Re: The Land of Stories 2 : The Enchantress Returns Read and Discuss thread!

[brisallie]

I hate the "St. Kurt" nickname and I hate how it's said with a certain disgust or mocking. Kurt is nice, but he's not a "saint" nor tries to be. Why is being nice a crime in the Glee fandom?

It's the same thing with Marley. Everyone likes Kitty more because she has more personality. Being a bitch doesn't mean you have personality. Marley, as dull as she may be, is not perfect. She is incredibly naive and way too forgiving and doesn't seem to know how to stand up for herself. But she can stand up for her friends, and unlike most of the people on the show, she is a genuinely nice and sweet person.

YES!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!

God, I thought I was the only person who thought that. Marley does have her flaws, such as her low self esteem. A lack of a hubris can be just as much as a character flaw as too much of one.

Look how they've fucked up Tina by giving her "more personality". I liked her personality before. And being shy/nice/quiet doesn't mean you have no personality. Tina is just a bitch now.

When it comes to Tina, I could understand if she ever felt like her own club was putting her aside, but I thik she's taking everything a little bit too much. She went from that shy girl to the annoying one she's now, and I'm sorry but I think is only because she never got solos or never was the center of attention like Rachel, ok I got it, probably those are reasons to be upset, but is doesn't mean you have to be a bitch with everyone.

The thing that doesn't make sense about Tina is if she was really pissed about not getting solos, she would hate Blaine the most. He's the one who sings everything. She sure as hell wouldn't hate Kurt, who has done absolutely nothing to her.

And not only that, but wasn't Kurt supposed to be one of her friends, so how easily she forgot that! I'm sorry, but I simply hate that all of those who used to be close to Kurt and being his friend, are now Blaine sycophants. And I think Tina is the worst case, because she even dared to yell at Kurt for not being there for Blaine. C'mon girl!... I'm sorry C'mon writers! Can you be more idiots when it comes to storyline?

I think our discussion should be moved. Please mods

[ColdFlame96]

Getting back to the Land of Stories The Enchantress...

Maybe it's wishful thinking, but Chris making several trips to PIXAR has my hopes up that maybe they could get involved in an eventual movie version of the series...I know PIXAR likes to do their own stories, but you never know....

Either that, or he got the voice of the Sea Monkey in Finding Dory.

[Buenos]

Getting back to the Land of Stories The Enchantress...

Maybe it's wishful thinking, but Chris making several trips to PIXAR has my hopes up that maybe they could get involved in an eventual movie version of the series...I know PIXAR likes to do their own stories, but you never know....

Either that, or he got the voice of the Sea Monkey in Finding Dory.

OOOhhh..don't make me wish for things.... you are evil.  

[ColdFlame96]

Getting back to the Land of Stories The Enchantress...

Maybe it's wishful thinking, but Chris making several trips to PIXAR has my hopes up that maybe they could get involved in an eventual movie version of the series...I know PIXAR likes to do their own stories, but you never know....

Either that, or he got the voice of the Sea Monkey in Finding Dory.

OOOhhh..don't make me wish for things....  you are evil.  

Sorry. But, just to torture you, he asked for a part and we all know how Ellen favors him.

[arina]

Maybe because I personally always prefer engier characters on tv, I am personally much more drawn to season 1 and the first half of season 2 Kurt. There was perfect balance between his good traits and bad traits. And I really really miss his snark, sassy Kurt is just the best imo. Also I don't know since when it seems bad things are happening to Kurt over and over again without him being responsible for them (well except for you know being the wrong kind of gay ... ) .. he is mostly a victim. I personally would much rather watch seeing him screw something up, being aware of what he's done and then face consequences than being repetadly "punished" for things he can do nothing about...

Also people always explain to me that Kurt grew up, wore shield in season 1 etc etc when I complain that Kurt is too much different person than he was and while I understand that, I still think that some of the things are too ooc for him , like his action in the Jackson episode...

