Northern Skies - Janet! (Page 14 of 21)

*crickets*

*crickets*

*smells armpit*

Nope, it's not too bad. Guess everyone is just busy. Except njc, not saying he isn't busy (for those that struggle to figure this out, K can translate Janet double-negative in no time), because he (njc, not K, although K might also be busy, but I'm talking about njc here) is busy (and I have pics to prove it too), but he's on top of this game and for his dedication and trouble and effort I've elevated him to the top of my "All time heroes and favourite reviewers"-list. You might notice a few names that have been elevated to this highly coveted position in the past: William Shakespeare, Stephen King, JK Rowling, just to name a few.

*crickets*

Seriously though, let me know if I've missed returning a few favours ... Rebecca, I'm planning a Drech marathon if not this weekend, next weekend, so you're sitting out this remind-Janet-gently-of-reviews-she-needs-to-get-to-catch-up round!

ps - if the top of my list carrot isn't working, think of it this way: if I'm busy reading reviews (AND a little bit of writing in between), I don't have time to post ...

Did I close this thread or did you do it in favor of crickets?

Not that I would ever do it on purpose, but I can do that? I'm going to have to use that line when Alda is asked to do a healing spell or something...

That's a tough one. I wouldn't mind to have 4 hours a day to write, but not on a train to work without much choice in the matter. But yes, what you're doing is the best you can do - use the time as much as you can (this also explains the lack of in-line reviews sometimes!).

4 hours is a pretty hard commute, so I hope your employer supports flexible working hours ... in your case, one day not going in to work would mean one day + 4 hours essentially.

*refresh page* nope, still crickets! LOL All good, as long as you guys are aware of the new chapter, I'm happy. Take your time! In the meantime, I'm going to keep myself busy with reviews and the forums a little bit.

That's got the ZF 9-speed tranny.  I just did a little reading.  Seems it can give you delays on certain downshifts, specifically those that involve disengaging and re-engaging the dog clutch.  I also have to see if I can get print copies of some of the 'animated' diagrams on the Wiki-P page.  They move too durn fast.  4 planetaries (two nested) with multilayer friction clutches and brakes, plus the dog clutches.  Compact design that requires taking power off a gear on the side rather than via an output shaft.  Weight: a little under 200 lb (86 kg mass).  Seems like it's used on everything from Fiat/Dodge to Land Rover.

Let me know how you like it.

Oooh.  Forgot about that.

Never Mind!

Interesting thoughts. K (obviously) thinks like a guy and I've had others critique me in the past that I didn't write accurately from a male perspective. This was the first draft of the scene between Kha and Sil. A guy who read it said that sex for a man is about possession. (not in a negative way, either) It is about taking and controlling.  This is in contrast to a woman, where sex is about sharing and giving. We're just wired that way. I took the advice to heart and kind of changed the intent of the scene between Kha and Sil. Let's see if I can do it for K's exerpt...

Matthew considered the possibility. Catherine would make a perfect mistress. She was a widow, so there was no stigma at making her own decisions. She was barren, so he wouldn't have to worry about an illigitimate heir. As long as they were discreet, there were no drawbacks. It might be for just a short spell, of course,, but he'd never responded to a woman so intensely . Admiting that he wanted her was worth exploring in every way imaginable.

This wouldn't distract from the search for the blackguard.

This is getting complicated now! LOL

This is the mindset I was trying to convey ....

I like K's idea - they think the arrow was meant for Matthew, but the fact is, Catherine is clearly not Matthew, yet she was shot, so it could still be a massive plot to kill her (this would work well for the third book especially). Bringing out some of Matthew's protective instincts so to speak would be a more logical connection to the blackguard than my effort where Catherine could be a distraction.

But where I disagree with K is Matthew asking so many questions, what do I miss when Catherine isn't there? can I/we pull this off without being caught/how are we going to be discreet? He knows what he wants (her), he's not missing anything (yet), he's done it before with other women (without getting caught), discretion is his middle name (it's not hard to make happen, at his castle? pft, easy as.).

Then I agree again - the big uncertainty/risk is Catherine's agreement to it. This is where her being a widow starts to come into play - it is her decision. So the next question is, will she agree to being his mistress which is a bit more than a quick tumble.

So this is why the following is there:

Anything else is easy to fix/sort out. So maybe I should lessen his confidence here (maybe, I don't want to alienate readers in the process).

So basically I need to expand more on Matthew's protective instinct and like Amy said (I like that analogy), what he wants (the control/possess factor) - and Catherine's independence (and not only the widow related one, her personality too) makes it much more of a challenge and reward.

I have big problems with the next chapter - I think it needs to be in Catherine's POV, but it looks more and more like it will work better in Matthew's. And I so do not want to write two chapters to see which one works best ....

I've solved the POV issue whoo-hoo! By doing what I always do, use both POVs ... phew, that was a close one. and funny what difference a good night's sleep can do?! LOL

And also, the fact that Catherine can't have children should also be part of the equation (like Amy said), although it's not a big one - it will only make it heaps more fun if you don't worry about getting pregnant!

Winter clothes ... Okay, in addition to having the nicest caps in the world, and being really good at doughnuts, it looks like the US also do clothes for colder weather much better than what Perth do. Eastern/southern Aus isn't too bad, they also have good gear, but Perth sucks at it, because we don't really need it. And it would've been a waste to buy nice winter gear you don't need while visiting the colder side of Aus, so we just looked at the nice stuff and never bought it never thinking we would ever need it. When we knew we were coming over to this side, we then decided to upgrade our winter clothes when we got here. Aus is bloody expensive. BEST. DECISION. EVER.

Okay Amy, so we found one pair of gloves each, I have a beanie (so far husband and kids don't think they'll need it - it's game over the day they change their minds, I'm going to take them out and never let them forget - I'm a bad person IRL ) and long-sleeves/clothes you can layer. We found under armor (I think it's called) at pretty reasonable prices. We have a good pair of boots each too (from Aus - Perth is wet in winter too). No coats at the moment, but we each have a good windbreaker that's also waterproof - it won't be any good when it snows, I think, not warm enough, but with all the other layers, it might be enough. When we get there, we'll invest in a good coat each then.

So PM me with a list of stuff you have - but if it's Colin's gear that Sean can use later, I'd rather you hold on to it. The rest will be appreciated and used until it can't be used no more. I'll also let you know where the friendly courier can drop the package.

I'm still working on the scheme to get money to you beforehand - best I have is not to tell you where I live until I have your bank account details (if you wouldn't mind, your SSN, DOB - mmm, maybe I can get this one, so don't worry about it - what else, your mother's maiden name too, that'd be really nice hehehe). But I have a feeling you'll be really upset if I do that. So I'm still working on a cunning plan that you won't see coming and won't upset you too. Maybe enough wine that's worth your weight in gold .... I still have your address from the previous failed attempt.

You're the best! And everyone else that's been giving me really helpful advice too. You guys rock!

ps - I'm not going to check for spelling or closed parenthesis - deal with it!

I do this deliberately to keep you up at night K!

It can be stated better/more clearly, although you are so far the only one who interpreted it this way!