Oh, great to see your answers @lisabee2 and oops, I totally missed that we missed you when the group questions were discussed.
I like the idea of group questions too. That way we get to know a little more about each other or a new member. Thinking bout that, our answers are scattered throughout this thread... Maybe I should link to those posts on our first page? What do you guys think? Lemme know if you are okay with that cause then any new member can easily read a little about us too
Oh, great to see your answers @lisabee2 and oops, I totally missed that we missed you when the group questions were discussed.
I like the idea of group questions too. That way we get to know a little more about each other or a new member. Thinking bout that, our answers are scattered throughout this thread... Maybe I should link to those posts on our first page? What do you guys think? Lemme know if you are okay with that cause then any new member can easily read a little about us too
That is a very cool idea! Sort of like a who is in here post
ALSO I am sooo sooo sooo excited .. you should see the build that Michelle (gothkittymimi) is doing for my short story this month .. it is magnificent
@mastressalita ... first off it is NO surprise that I love Shadow and the wrinkly one. You an I have spoken before about how much a love stories that feature the elder sim. I wish I had some deeply profound questions to ask but my brain just does not work that way LOL I would ask do you have RL Shadow in your life ... is that why you can put us all into his tiny furry skin and enable us to see things from his perspective? Do you like cat videos? The as for Simlit itself .. do you have any one genre that you enjoy over others? Do you advance story board (if so how far ahead) or write off the cuff?
Update posted ... for those in my circle who read my story I thank you for your support
The family hits the beaches of "Miami" ... Prince and Snow do South Beach in the latest version of the Charming Travelogue.
Featuring the Tropical Getaway mod. TY to the wonderful builders used in this story Elke Renz, Lynn Goncalves and Brennachan Sims (Chipie-cyrano from Luniversims not in group) Hammock poses by Inabadromance.
This week everybody's had the chance to read / catch up on The Cat Chronicles and so have I. Because of our new member I have put a little something in a spoiler tag though I tried to keep the questions very general
@mastressalita I just revisited a couple of the last chapters and read the latest update of The Cat Chronicles. You know I adore your story, Rose, and Shadow. What I really notice reading your story is how your pictures get better and better. The last chapter features some amazing pictures. The cat posing pays off
I love the one where Rose wins that price, great shot of the game info and her expression without telling it from Shadow's pov
I admire your effort in keeping it very strict a cat's pov, though you cleverly include game info in your pictures. Do you plan this or have there been events that you wished you had the game info of in a cap but missed if you understand what I'm saying? I can imagine this would ask a great amount of time. How much time do you roughly spend on thinking about how to keep it strictly Shadow's story when you write a chapter?
First I'd like to apologize for my absense for the last little while. Lately I've been putting an emphasis on my health and just haven't felt much in the mood for forums, haven't had time for Sim playing or story writing (or have had much energy or mood for it), etc. It's been an effort to even try to keep the Stories and Legacies Index updated, and I never used to feel that way before. Between my head and my foot I've just felt drained, but I don't like to gripe so I usually just kinda withdraw.
The plantar fasciitis in my left foot is pretty bad, and I've been told I may have to have surgery on the foot, which I really don't want to have to do, since my podiatrist said that often scar tissue can form as a result which can cause further pain and problems. So now I'm trying physical therapy, which is several times a week early in the morning and causes me to be late to my job, so I have to put in late hours at the office to make up the time, leaving me very drained by the time I get home. A very old ankle injury I took on the staircase at the library years ago that has limited my ankle mobility may be the root cause of all of this according to the physical therapist, and I've just been working through limping around on the "zombie foot" along with having the persistent headaches.
I've been trying to get my reading caught up, but because I've felt so drained of energy lately, it has been slow going. I know I'm terribly behind, I try to get through a few chapters from the last round of Monstrous Mezilkree and Snow and Prince (along with the new nightly chapter of zombie apocalypse story Outbreak: Apocalypse, which has Sara-Sim in her first acting role!) from my vacay weeks each night, then I usually settle in with some tea and just color for a little while before I drop into bed for another really early morning in the physical therapist's office and another long day at work. I really am hoping that (eventually) I will be able to catch up and get to those (better late than never?) weeks of questions that I missed. I feel bad I missed out when I was out of town and haven't been able to catch up timely because I've just been so bleeeeeeeh lately.
As for questions...
I would ask do you have RL Shadow in your life ... is that why you can put us all into his tiny furry skin and enable us to see things from his perspective?
Shadow is a result of the fact that I am unable to have a furbaby in my life, but really want one. Because my apartment does not allow cats or dogs but I've always really wanted a cat, when I baught Sims 3, I originally baught a version of base game bundled with Pets, so I could live out my fantasy of owning a cat (my Simself and Casanova were the product of this and why my Simself never appears without him, like this odd comedy duo, hahaha). I didn't want to write a proper story using my Simself though, hense a new owner/cat duo to live out my "I need a cat in my life" fantasies. ^_~ Granted, when Rose was adopting a kitten, and there were two kittens available (Shadow and Cayln, who by chance ended up as Rose's daughter's cat!), and I definitely picked the one of the two that reminded me of my childhood cat, Tabby, a fiesty stray who was fiercely loyal to our family but definitely picked plenty of fights with the neighborhood canine population and was pretty territorial (Shadow had Aggressive, Hunter, and Adventurous traits, which I think would've fit Tabby to a T! What an odd coincidence the game would've given me a cat so similar in personality to the one I had and cherished as a child!) I also take a lot of inspiration for many events that happen in chapters from my fur-nephew (my sister's cat) Meekus (as you can see he is a proper gamer-cat, and he loves his auntie very much).
