Sequel: rewrite. The original was good, and stands the test of time for the most part. I'll have to give it a read again, but if I remember right, there's a whole lot of story left to be told.

 

I'm with Cheddar that you can tie Harry into the moment with more sensory info- 'Harry hid in the shadow of a brick chimney, concealed from sight and the heat of the afternoon sun...'

My problem with the description is that Diagon Alley is tucked amidst downtown London, and fashioned like pre-industrial London construction where straight lines and open walkways weren't common. The idea of a house with a yard and trees stuck in the middle of all that just doesn't... fit.


EDIT: Sesc corrected my geography error; just ignore me. Must've been more tired than I thought.

 

Probably because there's so many fanfics where Goblins are helpful and respectful towards wizards and witches. I really wonder what the fuck inspired that in the first place.

 

Ask Me Anything.

 

Is there a reason why they would reveal it by not apparating?

Also, it seems that "Either" should be "either".

 

Ask Me Anything, an interview thread on reddit (http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/).

EDIT: Oh wow, I should check the timestamp before replying.

 

Now I want to see dat rewrite, Pers. And the sequel too.

 

In my own humble opinion I think it'd be better if you simply started something new. It's more likely than not that you'll grow tired of rewriting the old stuff as a lot of it will feel like treading old ground (albeit it with new, better shoes), and any improvements are still likely to be lost under the core story, which has already been told.

Starting something from scratch should however allow all those creative juices to flow a lot better, and there's a lot of room for different directions and plots to unwind however you will. Rewriting the old stuff will be a bit constrictive - to use a road metaphor, yes, you can choose to skip or prance or dance or gallop down the story path, but the path is still one you've walked before, and you wont be allowed to deviate a lot from the underlying story structure. If telling the old story better is all you seek, then that's fine, but I and most other readers will read it knowing they've read it all before, only now has fancy bells and whistles. And to be perfectly honest your old stuff is good enough that it doesn't need any extensive revamping. I think I'd much rather enjoy something new.

Okay, now I think I'm rambling. Tl; dr I think it'd be better to start something new.

 

Let me clarify, Pers.

When I said rewrite, I meant the second story, as in tossing it, but maybe saving a couple ideas and then writing an entirely new story. Basically, everything we wish would happen with Star Wars Episodes 1, 2, 3.

 

If Dresden was to flee from the entire white council, where would be the smartest option?

 

How does go about writing about places they've never visited, or about situations when their character is in a foreign country the author has never been to? Sticking to what I do know isn't working out, because I'm not well-travelled at all.

 

Do you mean: author hasn't been there, but the character has, or the character is also a newcomer? In either case, I assume some research would suffice. Unless you're planning to write about that place in extreme detail, what you can pick up from the internet and travel guides should be enough.

 

For fanfiction I've always just made up stuff, really. It makes for fun worldbuilding, and I can arrange things to perfectly suit what I need. Mostly because the locales I have my characters visit are vague/unimportant enough, and I tend to spend more time describing the building they might be entering or the spot they might be headed to, and throw in a few generic details like weather, trees, cars, people, etc to paint the environs. Most readers gloss over such details in a hurry to get into the thick of the story anyway.

However if you're doing original fiction, or you want your character visiting a definite real life location, say the Marriott Hotel in New York, a simple Google image/maps/street search should be enough to provide details to confer a heftier sense of realism.

 

This sentence, from my new fic, is awkward:

I want to describe both inhalation (cold in the lungs) and exhalation (mist), but as it is the repetition of breath in/breath out doesn't work. Ideas? (Using the words "exhalation" and "inhalation" sounds too scientific).

 

If something doesn't work, it usually helps if I try to find a simpler alternative to avoid awkward wording:

How's that? Stuff in [] proposed to add some extra flavor.

Is this a HP/Frozen xover, the 19th century Hogwarts you once mentioned?

 

Honestly, all I'm trying to figure out is if it makes sense to continue with fics I haven't updated in years (I'm trying to get back into the game) or start up something new. Blagh.