What "Hirunaka no Ryuusei" has reminded me about writing

Warning: Spoilers for Hirunaka no Ryuusei's Chapter 76 ahead.

I should be doing other important stuff, but I felt that I need to bring this up as this will serve as a reminder to me in the future, should I ever feel discouraged.

I'm not sure how many of you have read this amazing shoujo manga called "Hirunaka no Ryuusei". If you have not, go read it. In the simplest way that I can describe, it is really good and worth a read.

Anyway, do you remember how I mentioned my dislike for love triangles?



Yeah, I still do. Anyway, quick introduction. Girl is Suzume, who fell in love with her teacher, Shishio. Meanwhile, classmate Mamura also likes her. Initially, Shishio likes Suzume too, but broke up with her when he felt the pressure of having to keep a secret teacher-student relationship (Good for you, Shishio.) So Suzume felt that she should move on, and she made the decision to be closer to Mamura.

Trust me. The story is much better written than my summary. Yes, yes, it's a typical shoujo manga plot, what were you expecting?

From here, the story spent a bit of time on Suzume and Mamura's relationship, while Shishio at the side, felt that he was not as willing to be apart from Suzume as he thought. The recent chapter has begun to climax the story, as Suzume finds out that Shishio was hospitalised and was concerned for him. Mamura, knowing of this, told Suzume to find Shishio.

Damn.

By the way, this post is NOT going to be a rant. I'll get to the real part in a bit, but allow me to say that to be honest, I was quite upset that the story was going to progress to a SuzumeXShishio ending (seems like it). I liked Mamura. He was the consistent character in the story and had always tried his best without being irritating. I also felt that Mamura and Suzume makes a more compatible pair.

Okay, that's over. Now, the REAL reason for this post.

Shortly after Chapter 76 was released, there was a ton of tweets sent to the author of the story, Yamamori Mika.

(I edited the names out for my website only.)

There were quite a number of tweets, but I just selected some. I was quite glad I was not on some impulse to send the author requests too. For one, I did not know that she was on Twitter, hehe.

Shortly after, Yamamori sensei made her Twitter private. Honestly, who would like to see that? Firstly, I suspect that since she has locked her Twitter account, it means that she really is going for a SuzumeXShishio ending. I will get over that.

I felt bad for her. She did not deserve the horrible comments from the readers, at all. Seeing what had happened to her reminded me that many years ago, I had something like that happening to me. I was writing "Their Memories of Fukinara High", and I paired Kyoshiro and Yuya together (by the way, the canon pairing is Kyo and Yuya, which I definitely prefer). I wrote with that pair in mind because Samurai Deeper Kyo had not ended yet, and it was a long time since I first started the initial "KISS Me!" that led to "Their Memories of Fukinara High".

So there was a reader who messaged me a few times over the story requesting for a KyoXYuya ending instead of a KyoshiroXYuya one. She even suggested plots to help 'salvage' the situation (as I saw it).

No. I remembered that feeling. It was bad. I felt torn on one hand to want to make my readers happy, and on the other hand, I wanted the story to go MY way. In the end, I ended the manga on hold so it ended as a KyoshiroXYuya story.

If Yamamori sensei's initial idea was for Suzume and Shishio to be together, then I WILL truly be disappointed if she changed to Suzume and Mamura just to make some readers happy. I want Yamamori sensei to do what she wants to do, even if the ending is something that I do not like.

So what has Hirunaka taught me? It has reminded me of how I felt when my readers wanted me to do things their way. It has reminded me that I am ultimately writing for my pleasure (and someday hopefully, for a living). It has reminded me that while feedback is good and should be considered, I should follow my heart for the best interests of the story and characters.

I will support Hirunaka no Ryuusei regardless of the ending.



やまもりせんせい、がんばってください！

Picture taken from:
Hirunaka no Ryuusei
Tweet posts
Chapter 1 coloured cover

A remake for FInal Fantasy VII

Well, just when I was thinking to myself that I had some free time, I ended up being swamped by work AND being addicted to an anime (I'll talk about that another time.)

This post is about my deepest gaming desire.

Well, that and much more, but having a FF7 remake is indeed one of my biggest dreams. I remembered that when the Playstation 3 was first released, everyone was 'ooh' and 'aah'-ing, but I wasn't too swayed. Those were the days when my gaming experience is limited to Final Fantasy. (It still is, but at least I have more knowledge in other games!)

Then, I boldly made the statement: "If they remake FF7 on the PS3, I'll buy it in an instant!" And well, I guess you've guessed that I obviously do not have a PS3. Nevertheless, my declaration still stands. I'll buy the console that supports the glorious, legendary remake... if they ever get down to it.