As for Simlit itself .. do you have any one genre that you enjoy over others?
I actually read Simlit of all genres! A lot of people are probably surprised to know I really like mature stories/horror/etc. (which is the genre of the other story on my site) because it's the polar opposite of Cat Chronicles!
The one thing I don't really like writing is your typical ten gen legacy, which I'd say is probably the most "popular" genre in Simlit... it just really isn't my thing (I'll read them, but to play one I'd just be bored stiff... odd fact... I've never "had a nooboo" in a Sim game yet!)
Do you advance story board (if so how far ahead) or write off the cuff?
In Cat Chronicles, I just go into game and play and see what germinates, it is a very laid-back story and I daresay it doesn't even have a plot, it's sort of a lazy slice-of-life. The game is my co-author and sometimes it gives me things to work with, so sometimes I'll have a few game-days where I have an idea of events I want to do (oh, there is a pet show today, and a cat meet up at the park tomorrow? Then on Sunday Rose's son and daughter-in-law and granddaughter should all be off so they can meet up and do something...) but beyond that there isn't much. Sometimes things don't go as expected at all, and sometimes I end up with screencaps that spin a little chapter all on their own, and I always love when that happens. This story is very much a "free form" sort of story where I follow Shadow and see what he is up to, then devise the words around his shenanigans.
What I really notice reading your story is how your pictures get better and better.
Thanks, I'm always worried that the poor screenshot quality at the beginning of the story will turn off new readers. When I'd just started playing the game, I really was terrible at Sim photography. It took a while for me to get used to the controls and how to frame shots and now I even have a few camera mods installed to help with this. I also learned in time the keyboard commands from nice TS3 Simlit writers in the Sims and Friends: Share Your Stories! thread for camera mode which I did not know when I was a new player, I was doing everything with the mouse, and I was awful at getting the positioning just right that way!
I definitely don't use pose mods very often in Cat Chronicles since it's sort of an "on the fly" gameplay story, but every now and again to flesh out certain events I will play with them. The first time I *ever* used them in Sims 3 was actually in the Halloween chapter, that was my first time learning to use them! (And that picture of Shadow flying at poor Ivy still remains a favorite... if it wasn't her grandmother's house, I bet she would never trick-or-treat there again after that, hahaha!) The Cat Show took forever to put together because of the poses, but since that was a "rabbithole event" I really wanted to actually show it (my favorite picture was Shadow glaring at Rose as he was being man-handled by the judge. "See this? This is the face of betrayal.")
I admire your effort in keeping it very strict a cat's pov, though you cleverly include game info in your pictures. Do you plan this or have there been events that you wished you had the game info of in a cap but missed if you understand what I'm saying?
The nice part is I have a Story Progression mod installed, which makes use of the info box a lot, and as far as I've seen, you need to manually clear the notifications. The only annoying part is to capture them I have to use a normal screencap with the Print Screen key, you can't get them in tabbed camera mode, and I've noticed that distorts the game color a little bit (they come out darker). I try to correct them a bit in Photoshop and luckily since I'm only clipping the info box it isn't too horrible. It is a little annoying I have to switch between Print Screen and the tabbed camera mode to get all my screen caps though; I have to be careful about where I save them and what I save them as so I remember what the notifications where referring to! But I find they are pretty important since they are one of the ways I let readers get information about the Hatchers since Shadow is a cat and oblivious to what those Two-Leggers are up to (he cares far more about them putting food in his dish than getting promotions or having nooboos).
How much time do you roughly spend on thinking about how to keep it strictly Shadow's story when you write a chapter?
Cats are so natural at being the center of attention that it is pretty easy for Shadow to just be the diva, so I don't really have to worry too much. Even when I'm writing Mastress Alita and Casanova, Casanova has no lines at all, and still always steals the show; it's just the cat's nature, I think!
Sometimes, events will shift towards the Hatchers (for example, Ivy's birthday party, or their Leisure Day barbeque with the fireworks). But two-legger events are always seen, viewed, and commented through the lens of the cat, so their actions may seem odd, strange, or downright inconvenient to the cat. I just have to make sure everything is kept strictly to his perspective and nothing is mentioned in a way Shadow wouldn't understand, and instead try to look at these same events in a new way that might be how a cat could possibly interpret them into its understanding. Sometimes it takes some creativity, heh.
@mastressalita ... Loved reading your answers. I am sad to hear you are not feeling well!! No worries on times of being absent .. your health is much more important than the forum and we can wait on the story We are here when it get here
Just popping in to let you all know that I'll try to get in on the discussion sometime tomorrow. This weekend is extremely busy, being we were out of town all day yesterday and will be busy the rest of the day. I'll mull over some questions to ask and will try to post something as soon as I get some free time. I hope you all have a great day.
Great reading your answers @mastressalita and thank you to all participating!
And off to another week we are. It will be a hectic week here with shopping and other preparations for my twins' birthday among others but Yay 4 years!
This weekend's discussion will be another open discussion. I enjoyed the last one we had and will make some time to try and come up with some more questions come Saturday. I would really like to see more people who have general ideas or questions to feel free and ask em here. Don't stop yourself with thinking it might be silly questions, cause there is no such thing as silly questions. I'm curious to see what's keeping you busy Till then
I was sooo exctied to find you in the gallery @Twiggy .. followed you there
Update time .. for those who do me the kindness of reading .. I thank you!
The family is enjoying their goodwill trip to the US ... Cool crisp days of Autumn call them back to colorful New England before they head west. In this episode Snow got some news that took her by surprise ...
