@Skeilah omg that's amazing! You make cc? Mad respect for you! I'm a cc hoarder. XD Ahh my gameplay is historical at the moment but *downloads* I'll teach myself to recolor it and put it. It's so cute!
I learned myself some basics yeah ^^ I also know how to recolor if you want another color? It all started with recoloring and then I went experimenting with the existing furniture Thank you!
I learned myself some basics yeah ^^ I also know how to recolor if you want another color? It all started with recoloring and then I went experimenting with the existing furniture Thank you!
Omg I would really love that if it's not too bothersome for you! If you don't mind recoloring again, could make it brown to look like wood? Nothing can be done about the markers but if it's brown it'll blend in with the rest of my wooden furniture.
@everyone Thank you so much for catching uo on my story, the questions, the elaborate answers and the nice comments. I appreciate the time and effort put into it and I've learned a lot in the past week. Can't wait to see what my story will look like the next time my turn comes around. I'm excited to see whose story is up next, but I hope they'll have just as much of a good time as I did. 😊
That is so cool! I can't show it in my camelot screenshots, but I'm definitely downloading it for the gameplay in between!
@Duvelina You're welcome! TGAG is a lot of fun to follow, so I enjoyed answering your questions. I look forward to seeing Hugo, Max and the gang roll around again!
Ooooh, I wonder who is next. We've had Skeilah, me and you now. That leaves AdamsEve, Mercury and Ajam...
Hosting D&D sessions on the side. Interested in playing through some fantasy-themed shenanigans? Send me a message 😘
@Duvelina I agree with Yimi on that one thank you for the good story!
@_sims_Yimi HAHAHAH that would be so funny, a modern calendar like that in a timeline like your story 😂😂😂 when did they even invent calendars...? -dumb moment-
I understand! They're a premade family that came with Windenburg in the Get Together pack. I don't know if you have that one, but if you don't, it's not weird that you didn't bump into them.
To go back to this for a while: I bought Get Together some weeks ago so I went to search my own Villareal family
Okay so, Jacques is already dead in my safe.
Hugo is married to someone named Evie. Evie had two kids from a previous marriage (some random dude, no premade): a daughter named Mara and a son named Johnny. For some unknown reason Mara is named Villalobos like the dad and Johnny is named Villareal so I guess she was still pregnant while marrying Hugo. The two kids live in the Villreal household.
Luna and Max are both single. I guess that’s because some random dude named Simon Gupta went to live with them and now there’s only one open spot left.
Im really asking myself how and why that Simon-guy came in the household. He’s not connected to ANYONE of the Villareals.
Max is an unemployed YA but he’s wearing a cooking outfit :”) super funny. He’s close to aging into adult.
@Skeilah 😂😂 You have MCCC too, I assume? Poor Luna. I assume she's getting close to elderhood if Max is almost an adult? No partner, no kids. Not the life she imagined, probably.
@Skeilah 😂😂 You have MCCC too, I assume? Poor Luna. I assume she's getting close to elderhood if Max is almost an adult? No partner, no kids. Not the life she imagined, probably.
Yeah, I have Maybe that Simon-guy will make his move with Luna. 😂😂 She has 12 days or something until becoming an elder. I hope that she still finds someone, but I’ll leave that to MCCC.
@Skeilah I tried out the calendar and it looks great up close but when I zoom out and farther away from it, it starts to look like this:
Oh no I did have something familiar indeed when I zoomed out just now. Didn't really looked at it at first. I'll try to fix it! It does look very matching with that interior tho
Oh man, so much good discussion happening around here! Let me catch up a little bit.
@Duvelina thank you for taking time to respond to my thoughts! It's super interesting to read more details about your writing and where you plan to take the characters. I'm really looking forward to reading even more! I can't wait for the next round of discussion about your story because I can imagine there's going to be a lot happening.
@mercuryfoam Thank you! I'm currently working with three languages: English, Spanish, and French. Also pretty actively learning Romanian (mainly because I find it to be a fascinating language, haha) and I can understand bits and pieces of others. My main work is translating in an educational environment; guides, feedback, communication between schools and parents, etc., but I also occasionally work in translating fiction and have done a couple novels and some non-fiction. I really like translating! My eventual dream is to write my own novel and then translate it myself (I have a huge fantasy where I have a multilingual series of books that I write and translate myself, an ambitious project indeed ). And yeah! I split my time between Mexico, the US, and France; I was born and have spent the majority of my life in Mexico, did my baccalaureate and Bachelor's in the US (and my family lives there now), and have been living in France since 2016, mainly because I came here for overseas studies in 2014/15 and I loved it so much I had to come back and stay for good. It's been great, I'm living in Strasbourg and the overall environment here is wonderfully multicultural and multilingual due to the status of the city as a sort of "Capital of Europe". It's certainly conducive to enthusiasm for the field I am working in.