Years ago, SquareEnix released the all-too-tantalising FF7 opening just to show us the awesome graphics that PS3 supports. Many of us know the video, but I'm just going to show it anyway.




I mean, look at that! How much epic-ness is that? Of course many people saw this in the epilogue of Crisis Core, which shows the same quality, but wouldn't you want to see the rest of FF7 being shown in HD!!?!?!

I know I do, I'm positively dying for the day to come.

But sadly, we all know the answer in our hearts. We fight it, we ignore it, we try to justify it, but it's clear as day that SquareEnix will not remake this game anytime so soon. Here are some of my reasons why they are holding back their horses:

1. Focusing on other games
This should be a no brainer for Final Fantasy fans. Square is currently busy with many projects. Some of which they are also kinda delayed in releasing. I'm talking about Final Fantasy 13 Versus. It was hyped up way too early because now it seems like they are shirking responsibility. Of course, I know it's because it's the fifth and last game in the Fabula Nova Crystallis compilation (similar to the FF7 compilation, just that the world is set in FF13). So for sure Versus will not be out till the preceding four titles are released.

EDIT (27/1/2014): So now FF13 Versus will become FF15. Yay. As long as it's not that horrible Cocoon place.

Back to the main point. FF7 remake won't even be considered because of the fact that there are simply too many titles to work on now. Personally, I can relate to this. Last year, one of my fics "Their Memories of Fukinara High", ended prematurely. I commented then that I might return to it, but as I delve deeper into the FF7 fandom, I find that it's hard for me to go back to SDK too. Partly because of the research I got to do again and because my pool of readers are gone already.

The supporters of FF7 remake will not be a dying race (yet), that's for sure. But the research will take Square quite some time, which brings me to my next point.

2. Different team of developers
FF7 was made in 1997. It's going to be close to 20 years (in 4 years' time). Many changes have been made to the company. The most famous one that we know of is Nobuo Uematsu leaving Square. He's not the only one. Many of the original team are no longer in Square. If we want a remake, what is better than reuniting all the heroes to work together? However, things aren't as easy as it sounds. The amount of liasion, the costs, the old dirty politics (if there were any) dug up again...

Like I said, it's really hard. It's probably easier to find a new team of artists and developers to do the remake, but would the fans appreciate it? I know for sure that if the FF7 remake music is not done by Nobuo Uematsu, I would not be as excited. Nobuo Uematsu is a non-negotiable for me - He MUST compose the music, if not co-arrange or direct. But that's just me.

3. System Requirement
Even though Final Fantasy 13 looks freaking awesome on a PS3, I can tell that the system requirements for a FF7 equivalent is going to be hard. We ARE assuming that in the FF7 remake, the graphics would be as darn HD as in FF13, right?

If that were the case, imagine. The entire Midgar, with every nut and bolt visible to the eye. The world map, all in your control to explore, changes the scenery with every step that you take. Even the chocobo has to be animated carefully and let's not forget the other nitty gritty details like summoning summons and falling snow in Icicle Inn.

Before I lose you in your imaginative ecstasy, can you imagine the amount of power needed to support such a game? Square is unable to deliver it adequately (I believe they can and have the technology to do it, but they choose not to yet). That is why FF13 is so linear in storyline, as compared to FF7 to 9.

4. Backup plan

*insert Keanu conspiracy meme here*

Well, in this meme they said in case SquareEnix ran out of ideas for a game, but I see it more as a backup plan in case none of their works are successful anymore and they are plunging towards bankruptcy.

The legend of how Final Fantasy first began was that Square released "Final Fantasy" as their last-chance in the gaming industry. Seeing how increasingly unpopular some titles are nowadays, maybe they are really keeping the remake as a last-attempt before it really becomes their 'final fantasy'.

Perhaps I should write a post on the things that I want to see on the remake :3

So, what do you think? Do you think there should be a remake?

Special thanks to:
oldivai for the youtube video

Commitment and Reviews

Recently, I received a review to one of my old fics. It was nice to see some old names from the other fandom. Which brought me back to my own reflections again.

You see, before I started "I Want To Be A Turk!", I kinda wrote a semi-ending for my previous fic and I moved on. I naively thought then that I could finish "I Want To Be A Turk" in 6 months and then go back.

How foolish I was.

I admit, even now I feel the dread of needing to complete Days of Exile. But reading the review from my old readers renewed my commitment to update and complete Days of Exile.

So yeah. That's that. A short but genuine post about how I've been feeling. Even if I no longer feel the passion to write about Days of Exile (which really isn't the case, I promise!), I will finish the story because of my commitment. The day I fail to do so... I'm sure I'll at least apologise here on this blog before I go. If that doesn't happen, then you should figure out that some divine intervention prevented me from doing so, if you know what I mean! Of course, I really need support and encouragement from everyone once in a while. You know that you guys are really important to me, right?