(I also remember I kinda expected more after their gliffhanger of Blaine singing Tony's song, being offerered the role and Kurt watching it... I remember even Chris joked somewhere that he thought Kurt will give him poison or something and was surprised he got him flowers. Maybe I just would like to see him more act on this natural human feelings and not being always the 100 % supportive boyfriend, friendd to Rachel etc. I think it would make more interesting television, at least for me).

I also hate when the writers makes him to preachy and use him as their mouthpiece or when they let him say things I don't agree with and that would be totally cool but to me it seems the writers present their opinion through him and it's presented as the right opinion.. I probably don't make any sense...

[brisallie]

Sadly in this couple of days I haven't read as much as I wanted, but I need to say this: I've started to read a chapter called " The Wand of Wonderment", and immediately I thought in Harry Potter, and well I've the feeling like it will be a powerful wand just like the Elder Wand. Personally if is turns out like that, I won't mad, because as the HP fan I am, I now how inspirational are those bookx and probably it was inevitable from Chris to took some 'ideas'. In addition, JK also got inspiration from other sources like british mythology.

The only thing is HP is a worldwide betseller and people could criticize this borrowing.

[Buenos]

Sadly in this couple of days I haven't read as much as I wanted, but I need to say this: I've started to read a chapter called " The Wand of Wonderment", and immediately I thought in Harry Potter, and well I've the feeling like it will be a powerful wand just like the Elder Wand. Personally if is turns out like that, I won't mad, because as the HP fan I am, I now how inspirational are those bookx and probably it was inevitable from Chris to took some 'ideas'. In addition, JK also got inspiration from other sources like british mythology.

The only thing is HP is a worldwide betseller and people could criticize this borrowing.

I think most fantasy magic books are going to compared to the HP books, it's inevitable.

On a side note, the series "The Mortal Instruments" has been hounded by accusations of being a complete ripoff of both Harry Potter and the Twilight books , with passages seeming just transposed over. I've never read the books so I wouldn't know.

The land of Stories deals with fairy tales that have been public domain for decades, so I love Chris take on all these well known characters. Red Riding Hood and Goldilocks frenemy vibe is golden...LOL

[brisallie]

...

The land of Stories deals with fairy tales that have been public domain for decades, so I love Chris take on all these well known characters.  Red Riding Hood and Goldilocks frenemy vibe is golden...LOL

This what I love the most about TLOS! I love how Chris took all of these classic fairytales and give them a new twist. Or how I prefer to see it, he's telling us the untold story and at the end this characters are actually connected among them, in a way that I never thought they could be. Like Prince Charming isn't a slut, but actually is more than one and all of them are brothers.

P.S Never heard before about 'Mortal Instruments', but I googled it and it says is a story about hunters. And there're also demons, vampires and werevoles. It sounds to me like another teen novel with a bunch of good looking boys and romance and fantasy.

[arina]

There have been already so many books that I think it's almost unevitable that some of the things you write can be similar to something that already exists. I think that the athors often don't even realize it... Of course the more famous the thing you "borrow" something from is, the more people will notice and criticize. I didn't have much problem with that because the connection between the characters and new look he gave to those famous character seem really original that little similarity to something different now and then don't bother me.

(I am fan of Once Upon a Time, it's interesting to see how Chris and the writers of OUaT basically use the same fairytales characters, gave them original backtories and characteristics buth both totally completely different).

[Lottie2303]

I will never, ever read the "The Mortal Instruments". I just know enough to talk about it. Google Cassandra Clare and Plagiarism. You'll need quite a bit of time. TMI was originally a Harry Potter fanfiction and she stole entire passages, plot lines and ideas from other TV shows and books. She also was heavily accused of accepting gifts (i.e. LAPTOPS!) in order to post new chapters when the story was still a FF. Moreover, her lead is the most blantant self-inserted character ever. She is called Clary, and sounds like the beautiful version of herself. I have strong thoughts about this book series.

Here is a link: [link]http://www.journalfen.net/community/bad_penny/8985.html[/link] (I've read it ages ago and don't remember everything. But it is worth a read)

I have to agree, the wand reminded me a lot of HP, and I am actually certain it is were Chris got his idea from. A powerful wand can only be reinvented so many times. But as someone said, HP is sacred for a lot of people (incl. Chris), he really should not be too inspired.