I haven't formulated any questions for the discussion this weekend. I've been down with a nasty flu over the last week while running around to get everything ready for my twins' 4th birthday tomorrow. I've got that last down at least but am running behind on everything else But don't let me stop you if there are questions you want to ask here. I'll sure try to check back here again this weekend.
@lisabee2 That's great! Thank you Working on a big modern home atm for an ongoing building contest. Modern is not my forte but happy with where I'm at so far.
It's okay @Twiggy, I too have been putting forum things on the back-burner due to health (I even announced on the Stories and Legacies Index thread that October will be my last month running the Monthly Site Updates section of the index and then I will be discontinuing that particular part of the index due to the massive amount of time it takes and the strain I've been feeling lately because of it). I had planned to play host this weekend and then I woke up this Saturday with a migraine and laid back down until the worst of the pain hours had past. *sigh*
Now I have a cuppa of Pumpkin Chai Latte tea and am going to try to stay off my bum foot as much as possible this weekend. I'm really hoping to get back a return story post in this play-by-post writing I do over Google Docs with this writer I met on a special interests forum two years ago as we are quite close to finishing up this particular thread and ready to start a new one and she's been a sweetheart and waiting on me for a reply for over a month now. When my health is like this I always want to sneak back off to bed instead of putting energy into creative endeavors. -_-;;
So I think what I'd like to talk about is the reading aspect of SimLit, since so many people focus on writing, writing, writing, but not on us as readers, and obviously as a librarian, that is something I think about a lot! I've even been criticized before over my style of reading (and since then I have been reading a lot less), so this is a topic I think more authors should reflect about!
-What is your typical style of reading SimLit? Do you tend to binge-read through a whole story? Do you dedicatedly read each new chapter of a story as it comes out or prefer to build up a lot of content to go through at once? Are you a wine-taster reader that samples from multiple stories and works your way back around the table?
-Does the way you read SimLit mirror how you read other mediums (such as novels)? Why or why not?
-As an author, do you have a preference to certain types of readers? Do you find yourself placing more value on the reader that may read more slowly but comment often, or the silent-reader that does not comment but internal statistics show read your whole story from start to finish nearly uninterrupted, much like one would naturally read a novel? Do you find yourself expecting the best of both worlds?
-Do you find that your own preferences toward readers as an author reflect in the way you read other works in the SimLit community?
-How do you choose new SimLit reading material? Do you find that it is similar in any ways to how you choose reading material in other mediums (such as novels)?
If there are any other thoughts/experiences you would like to share from the reading experience of SimLit, I would like to hear them, as this is something I'm quite curious to learn more people's opinions about. Tagging @Twiggy@lisabee2@sweetnightingale@MoonGirl and maybe @CathyTea or @ra3rei might be interested in being guests this week as I know they read a lot of SimLit, heh. If anyone can think of anyone else that might want to jump into open discussion this week, feel free to buzz them.
Wow, wonderful questions @mastressalita about to turn in and I'll be out tomorrow so I hope to get a moment in to respond and if not I'll do it soon after the weekend. Health and the required resting when possible is always better than straining yourself so I totally understand your decisions. I hope you get some rest off your feet and get that post written but most of all enjoy yourself
Speaking of writing and delays, I'm a tad late with my newest chapter but here it is...
I am so excited to share my "spooky" short story with you .. it is for the Oct short story contest BUT also written as a special TY for my readers .. love you all (but can stand on its own too). I had a total blast writing it (honestly the most fun I have had in a while with a story) and hope you enjoy reading it too!
As promised @mastressalita I've found time to properly address your post with questions so here I am! First of all, I hope the weekend has brought you some (foot) relaxation and (writing) inspiration.
After reading your post, I'm left feeling it's such a shame that I hear my fellow writers struggling with feeling criticized over their commenting to other writers or the reading of other's stories. It aches my sensitive heart @lisabee2 and @mastressalita I always wish more people could uphold a 'live and let live' attitude throughout life and respect fellow humans (and my fellow simmers here! lol) Maybe I maintain this attitude too much making me oblivious to such critique cause come to think of it I'm an irregular reader more than a writer and I comment what's on the top of my head without always feeling the need to check every word for possible critique a reader might feel. I write the same way btw.
My irregular reading has several reasons... The biggest reason for me is that I only read simlit behind my PC because my only connection to the internet is my PC. I don't have a smartphone or tablet and no state of the art chair behind my PC so besides playing, writing and other (more heh) necessary obligations I don't like spending many more hours behind my PC. Pair that with the fact I'm a slower reader when it comes to a non-native language and boom, there you have it lol I won't mention those two kids running around the house, though haha
-What is your typical style of reading SimLit? Do you tend to binge-read through a whole story? Do you dedicatedly read each new chapter of a story as it comes out or prefer to build up a lot of content to go through at once? Are you a wine-taster reader that samples from multiple stories and works your way back around the table?
Everything in my life fluctuates, nothing is ever set in stone. When I started reading simlit, I followed two stories (prettacies) which I checked up on regularly to see if new content was out. This was controllable and structured. Then I started my own WordPress and was introduced to the WP Reader. Then I started sampling multiple stories of people that followed me in curiosity over their stories. Many I haven't had the time to read completely due to my limitations mentioned above. By now, I have a huge list of stories still to sample and stories to save for a relaxing, rainy day. I did sample a couple of wines that made me drink the whole bottle (binge read), though, must have been written in a preferred bouquet of fruit and spices haha yet there are so many more stories that I haven't dared touch yet because I'm afraid that if I do and the story inspires me to drink the whole bottle, I won't have time nor a clear head haha to do all the other stuff life asks of me.
