Many congrats Rensslaer! I will have to give "Fire Warms the Northern Lands" a read. I'll get on it ASAP!
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Thank you again, Maximilliano! And thanks also to all of you who commented and have done me such an honor.
Deciding who to pass this along to is a difficult process. There are so many rich characters in AARLand, and even a goodly number of AARs filled with rich characters. Some of these authors have already been honored. But nowhere near all. Sadly, not all of these even get the attention they deserve. Picking just one to honor is hard.
But there exists an AAR -- one of those that does not have the readership it should -- that pegs the meters on all the measures of story quality. But one part that is done particularly well is dynamic character development, and so I would like to pass the honor to...
Stnylan
...for his brilliant In Memory of France and his depiction of characters like Jean and Bertrand and Elizabeth (I didn't see her in your list of characters!) and Carlos de Aranda and a whole bunch of other people named Charles!
Rensslaer
Deciding who to pass this along to is a difficult process. There are so many rich characters in AARLand, and even a goodly number of AARs filled with rich characters. Some of these authors have already been honored. But nowhere near all. Sadly, not all of these even get the attention they deserve. Picking just one to honor is hard.
But there exists an AAR -- one of those that does not have the readership it should -- that pegs the meters on all the measures of story quality. But one part that is done particularly well is dynamic character development, and so I would like to pass the honor to...
Stnylan
...for his brilliant In Memory of France and his depiction of characters like Jean and Bertrand and Elizabeth (I didn't see her in your list of characters!) and Carlos de Aranda and a whole bunch of other people named Charles!
Rensslaer
Especially considering how many people stnylan supports as a reader. Given his reading practices, the entire AAR forum should be reading his work! 'Tis only fair.Rensslaer said:
A very well deserved nod, stnylan. I've been blown away by many of your characters over the years, but you have an extremely complex cast of characters right now, and some of them acting and reacting in two different time periods. Most impressive, as Darth Vader might say.
Congrats, sir!
An excellent choice! Stnylan has consistently in all his stories filled them with three-dimensional characters who continue to surprise the reader by the complex motivations they have for their actions.
Joe
Joe
Yep, if there had ever been a story about complex characters, "In memory of France" would be that one! (uh, quite not sure of my english in that last sentence, but I guess you got the meaning o )
Very well deserved Stnylan, way to go.
o )Very well deserved Stnylan, way to go.
Nil-The-Frogg said:
:rofl: Close enough if not dead on. Better than most natives would do!
Congrats stynlan, and anyone I may have missed lately. I agree, your characters from 'France' are incredible!
Congratulations Stnylan! !
multiple updates of In Memory of France alone would justify this honor...
multiple updates of In Memory of France alone would justify this honor...
Many congrats, stnylan! Well deserved.
Now, quick! Everybody head over to Memory and start clamouring for an update!
Now, quick! Everybody head over to Memory and start clamouring for an update!
Many thanks for all of the kind words, and to Rensslaer for passing this honour on to me. However, what do you mean Elizabeth is not on my list. She very much is, right here:
What can I say? For those who do not know, In Memory of France began as an entry to Guess the Author. Indeed, if you will allow me to dig a moment here is the actual post itself (it is also the first post of the AAR itself). Several people expressed a desire - even a frustration - that they wanted to know what had led up to that scene, and what would happen from that scene, and I was very much among them.
Jean very quickly took on a life of his own, and then I made the decision to write in two timelines, and a whole new vista opened to me of a young Jean, innocent, insecure, and thrown in at the deep end. But no man is an island, and I very quickly found myself surrounded by a supporting cast - more accurately a supporting clan - of English expats/mafiosi. This is not to mention Jean's own countrymen and, of course, Carlos. Since the first few updates I have really been able to sit back and enjoy the spectacle almost as much as my readers. These men, and a few women, have been a pleasure to write.
In On Writing Stephen King likens writing to the excavation of a fossil, and I have found that to be very true for "In Memory" and its characters. And ultimately it is a story about the characters, the world is just the backdrop.
What can I say? For those who do not know, In Memory of France began as an entry to Guess the Author. Indeed, if you will allow me to dig a moment here is the actual post itself (it is also the first post of the AAR itself). Several people expressed a desire - even a frustration - that they wanted to know what had led up to that scene, and what would happen from that scene, and I was very much among them.
Jean very quickly took on a life of his own, and then I made the decision to write in two timelines, and a whole new vista opened to me of a young Jean, innocent, insecure, and thrown in at the deep end. But no man is an island, and I very quickly found myself surrounded by a supporting cast - more accurately a supporting clan - of English expats/mafiosi. This is not to mention Jean's own countrymen and, of course, Carlos. Since the first few updates I have really been able to sit back and enjoy the spectacle almost as much as my readers. These men, and a few women, have been a pleasure to write.
In On Writing Stephen King likens writing to the excavation of a fossil, and I have found that to be very true for "In Memory" and its characters. And ultimately it is a story about the characters, the world is just the backdrop.
Good choice. In stnylan's current AAR, Jean is a complex character and he is surrounded by an interesting (and large!) supporting cast. Personally, I'm hoping to learn more about the Bavarian guards at the French embassy. Just by making them Bavarian instead of French, they have become much more interesting. What's their background? How did they end up where they did?
Congratulations on the award, stnylan! Well deserved!
Congratulations on the award, stnylan! Well deserved!