Also, congratulations on finishing Season 1 of B2W! That must be such a satisfying feeling, and I can't wait to dive into the story.
@AdamsEve1231 birthday month buddy, thank you so much for sharing your inspiring story! I really appreciate having your perspective on this since you've very successfully gone back for further studies after having worked and volunteered in the interim. Your career managing your volunteering program sounds fascinating, it's awesome that you feel so satisfied and content with what you're doing. I have a bunch of different interests, some related to my current work and most not; writing fiction, translating, learning languages, producing music, graphic design, etc... Lots of different things! I'm not exactly sure what degree I would go for since I have so much interest in various things, but I think I want to go for a translating degree, especially since it's what I do best and that brings me joy as a career. Everything else, I feel like I would want to go to classes and work to get certifications and diplomas in, perhaps, but I truly feel like I should do a Master's in what I do best. The reason I haven't actually taken the plunge is because I haven't found a program I feel like is truly for me within that field! The search continues...
@_sims_Yimi oooh, that's such an interesting mix of languages! Did you learn Japanese first when you worked overseas or did you already know it? I find Asian languages and writing systems fascinating (I know a bit of Korean), and Japanese is really such a beautiful and intricate language. I should know a little more German than I know considering I live in Alsace, but... it's daunting! I mean, English, French, and Spanish (and Romanian, I suppose) aren't quite the aids they could be when learning German (English is a little, I suppose), so I just keep putting it off.
@Skeilah oh gosh, your calendar is so cute! And the CC, I need this in the game right now. I can't wait to put it in my game and possibly have it show up in the background of K&GI sometime Thank you so much for making this, it's awesome! It's so cool that you can make CC too, did it take you a long time to learn? I love downloading CC and have made a single piece of it (a tattoo to match my own real-life one for my simself) but I'm honestly scared to learn more because it seems like it's tough work.
@everyone haha, I really like reading about your academic and professional histories! It's very interesting to see what we have in common and where we differ, I think it's so awesome to kind of put a face to the author behind the stories. Of course, it makes me feel even closer to the stories since we're sharing so much, but it's fascinating to see how even with our things in common, our stories and styles are pretty different from each other. Let me just say, this reading circle is the best, one of my favorite things every week. Thanks y'all♥
And also, another awesome week of discussion! Thanks @Duvelina for the questions, it's great to see the thread so lively with responses and discussion. I've put in the remaining three stories into the randomizer hat, and I've pulled out... The Krazy Crazy Life of Kassiopeia Fullbright by @AdamsEve1231 !
@AdamsEve1231 , I can't wait to start the discussion! When you've gathered some questions and/or indications for us, we'll get started.
Yes!!! There was a one in three chance but it once again worked out in my favour. 😂 Now I don't have to stop reading the story I chose to catch up on next. My own week of discussion also helped with that, but now I'll be that much closer to being caught up at the end of the week.
@ajamkeevin So much is going to happen! I'm so excited to hear everyone's reactions when they read the event I'm thinking of. 😇
Hey everyone, I'm excited you'll be reading KCLKF this week. I know @Duvelina is already reading it and @mercuryfoam has read some before, and @_sims_Yimi started at least the prologue. I'm actually really excited because I've been writing the final chapters of this story all weekend.
It's a very long story so I don't expect anyone to catch up this week. The chapters are 1000-2200 words typically, broken into parts or arcs to help you read in groups. I'd like to ask what everyone thinks is a reasonable grouping. A single part? Several arcs? I am thinking Arc 1-7, but if that's too much, maybe Arc 1-3? Or if you'd like more arcs to discuss, let me know.
I'm heading to bed but I'll try and post questions tomorrow morning. Feel free to drop general thoughts here (with spoilers) or in my forums thread (linked in the first page of this thread) in the meantime.
@AdamsEve1231 For me, arc 1-7 seems reasonable. I read an arc a day so that would add up exactly. Other people here seem to bingeread a lot, so shouldn't be too much but maybe other people have different thoughts.
In terms of general thoughts, I love your writing style. You include so much detail it makes the characters seem real. I start to like awkward Kass more everytime I read about her. Question: Will we see Kass go to college or will the story only describe the summer before? I'd love to see Kass in college and her growing up, getting her study on.
@AdamsEve1231 Im going to look to your story today to see what’s doable for me. I havent really started your story (I did look at the website and investigate hahaha) so niw is the perfect timing to do that.
