[Helena]

The new chapter's up now. I checked.

Thanks for your comments, SimeSublime - I'm glad you liked A Losing Battle. But I've no particular desire to write any original stuff. When I was younger I used to do it all the time, but I somehow went off the idea as I got older.

This post has been edited by Helena: 10 February 2005 - 02:11 PM

[Just your average movie goer]

Wonderful! I just finished reading it, Helena. It was a very well written piece of fiction just as all the previous chapters are. I'm glad you mentioned the concept that Jedi should protect all life, not just people in the Republic's jurisdiction.

And the defiance of Revan against the council was very moving.

I am impressed as always, Helena. You're a great writer.

[SimeSublime]

Just finished Destiny's Child. To be honest, I didn't like this one as much. The writing was superb, and the first part kept me gripped. The second and third parts, though, just didn't really fit in with my idea of Reven's past. It's interesting to see others take on a character, but after completing KotOR five or so times now, I have quite a bond with Revan, and this just didn't gel.

[Helena]

Just finished Destiny's Child.  To be honest, I didn't like this one as much.  The writing was superb, and the first part kept me gripped.  The second and third parts, though, just didn't really fit in with my idea of Reven's past.  It's interesting to see others take on a character, but after completing KotOR five or so times now, I have quite a bond with Revan, and this just didn't gel.

Fair enough - we're told so little about Revan's past that all sorts of interpretations are possible. From the descriptions given by other characters in the game, we learn a few things about him:

He was very strong in the Force.
He was immensely charismatic, and a natural leader.
He was viewed as somewhat rebellious and arrogant by the Jedi Masters, particularly Vrook.
He was a military genius, and could also fight well himself (e.g. defeating Mandalore in hand-to-hand combat).
In his earlier days at least, he was sickened by cruelty and injustice (hence his decision to free the slaves on Taris).
Malak was a close friend of his and tended to follow where he led.
He was eager to learn faster than his Masters wanted him to (for instance, he and Malak studied ancient Sith lore together).

I've tried to keep my version of Revan consistent with all these points, but they still leave plenty of room for manoeuvre. For instance, in 'A Beautiful Friendship', I described a previous relationship between Bastila and Revan which isn't even hinted at in the game - I just thought it would be an interesting idea. I'd be interested to know what your ideas were?

[Just your average movie goer]

Reading Sime's comment, I'd have to say that my own comments provide you with more objective feedback...

I know nothing about Knights of the Old Republic. So I just judged these pieces on their own merits and the strength of your writing. And I found them to be superb.

Sorry, Sime.


Anyway, I think you are a very fine writer, Helena. And Sime was right about one thing (something he said in another post) ~ you should branch out away from fanfiction and write stories of your own that don't borrow from other sources.

You're very talented and I hope you take the challenge to foster your talent and explore your potential as a writer. Because between you and me, I think you've got a lot.

And I mean that. I really do hope you pursue your writing more, regardless of whether or not you wish to deal with the horrendous monster that is the publishing industry.

Creating your own stories is fun and while it is occasionally frustrating, in the end, it was very rewarding.

I'll tell you something about the kinds of novels I work on myself. They'll probably never be read by another human being, except for my brothers and my girlfriend. But the reason I write them is to entertain myself. There are stories that I want to read. And with many of them, I realise that nobody has written them.

So if there is a story I want to read and no-one's written it yet, I'll do it myself... and when I do write it, I write it for me.

Okay, I think I've prattled on long enough now. But I just wanted you to know that I think you're a great writer and I hope you expand your writing into worlds of your own.

[Helena]

Sime has a point - if you're writing fan fiction, you should try to stick to the source material as closely as possible. I try to do that with all my stories - I'll spend hours replaying parts of the game and poring through the dialogue file, looking for quotes that will help me sort out a plausible timeline or work out how to portray a particular character. I still make mistakes occasionally - there's so much dialogue that it's hard not to miss some things - but in general, I try to make my fanfic as authentic as possible.

I'd never dare write a character like Revan in an original story. Let's face it, Revan as described in the game is a blatant Mary Sue (or Marty Stu, if you prefer). It's very hard to portray this incredibly heroic, talented, too-good-to-be-true character in a way that still makes them look flawed and human, and one of the reasons I started writing these stories is because I enjoyed the challenge. It's an attempt to do what Lucas has so conspicuously failed to do in the Prequels - explain how a basically good, decent character with many admirable qualities could still end up falling to the Dark Side.

[Helena]

OK, final chapter up. As always, it may take a few hours to appear on the site.

[Just your average movie goer]

I was finally able to read Helena. I reckon it was a full day between the time you put it on the website and when it finally showed up. However, it was good work as always.

I'm sorry to hear you're not interested in making your own stories outside of fanfiction. Because you have real flair.

However, if you enjoy it, then that's what counts. Anyway, thanks for that. I enjoyed reading those.

[Lord Aquaman]

I don't mean to pressure you, JYAMG, but we could really use you over in the Movie Theater forum on the Lord of the Rings thread (it's getting harder and harder to keep that thread alive).

[SimeSublime]

Reading Sime's comment, I'd have to say that my own comments provide you with more objective feedback...

I know nothing about Knights of the Old Republic.  So I just judged these pieces on their own merits and the strength of your writing.  And I found them to be superb.

Sorry, Sime. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

No need to apologise. I thought I mentioned that Helena's literary stye was excellent, but I guess I didn't stress it enough. I thought the technical aspects of the story were well done. The language chosen was spot on and it built a clear picture of what was happening, as well as causing the reader to feel for the characters and their plight.

And Helena, I know that everything you put in was true to what was represented in the game. It's just a matter of how you fill in the blanks which changes for me. True, the events that you list don't differ overly much, but it's more the feel of the character. When I think of a young Revan, I picture him not quite like me, but rather the person I would like to be. So the point I was trying to make wasn't about you're writing, but rather about fanfic in general. People make connections to previously made characters, which can sometimes make it impossible to write about them. Hence my comment before about trying your own universe. Then your characters are your own and you can tell me to get stuffed
That being said, I think you captured Reven perfectly in your first story, so perhaps it isn't so impossible.

[SimeSublime]

Oh, and I thought I'd point this out here because I know you read this thread. I got KotOR 2 on Friday, and have been playing it solidly since. I know you weren't going to play it, and I understand your reasons. But if you're interested, I put up a short review in the Games Room.

[Just your average movie goer]

I'll check it out. Although, one of the reasons I don't plan to play it ties into the fact that everyone seems to love it so much. I'm worried that if it's so good, I'll be addicted too and then I'll have another obsession that takes up all of my time.

[SimeSublime]

Well, thats a good reason. It is awesome. But you probably already know all the plot from hearing us talk about it.