I've kind of been obsessing about The Consequence of Miracles again.  I couldn't figure out why, but I suspect that it might have something to do with the excitement about Outlander, the release of the latest Outlander book, and all the excitement surrounding Starz upcoming Outlander series (AUGUST 9TH, CAMPERS!!). 

What the H*** does one have to do with the other, you might be asking yourself?!  

POTENTIAL SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVEN'T READ CofM OR OUTLANDER!  You've been warned. 

For one thing, both stories are centered around the fallout associated with the severe abuse of a much loved character, and the effect it has on that character and those who love him.  The circumstances of the abuse are not even close to identical, but some of the major themes are including those of forgiveness, motive, a person's capacity for survival, courage and so on.  Both stories hit me right in the gut and made me FEEL and THINK and that's a hallmark of a d@mn good writer, if you ask me (you didn't? so sorry!).  

Usually as I read, I ask myself questions about why an author did this or had a character say that.  One of the things that I love about this fandom is that we have the opportunity to talk to our authors and peek inside their heads.  So many of you writers have been so awesome in answering our questions and helping us understand elements of your stories!

Diana Gabaldon, god bless her her little heart, does this sometimes.  Today I stumbled across a compilation of posts she wrote on her writer's forum in response to readers' questions about Black Jack Randall and the events at Wentworth.  Some I'd seen before, but many I hadn't.  If I can ever work up the nerve to read the Wentworth scenes again, I've no doubt it will now read a bit differently.  One quote in particular stands out:

(DG is explaining a scene that was horrible but not graphic):

"it _is_ so shocking precisely because we never look straight at it.   Things seen from the corner of the eye are much more frightening than a monster in full view --and by giving the reader only those small, horrid glimpses, you take hold of the most powerful tool any writer has--the reader's imagination." 

This was used to particularly good effect in CofM, imo.  What the author didn't tell us left us to fill in the blanks, and it was horrifying. 

There is a point to all this long-windedness (finally! yes?).  

1)  Do you appreciate insight from an author or would you rather be left to interpret things on your own? 

2)  Do you agree that sometimes the most effective scenes are the ones that leave the reader to draw their own conclusions, or do you prefer a lot of description?

3)  For Outlander fans particularly, if you've read the DG quotes mentioned here, did it change your view on BJR and Wentworth?  If so, was it for better or worse?  Was her explanation pretty much what you'd concluded on your own? 

Born to be Wild

Roll on, Easy Writer

This coming weekend, a lot of us will be getting patriotic
and getting on the road.

Wanna take us along for a ride?

Get your motor running, 'cause we're looking for adventure
in whatever comes our way.

Whether you're steppin' in the wolf or vamp camp, we want your spirit fire.

So don't bogart that whole chapter, my friend - just pass over
a token sample of what you've got on you.

Yeah, Darlin', goin' make it happen. Take our world
to a fanfic place.

Celebrate the freedom to leave a live link to your independent story right here, sunshine.

Welcome to the Monday Morning Hot Guy Campfire. What better way to start your week than a hot guy?

Every Monday, I'm going to dedicate a CF to the Hot Guy of the Week.The catch? The CF can ONLY be about the current nominated guy. 

We all have different tastes in men, so please don't yuck anyone's yum.If you have a man you'd like to see crowned for the week, PM or hit me up on twitter (@ffcherry) with his name

An update from Scarlettplay on Harkham's Case:

I'm going to be publishing this story in about a month, so I'm leaving this story up for 3 more weeks and then it'll be taken down. Feel free to convert it into whatever format you want for yourself and share it with anyone you want. After it's down, I'm happy to send this Fan Fic version for free to anyone who emails and asks for it as a pdf, epub or mobi, if they didn't get a chance to make their own copy while it was still up.

Also, there might be some discrepancies and differences in this chapter I just posted, but that's on purpose. It's because of the changes that will take place for the published version.

I never planned to publish this story when I created it, but it's become one of my most unique stories I've ever written, and right now, I need as much help as possible with income. My divorce after a 20 year marriage will be finalized next month, and after being a stay-at-home mom for 16 years, I'm now going to finally go to college and will be working part time. I won't have a lot of extra time to write, so things will be slowing down on that front. I keep thinking I can figure out a way to write some of the new stories I have in my head that I want to publish, but my life is so crazy and up in the air right now, I just can't seem to pull it together. Add on top of that, my new explorations in the world of BDSM, and that takes up even more of my extra time, not to mention I have kids I'm raising as a single mom as well.

I'll be pulling Harkham's Corner, the unfinished sequel to this story, about 2 weeks following after Harkham's Case release, because I'll be finishing writing that story and publishing it too. There will be some differences in both stories. More lemons, more language, and a lot more questions answered and missing holes filled in.

It was a very hard decision to make. I don't like pulling my stories down, but when I've had to spend an entire week, two times this month, with less than $50 to my name to feed my family, it kind of changes my perspective on things while I try to support my family and while I prepare to start school and look for part time work. My family comes first, and I need to do whatever I can to make sure they have the things they need. I appreciate all the great reviews so many of you left for this story, and for encouraging me to do what I love so much—write!

Thank you all so much for joining me on this unique Edward's journey! It's been so much fun!