@AdamsEve1231 I'm definitely a binge reader when I have a long story to read, I like just taking a few hours to catch up! So really, any amount of your story to discuss this week is fine with me, the chapters are a perfect length, I think, for catching up. I'm OK with whatever you and the others deem appropriate for discussion this week!
Alright everyone... here's what I've got for KCLKF. Thank you so much for reading. I know everyone's at different places in the story, but for now, we'll say Arcs 1-7. If you can't quite make it by weeks end, that's fine. This story is intended to a coming-of-age tale (with fantasy, supernatural, crime/mystery elements included). It is also very loosely based on my own experiences as a younger teen/young adult.
General Questions:
1. All my Sims stories take place in the future (with an alternative history on Earth) on another planet (Simterra). What do you think of the worldbuilding? Does everything make sense? What additional questions do you have about the world building?
2. I put little Author's Notes at the bottom of every chapter. Are they useful? Do you like them? Do they help clarify things from the chapter?
3. The chapters are broken into arcs. Is this helpful? Do you find the breaks natural? (sometimes I use cliffhangers)
4. What is your initial impression of Kass, my main character/the protagonist?
5. The first part of the story is most definitely slice-of-life with some elements of supernatural/fantasy and mystery thrown in. Do you like it? How is it similar or different to other slice-of-life stories you've read?
6. Any thoughts on my writing style? The length of chapters? The pacing?
Arc Specific Questions: Arc 1:
What do you think of the Prologue (the first five chapters)? Do you feel like it gives you a good introduction to Kass, her family, and backstory? Do you have additional questions about her family/past?
Arc 2:
What do you think of the introduction of Kass' relationship with her mom and sisters? Does it feel realistic? What about the introduction of her friends, Ayesha and Gage?
Arc 3:
a) What are your thoughts about Clark? Thoughts about VJ?
b) Andi and Kass discuss faith. What are your thoughts about my take on the Jacoban/Peteran faith from Sims Medieval?
c) Andi and Kass also discuss dating and Kass proceeds to think about her love life. Did it feel realistic?
d) Also, this arc introduces one of the many mysteries in this story. How do you think I handled its introduction?
Arc 4:
What are your thoughts about Davis? Did you like his interlude?
Arc 5:
a) Howard drops a bit of a shock on Kass. How do you feel about this father/daughter reunion? What about the introduction of EXCES?
b) Amy struggles with depression. Did that show in the chapters?
c) Kass also exhibits signs of anxiety. Does that show in the chapters?
d) What do you think about Kass' job offer?
Arc 6:
Okay now for some fun...
a) what did you think of Kass and Ayesha's interactions?
b) What about the meetup with Davis? How do you feel about a relationship between Kass and Davis?
c) What about when the girls went to the high school to "spy?"
Arc 7:
How do you feel about Gage's confession? Do you think Kass could've reacted/responded differently? Did you like Gage's interlude?
Arc 8 and beyond (depending on where you are):
a) How do you think Kass' relationship with her family and friends are developing? What about with Davis?
b) Any thoughts on the developing politics?
c) Thoughts on the unfolding mysteries?
Other Questions to answer based on where you are (no spoilers in the questions really):
1. Kass is intended to be a flawed character. She isn't perfect, but I feel this makes her more realistic. Do her flaws annoy you or deepen her character? Or something else entirely? What do you see as her strengths/gifts?
2. Do you have a favorite character so far? Do you have a least favorite character? Who do you want to know more about?
3. Do you have a favorite scene/chapter thus far?
4. Any future predictions based on where you are in the story?
5. What questions do you have for me? Any other thoughts you'd like to share?
I'm going to do the questions in parts again. I just got to Arc 16, so I'm ahead. You'll have something to read every day and I won't overwhelm myself because there are quite a few questions.
General Questions
1. All my Sims stories take place in the future (with an alternative history on Earth) on another planet (Simterra). What do you think of the worldbuilding? Does everything make sense? What additional questions do you have about the world building?
I've said it before, but I love your worldbuilding. You insert so many intricate details, it feels like it's a place that actually exists. The politics, religion, mafia's, diseases, background stories. It really does feel like the Fullbright family (and everyone else) has lived a whole life before we got to read about their story. Right now, I don't have questions about the worldbuilding. Well, maybe one. How much of the supernatural elements present in the game do you use? It's clear aliens are a part of your world, but how about faries, vampires, werewolves etc.? So far, everything makes sense. You seem to have a knack for tackling questions I might have in your narrative.
I put little Author's Notes at the bottom of every chapter. Are they useful? Do you like them? Do they help clarify things from the chapter?