-Does the way you read SimLit mirror how you read other mediums (such as novels)? Why or why not?
No, definitely not! This again is linked very much to my limitations of reading blogs behind my PC. Towards the future, I really want to check for myself what would be the best solution since I will need a new PC soon but would also like some sort of means to read simlit when not at my PC, like on a tablet when relaxing on the couch for instance like I do when reading a novel. But yeah, a new PC is a bigger priority atm, choices, choices lol
-As an author, do you have a preference to certain types of readers? Do you find yourself placing more value on the reader that may read more slowly but comment often, or the silent-reader that does not comment but internal statistics show read your whole story from start to finish nearly uninterrupted, much like one would naturally read a novel? Do you find yourself expecting the best of both worlds?
I find that both/all types of readers bring a smile to my face. Again my 'live and let live' attitude makes me grateful for the fact that my story is being read without me giving it much attention on other mediums then my blog. To me it is a compliment people find my blog and then stop to read whether that being everything or a sample of my stories. I didn't start writing to accumulate readers or meet with all of their possible expectations. I started writing simlit to find a way to play more than one generation of sims in the game without falling back on my building preferences instead like I always had done in TS' previous versions. I wanted to experience the gameplay of TS4 for once instead of just the building aspect. That simlit rekindled my love for writing feels like a total bonus and heaven sent.
-Do you find that your own preferences toward readers as an author reflect in the way you read other works in the SimLit community?
I guess so... maybe I expect a writer of the stories I read to be just as grateful that I stop by and read their story, no matter how fast or how much at once. I would think it would be odd if they had special expectations towards me when reading their work. I think it would maybe even put me off when a writer would criticize the way I read their work. I wouldn't want the author of a novel I read to come over and tell me I put their book aside for too long either, no would I? lol Although I wouldn't mind having a writer over for tea to talk about their novels hehe but same goes for any writer of simlit. It's just a wonderful thing to talk about creativity. Why else would TS4 be filled with 'share crazy idea's', 'discuss favorite books', and so on in the communication options between sims?
-How do you choose new SimLit reading material? Do you find that it is similar in any ways to how you choose reading material in other mediums (such as novels)?
Yes, this is kinda similar by comparison. We all know friends mentioning a good book they read recently. Same principal goes for a blogger I follow mentioning blogs they follow. Come to think of that, I need to check how to set that on my blog. I don't believe I've done that yet
@mastressalita I am so sorry to hear of your step back .. you do such a wonderful job with the thread. I do understand taking care of your health! We all just want you to take care of yourself.
The Charming family travelogue continues. The good will trip sure has been a grand time and, with one notable difference, they are sad to see it coming to an end. Today's entry takes us to Tucson with them and a visit to family that they have not seen in a while. TY Elke Renz and Brennachan sims (among others) for the great builds.
It's been a while since I was here and I would like to get off my chest as to why that is. I haven't been feeling myself or maybe I haven't been connecting with myself enough lately. I don't know what it is. Maybe it's my transition years setting in or something else bugging me Either way, it's keeping me down both physically and mentally. And yeah, I should go see a doctor lol
Besides that, I'm facing all sorts of problems with the overpriced, damp home I've been renting for myself and the twins for the last year. That paired with the fact I've been having a bug in my saves and haven't been able to play or update the Mezilkree's so far, I'm down. It has been affecting my activity here also. I've been lurking the forums more then I've been commenting.
And now don't get me wrong, I don't mean to offend anyone with what I'm about to say. I'm just trying to get myself out there and be vulnerable... maybe I'm also back to lurking a bit because I've gotten a little disappointed with the reading circle as is? At the time I found out about the reading circles and wanted to join the first formed had already filled up so the only thing I could do is form one myself. Which I really like if it were only that it would make me feel I'm getting the same energy and joy out of it as I put into it. And that is not the case, it has been declining instead. I wished for a place not as large as the Lounge where we could get to know a little bit more about a selected group of simlit writers, share stuff. I'm sorry, guys, I don't have the energy to keep this up
I'm sorry you feel that way, @Twiggy , but I understand because my own health has been awful lately, and I've simply had to draw back from forum stuff lately as a result. I just haven't had the time to open my game, play Sims, work on stories, and have mostly been lurking in the forums, and I even had to make the hard decision to discontinue certain parts of the Stories and Legacies Index because they were too time-intensive for my current health situation. Between the plantar fasciitis and the time the physical therapy is taking up (which causes me to have to work longer hours at work to make up the lost time, plus the time to do the exercises at home), as well as the "detox" program off some of my migraine medications causing some of the most extreme pain I've been in in years, it has just been a rough time (I almost had to go to the ER from the migraine I had yesterday... it was that bad). I keep meaning to get caught back up on Reading Circle stuff, and my health has been brutal over the last month. So my motto right now has just been "Do what you can when you can... if you stress you are only going to make things worse."
House remodels, bad health, depression... sometimes we don't have control over some of the things that can eat up a lot of time, and I think lulls are just going to happen sometimes. I'm not going to be one to tell someone that wants to take something off their plate not to do so (especially since I had to with my own thread recently), but I've already watched two reading circles I've joined go under, and I've seen this one be so successful so far that it just seems a great waste to me to see it close down just because right now has been a rough time for some of us.
