methaphors, imagery, foreshadowing, parallelism, and so on. Makes me feel more like it's an actual piece of literature. Though there are some mistakes grammar and organization-wise, as this is an early story for her, it's obvious that I'm reading the work of a strong writer.
These are the harder questions, but don't be afraid to answer them. Remember we all signed on to this knowing and expecting to get and give constructive criticism.
6) If this wasn't a challenge story and you didn't have to continue reading, would you have stopped already? If so please explain why. Probably not. This isn't the type of action-packed story with a lot of twists and turns that will keep me engaged and reading for hours on end, but it's a nice characterizati on of the guys and their relationships (Mare's specialty), and I'm interested to see how it all turns out.
7) Has there been any glaring errors that have stuck out? (I'm not talking about the occasional missed period, typo or spelling/grammar errors but huge mistakes that need to be pointed out that the author might not be aware of) Nothing huge. There are a lot of sentence fragments and a few incorrect punctuation marks (i.e.- a period where there should be a question mark), which kind of bugs the former writing center tutor in me, but no big snafu content-wise (content is very good!)
8) Do you have any questions for the author in regard to the storyline, characters or plot? When was this written exactly? I understand it must take place about 2003 or so. Was this when it was written? What inspired it? Were you possibly thinking (like me at the time) that maybe the Boys were gone forever?
Carter-Orange:
Halfway there survey (Only to be completed once you have gotten at least halfway through your story)
Name of story: To Protect and Serve
1) Are you finding it easy to follow plot wise? Yes, Mare always tells a good story and writes in a way which is easy to follow.
2) So far who is your favorite character and why? It's got to be Kevin. He's a detective working on the case of a child killer and his character is likeable and also realistic.
3) Are you getting a sense of how it will end and if so, any guesses? (Sometimes authors get a kick out of seeing what a reader thinks will happen and how predictable they may or may not be) Well, I do like a happy ending, so I'd like to see Kevin and Howie catch the bad guy and no one else get hurt. But as this is Mare's story I'm sure it won't be predictable!
4) Do you feel like the summary the author gave accurately describes the story you are reading? Would there be anything you would include or omit?
Yes, the summary fits the story well. I don't think it needs anything else.
5) Has there been any big surprises/plot twists or just overall observations?
I didn't expect Kevin's work colleagues to be in on the crime (that's if they really are, I'm on chapter 28 now), so that was a nice twist.
These are the harder questions, but don't be afraid to answer them. Remember we all signed on to this knowing and expecting to get and give constructive criticism.
6) If this wasn't a challenge story and you didn't have to continue reading, would you have stopped already? If so please explain why. No I wouldn't have stopped reading. Even though I don't usually go for stories where kids are tortured/killed, I'm really enjoying this story and can't wait to see how it all ends.
7) Has there been any glaring errors that have stuck out? (I'm not talking about the occasional missed period, typo or spelling/grammar errors but huge mistakes that need to be pointed out that the author might not be aware of) No errors that I've noticed.
8) Do you have any questions for the author in regard to the storyline, characters or plot?
Was it tough to write some of the more upsetting scenes?
mare:
Thanks, Emily!
3) Oh, so you haven't gotten to the part where Howie goes bonkers and eats all the others yet? Oops! Have I said too much. (I made sure to put a . instead of a ? just to annoy you lmao)
5) Thank you so much for saying all of that! Like I told you, I had no idea what I was really doing when I wrote this but I'm glad it felt like a real story to you! YAY!!
7) I agree with you there. I was the sentence fragment queen, when I wasn't busy running them on and on and on and on... lol
8) I honestly don't remember when it was written, Emily. I'm sure that's shocking to all of you what with my wonderful memory and all. I know I posted it on AC way after it was written. It was originally posted on Izzy's and Julie's sites so I'd actually have to check. I think Izzy had it first but I would imagine it was around 2002 or 2003. I never really thought they'd break up, but I wasn't really sure what to expect when they got back together.
I was inspired to write it because of how disconnected they all seemed to be in interviews I had seen around that time period. I hated seeing them like that and it was clear to me that they weren't enjoying each others company. I thought what better way to convey that then forcing them all to take a long drive together. lol
Thanks for being an awesome reader!!
mare:
Thanks, Steph!
3) Hrmmm....well. .. lol
5) There's a pretty big twist coming up in chapter 29 too! LOL
8) I am actually like you. I would have skipped this story after the first chapter just based on the content. The only thing I really had a hard time writing was the dead puppy at the beginning and the final few scenes at the end. The last one in particular but I obviously won't say why! LOL I needed to write it though to set up the sequel.
You are also an awesome reader! Look at that, two of my people the first to do their surveys! You get gold stars, both of you! You too, Julie but you only had to read one chapter! LOL
RokofAges75:
LOL Yeah, I had it easy! Also, I checked, and I started hosting The Long Road Home in October 2002, so it's over 10 years old!
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