The author's notes are one of my favourite aspects of your story! I love reading what your fictional terms are based on, but I mostly love it when you tell us a little about your own life and how it influenced the story. I don't know if I'd call them useful per se. I don't need them to understand the story, but I do like them. I roll with whatever you give me in the actual text.
3. The chapters are broken into arcs. Is this helpful? Do you find the breaks natural? (sometimes I use cliffhangers)
Hm, I'm not so sure about the arcs myself. For an arc, I think about a story arc which in my mind means it's a smaller part of a bigger story. I feel like you might have too many. They could be bigger than they are right now. I don't know if arc is the right word. I can't specifically remember a cliffhanger at the end of one of first seven arcs, but I do remember that I got excited to read the next arc the following day. They do provide a nice stopping point for me.
4. What is your initial impression of Kass, my main character/the protagonist?
I think you might have noticed, but my initial impression of Kass wasn't great. I don't think she starts out particularly likable. She's definitely realistic, but she wouldn't be someone I'd want to hang out with. It's the immature way of going about things she sometimes has that annoys me. Maybe I would have liked her more when I was still somewhat immature and younger, but I feel like she might fall in the 'too young for me' category at this time in my life. She does have her likable moments though. I am getting more used to her throughout the story and I can she is improving. I hope she becomes even more mature later on.
5. The first part of the story is most definitely slice-of-life with some elements of supernatural/fantasy and mystery thrown in. Do you like it? How is it similar or different to other slice-of-life stories you've read?
I love slice-of-life. It's my favourite genre to read. I'm nosey, so I love feeling like I'm bursting into someone's life and getting to know everything about them. Drama's and soap opera's are some of my favourite shows to watch. I feel like I never want the story to end because I get so attached to the characters. I have less of that with stories from other genres whether that be on TV or in books/simlit. I think yours differs from other slice-of-life's I have read because it includes some mysteries. I don't think I've encountered a whole lot of that before. It's a nice change of pace and it keeps me wondering what's going to happen next. I'm not majorly attached to the characters yet though, but that might still come.
6. Any thoughts on my writing style? The length of chapters? The pacing?
You write clear prose. It's much more detailed than the way I write, but I like it. You describe people Kass sees in the café or on the street, how they look, what they're wearing. It makes for a lively and realistic story which I'm here for. Sometimes I feel like the chapters go on for a little too long, especially if there are no pictures to break it up but I've still managed to finish an arc a day so you kept me reading anyway.
The pacing was something I had to get used to. I haven't read something before that included so many chapters/parts going over a single day. I expected Kass to go to college pretty soon after starting, but that wasn't the case. I'm on arc 15 and we're on June 10th now and we started on, what, June 1st? So, it's going pretty slow but I don't mind, really. As long as the story stays interesting. I am hoping for a time skip at some point though.
Arc 1
What do you think of the Prologue (the first five chapters)? Do you feel like it gives you a good introduction to Kass, her family, and backstory? Do you have additional questions about her family/past?
The prologue included some of my favourite chapters. I remember feeling an affinity for Kass' grandpa after reading her description of him and I was so excited to meet him later on. The way you formatted it into an essay was something I thought was super unique and I loved reading Kass' writing. It did provide a great introduction. It gave me a good starting point to see what Kass' had experienced up until that point and we could really take off from there. I think I asked all of my questions in the comments on your blog. Maybe this one: What was Kass like when she was little? We haven't seen them as kids very much. What did Kass like as a kid, how was her relationship with her siblings etc.? I think it'd give some good context of who Kass grew up to be.
Arc 2
What do you think of the introduction of Kass' relationship with her mom and sisters? Does it feel realistic? What about the introduction of her friends, Ayesha and Gage?
I'm having a hard time remembering what happened in Arc 2 and how everyone was introduced, so I'll have to go back and look.
Right. I didn't like Amy very much, because of the way she dealt with the situation where one of the sisters stole Kass' stuff. She did still seem like a real mom though. Kass seemed to love her a whole lot and care for her. Kass' relationship with Andi is my favourite, although I like Carina as a standalone character more. Carina is sassy and pessimistic which I can relate to, but I feel like Kass and Andi get along better. Carina feels more troubled than either of them.
When we meet Ayesha, it feels like Kass and her are polar opposites and have nothing in common except growing up together. I like the way they tease each other and hang out. I think a lot of people have friends they grew up with who turned out to have completely different interests. You can grow apart or stay friends and I'm glad Kass and Ayesha stayed friends (so far). We obviously saw Gage immediately get into a fight with Kass. I felt like both parties were in the wrong there. Gage could have feigned some understanding for Kass and vice versa, actually. It shows that both sides have some maturing to do and try and work on their communication skills if they want to have this long-distance friendship. Miscommunication happens more often over the phone than in real life, because you can't see someone's face. So a better communication face-to-face might a step in the right direction already. I'm not a huge fan of Gage myself, but I'm glad Kass has such a good friend in him.
