Note: I am now mostly hanging out on AO3, where I've published 10 stories in the Hobbit fandom. Link to me here. Or visit me on Tumblr.
About Me: I live in Waikato, New Zealand with my boyfriend of 11 years (yeah, we'll get married someday) and our neurotic cat. Yes, we live 30 minutes from the Hobbiton set.
On Reading Fanfic: I enjoy reading fanfic mostly. I particularly enjoy SG-1, TMNT and LOTR/Hobbit. (strange grouping, huh?). I probably best enjoy a 'canon' sort of story with good characterization and some action in it. Also enjoy the hurt/comfort stories as they tend to have some excellent character moments, and stories/episodes that always put a main character in danger are always more interesting and involving anyway. I don't mind AUs at all, especially some universes where it's hard to create new material. Not into crossovers and ships, however a good crossover or ship story can still draw me in if it's done exceptionally well. I also steer clear of anything that looks like it's going to star Mary Sue - I have yet to find a good Mary Sue story, so I've given up spending time reading them. I'm amazed how many characters have sisters/brothers/children that we'd never heard of until they suddenly show up and steal the show. If somebody can introduce a prominent new character without them altogether stealing the show, I'd be happy to read it. I really love a story that could pass as an episode. Anyone who can write for ALL the characters has my respect. Despite all my pet peeves and things that annoy me or drive me away from reading a story- there are many readable and enjoyable stories, and some exceptional ones.
There's some amazing writers around here who certainly help fill the void between episodes. Some of these stories should be episodes! Admittedly an overly long chapter will have trouble keeping my interest - I tend to work fast, read fast, and have difficulty focusing for too long - so really long chapters are difficult for me to stay with. It can be a long story broken into several smaller chapters, I can live with that. My short attention span is a nuisance. I also prefer good dialogue and not too much description - a bit of description is great and goes a long way, but I just have difficulty focusing if nothing is happening. It's just me.
On Writing Fanfic: As for the writing angle - I love writing, and have done so since for the past 25 years or so, but my major issue is I don't ever seem to complete a story I start. I've got several stories in progress or in mind, yet I don't like to post portions as I constantly find myself rewriting. So I'll continue on one or two hopefully complete something and post it. I did once write and finish a story for a contest back in high school - an original science fiction/fantasy and took 3rd place. I was quite happy with that. Another issue is I get caught up in one show but my interest moves to another show before I finish anything.
Hobbies: When not reading/writing, I can be found working as a land survey & civil engineering technician, geocaching, onling gaming, or doing martial arts. I also do part-time study towards finishing the civil engineering degree I started 10 years ago, which takes up most of my free time - finding time for my hobbies has become really difficult as of late.
Favorite Movies: Anything but straight romance and horror. Horror gives me nightmares (my imagination doesn't know when to shut off) and straight romance bores the hell out of me. It's okay when done in other genres (action, crime, scifi, where the emphasis will be elsewhere). I loved Batman Begins, Transformers (I grew up in the 80's with the cartoon), The Hunt for Red October, Mulan, LOTR, Hobbit, Pacific Rim, Star Trek.
Favorite TV: I don't watch much tv actually. Most shows I get as a boxset and proceed to watch all within a week or two when time permits. If I flip the tv on randomly, I'm usually found watching History Channel, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Crime & Investigation. I particularly love shows about engineering, such as Megastructures.
Favorite Music: I tend to like a little bit of everything. As for genres, I really enjoy movie soundtracks - Hans Zimmer and Harry Gregson-Williams have some great stuff as of late, and while not as active anymore (but still getting something in occasionally) I love John Williams. Favorite bands include Guster and Linkin Park (their concert in Auckland was too much for words - I can't wait til they return), favorite singer is Pink. I keep fast-paced music on the Ipod for the gym too.
Favorite Books: I used to read so much growing up, but my attention span is awful now. I really love two old novels - The Once and Future King by TH White and Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. The complexity of the stories are amazing and the characters are awesome. I love King Arthur and Robin Hood stories. My love of Robin Hood has led to a soft spot for archers in stories too.
Welcome to any feedback to the one story I've managed to write, or to my profile, or feedback on my feedback. If you don't like something, tell me - I can take criticism. And hopefully I'll write another story someday!