Absolutely true! @mastressalita I haven't put anything into action to discontinue our reading circle, though. It's not what I want in the long run. Besides, I too notice more reading circles struggling with similar issues and I don't want to go under with you guys! I realize it's mostly me being a bit of a downer at the moment and I felt the need to let you guys in on it. I was thinking; I can stay in these shadows and keep people guessing as to why I'm not around but it seemed fairer to me to just vent it here. I like the circle and when the energy is there, I absolutely think it is a great thing to entice my thought process by coming up with questions and joining in discussions. Here I feel comments aren't drowned in the maelstrom of the community. That is also why I started the circle. This was just my way of trying to say, please excuse me if I'm not commenting as much. I appreciate you guys a lot and am not about to give up. I just really need to give myself some motivational kicks in the behind and want to divert my energy in doing so while keeping your motto in mind btw thank you
I noticed you must be feeling kinda similar due to your current health issues and am glad you understand My heart, love and hopefully healing powers go out to you. I have a huge amount of respect for you and the heaps of energy you keep putting in and I feel a little whiner compared heh
If ever you want to vent about anything and this counts for every one of the members here, feel free to leave a rant. We all have hectic lives at times and I'm open to sharing the good and the bad here.
All I know I that I read everyone in all of my circles (and then some) and engage with the story at the blog but very few read my stories in return .. and I thought that is what we are to be all about. .. and that has been quite hurtful. I have nto said anything because I have good readers fromt he awful FB .. but honestly despite that I have tried hard to stay supportive even when my RL was in (and still is) in disarray (my husband and I redid the floors in our house .. pulled all the carpet and put in wood floors .. a very time consuming activity and my house is still a horror .. but even in that I stayed read up (if that is correct) because that is what I agreed to do.
I think it is what we all face so I understand and I didn't want to judge or offend anyone by expressing my feelings @lisabee2 I do hope your house will end up looking a gem after your hard work on those floors
In all honesty, you and Sara are the members that I see commenting on my blog on a regular basis for which I am very grateful! I know I haven't caught up on your story completely with this last discussion for which I'm sorry. I tried to explain in my earlier comments as to why this is. I am however not that much behind and will binge read the remaining chapters before coming weekend's over as I tend to when not totally caught up on a story yet. I'm not giving up on our reading circle, though, for the time being, it remains a very select circle since we haven't found many new members to liven things up a little.
And even then stranger things happen, I understand, since I saw @mastressalita mention somewhere that our newest member @MoonGirl has been banned from the forum. This also means I'll have to take her off our member list? We are back to four members then.
Anyone visiting and looking for a group of writers/readers to start discussions with, feel free to let us know. As you can see in the comments above, everything can be mentioned and/or discussed here as long as we keep it respectful and harmonious
And I am sorry to blurt out my feelings .. I felt like I was the one who disappointed everyone .. but I have tried hard to be supportive as best I can. I felt like your disappointment included everyone .. myself included. I joined reading circles to gain readers .. I read and follow about 80 blogs (I do prioritize my reader with reading circles and a few select others first) but it is with very few read backs (even in circles) .. it makes me feel like I am too awful to read. Even now I feel like a whinney baby because of how I acted but goodness it does hurt. I am hoping as this story ends maybe others will start with the new story but honestly I feel like I do not want to hope. I in no way want to hurt or offend you and I do enjoy the circle such as it is. Yep I would like to stay a circle and like more members. I know of some who are not in a circle and I can ask .. I have one dear treasure of a story that is not in forum at all but is so enchanting .. I would love to invite her. And I do know a few newer writers that I can talk to.
So when you are trying to avoid FB by playing your game and you accidentally set POTUS on fire .. he did not die .. Violet saved him! Stupid fireplaces I wanted ambiance for my shot.
Comments
I like the idea of group questions too. That way we get to know a little more about each other or a new member. Thinking bout that, our answers are scattered throughout this thread... Maybe I should link to those posts on our first page? What do you guys think? Lemme know if you are okay with that cause then any new member can easily read a little about us too
That is a very cool idea! Sort of like a who is in here post
ALSO I am sooo sooo sooo excited .. you should see the build that Michelle (gothkittymimi) is doing for my short story this month .. it is magnificent
LisabeeSims
New readers can visit here first: In-a-NUTSHELL
#EAgamechanger
LisabeeSims
New readers can visit here first: In-a-NUTSHELL
#EAgamechanger
The family hits the beaches of "Miami" ... Prince and Snow do South Beach in the latest version of the Charming Travelogue.
Featuring the Tropical Getaway mod. TY to the wonderful builders used in this story
https://lisabeesims.wordpress.com/2016/10/15/snow-and-prince-redux-26-miami/
LisabeeSims
New readers can visit here first: In-a-NUTSHELL
#EAgamechanger
This week everybody's had the chance to read / catch up on The Cat Chronicles and so have I. Because of our new member I have put a little something in a spoiler tag though I tried to keep the questions very general
@mastressalita I just revisited a couple of the last chapters and read the latest update of The Cat Chronicles. You know I adore your story, Rose, and Shadow.
The plantar fasciitis in my left foot is pretty bad, and I've been told I may have to have surgery on the foot, which I really don't want to have to do, since my podiatrist said that often scar tissue can form as a result which can cause further pain and problems. So now I'm trying physical therapy, which is several times a week early in the morning and causes me to be late to my job, so I have to put in late hours at the office to make up the time, leaving me very drained by the time I get home. A very old ankle injury I took on the staircase at the library years ago that has limited my ankle mobility may be the root cause of all of this according to the physical therapist, and I've just been working through limping around on the "zombie foot" along with having the persistent headaches.