1. All my Sims stories take place in the future (with an alternative history on Earth) on another planet (Simterra). What do you think of the worldbuilding? Does everything make sense? What additional questions do you have about the world building?
It took me a while (read: the author notes) to realize I was reading something in the future, and at first I was a little confused because of all those names I didn’t knew, but all of my questions while reading were taken away while reading the author’s notes. If those weren’t there, I don’t know if I would understand a thing about it, but now I do!
2. I put little Author's Notes at the bottom of every chapter. Are they useful? Do you like them? Do they help clarify things from the chapter?
For me personally they are SUPER useful. Like I said up here, without those, I think I would be lost in the story, making things up myself.
3. The chapters are broken into arcs. Is this helpful? Do you find the breaks natural? (sometimes I use cliffhangers)
I only read the first arc by now but I think they are helpful. It makes everything more easy to read for me (I am a simple minded person hehe). At first I didn’t really knew what arcs were (because I don’t use them myself) so my simple mind was a little confused. But now that I get it, I think for your story, they are useful.
4. What is your initial impression of Kass, my main character/the protagonist?
I like how you include things that happened to yourself in Kass her life story. It makes it so real and to some things I can relate so much already. I’m like diving into a story where parts of it could be my own life. I already like Kass a lot because of all the realness in the story, in her story. I’m looking forward to the rest!
5. The first part of the story is most definitely slice-of-life with some elements of supernatural/fantasy and mystery thrown in. Do you like it? How is it similar or different to other slice-of-life stories you’ve read?
I liked it, but I’m mostly looking forward to the rest of the story. For me, the first part of the story is just to understand everything, and the rest is the actual story. Like, you need to go through this to know the rest? Positive thing: I’ve read stories without a prologue. So, there’s a whole family and I don’t know anything about it and I need to find it out all by myself. I liked the fact that everything was written in front of me without the need to search everything, write everything down, …
This is why I like to start with only one sim, without a family (like Liz) and the family will build itself while playing the game. No need to explain things, hahahahaha!
6. Any thoughts on my writing style? The length of chapters? The pacing?
At first I’m always like ‘oof that looks long’ but I’m done reading before I know it. I really like your writing style and the length of the chapters is great! It’s totally different from how I write but I don’t always like my own writing, hahaha. You’re going into detail just enough to understand everything and not make it boring.
ARC SPECIFIC QUESTIONS
Arc 1:
What do you think of the Prologue (the first five chapters)? Do you feel like it gives you a good introduction to Kass, her family, and backstory? Do you have additional questions about her family/past?
It took me a while and I’m sure I’ll forget some parts, but I can search them up again and I think I got the main things in my mind to go on with the rest of the story. You did a good job on the prologue
Comments
Thank you!
I learned myself some basics yeah ^^ I also know how to recolor if you want another color? It all started with recoloring and then I went experimenting with the existing furniture
Omg I would really love that if it's not too bothersome for you! If you don't mind recoloring again, could make it brown to look like wood? Nothing can be done about the markers but if it's brown it'll blend in with the rest of my wooden furniture.
Dropbox link: Click here!
@everyone Thank you so much for catching uo on my story, the questions, the elaborate answers and the nice comments. I appreciate the time and effort put into it and I've learned a lot in the past week. Can't wait to see what my story will look like the next time my turn comes around. I'm excited to see whose story is up next, but I hope they'll have just as much of a good time as I did. 😊
Too Good at Goodbyes forum thread
Too Good at Goodbyes blog
That is so cool! I can't show it in my camelot screenshots, but I'm definitely downloading it for the gameplay in between!
@Duvelina You're welcome! TGAG is a lot of fun to follow, so I enjoyed answering your questions. I look forward to seeing Hugo, Max and the gang roll around again!
Ooooh, I wonder who is next. We've had Skeilah, me and you now. That leaves AdamsEve, Mercury and Ajam...
@_sims_Yimi HAHAHAH that would be so funny, a modern calendar like that in a timeline like your story 😂😂😂 when did they even invent calendars...? -dumb moment-
Im also super curious who’s next!
To go back to this for a while: I bought Get Together some weeks ago so I went to search my own Villareal family
Okay so, Jacques is already dead in my safe.
Hugo is married to someone named Evie. Evie had two kids from a previous marriage (some random dude, no premade): a daughter named Mara and a son named Johnny. For some unknown reason Mara is named Villalobos like the dad and Johnny is named Villareal so I guess she was still pregnant while marrying Hugo. The two kids live in the Villreal household.
