kallysten tagged me to do this writing meme last night, and for my last frivolous thing before I leave for Virginia tomorrow, I decided to do it.

Writer's Meme: Sometimes it's okay to pimp yourself out. Post a list of your top five favorite fics you've written, regardless of fandom or the reason you love them. This isn't about the best things you've written, but what you love most. Then tag five other people to do the same.

I'm bending the rules a little. I'm doing five fics and five original stories. ;)

( Fanfiction Top 5 )

( Original Fiction )

Wow, I can talk a lot about my own work, lol.

Tomorrow at 6am, I get on a flight for Virginia. I'm going to be in Virginia Beach for a booksigning Thursday night (I'm terrified), and the EPICon conference. A weekend with other writers, and an awards ceremony I get to get dressed up for on Saturday night (though I'm presenting, more terror). It will be nice and relaxing. Which is good because Craig leaves for India next Wednesday, lol.

I'm taking our verizon card so that I can get online while I'm there. I don't think I could make it all the way to Monday without being able to get online. ;)

I got tagged by psubrat and I'm looking for distraction, so I'm actually doing a meme.

Write a journal entry with six random facts about yourself. Then, pick six of your friends list and tag them - no tag backs. These rules should be included in your entry.

1. I'm double-jointed. This is both a good and bad thing. It gives me great flexibility, but it also means my joints are a lot looser than normal and creates problems when there might not necessarily be one.

2. I've never lived at a single address for longer than 2 years since turning 18.

3. I have a small suitcase filled with spelling bee trophies that I can't bring myself to part with. It even traveled across the ocean and back with me.

4. My closet is organized by garment type, color [from light to dark], and sleeve length. For tops that get folded, they are separated by sleeve length with clean items always going on the bottom of the stack to ensure rotation of clothes. Yes, I'm mildly obsessive/compulsive about it, lol.

5. What's considered "literary" fiction mostly bores me to tears. I read to escape and be entertained, which is why I tend to prefer heavily plotted stuff instead of character pieces.

6. I adore board games of all types. And puzzles. Christmas isn't Christmas without hours of family game time.

Tagging: pepperlandgirl4, sadbhyl, _jealousy_, lawyergirl15, ghostgirl13, and hico.

Yeah. I'm bored. I did a meme, which I never do.

But I've seen this around LJ today, so I thought I'd distract myself for a few minutes with it.

10 Ways You Can Tell a Fic Is Written By Eurydice

(in no particular order)

1. It’s long. Very long.
2. It will likely have much of the ensemble.
3. I like original characters. Especially for bad guys. Because I hate to hurt my Buffyverse characters.
4. I prefer shorter scenes within a larger context, utilizing whichever POV will give me the best perspective. My video editing days linger in my writing.
5. Spike will always love Buffy.
6. Twisty plots. I try to keep readers on their toes.
7. Which means lots of cliffhangers.
8. I will always do my damnedest to make sure characters are not bashed. People—even bad guys—always have reasons for what they do. They have motivations. I try to make the reader understand those.
9. Necks are hotspots for me. For everyone. Not just vampires or those who love to fuck them.
10. Sex doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It’s always better if there’s emotion involved.

I'm sure there's stuff I missed, but this is what I came up with on the first pass.

Because I finished chapter 15 of my novel and I'm taking a little break before starting 16, I'm doing a meme that uisge_beatha tagged me for:

( Things about me, in twos )

hico tagged me to do the 20 Random Factoid meme, and I'm currently stalling on doing anything productive, so I'm going to give it a go.

Write 20 random facts about yourself then tag the same number of people as minutes it takes you to write the facts.

1. I'm double-jointed.
2. I'm a Cancer.
3. I was a spelling bee champion for 4 years running, but the one year I would've made it to nationals, Michigan decided not to participate.
4. I'm the oldest of 4, with a brother and 2 sisters.
5. I haven't talked to my brother in 15 years, though I've made an overture to mend the rift between us.
6. I was obsessed with Billy the Kid when I was 12 years old.
7. I've believed in reincarnation since I was 7.
8. I was attacked by a German Shepherd when I was six, and as such, am very nervous around dogs, especially if they bark and jump.
9. I absolutely adore snooker. And John Higgins. And Matthew Stevens. And I think Mark Williams is a prat.
10. The only other actor I ever got fangirly about was when I was a thirteen and I wrote a letter to Ralph Macchio. I actually got an autographed picture of him in his Karate Kid costume in response.
11. I read "Wifey" by Judy Blume when I was 10. I sneaked my aunt's copy and read it in the bathroom. I was corrupted young.
12. The only time I've sung in public is when I played the Nana in a musical production of "The Velveteen Rabbit" when I was 18.
13. I've only ever been able to pull one all-nighter in my entire life. I then fell asleep in the class I was staying up for because the professor showed a movie.
14. I fell asleep at an Anderson/Bruford/Wakeman/Howe concert when I was in college. We were on the main floor, 7 rows back. I was tired.
15. My middle name, though a real name, is an amalgamation of my parents' middle names.
16. If I hadn't gone into a creative field, I would've gone into medicine. The only other thing other than performing/writing/creating that interested me was surgery.
17. I've been married twice.
18. I can rattle off all 50 states in alphabetical order in less than 30 seconds. This is due to my obsession with beauty pageants as I was growing up.
19. I *still* watch beauty pageants. Yes, I'm embarrassed to admit it.
20. I scar and bruise very easily. My friends in high school used to amuse themselves by poking designs into my arm just to see the bruises show up the next day.