I've been trying to get my reading caught up, but because I've felt so drained of energy lately, it has been slow going. I know I'm terribly behind, I try to get through a few chapters from the last round of Monstrous Mezilkree and Snow and Prince (along with the new nightly chapter of zombie apocalypse story Outbreak: Apocalypse, which has Sara-Sim in her first acting role!) from my vacay weeks each night, then I usually settle in with some tea and just color for a little while before I drop into bed for another really early morning in the physical therapist's office and another long day at work. I really am hoping that (eventually) I will be able to catch up and get to those (better late than never?) weeks of questions that I missed. I feel bad I missed out when I was out of town and haven't been able to catch up timely because I've just been so bleeeeeeeh lately.
As for questions...
Shadow is a result of the fact that I am unable to have a furbaby in my life, but really want one. Because my apartment does not allow cats or dogs but I've always really wanted a cat, when I baught Sims 3, I originally baught a version of base game bundled with Pets, so I could live out my fantasy of owning a cat (my Simself and Casanova were the product of this and why my Simself never appears without him, like this odd comedy duo, hahaha). I didn't want to write a proper story using my Simself though, hense a new owner/cat duo to live out my "I need a cat in my life" fantasies. ^_~ Granted, when Rose was adopting a kitten, and there were two kittens available (Shadow and Cayln, who by chance ended up as Rose's daughter's cat!), and I definitely picked the one of the two that reminded me of my childhood cat, Tabby, a fiesty stray who was fiercely loyal to our family but definitely picked plenty of fights with the neighborhood canine population and was pretty territorial (Shadow had Aggressive, Hunter, and Adventurous traits, which I think would've fit Tabby to a T! What an odd coincidence the game would've given me a cat so similar in personality to the one I had and cherished as a child!) I also take a lot of inspiration for many events that happen in chapters from my fur-nephew (my sister's cat) Meekus (as you can see he is a proper gamer-cat, and he loves his auntie very much).
I adore cat videos! I like to think many of them probably inspire Cat Chronicles a lot, especially the Dear Kitten commercials and Henri, Le Chat Noir. Others I quite enjoy are Hey Cat, Barking Cat Gets Caught, No No No Cat, and Talking Cat.
I actually read Simlit of all genres! A lot of people are probably surprised to know I really like mature stories/horror/etc. (which is the genre of the other story on my site) because it's the polar opposite of Cat Chronicles!
The one thing I don't really like writing is your typical ten gen legacy, which I'd say is probably the most "popular" genre in Simlit... it just really isn't my thing (I'll read them, but to play one I'd just be bored stiff... odd fact... I've never "had a nooboo" in a Sim game yet!)
In Cat Chronicles, I just go into game and play and see what germinates, it is a very laid-back story and I daresay it doesn't even have a plot, it's sort of a lazy slice-of-life. The game is my co-author and sometimes it gives me things to work with, so sometimes I'll have a few game-days where I have an idea of events I want to do (oh, there is a pet show today, and a cat meet up at the park tomorrow? Then on Sunday Rose's son and daughter-in-law and granddaughter should all be off so they can meet up and do something...) but beyond that there isn't much. Sometimes things don't go as expected at all, and sometimes I end up with screencaps that spin a little chapter all on their own, and I always love when that happens. This story is very much a "free form" sort of story where I follow Shadow and see what he is up to, then devise the words around his shenanigans.
Thanks, I'm always worried that the poor screenshot quality at the beginning of the story will turn off new readers. When I'd just started playing the game, I really was terrible at Sim photography. It took a while for me to get used to the controls and how to frame shots and now I even have a few camera mods installed to help with this. I also learned in time the keyboard commands from nice TS3 Simlit writers in the Sims and Friends: Share Your Stories! thread for camera mode which I did not know when I was a new player, I was doing everything with the mouse, and I was awful at getting the positioning just right that way!
I definitely don't use pose mods very often in Cat Chronicles since it's sort of an "on the fly" gameplay story, but every now and again to flesh out certain events I will play with them. The first time I *ever* used them in Sims 3 was actually in the Halloween chapter, that was my first time learning to use them! (And that picture of Shadow flying at poor Ivy still remains a favorite... if it wasn't her grandmother's house, I bet she would never trick-or-treat there again after that, hahaha!) The Cat Show took forever to put together because of the poses, but since that was a "rabbithole event" I really wanted to actually show it (my favorite picture was Shadow glaring at Rose as he was being man-handled by the judge. "See this? This is the face of betrayal.")
The nice part is I have a Story Progression mod installed, which makes use of the info box a lot, and as far as I've seen, you need to manually clear the notifications. The only annoying part is to capture them I have to use a normal screencap with the Print Screen key, you can't get them in tabbed camera mode, and I've noticed that distorts the game color a little bit (they come out darker). I try to correct them a bit in Photoshop and luckily since I'm only clipping the info box it isn't too horrible. It is a little annoying I have to switch between Print Screen and the tabbed camera mode to get all my screen caps though; I have to be careful about where I save them and what I save them as so I remember what the notifications where referring to! But I find they are pretty important since they are one of the ways I let readers get information about the Hatchers since Shadow is a cat and oblivious to what those Two-Leggers are up to (he cares far more about them putting food in his dish than getting promotions or having nooboos).
Cats are so natural at being the center of attention that it is pretty easy for Shadow to just be the diva, so I don't really have to worry too much. Even when I'm writing Mastress Alita and Casanova, Casanova has no lines at all, and still always steals the show; it's just the cat's nature, I think!