Luna and Max are both single. I guess that’s because some random dude named Simon Gupta went to live with them and now there’s only one open spot left.
Im really asking myself how and why that Simon-guy came in the household. He’s not connected to ANYONE of the Villareals.
Max is an unemployed YA but he’s wearing a cooking outfit :”) super funny. He’s close to aging into adult.
So, that was funny.
Too Good at Goodbyes forum thread
Too Good at Goodbyes blog
Yeah, I have
Too Good at Goodbyes forum thread
Too Good at Goodbyes blog
Oh no
This is great! I'm really impressed we have CC makers in this circle. I collect CC but I've never tried making it.
Find me elsewhere:
My EA App ID: livinasimminlife
Livin' A Simmin' Life Stories
My Worldbuilding Blog
Simblr
My Sims Pinterest
@Duvelina thank you for taking time to respond to my thoughts! It's super interesting to read more details about your writing and where you plan to take the characters. I'm really looking forward to reading even more! I can't wait for the next round of discussion about your story because I can imagine there's going to be a lot happening.
@mercuryfoam Thank you! I'm currently working with three languages: English, Spanish, and French. Also pretty actively learning Romanian (mainly because I find it to be a fascinating language, haha) and I can understand bits and pieces of others. My main work is translating in an educational environment; guides, feedback, communication between schools and parents, etc., but I also occasionally work in translating fiction and have done a couple novels and some non-fiction. I really like translating! My eventual dream is to write my own novel and then translate it myself (I have a huge fantasy where I have a multilingual series of books that I write and translate myself, an ambitious project indeed
Also, congratulations on finishing Season 1 of B2W! That must be such a satisfying feeling, and I can't wait to dive into the story.
@AdamsEve1231 birthday month buddy, thank you so much for sharing your inspiring story! I really appreciate having your perspective on this since you've very successfully gone back for further studies after having worked and volunteered in the interim. Your career managing your volunteering program sounds fascinating, it's awesome that you feel so satisfied and content with what you're doing. I have a bunch of different interests, some related to my current work and most not; writing fiction, translating, learning languages, producing music, graphic design, etc... Lots of different things! I'm not exactly sure what degree I would go for since I have so much interest in various things, but I think I want to go for a translating degree, especially since it's what I do best and that brings me joy as a career. Everything else, I feel like I would want to go to classes and work to get certifications and diplomas in, perhaps, but I truly feel like I should do a Master's in what I do best. The reason I haven't actually taken the plunge is because I haven't found a program I feel like is truly for me within that field! The search continues...
@_sims_Yimi oooh, that's such an interesting mix of languages! Did you learn Japanese first when you worked overseas or did you already know it? I find Asian languages and writing systems fascinating (I know a bit of Korean), and Japanese is really such a beautiful and intricate language. I should know a little more German than I know considering I live in Alsace, but... it's daunting!
@Skeilah oh gosh, your calendar is so cute! And the CC, I need this in the game right now. I can't wait to put it in my game and possibly have it show up in the background of K&GI sometime
@everyone haha, I really like reading about your academic and professional histories! It's very interesting to see what we have in common and where we differ, I think it's so awesome to kind of put a face to the author behind the stories. Of course, it makes me feel even closer to the stories since we're sharing so much, but it's fascinating to see how even with our things in common, our stories and styles are pretty different from each other. Let me just say, this reading circle is the best, one of my favorite things every week. Thanks y'all♥
Kev & Get It • Forum Thread
@AdamsEve1231 , I can't wait to start the discussion! When you've gathered some questions and/or indications for us, we'll get started.
Kev & Get It • Forum Thread
@ajamkeevin So much is going to happen! I'm so excited to hear everyone's reactions when they read the event I'm thinking of. 😇
Too Good at Goodbyes forum thread
Too Good at Goodbyes blog
It's a very long story so I don't expect anyone to catch up this week. The chapters are 1000-2200 words typically, broken into parts or arcs to help you read in groups. I'd like to ask what everyone thinks is a reasonable grouping. A single part? Several arcs? I am thinking Arc 1-7, but if that's too much, maybe Arc 1-3? Or if you'd like more arcs to discuss, let me know.
I'm heading to bed but I'll try and post questions tomorrow morning. Feel free to drop general thoughts here (with spoilers) or in my forums thread (linked in the first page of this thread) in the meantime.
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In terms of general thoughts, I love your writing style. You include so much detail it makes the characters seem real. I start to like awkward Kass more everytime I read about her. Question: Will we see Kass go to college or will the story only describe the summer before? I'd love to see Kass in college and her growing up, getting her study on.