Okay, on to another topic. Guys? When you want to give some suggestions to the author, be careful of how you phrase your words. I feel that a reviewer should never make his suggestions sound to the author as if he is commanding the author to take his suggestions. I'm speaking as a reviewer myself. At the very least, be polite and neutral about it so you don't seem pushy. I mean, dear reviewers, please don't use absolutes like "I want the story to continue this way." Sensitive authors (like myself :P) could be easily offended and you probably won't know why.

So I usually 'protect' myself by adding disclaimers like "This is just a suggestion", or "I'm just saying these things but you know your story best." Sometimes, I also assure the author that no matter the outcome, I would continue reading his/her story. And I do, even when the story becomes an atrocity (which hardly happens).

Now, speaking as an amateur author, I'm not too sure if other authors feel this way. Authors love comments, reviews and suggestions, but it's not cool when you get the vibe from your readers that they won't support you if you write the story this way. 'Nuff said.

Now, if you were to excuse me, I'll go write some stuff on Days of Exile.

Have a good week ahead!

Un-motivated

Argh!

I have been 'enjoying' my term break (that lasts for a week) but instead of devoting myself to writing.. I've been drowning myself in work! Have been to school since Monday, working till I can't see the sun (okay, so I'm exaggerating here). Today I told myself that I should stop going to school and enjoy my holidays, but I have to bring my work home. And 3 hours since I woke up, I've not started on any work at all.

Maybe I should've gone back to school instead of bringing work home, but wouldn't that be such a pathetic thing to do, that I go back everyday in my holidays? :(

It doesn't help that I'm having such a BIG mental block in my writing. The chapter that I'm writing is crawling at such a snail's pace that I doubt I'll ever complete it at all.

You know, recently one of my friends (who didn't read my stories) peeked at my fanfiction profile and commented to me, "Isn't your story a little too long?"

That, I agree. 100,000 words is seriously no joke. Let us not forget the 60 something chapters in "I Want To Be A Turk!" I have, in all honesty, considered many alternatives to the ending of Days of Exile. Of course, I shan't be too hasty and declare that the ending is confirmed. I used to be really sure that this is what I want, but now, I'm not so confident.

I desire to venture into new grounds, because I'm getting too comfortable in my writing, and I'm also beginning to feel the strains of my multiple plot bunnies threatening loopholes whenever I think of something new in Days of Exile. I want to finish this story, I still do. But if I think that my quality's going to drop, I may take preventive measures.

I'm really rather burdened by this. No wonder many authors turned tail and fled from their budding stories. I don't want to end up like "Their Memories of Fukinara High" and run away before I could even finish it.

Well, perhaps I should get back to my reality and do my work first. :(

Reviews

Part of my job involves reading scripts and scripts of stories (Well, in my line of job they aren't called 'stories' but let's just keep it as that!). This time round, I'm required to give my comments for every script I read through.

As I was reading through my 6th one, I found myself having to come up with new words and phrases to show some variation in my critique. Suddenly, the feeling was all too familiar. And I'm sure many fanfic readers know what I'm talking about.

Reviews.

I've mentioned this in a previous blog post, but we can never rant enough about reviews :P

Here's my stand: I almost always give a review to every fanfic I read.

Coming from a writer who returned after a two-year hiatus, I understood the misery of spending all that time on a chapter only to receive one review (and I still am grateful to the reviewer to this day). When I was a younger fanfic reader, I didn't really review as actively because I didn't think that my comments were going to be constructive or valuable to the writer. I soon found out that if not constructive, every review is valuable to the writer. Since then, I told myself not to shortchange my fellow writers of the joy of receiving a review, even if it was only to say thanks.

There are only a few instances why I don't review nowadays (starting with the most common reason):

1. I'm catching up on a multi-chapter and I seriously don't want to bog the author down with an influx of reviews (I seriously can give 40 reviews if I'm catching up on a 40-chapter story, but I just don't. I don't see the point because that author might have improved since the earlier chapters).

2. I opened the story, but I did not finish reading even the first chapter, due to being called away for household chores and work.

3. The fanfic writer has not been around since 3 years ago. Yep. Once the author's last update on his profile is 2008-2009, I think twice about reviewing. That doesn't mean that I don't review anymore. I would if it's still a good fic, and hope somewhere out there the writer can see it.

4. I've read it from start to finish, read it twice and the third time. And I still don't know what is happening. This reason only occurs because the writer lacks grammar structure and the sentence did not bring its intended message across. In this case it's not fair to review because you know you didn't get the story at all. Let me give you an example:

one day boys welk in the park... and They saw kitte... and They thaik long stick owner.

You get what I mean, right? You aren't too sure what the writer is saying so it's best to leave it alone. Hurhur. So mostly it's reason 1 and 2, heheh!

