(no subject)

[ribbon-scythe.livejournal.com]

This is my somewhat apprehensive first post. My favored pen name is Forced Simile, hence it became the name of my Dreamwidth account where just began posting all my sci fi/fantasy novels, short stories and everything in between. The landing page is here.

Right now, I only have two I'm actively posting, though if my readership grows, I'll probably add another.

First one is The Hour House (Table of Contents). What would you think the consequences of mucking about in the time stream would be? A giant, shape shifting monster probably is the last thing you’d ever think of. Yet this is what comes through the time portal a commissioned by the Empress. While their country is being torn apart, Molly, Lucinda and Gilbert find themselves trapped in a house in which time and space create a maze. Each room is a window into the house’s former history. As the children navigate this strange place, the true reason for the monster's existence becomes questioned. Can they unlock the secret of the house before the monster destroys them?

This story is updated every Monday.


The other project is Days (Table of Contents). This one is a bit more open ended. It follows the life of a boy named Asa as he grows up in a fantasy world. Asa wants to be the greatest hero the world has ever known but there are so many obstacles. He's too young, his older brother is way better at this "heroing" business and the world hasn't had the decency to fall into chaos so he can save it. As Asa grows up in his small port town dreaming of hunting sea monsters with his father or training to fight creatures of the night with his uncle, Asa finds that the life he assumed was so quiet isn't as boring as he thought.

As this one spans years of Asa's life and I haven't written a whole lot of it, I'm leaving a better portion of it up for commission. As of right now, I have eight installments written and a rough outline of what should happen, but there's a lot of room for suggestions. Right now, I'm more interested in getting readers than making money, so I'll trade any sort of publicity or promotion for a chapter prompt.

This story is updated every Wednesday.


I'm new to this, people don't know me, how consistent I am, or my style, so I'm not really comfortable asking for money just yet. But a donation button is located on my profile page. Feedback, criticism and suggestions are all greatly appreciated.


And two projects I'd like to give a bump.

The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl. I could gush forever about how funny this show is, but creator Issa Rae's description is important, because it hits home why we need more shows like this to exist.

"Television today has a very limited scope and range in its depictions of people of color. As a black woman, I don’t identify with and relate to most of the non-black characters I see on TV, much less characters of my own race. When I flip through the channels, it's disheartening. I don’t see myself or women like me being represented. I’m not a smooth, sexy, long-haired vixen; I’m not a large, sassy black woman; an angry Post Office employee. I’m an awkward black girl.

And I’m not alone.

( The rest under the cut )

jackshoegazer of iconomicon is getting married! He is asking for donations of any sort, but anyone who donates $5 or more will get a custom icon or banner. He's also selling prints of his photography on jackart. Details here.

I'm bumping him because his graphics are amazing. I can waste hours upon hours just staring at every post on iconomicon. His icons are tongue in cheek, edgy at times and made me realize just how artistic a 100x100 pixel space can be. If nothing else, give the community a look. I'm looking for new icons and I'm so overwhelmed by the sheer amount of crazy and fun icons I can't choose just a few!

Noncash Support Methods for Crowdfunding

[ysabetwordsmith.livejournal.com]

This community encourages interaction between creators and patrons of crowdfunding.  While it's important to keep the "fund" part in mind, the "crowd" part is vital too.  It's the "crowd" that distinguishes this business model from a plain old store online.  This concerns multiple aspects including the individual viewers interacting with the creator(s) of a project, the community spirit generated by the audience as patrons and fans talk amongst themselves, and word-of-mouth advertising as people promote a project elsewhere.  Noncash support is useful for fans who are enthusiastic but short on funds, and for patrons who want to help with more than just money.  So let's explore some noncash ways in which people can support their favorite projects. 

( You can help with... )

New Project: "Forced Simile"

[ysabetwordsmith]

This is actually a landing page for two different projects.  forcedsimile has both "The Hour House" about three children stuck in a house that warps time and space into a maze, and "Days" about a boy who wants to be a hero.  I've added the landing page to the Links list here.  Now is a good time to start reading these; you can get in on the ground floor rather than needing to catch up with an established project.