Too Good at Goodbyes forum thread
Too Good at Goodbyes blog
Kev & Get It • Forum Thread
General Questions:
1. All my Sims stories take place in the future (with an alternative history on Earth) on another planet (Simterra). What do you think of the worldbuilding? Does everything make sense? What additional questions do you have about the world building?
2. I put little Author's Notes at the bottom of every chapter. Are they useful? Do you like them? Do they help clarify things from the chapter?
3. The chapters are broken into arcs. Is this helpful? Do you find the breaks natural? (sometimes I use cliffhangers)
4. What is your initial impression of Kass, my main character/the protagonist?
5. The first part of the story is most definitely slice-of-life with some elements of supernatural/fantasy and mystery thrown in. Do you like it? How is it similar or different to other slice-of-life stories you've read?
6. Any thoughts on my writing style? The length of chapters? The pacing?
Arc Specific Questions:
Arc 1:
b) Andi and Kass discuss faith. What are your thoughts about my take on the Jacoban/Peteran faith from Sims Medieval?
c) Andi and Kass also discuss dating and Kass proceeds to think about her love life. Did it feel realistic?
d) Also, this arc introduces one of the many mysteries in this story. How do you think I handled its introduction?
b) Amy struggles with depression. Did that show in the chapters?
c) Kass also exhibits signs of anxiety. Does that show in the chapters?
d) What do you think about Kass' job offer?
a) what did you think of Kass and Ayesha's interactions?
b) What about the meetup with Davis? How do you feel about a relationship between Kass and Davis?
c) What about when the girls went to the high school to "spy?"
b) Any thoughts on the developing politics?
c) Thoughts on the unfolding mysteries?
Other Questions to answer based on where you are (no spoilers in the questions really):
2. Do you have a favorite character so far? Do you have a least favorite character? Who do you want to know more about?
3. Do you have a favorite scene/chapter thus far?
4. Any future predictions based on where you are in the story?
5. What questions do you have for me? Any other thoughts you'd like to share?
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General Questions
I've said it before, but I love your worldbuilding. You insert so many intricate details, it feels like it's a place that actually exists. The politics, religion, mafia's, diseases, background stories. It really does feel like the Fullbright family (and everyone else) has lived a whole life before we got to read about their story. Right now, I don't have questions about the worldbuilding. Well, maybe one. How much of the supernatural elements present in the game do you use? It's clear aliens are a part of your world, but how about faries, vampires, werewolves etc.? So far, everything makes sense. You seem to have a knack for tackling questions I might have in your narrative.
The author's notes are one of my favourite aspects of your story! I love reading what your fictional terms are based on, but I mostly love it when you tell us a little about your own life and how it influenced the story. I don't know if I'd call them useful per se. I don't need them to understand the story, but I do like them. I roll with whatever you give me in the actual text.
Hm, I'm not so sure about the arcs myself. For an arc, I think about a story arc which in my mind means it's a smaller part of a bigger story. I feel like you might have too many. They could be bigger than they are right now. I don't know if arc is the right word. I can't specifically remember a cliffhanger at the end of one of first seven arcs, but I do remember that I got excited to read the next arc the following day. They do provide a nice stopping point for me.
I think you might have noticed, but my initial impression of Kass wasn't great. I don't think she starts out particularly likable. She's definitely realistic, but she wouldn't be someone I'd want to hang out with. It's the immature way of going about things she sometimes has that annoys me. Maybe I would have liked her more when I was still somewhat immature and younger, but I feel like she might fall in the 'too young for me' category at this time in my life. She does have her likable moments though. I am getting more used to her throughout the story and I can she is improving. I hope she becomes even more mature later on.
I love slice-of-life. It's my favourite genre to read. I'm nosey, so I love feeling like I'm bursting into someone's life and getting to know everything about them. Drama's and soap opera's are some of my favourite shows to watch. I feel like I never want the story to end because I get so attached to the characters. I have less of that with stories from other genres whether that be on TV or in books/simlit. I think yours differs from other slice-of-life's I have read because it includes some mysteries. I don't think I've encountered a whole lot of that before. It's a nice change of pace and it keeps me wondering what's going to happen next. I'm not majorly attached to the characters yet though, but that might still come.
You write clear prose. It's much more detailed than the way I write, but I like it. You describe people Kass sees in the café or on the street, how they look, what they're wearing. It makes for a lively and realistic story which I'm here for. Sometimes I feel like the chapters go on for a little too long, especially if there are no pictures to break it up but I've still managed to finish an arc a day so you kept me reading anyway.