Yes, I'm very proud to say that I review about 90% of the fics that I opened. Bad fics, unrelated fics, incoherent fics, OOC fics... As long as I understand what's happening and I've finished it? I review.

I know, I know. When you've ploughed through 20 fics in a day, you run out of what you want to say (I rhyme!). But think of a different perspective - how much you'll make a writer smile to receive a note of encouragement, a friendly feedback, even a small 'thank you'. We writers don't always need the 'OH MY GOSH YOU SO AWESOME I LOVE YOU KTHNXBYE' kinda stuff. How about 'I can see you're working hard!', or 'good job!', or 'i enjoyed reading that!'. If anything, a simple 'thank you for your efforts' warms the heart anytime.

Now it sounds like I'm complaining about my lack of reviews, but I assure you, I'm not! Honestly, I'm so content with my current state. Who would complain, receiving 4-8 reviews per chapter?

Also, please don't go all righteous on me and argue that if you like to write, even the absence of reviews will not stop you. True, BUT. Over the months, I discovered one thing: Many things that my reviewers write really makes me feel like writing all this is worth while. That kept me going longer than the desire to write Meia and Reno.

So you never know how you impact your writers :)

Back to my work. Yes, I look through many scripts and yes, since I have to comment on every one of them, it really takes a toll on me to come up with new things to 'review'.

Inking out,
aichioluv

My Writing History... Part 2

list of things that i want to say:

1. NaNoWriMo

2. China writing trip

3. Plot Bunnies

but anyway i shall talk about something else today. i remembered that i need to finish up my introduction, the one that i left off a few months ago.

I've taken many unannounced hiatuses over the years of being a fanfiction writer, but i'm glad to say that for the past year, i have yet to become missing in action. So that's good. with my graduation in the coming may, i'm not too sure whether my career will allow me to write as much. so the best (and perhaps the last) time is now. i don't want to let go till the last moment, and God forbid, i will keep writing to my last author's breath.

My writing style is kinda funny I guess? I started writing fanfiction out of a whim, but eventually after "KISS Me!", i became serious with writing and i sought to write a story that is flawless in development. actually i only want to write a story that doesn't have story loopholes but yeah, from that desire "Their Memories of Fukinara High" is birthed. I am happy that my goal was achieved, fairly at the very least.

With "I Want To Be A Turk", I set for myself two new goals:

1. To create an OC that isn't attention-grabbing and all-special like how other OC-stories can get (not that it's bad, but i want to try something different)

2. To place an OC in canon... which can only be done if the OC is completely hidden.

Have I achieved this? No. Sadly. I wish I can say Meia is as human as we are, but still... she's not, hehe. Neither is she completely hidden. But i like the way the story has developed, it's too late for me to change anyway!

Perhaps... if this story ends (i don't think it'll EVER END!), and i'm still free enough to venture, i'll try OC stories again. Plot bunnies have been invading my mind and it certainly isn't a friendly thing to behold.

(okay, i left it at that yesterday so i lost my train of thought. another time then :))

My Writing History... An Overview.

Finally, I settle down and I believe it's time to introduce this... contraption.

Yes, I'm aichioluv from Fanfiction.net. I started writing fanfiction when I was around 15 years old. That's... a really long time *cough cough* I first started writing Final Fantasy 8, and then I left it as such. Stupid me...

And for the next few years it took me a while to get the fact that i shouldn't only begin the story, i need to END it. So I finally did. A five chapter long story (KISS Me!) under my favourite manga then (it still is now :3), Samurai Deeper Kyo. Receiving all those reviews were really a joy for me. Soon after, I began to write the extended version of 'Kiss Me!', focusing on the loopholes that I've previously missed.

Then... the unthinkable (not really, since every other fanfic writer went through the stage) happened. I went on hiatus without a single word. For two years I've left my story on hold and by the time I remembered, most of the readers were gone. Such a shame. Of course I'll dwell on this a little longer but that's another story.

So I sat down and continued the story, Their Memories of Fukinara High. Oh well, but the shame. Only one of my loyal readers remained. (I'm eternally grateful to her support.) With much luck, I managed to reach a temporary ending with this story and now I'm writing full force on my latest story: I Want To Be A Turk.

I really hope that this story could end and really end. Not temporary endings, not slipshod work. The true ending that I desire. Of course, this plot is really long and it will definitely not finish by this year. heck, i'll be glad if I can even finish part 1 of this story by this year. 0.o

Still, i want to go through this. I really commit myself to completing this story and I wouldn't want it any other way. Remind me this when I've forgotten what I've said.

Yeah... that's it I guess.

Oh fudge. I went off topic. So much for introduction. I'll do it the next post.