(no subject)

[vr_trakowski]

Fifteen months ago I started a scrap of story, not thinking much of it at the time.  It grew, so I kept working on it, idly thinking that it would be a longer story than the one that it followed, but not that much longer.  Heck, when I started posting in August, I thought it was almost finished.

Hah. 

Well, it's late May, over a year later, and now it's done. 

"Halfway to the Moon" clocks in at forty chapters.  163 pages at Verdana 8 pt.  And a whopping total of 162,954 words.  That's bigger than my Prey novella, and took much less time to write.  Of course, there are longer stories out there, but this is definitely a first for me. 

Writing HTTM has taught me that I can in fact handle a long story, that I can generally manage at least 3,200 words or so per week if I push myself, that I can keep characters true even when they're off in an alternate universe, and that I never never never intend to start posting again unless I have everything finished but the tweaks. 

This story has been a challenge in many ways, but it's also been a joy.  I've had the humbling pleasure of many kind reviews and much support.  Trialia, Eileen, Ligaras, Jpsets, Anne, Ricker, CSINut214, ATrueParrothead, Jtbwriter, Smrozier, Wobbear, DaVinci13, Susanmary and many, many others have kept me going on this.  Thank you. 

And thank you to Cincoflex, the Queen of betas.  She has patiently helped me refine HTTM even when I should have been doing other things, has put up with my whines and worries, and gently polished my ideas.  I quite literally couldn't have done it without her. 

Thanks for reading, folks.  Thanks for putting up with all the OCs, and the AU, and the time it took to get Grissom and Sara together.  It's a bit of a relief to have the pressure off, but I know I'll miss the writing too... 

...And I reserve the right to more stories in the RC universe.  *grin*  This is not a promise, mind you, just an option. 

Comments

One of my favorites

[smrozier.livejournal.com]

I try no keep my "favorite story" list to a minimum. It's getting harder, though. I think I'll just have to be content with "favorite authors" rather than stories (you're on that list, btw). I left a review of the story, so I'll try not to repeat myself. I absolutely loved this story. And the original characters were great, I could totally see Gracie and Ed in my mind's eye.

This sentence in your post gave me palpatations: I never never never intend to start posting again unless I have everything finished but the tweaks.

Please tell me you've started on your next CSI work. ;)

I thought this for some time, but I wish there was somewhere that you guys could publish your CSI works. I'd love to have "the works of VR Trakowski {or Cinco, or others who are in my favorites list}" on my bookshelf. *sigh*

Okay, okay. I've rambeled enough. I'll just give you *applause* for the story!

-smrozier

Re: One of my favorites

[smrozier.livejournal.com]

BTW - how do I get my profile pic to change (some of you seem to have a rotating one)?

Re: One of my favorites

[vr-trakowski.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes, there are definitely other things in the hopper.

Sometimes I wish we could publish too, but I haven't really seen a fanfic press that's interested in CSI, esp. if it's already been posted online. *shrug*

To change your icon while posting a comment, you have to be signed in and commenting in the actual thread (rather than doing it by e-mail). Look at the top of the comment box--it says "Picture to use:" and has a drop-down menu that lets you choose among those you have uploaded to your LJ. You may have to give yours keywords first, though; I'm not sure.

Re: One of my favorites

[smrozier.livejournal.com]

Well, if you ever find a press company that is interested and decide to pulbish, I'll definitely buy.

(Thanks for the info to change the icon!)