SO! To let myself talk MORE, I'm going to rec things. Things on this page, because it would be rather silly of me to like something and not have it here, wouldn't it? Thought so. Be warned that there may be spoilers.

(If anyone else would like to rec things, send them to me and I'll post those, too! Hey, I'm willing to share my grandstand... *grins* But please, please, make sure your grammar and spelling is readable.)

4/5/06
It's pretty rare for me to read a fic and think, "Wow. That's *real.*" More likely, I'm thinking, "Oh, yeah, they're jumping through trees again. That's normal for them." and don't blink twice about it, or I'm thinking, "Hey! What a cool use of a jutsu! *Man* I just remembered how wild and zany this all is!" But rarely does something hit me and make me think, "Holy crap. That could be *my* world. Suddenly these are real people."

Once in a while it happens. Once in a great, great while.

Well, one of my ninja (Oswari00/Corinne, I believe) e-mailed me a story by an author we actually already have up here--IAmZuul. It is, sadly, a WIP--but one I'm going to start following very, very closely.

The story is, in short, about how Gaara goes from Insane!Boy to Kazekage--and it's not all in one fell swoop, lightning dawns (yes, I know the phrase is light dawns, but really, for Gaara isn't this more appropriate?), "Oh, hey, Naruto has shown me the way and now I'm sweetness and good."

Thank god. Because, man, I am just too cynical to believe that would work!

Anyway, the first chapter of Critical Point is simply the sand sibs on their way home after the battle at the End Of The World. It's all (so far) told from Kankuro's and Temari's points of view (3rd person).

First off, let me just give Zuul a big thank you for having good *technical* writing. It makes a story so much easier to read when the POV's aren't shifting every other sentence, and when the pronouns all make sense. I love you, Zuuly. (Now she will smite me, a la Ghostbusters. Heh.)

But back to my point, tenuous as it was.

This is one of those rare stories that stops me, and makes me remember that these characters are human. Okay, and demon. Let's not split hairs, hmm? Zuul has a beautiful way of interweaving what we, as readers need to know without with description of the area, thoughts of the characters, and the flavor of the story. In the first five pages she's filled us in on Suna history, current problems, and politics--without once boring me. In short, we know everything we need to understand the world the sand sibs are about to go back into.

Temari and Kankuro show a complete sibling-ness that makes me think Zuul is probably cursed with sibs of her own. *grins* Interestingly, she's also managed to make Gaara obviously a sibling--one they're uncertain around, but still a sibling. I find authors make him either someone they fear or the cute little brother, but Zuul's hit the perfect balance between the two. Take for instance this short exchange, the sibs talking about the good parts of Suna:

"There's... well. There's also the sand paintings. And the blown-glass sculptures." [Kankuro said.]

Temari tilted her head to look up at him, then away as he sat down. "The music," she added, getting into the swing of it. "The abbey of the Sand Priests."

"Wasabi."

The siblings looked up sharply at the unexpected addition. Gaara blinked owlishly at them from across the campsite.

Kankurou didn't bother containing the wide grin that spread across his features. It was about damn time his brother had tried contributing to the conversation, and he couldn't help but love it when Gaara actually talked about something that didn't involve blood, death, or other such depressing topics. "They sold wasabi in Konohagure," he replied. "Besides, I saw you eating it. You damn near hogged the whole bowl."

This earned a narrowed look from the other boy before he directed his gaze to some distant point off in the scrub forest. "Inferior quality," was his disinterested rejoinder.

Interestingly, this doesn't devolve into a sibling chat; Gaara is still aloof. He's still the sibling that's family, but they're not sure what to do with.

Zuul has a deft touch weaving reality into the story as well. Descriptions of the desert changing from high to low (scrub desert to sand dunes) were very well done; they don't magically transport from one place to another, they have to walk like normal people. (Of course, they get some chakra aided tricks, but overall it's something I can relate to.) Descriptions of their house were obviously well thought-out:

The wooden platform that circled the room was more obviously worse for wear than the sunken living room floor; the yellowish-tan tiles were made to hide the sand that got in no matter what one did to prevent it.

Personally, I wouldn't have thought of color-schemes. It's little details like this that make the world come alive, and yet Zuul pulls it off without making it description-heavy.

In whole, her Gaara is spot on, the relationship between the three is fasinating--in large part because it rings so true--and Temari and Kankuro make perfect siblings. Combined with a world that seems like it could be real, this story is one I'll be watching closely.

