Hunter's Strike - Comments

Yesyesyes chapter 15 yaaaaas - love it! <3

Yesyesyes chapter 15 yaaaaas - love it! <3

Sailor Moon reference <3

@ EdgeOfTheSea
*blushes* have you read the new chapter? *hides*

I love how he is ahead of her, because you would figure the reverse due to everything he has gone through.

P.S. You're my favorite author on here.

@ EdgeOfTheSea
Still, it's been almost four books now and they're slowly sauntering to the starting line. Hehe, before I can even get to any REAL sexual tension, Gabriel and Angie have to overcome various stumbling blocks. Gabriel I think is good now, he's gotten over his wife, he's put Katrina to rest. I think he's just waiting for Angie to catch up. Angie is just now getting over a past abusive relationship, but she still has one obstacle in her way.

The slow speed is definitely frustrating, but I understand its necessity. It keeps me on my toes and waiting for more like an addict.
You aren't giving us everything on a platter. You make us wait to fully appreciate the resolution of the sexual tension. And that's great writing.

@ EdgeOfTheSea
I'm glad I still have my spark. ^_^
As much as I love taking my time with Angie and Gabriel I'm starting to wonder if my fans are getting frustrated with me and aren't saying. ^_^; I put these two through so much, but it's because I love them and want them to grow and develop.

I love the rest of it, just like I do the other books.
I really like the slow development of Gabriel and Angie as individuals and together. Their characterization and romance is my favorite aspect. Along with the mythology you've created. :]
The hunter perspective is also interesting to be a fly on the wall for.

@ EdgeOfTheSea
Ah okay. You're right about it. ^_^ I actually don't plan on keeping any of the singing parts when I edit the books for publication. I consider them my own indulgences.

How do you feel about everything else? I know I usually intersperse humor into dramatic scenes, but the timeline for this book is different. We have a bunch of chapters covering a few days that are focused on a new aspect of Angie and Gabriel's relationship. I call it the 'cotton candy phase'. The party marks the end of that phase. I call the next phase the 'Hunter's phase'. Once the book is done I'll take a long look at it as a whole and maybe decide how to mingle tension and fluff together better.

Mostly the whole singing part of the chapter. I didn't mind it in the chapter with Desyre, the "Poison" lyrics. But in this newest one, I just got the impression it was too teenage-fanfic-like. Such as, I think it was out of Gabriel's character to randomly start singing. I was glad to see Angie sing, though.

@ EdgeOfTheSea
I know what you mean, trust me. I wrote a bunch of chapters when I had the flu, so I know some things are wonky. What do you mean by juvenile though, the style or the content? If it's the style I will try my best to ferret out the cause and do better. If it's the content then I'm not sure what to say.
Is it because so far things have been peaceful and the cast is worrying about small problems instead of big ones? I AM writing a bit of a lull, with some cotton candy, before the second half starts. Perhaps I'm dragging my feet a bit as well, wanting to stretch this time out.
Is it the characters? I know Gabriel has changed a lot over the books, but I don't see him going in a bad direction. Maybe things are too boring?
And you are being helpful, definitely not an ass. If there is something off then I definitely want to know about it.

Honestly, these recent chapters, especially 14, weren't... you. I feel like it isn't your typical style or writing. It's too... juvenile? I don't know. I love your work and I'm not trying to be an ass, I'm just... confused.

You should thank Influenza for paralyzing me this weekend. It's been nothing but fever dreams and pecking out chapters on my tablet. ^_^;

I want to admit that the reason I started writing VS1 years ago is because I was so disappointed by vampire fiction and YA in general, not just books, but on TV as well. When I was a kid I loved scary vampire stories, and I even read old myths about them. When I became an adult everyone was talking about Twilight so I started those books. I read all four and I could see the attraction there for preteens, but I was disappointed by the lack of substance in the relationships. There was no communication, characters were talking, but not communicating. I watched the first episode of True Blood and threw my hands into the air, it was just sex with fangs! (side note: I have NO problem with sex scenes. NONE. I've even been known to write some! But please give me some substance!) The next day I started my own vampire story.

I definitely enjoy writing my characters and their interactions. Dialogue is what comes to me the easiest. Some of Sybil, Florence, and Nigel's best lines came into my head literally as I was writing them down. ^_^

As much as I'm enjoying writing these last few chapters and developing my characters and their relationships, I know full well that peaceful times will not last. Let me say right now 'I'm sorry' in advance.

I gasp each day at your ability not only to upload a new chapter so fast, but to make the next 24 hours of waiting a terrible agony. You're doing great with the 3rd person perspective. To be honest, I enjoy it slightly more that 1st person's, so I might be quite subjective.
I'll take the time to notice that I love the way you make the main characters interact, the way you mould their personalities by mixing the past and present. It is incredible that you keep the reader asking not one, not two, but about a dozen of questions. The intrigue, which I value beyond anything in a story, is profound enough to wiggle even into my dreams and, of course, keep me starving for more of your story.
The first books truly had enough action to feed the famished reader, thus it is smart to make this one more about psychological struggles and whatnot. You were absolutely correct to approach the subject of attraction this way. It feels shallow when there's only a superficial need that the characters express. You did great in building the connection before even mentioning something as such. It makes your book truly amazing.
Thank you!

@ Squirky
Thank you for the review! I've been dying for the chance to really talk about Angie and Gabriel in depth.
I think the main thing that separates their romance from other YA books is that in other stories, the attraction comes first. Cute guy notices cute girl, romantic tension, and in the good stories there's a good plot.
Gabriel and Angie do not start off with that initial attraction. Quite the opposite, in fact! They're drawn together by loyalty, trust, and respect far before any kind of physical desire. They're willing to die for each other and they've never kissed.
This book starts them off in much closer quarters than the last three. No more gigantic house to avoid each other in. Also, things are relatively peaceful, no big bads out trying to kill them. Gives them more time to think about their relationship and really tackle the stumbling blocks in the way (Angie's trauma for instance)
We're approaching the second half of the book, which in past books has indicated an increase in intensity, which this book will have in spades. Peaceful times are often far too short.
Stay tuned for the next couple of chapters though. They might scratch that itch of yours a little before things get tough. ^_~

I definitely don't think that you are moving along too fast… I think you are going at an ideal pace, actually. I am absolutely loving these character developments, so far! I quite literally laughed out loud, multiple times, while reading chapters 9 and 10. (I love Florence and Nigel!) You are doing a wonderful job balancing drama with comedic relief, although, I must admit that there is a part of me is being far too impatient for an epic (although, not cheesy,) amount of 'romantic relief', being this far into the series, as it is. However, I will just ignore that part of me, knowing as the reason that I enjoy reading this series of yours, so much, is because it goes entirely so much deeper than just some typical romantic science fiction, story that you can find just anywhere, there is a real strong, addicting plot that you have put into, not only this book, but this whole series. Besides, those little hints (teases) of romance that you throw in there, every once in a while, only keep me wanting for more.

@ FallenangelVII
^_^ I'm happy to hear that. Always.
Please do let me know how you like this new story. I'm practicing a new writing style and I really want feedback. ^_^;

I'd be repeating all the others, however, I am just as excited about this new book. :) Thank you very much for putting in so much work.

You don't know the depth of the thrill I felt when I got the email that this updated. :D