There's been a debate apparently about the main female protagonist's name. Her Japanese name is Kotone, her English name is Lyra, and the fan-made name is Soul. However, it's come to my attention that some people feel calling her Soul is stupid/wrong, and I wanted to address why I chose to name her as such in Follow Me.
I started writing Follow Me long, long before it was ever posted. To be honest, I don't recall if the Japanese name was even released, so as a placeholder, I named her Soul, intending on changing the name to the English name when it came around.
...Then I found out what the English name was and was disappointed by how...bleh it was. No offense to those who like it, I just feel it's an ugly name. *shrug* So I had two choices: stick with Soul, or use the Japanese name, Kotone.
I debated on using Kotone. I really, really did. But by this point, I was a good 4 chapters in, and had grown fond of using the name Soul in the story. As an added bonus, I was thinking about Silver's name (you know...Silver...) and how it was an "odd" name. If Silver could be accepted as a name, why couldn't Soul? It got me thinking that maybe I should keep it as Soul to fit in with other "odd" names, such as Silver, Gold, Leaf, etc.
Now, however, I'm starting to feel like this was a mistake, and perhaps I'll consider changing it if it really bothers people (I've warmed up to the name Lyra, so I guess I wouldn't be opposed to using it). I just don't feel it affects the quality of the story at all just because of her name being "wrong."
Any thoughts?
Monday, May 10, 2010
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Chapter Lengths
I've had some people comment on the length of the chapters, so I thought I should respond.
Follow Me's chapters are short for a number of reasons. Firstly, it's easier for my schedule. Not many people know this, but I'm a mom, and I don't always have time to sit down and write (barring naptime and after she goes to bed). With shorter chapters, it means I can sit down and write a whole chapter in about 30 minutes to an hour, which is perfect when you don't have a whole lot of time to spare.
Secondly, it's to challenge myself. My writing prior to this story was very different; I tended to bog down on details, and in a way, it interrupted the flow of the story, as well as lengthened each installment considerably. It was always something that bothered me, so with Follow Me I took a different approach and cut out all the excessive detail I normally would include. Doing so changed my style, increased the flow of events, and, by extension, shortened the chapters.
Thirdly, it's to increase/aid the dramatic effect. Follow Me is a drama, and shorter chapters means abrupt endings, adding an extra punch of tension at the end of each chapter. Some may have noticed this means every chapter ends in a cliff hanger of sorts. *laughs* This wasn't the original intention, but as the story began to progress, I realized it was fun to torture my reade--I mean, write it this way. *laughs*
Fourthly, it's to increase the number of updates. If Follow Me's chapters were longer, you'd get more content per chapter, but much fewer updates. There'd probably only be an update once a month, and we'd only be in Chapter 3 or 4 instead of 8 right now. I didn't want to do this with Follow Me; I wanted something light, quick, and simple that I could churn out every week or two, that way it's less stress on me and I won't forget about it. ^^;
I feel like the shorter chapters make Follow Me easier to read; you don't have to sit at a computer for about an hour reading (or have to print it out to read while out and about). You can sit down, read for about ten minutes, maybe post a review, and be done with it. It's quick for me to write, it's quick for you to read--all in all I think it benefits everyone. ^_^ Plus, I think the shorter style just suits the story I want to tell more than a long, multi-page chapter.
I hope you'll all continue to enjoy reading each update every two weeks as much as I enjoy writing each one. <3
Follow Me's chapters are short for a number of reasons. Firstly, it's easier for my schedule. Not many people know this, but I'm a mom, and I don't always have time to sit down and write (barring naptime and after she goes to bed). With shorter chapters, it means I can sit down and write a whole chapter in about 30 minutes to an hour, which is perfect when you don't have a whole lot of time to spare.
Secondly, it's to challenge myself. My writing prior to this story was very different; I tended to bog down on details, and in a way, it interrupted the flow of the story, as well as lengthened each installment considerably. It was always something that bothered me, so with Follow Me I took a different approach and cut out all the excessive detail I normally would include. Doing so changed my style, increased the flow of events, and, by extension, shortened the chapters.
Thirdly, it's to increase/aid the dramatic effect. Follow Me is a drama, and shorter chapters means abrupt endings, adding an extra punch of tension at the end of each chapter. Some may have noticed this means every chapter ends in a cliff hanger of sorts. *laughs* This wasn't the original intention, but as the story began to progress, I realized it was fun to torture my reade--I mean, write it this way. *laughs*
Fourthly, it's to increase the number of updates. If Follow Me's chapters were longer, you'd get more content per chapter, but much fewer updates. There'd probably only be an update once a month, and we'd only be in Chapter 3 or 4 instead of 8 right now. I didn't want to do this with Follow Me; I wanted something light, quick, and simple that I could churn out every week or two, that way it's less stress on me and I won't forget about it. ^^;
I feel like the shorter chapters make Follow Me easier to read; you don't have to sit at a computer for about an hour reading (or have to print it out to read while out and about). You can sit down, read for about ten minutes, maybe post a review, and be done with it. It's quick for me to write, it's quick for you to read--all in all I think it benefits everyone. ^_^ Plus, I think the shorter style just suits the story I want to tell more than a long, multi-page chapter.
I hope you'll all continue to enjoy reading each update every two weeks as much as I enjoy writing each one. <3
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