Oh, and one more thanks to Zuul: The story of how Gaara becomes Kazekage is one I'd wanted to see done, and had begun to resign myself to writing because I hadn't seen it yet. Now I don't have to! YES! Thank you, Zuul. I'd much rather read it. *grins*

JB

3/6/06
Hey-Diddle-Diddle

Right, so as you might have noticed, Hey-Diddle's a person, not a story. Shuddyap. As the archivistkage I can do what I want! (I seriously need a hat. One of those little white triangle numbers.)

*coughs* Back to my point. Hey-Diddle tends to write drabbles (sad ones, so buyer beware!), which really drives me nuts. I love her drabbles, you see. First, let me make something perfectly clear: I don't like drabbles. They aren't enough. They leave me hungry, and suddenly aware of really how hungry I am, because they do NOTHING to fill me up.

I do not like drabbles.

Except for Hey-Diddle's. Hey-Diddle is what I think of as a true wordsmith. With a few lines here and there, she can give a full picture of what it going on, what has gone on, and what may go on. Further, she has a fantastic ability to create atmosphere. Locks is a perfect example of this. In a few hundred words, Hey-Diddle manages to bring goosebumps to my skin.

She also has a way of slipping things past the reader, so one moment you'll be reading along and the next, you've just been sideswiped--and yet it all makes perfect sense when it happens. Error is an example, where you get to the very end and realize--oh, hey, this wasn't a good thing after all!

Hey-Diddle often links her stories, one paragraph to another, by some common theme or thread. For instance, Christmas Eve holds the same image while passing through several years: a Christmas tree, and presents. As the years and situations change, so does the tree and gifts, but throughout the story it's there. This technique is brilliant for bringing a tale together, giving the reader an earmark to hold onto, and creating a sense of completion.

Hey-Diddle very rarely writes stories that are longer than a page or two (though she does have some), but her drabbles are enough to keep me happy. They're short takes on long patterns; stories like Primary Colors cover a ninja's entire life--or, at least, one aspect of it. They give an intricate peek into what it might be like to live in a hidden village, and add a sometimes needed dose of humanity into otherwise solid ninja.

One of my favorite series of hers . . . okay, actually there's two. But the first one is the High School AU series. Now, I don't normally like AUs, and especially not high school ones, but this is excellent. It takes the lives of some of our favorite ninja--Iruka, Kakashi, Genma and Raidou--and puts them in a world that seems more familiar. But, their personalities are intact, and the things they do in the ninja world are oddly mirrored in the AU world. Kakashi doesn't go off on missions, but he does go away to school. He isn't injured battling for something or other, but is hurt in a car crash. He doesn't wear a physical mask, but the metaphorical one is alive and well. It is a vastly interesting look into what their lives could have been, and it remains true to the characters.

The other series I really like is the Itachi/Kisame series. I've read several Itachi/Kisame stories, some of which are all right, some of which I really quite like, but this is one of the few that reminds me how truly messed up and young these characters are. Told almost entirely from Kisame's point of view, it details their lives together--after Itachi has gone blind (no, that doesn't happen in the anime!). Again, Hey-Diddle shows her ability as a wordsmith. Nothing much happens in these stories; usually, the gentlemen (ha!) are tucked away in a room somewhere, just starting or finishing a mission. (Sometimes there's sex. That's always fun, too. *grins*) Hey-Diddle is able to describe a grace surrounding Itachi that I've seen few other writers manage--and she does it lightly, without heavy-handed description. And while she's describing this grace, this utter beauty, she reminds carefully and gently, that this is a very young man, and a ruthless killer. There are few people who can combine the three, and Hey-Diddle manages it very well.

And after she's done making Itachi a demi-god, she slips in little hints of insecurity, reminding us that he's also a teenager, and human. In the span of less than three pages, she's created a well-rounded character that fascinates me (and I admit, the Itachi in the Anime doesn't particularly interest me), that I feel bad for, that I'm afraid of, and that I watch like I'd watch a tiger--with my mortality in my throat, but eyes caught by beauty.

...Was that cheesy or what? *grins*

So, folks, the author is Hey-Diddle-Diddle, and just about everything she's ever written is here. Read it. Love it. Then go send her kisses, hugs, and oodles of feedback. She certainly deserves it.

JB

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