The pacing was something I had to get used to. I haven't read something before that included so many chapters/parts going over a single day. I expected Kass to go to college pretty soon after starting, but that wasn't the case. I'm on arc 15 and we're on June 10th now and we started on, what, June 1st? So, it's going pretty slow but I don't mind, really. As long as the story stays interesting. I am hoping for a time skip at some point though.
Arc 1
The prologue included some of my favourite chapters. I remember feeling an affinity for Kass' grandpa after reading her description of him and I was so excited to meet him later on. The way you formatted it into an essay was something I thought was super unique and I loved reading Kass' writing. It did provide a great introduction. It gave me a good starting point to see what Kass' had experienced up until that point and we could really take off from there. I think I asked all of my questions in the comments on your blog. Maybe this one: What was Kass like when she was little? We haven't seen them as kids very much. What did Kass like as a kid, how was her relationship with her siblings etc.? I think it'd give some good context of who Kass grew up to be.
Arc 2
I'm having a hard time remembering what happened in Arc 2 and how everyone was introduced, so I'll have to go back and look.
Right. I didn't like Amy very much, because of the way she dealt with the situation where one of the sisters stole Kass' stuff. She did still seem like a real mom though. Kass seemed to love her a whole lot and care for her. Kass' relationship with Andi is my favourite, although I like Carina as a standalone character more. Carina is sassy and pessimistic which I can relate to, but I feel like Kass and Andi get along better. Carina feels more troubled than either of them.
When we meet Ayesha, it feels like Kass and her are polar opposites and have nothing in common except growing up together. I like the way they tease each other and hang out. I think a lot of people have friends they grew up with who turned out to have completely different interests. You can grow apart or stay friends and I'm glad Kass and Ayesha stayed friends (so far). We obviously saw Gage immediately get into a fight with Kass. I felt like both parties were in the wrong there. Gage could have feigned some understanding for Kass and vice versa, actually. It shows that both sides have some maturing to do and try and work on their communication skills if they want to have this long-distance friendship. Miscommunication happens more often over the phone than in real life, because you can't see someone's face. So a better communication face-to-face might a step in the right direction already. I'm not a huge fan of Gage myself, but I'm glad Kass has such a good friend in him.
Too Good at Goodbyes forum thread
Too Good at Goodbyes blog
It took me a while (read: the author notes) to realize I was reading something in the future, and at first I was a little confused because of all those names I didn’t knew, but all of my questions while reading were taken away while reading the author’s notes. If those weren’t there, I don’t know if I would understand a thing about it, but now I do!
2. I put little Author's Notes at the bottom of every chapter. Are they useful? Do you like them? Do they help clarify things from the chapter?
For me personally they are SUPER useful. Like I said up here, without those, I think I would be lost in the story, making things up myself.
3. The chapters are broken into arcs. Is this helpful? Do you find the breaks natural? (sometimes I use cliffhangers)
I only read the first arc by now but I think they are helpful. It makes everything more easy to read for me (I am a simple minded person hehe). At first I didn’t really knew what arcs were (because I don’t use them myself) so my simple mind was a little confused. But now that I get it, I think for your story, they are useful.
4. What is your initial impression of Kass, my main character/the protagonist?
I like how you include things that happened to yourself in Kass her life story. It makes it so real and to some things I can relate so much already. I’m like diving into a story where parts of it could be my own life. I already like Kass a lot because of all the realness in the story, in her story. I’m looking forward to the rest!
5. The first part of the story is most definitely slice-of-life with some elements of supernatural/fantasy and mystery thrown in. Do you like it? How is it similar or different to other slice-of-life stories you’ve read?
I liked it, but I’m mostly looking forward to the rest of the story. For me, the first part of the story is just to understand everything, and the rest is the actual story. Like, you need to go through this to know the rest? Positive thing: I’ve read stories without a prologue. So, there’s a whole family and I don’t know anything about it and I need to find it out all by myself. I liked the fact that everything was written in front of me without the need to search everything, write everything down, …
This is why I like to start with only one sim, without a family (like Liz) and the family will build itself while playing the game. No need to explain things, hahahahaha!
6. Any thoughts on my writing style? The length of chapters? The pacing?
At first I’m always like ‘oof that looks long’ but I’m done reading before I know it. I really like your writing style and the length of the chapters is great! It’s totally different from how I write but I don’t always like my own writing, hahaha. You’re going into detail just enough to understand everything and not make it boring.
ARC SPECIFIC QUESTIONS
Arc 1:
It took me a while and I’m sure I’ll forget some parts, but I can search them up again and I think I got the main things in my mind to go on with the rest of the story. You did a good job on the prologue
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Livin' A Simmin' Life Stories
My Worldbuilding Blog
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