Sometimes, events will shift towards the Hatchers (for example, Ivy's birthday party, or their Leisure Day barbeque with the fireworks). But two-legger events are always seen, viewed, and commented through the lens of the cat, so their actions may seem odd, strange, or downright inconvenient to the cat. I just have to make sure everything is kept strictly to his perspective and nothing is mentioned in a way Shadow wouldn't understand, and instead try to look at these same events in a new way that might be how a cat could possibly interpret them into its understanding. Sometimes it takes some creativity, heh.
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Check out my Simlit at Sim Stories: Hijinks from the World of Sims 3!
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LisabeeSims
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Just popping in to let you all know that I'll try to get in on the discussion sometime tomorrow. This weekend is extremely busy, being we were out of town all day yesterday and will be busy the rest of the day. I'll mull over some questions to ask and will try to post something as soon as I get some free time. I hope you all have a great day.
And off to another week we are. It will be a hectic week here with shopping and other preparations for my twins' birthday among others but Yay 4 years!
This weekend's discussion will be another open discussion. I enjoyed the last one we had and will make some time to try and come up with some more questions come Saturday. I would really like to see more people who have general ideas or questions to feel free and ask em here. Don't stop yourself with thinking it might be silly questions, cause there is no such thing as silly questions. I'm curious to see what's keeping you busy
~Twiggy out
Update time .. for those who do me the kindness of reading .. I thank you!
The family is enjoying their goodwill trip to the US ... Cool crisp days of Autumn call them back to colorful New England before they head west. In this episode Snow got some news that took her by surprise ...
https://lisabeesims.wordpress.com/2016/10/21/snow-and-prince-redux-27-a-new-england-autumn/
LisabeeSims
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I haven't formulated any questions for the discussion this weekend. I've been down with a nasty flu over the last week while running around to get everything ready for my twins' 4th birthday tomorrow. I've got that last down at least but am running behind on everything else
@lisabee2 That's great! Thank you
Now I have a cuppa of Pumpkin Chai Latte tea and am going to try to stay off my bum foot as much as possible this weekend. I'm really hoping to get back a return story post in this play-by-post writing I do over Google Docs with this writer I met on a special interests forum two years ago as we are quite close to finishing up this particular thread and ready to start a new one and she's been a sweetheart and waiting on me for a reply for over a month now. When my health is like this I always want to sneak back off to bed instead of putting energy into creative endeavors. -_-;;
So I think what I'd like to talk about is the reading aspect of SimLit, since so many people focus on writing, writing, writing, but not on us as readers, and obviously as a librarian, that is something I think about a lot! I've even been criticized before over my style of reading (and since then I have been reading a lot less), so this is a topic I think more authors should reflect about!
-What is your typical style of reading SimLit? Do you tend to binge-read through a whole story? Do you dedicatedly read each new chapter of a story as it comes out or prefer to build up a lot of content to go through at once? Are you a wine-taster reader that samples from multiple stories and works your way back around the table?
-Does the way you read SimLit mirror how you read other mediums (such as novels)? Why or why not?
-As an author, do you have a preference to certain types of readers? Do you find yourself placing more value on the reader that may read more slowly but comment often, or the silent-reader that does not comment but internal statistics show read your whole story from start to finish nearly uninterrupted, much like one would naturally read a novel? Do you find yourself expecting the best of both worlds?
-Do you find that your own preferences toward readers as an author reflect in the way you read other works in the SimLit community?
-How do you choose new SimLit reading material? Do you find that it is similar in any ways to how you choose reading material in other mediums (such as novels)?
If there are any other thoughts/experiences you would like to share from the reading experience of SimLit, I would like to hear them, as this is something I'm quite curious to learn more people's opinions about. Tagging @Twiggy @lisabee2 @sweetnightingale @MoonGirl and maybe @CathyTea or @ra3rei might be interested in being guests this week as I know they read a lot of SimLit, heh. If anyone can think of anyone else that might want to jump into open discussion this week, feel free to buzz them.
Have a Sim story site? Please submit your link to the Stories and Legacies Index!
Check out my Simlit at Sim Stories: Hijinks from the World of Sims 3!
My Simlit Discussion/Updates | The Fringe | Short Story Challenges
Speaking of writing and delays, I'm a tad late with my newest chapter but here it is...
Back soon
It is called The Menace Returns?
https://lisabeesims.wordpress.com/2016/10/24/the-menace-returns/
LisabeeSims
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As promised @mastressalita I've found time to properly address your post with questions so here I am! First of all, I hope the weekend has brought you some (foot) relaxation and (writing) inspiration.
After reading your post, I'm left feeling it's such a shame that I hear my fellow writers struggling with feeling criticized over their commenting to other writers or the reading of other's stories. It aches my sensitive heart @lisabee2 and @mastressalita I always wish more people could uphold a 'live and let live' attitude throughout life and respect fellow humans (and my fellow simmers here!
My irregular reading has several reasons... The biggest reason for me is that I only read simlit behind my PC because my only connection to the internet is my PC. I don't have a smartphone or tablet and no state of the art chair behind my PC so besides playing, writing and other (more heh) necessary obligations I don't like spending many more hours behind my PC. Pair that with the fact I'm a slower reader when it comes to a non-native language and boom, there you have it lol I won't mention those two kids running around the house, though haha
Now on to your actual questions asked
Everything in my life fluctuates, nothing is ever set in stone. When I started reading simlit, I followed two stories (prettacies) which I checked up on regularly to see if new content was out. This was controllable and structured. Then I started my own WordPress and was introduced to the WP Reader. Then I started sampling multiple stories of people that followed me in curiosity over their stories. Many I haven't had the time to read completely due to my limitations mentioned above. By now, I have a huge list of stories still to sample and stories to save for a relaxing, rainy day. I did sample a couple of wines that made me drink the whole bottle (binge read), though, must have been written in a preferred bouquet of fruit and spices haha yet there are so many more stories that I haven't dared touch yet because I'm afraid that if I do and the story inspires me to drink the whole bottle, I won't have time nor a clear head haha to do all the other stuff life asks of me.