Scarlett

Harkham's Case by Scarlettplay

"If it's not Asperger's, then what is it?" Bella asked.
Alice paused before answering, "We don't know what he has. He was the first documented case. For now, he's called Harkham's Case number one."
Bella smiled as a tear leaked out. "Okay."
But nothing was. This changed everything. Rated M for adult content even though it starts out in high school.

Rated: Fiction M - English - Romance/Friendship AH, OOC. B/E - Bella, Edward - Chapters: 44 - Words: 176,771 - Reviews: 2,677 - Favs: 1,392 - Follows: 1,288 - Updated: 1h ago - Published: Oct 26, 2012 - Status: Complete - id: 8643786

For some reason, I found myself contemplating Travis Birkenstock's The Consequence of Miracles last night.  Emotionally, I don't have the wherewithal to reread the entire story right now, but I did take a peek at certain sections that I'd been wondering about.  Then I became curious about something ... 

Was Alice even in Consequences?  I don't recall her being in the story at all.  Was she hovering on the outskirts as Jasper's girlfriend?  Often she is Edward's shopping-obsessed little sister, but she wasn't that person in this story.  I don't recall seeing her at all.  Did I imagine that, or was she absent?  And if she was absent, why?  Did she just not work for this story, or does Travis have a secret Alice grudge? 

Are there any Twilight characters you just don't like and would write out of the story if you could (besides the obvious ones, like Tanya, Rosalie or Jane).  What do you not like about them and/or how would you have changed them if you were the author?  How do you think it would have improved the story if they didn't exist?

Also, just because I can ...

I need help. I've been trying to remember the name of a fanfiction I read several years ago. In it, Bella had schizoeffective disorder, stops taking her meds and near the end at prom she smells Edward on Alice and freaks out. (It was her hallcinating Edward's smell on Alice anyway) That's all I really remember

Please help!

And because Jennyfly said this would help...a kitten for your time

Detruit by Somah

"It's all real. They did this, but I'm still here, always, Bella. Find me." Those cryptic words, whispered in a last breath, continue to haunt Bella Swan five years after the supposed death of her love, Edward Masen. AH-AU.
Rated: Fiction M - English - Romance/Drama - Bella, Edward - Chapters: 20 - Words: 101,210 - Reviews: 1,574 - Favs: 1,956 - Follows: 1,342 - Updated: Nov 3, 2010 - Published: Apr 1, 2009 - Status: Complete 

Welcome to the

Feed Your E-Reader

weekly campfire

Please post all the fabulous deals you've found this week. And if you pick up a book from a comment inside, please let your fellow campers know you did.

This CF is open to all genres and all book deals.

And don't forget to feed the trees, yeah?

Today I wanna discuss comics in the newspaper. Peanuts, The Far Side, Zits, Calvin and Hobbes, etc etc etc.

Also, do you like political cartoons? Have you a favorite of those?

Talk to me!

Or so says President Snow in the first Mockingjay teaser trailer. 

Still excited about this? Or jaded about the over-saturation of franchises in the movie marketplace? Too JAMMF-obsessed at the moment to care much (that would describe me)? 

Throwback Thursday!

Hello Campers!  april09 has got a busy day ahead of her, so I'm filling in for Bondfire ~ Picture This today.

Take us back to a time when you were seriously happy :)

A milestone moment for you or your kids;  finally got to that Bucket List destination;  met that celebrity who makes your heart skip a beat;  or maybe you found the perfect choc chip cookie!!

Whatever it is that put a big smile on your face and made your heart feel light.  Show us the happy!!

We here at ADF are a friendly, helpful bunch!

If you have a request for a type of story or a book,
this is your spot.

If you are unsure about something that has to do with ADF,
ask here.

If you have amnesia about a fic,
this is the place to ask about it!

If you are unsure about something that DOES NOT have to do with ADF,
ask here as well!

Special Request from the Help Desk Poster: I will be on vacay and need someone to post the Help Desk on Wednesday, July 16. Any takers? (I can send you the HTML, it's a simple cut/paste job.)

2014 Fic Dive of the Year

It's time!  I am probably more excited about this than I should be!

Voting will be open until Wednesday, July 9th, 2014 at 4pm EDT.

The top vote getters will be revealed on July 10, 2014.

• Vote for as many stories as you want
• You can only vote one time, so make sure you tick all your faves (possibly more from additional devices)
• Before you vote,  please take some time to review past Fic Dives.   As I was reviewing my list there were so many I had forgotten about.  I hate to see older stories get passed over.  I put dates next to each as a reminder of when they posted.

Past Fic Dives can be found by going to "Search" on the Home Page.  Click "List All Tags."  Scroll down to Fic Diving and click.  This will bring up all of the Fic Dives by date.

VOTE HERE!

I can't Thank everyone enough for the support for this Campfire.  I enjoy doing it and the feedback I get from everyone is so appreciated.  There are a few folks that I hear from every week and I especially look forward to reading your comments.  Also, Thank You to the Rangers for keeping the Forest up and running!

As you go back and review, let's discuss which stories are your faves, which ones you forgot all about, which you would love to see and update from, and which just totally fizzled out. 

Lastly, I hope this stupid poll works.  It was a complete jerk to put together.  :)

ETA: If you're looking for dontrun's Between Then and Now, I accidentally omitted it and added it to the bottom of the voting list.  Sorry. :(