I'm not even going to think about tagging anybody with this. I'm almost always the last person to do it. :)

Because I'm stalling on starting my ironing, I'm putting up my list of 5 fictional characters I'd do without even blinking:

1. Spike. C'mon, like there was ever any doubt.
2. Jamie Fraser from Diana Gabaldon's Outlander books. My favorite written hero. Gah. If you haven't read these books, you have no idea what you're missing.
3. Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. The Angel version, not the Buffy version. Preferably right after he's gotten all hot and sweaty with double guns. ;)
4. Jack Sparrow. Not sure why, because though I think Johnny Depp is amazingly talented, he doesn't really do anything for me except in this one particular role.
5. Luke Spencer. Preferably during the height of Luke/Laura phase, but yes, even now.

OK, the only thing to happen from considering this was get me worked up and Craig won't be home for hours yet. Maybe not the brightest thing for me to have done...

ETA: I'm sitting here, eating lunch with psubrat, and she just mentioned two people that I just have to add to this list. It's a tie between the two, which I figure is OK since they come from the 'verse.

6/7. Harry Dresden and Thomas. Separately, together, at the same time...Plus, it's cold in Harry's apartment so there would have to be a lot of sharing of body heat to keep warm. :D

*sigh*

Craig's gone.

I got to listen to Alicia cry all the way home in the car. She started when he hugged her goodbye.

These 3 weeks better go fast, damn it.

So, on a completely superficial note, I'm going to do a meme that manoah tagged me to do:

Five things you enjoy, not because you have to but because you want to, even when no one around you wants to go out and play. What lowers your stress/blood pressure/anxiety level? Make a list, post it to your journal... and then tag five friends and ask them to post it to theirs.

In no order of importance:
1. Live theater, in any incarnation. Good, bad, musicals, plays, onstage, backstage, in the audience. It’s all good.
2. Writing. Telling stories is my lifeblood. If I can’t act them out or film them, then I have to write them down.
3. Reorganizing things/making lists. Stop laughing. Order is good.
4. Amusement parks. Love, love, love roller coasters. Don’t know why, especially as I’m such a chicken about certain rides. But there’s something incredibly relaxing and freeing about amusement parks of every shade.
5. Cuddling with my kids. I’m a wee bit tactile, and somehow, they managed to get that gene, too. :)

Because I'm invariably the last to do these, I'm not going to embarrass myself and tag people because they've likely already done it. So, if you want to do it, go ahead. :)

In honor of my slug day, I'm doing a non-post and gakking this from elsaf:

List five fictional people -- from television, movies, books, whatever -- that you had a crush on as a child (or early teens). Then post this on your LiveJournal so other people can know what a dork you’ve always been.

1. Anton from Bette Green's "Summer of My German Soldier" - my all-time favorite book as a young girl; I actually own 3 different editions/versions of this now. Love, love, love this story, and a good part of that is how much I fell in love with Anton, just as Patty did. I read it for the first time when I was 8, and I'm pretty sure it helped shape who I am today.

2. Jim Frayne from the Trixie Belden books - I devoured Trixie Belden mysteries the way my friends read Nancy Drew. I read ND, too, but I always thought the Trixie books were better, meatier. And red-haired Jim, adoptive brother of Honey Wheeler, ah...

3. Albert from "Little House on the Prairie" - *hangs head in shame* I know, I'm sad. But the episode where Albert fell in love with the girl who was being raped by her father? Oh my god, it still makes me cry.

4. Peter Brady from "The Brady Bunch" - The best looking Brady by far. And still is. Hee.

5. Han Solo - Oh, come on. Do I even have to explain this one?