No, definitely not! This again is linked very much to my limitations of reading blogs behind my PC. Towards the future, I really want to check for myself what would be the best solution since I will need a new PC soon but would also like some sort of means to read simlit when not at my PC, like on a tablet when relaxing on the couch for instance like I do when reading a novel. But yeah, a new PC is a bigger priority atm, choices, choices lol
I find that both/all types of readers bring a smile to my face. Again my 'live and let live' attitude makes me grateful for the fact that my story is being read without me giving it much attention on other mediums then my blog. To me it is a compliment people find my blog and then stop to read whether that being everything or a sample of my stories. I didn't start writing to accumulate readers or meet with all of their possible expectations. I started writing simlit to find a way to play more than one generation of sims in the game without falling back on my building preferences instead like I always had done in TS' previous versions. I wanted to experience the gameplay of TS4 for once instead of just the building aspect. That simlit rekindled my love for writing feels like a total bonus and heaven sent.
I guess so... maybe I expect a writer of the stories I read to be just as grateful that I stop by and read their story, no matter how fast or how much at once. I would think it would be odd if they had special expectations towards me when reading their work. I think it would maybe even put me off when a writer would criticize the way I read their work. I wouldn't want the author of a novel I read to come over and tell me I put their book aside for too long either, no would I? lol Although I wouldn't mind having a writer over for tea to talk about their novels hehe but same goes for any writer of simlit. It's just a wonderful thing to talk about creativity. Why else would TS4 be filled with 'share crazy idea's', 'discuss favorite books', and so on in the communication options between sims?
Yes, this is kinda similar by comparison. We all know friends mentioning a good book they read recently. Same principal goes for a blogger I follow mentioning blogs they follow. Come to think of that, I need to check how to set that on my blog. I don't believe I've done that yet
LisabeeSims
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https://lisabeesims.wordpress.com/2016/10/29/snow-and-prince-redux-28-tucson-family-time/
LisabeeSims
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It's been a while since I was here and I would like to get off my chest as to why that is. I haven't been feeling myself or maybe I haven't been connecting with myself enough lately. I don't know what it is. Maybe it's my transition years setting in or something else bugging me
Besides that, I'm facing all sorts of problems with the overpriced, damp home I've been renting for myself and the twins for the last year. That paired with the fact I've been having a bug in my saves and haven't been able to play or update the Mezilkree's so far, I'm down. It has been affecting my activity here also. I've been lurking the forums more then I've been commenting.
And now don't get me wrong, I don't mean to offend anyone with what I'm about to say. I'm just trying to get myself out there and be vulnerable... maybe I'm also back to lurking a bit because I've gotten a little disappointed with the reading circle as is? At the time I found out about the reading circles and wanted to join the first formed had already filled up so the only thing I could do is form one myself. Which I really like if it were only that it would make me feel I'm getting the same energy and joy out of it as I put into it. And that is not the case, it has been declining instead. I wished for a place not as large as the Lounge where we could get to know a little bit more about a selected group of simlit writers, share stuff. I'm sorry, guys, I don't have the energy to keep this up
House remodels, bad health, depression... sometimes we don't have control over some of the things that can eat up a lot of time, and I think lulls are just going to happen sometimes. I'm not going to be one to tell someone that wants to take something off their plate not to do so (especially since I had to with my own thread recently), but I've already watched two reading circles I've joined go under, and I've seen this one be so successful so far that it just seems a great waste to me to see it close down just because right now has been a rough time for some of us.
Have a Sim story site? Please submit your link to the Stories and Legacies Index!
Check out my Simlit at Sim Stories: Hijinks from the World of Sims 3!
My Simlit Discussion/Updates | The Fringe | Short Story Challenges
I noticed you must be feeling kinda similar due to your current health issues and am glad you understand
If ever you want to vent about anything and this counts for every one of the members here, feel free to leave a rant. We all have hectic lives at times and I'm open to sharing the good and the bad here.
LisabeeSims
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In all honesty, you and Sara are the members that I see commenting on my blog on a regular basis for which I am very grateful! I know I haven't caught up on your story completely with this last discussion for which I'm sorry. I tried to explain in my earlier comments as to why this is. I am however not that much behind and will binge read the remaining chapters before coming weekend's over as I tend to when not totally caught up on a story yet. I'm not giving up on our reading circle, though, for the time being, it remains a very select circle since we haven't found many new members to liven things up a little.
And even then stranger things happen, I understand, since I saw @mastressalita mention somewhere that our newest member @MoonGirl has been banned from the forum. This also means I'll have to take her off our member list? We are back to four members then.
Anyone visiting and looking for a group of writers/readers to start discussions with, feel free to let us know. As you can see in the comments above, everything can be mentioned and/or discussed here as long as we keep it respectful and harmonious
LisabeeSims
New readers can visit here first: In-a-NUTSHELL
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LisabeeSims
New readers can visit here first: In-a-NUTSHELL
#EAgamechanger
So when you are trying to avoid FB by playing your game and you accidentally set POTUS on fire .. he did not die .. Violet saved him! Stupid fireplaces I wanted ambiance for my shot.
LisabeeSims
New readers can visit here first: In-a-NUTSHELL
#EAgamechanger