Can someone move the entire Glee talk? I want to contribute, but once again don't want to be the responsible party to hijack a thread.

[Glorfindel]

The thing is that fantasy books have certain elements in them that most other fantasy books also have. Over the ages there is this standard fantasy land and its inhabitants that has been steadily created by many authors as a sort of starting point for fantasy books. So how many of the elements from TLoS come directly from a specific book source is impossible to guess.

Tolkien has an older, wiser wizard in his books, and so does Harry Potter and e.g. Belgarion (David Eddings), and many fantasy books have an older mentor of some sorts (Obi Wan Kenobi and Yoda, anyone?). Tolkien has a young person stumbling unawares  unto magical powers, and so does Harry Potter, Belgarion, Narnia, Alice in Wonderland, Percy Jackson, Oz, and TLoS.
There are dwarfs, elves, witches, ogres, trolls, unicorns etc. in most fantasy stories (although I think J.K. Rowling managed to surprisingly twist the stereotyping of some of these magical creatures, lol). Same with all kinds of magical objects, like crystal balls, magic mirrors, wands, spells, potions, etc. 

What I'm trying to say is that it's practically impossible not to use those elements without those stories being somewhat similar to those other books. It's not like all crime stories don't have murder, dead bodies, guns, a detective, etc. Each genre has its topics and usual instruments.

Having said that: with the Wand of Wonderment I also thought immediately of the Elder Wand of Harry Potter. And it's very likely that Chris got the idea from J.K. Rowling.
But I don't think that's bad, because although they both had invincible wands, the stories around/about them were completely different:
In HP the wand was a gift from Death which needed to be found and that was the whole race between Harry and Voldemort. While in TLoS the wand needed to be made from several items that needed to be collected first, and the search for those items was the focus, not who found the wand first (as Ezmia was unaware of the wand and never tried to find the items or tried to make it herself, unlike Voldemort). 

The quest of the Wand of Wonderment was more a combination of the Elder Wand and  Harry needing to find the Horcruxes, as in both stories the protagonist had to find the items that the villain(s) held most dear.
But even that cross-over is probably not a deliberate copy or maybe even not directly inspired by HP, but more a combination of writing tools that, as I said before, are used in many, if not most fantasy stories. There is always a quest with several destinations and challenges, and the heroes often have to find or protect some treasured item with magical powers (like the ring in LotR, or even back to Greek mythology: the Golden Fleece).

Do I think that Chris got inspired by Harry Potter? Yes, definitely, and it's clearly in the TLoS books. So are (direct!) references to Narnia, Lewis Carrol, Oz and Disney. And of course the old fairy tales themselves.
It's a nice mixture of recognition/familiarity and new creations and adventures, and a dash of salute or acknowledgement of the stories that inspired Chris as a young reader himself.

[brisallie]

@Marie, I think you put very well in words how is impossible not to take some influence from old mythologies or fantasy books, because as you pointed wands, mirrors and spells are part of it. I'd even dare to say if you want to write a book settled in a fantasy world, you can't avoid to put those things, so at the end what it matters is how you mix those elements.

I will never, ever read the "The Mortal Instruments". I just know enough to talk about it. Google Cassandra Clare and Plagiarism. You'll need quite a bit of time. TMI was originally a Harry Potter fanfiction and she stole entire passages, plot lines and ideas from other TV shows and books. She also was heavily accused of accepting gifts (i.e. LAPTOPS!) in order to post new chapters when the story was still a FF. Moreover, her lead is the most blantant self-inserted character ever. She is called Clary, and sounds like the beautiful version of herself. I have strong thoughts about this book series.

Here is a link: [link]http://www.journalfen.net/community/bad_penny/8985.html[/link] (I've read it ages ago and don't remember everything. But it is worth a read)

...

What?! Don't tell me this another book taken from a FF? What's going with book editorials?

[Buenos]

Yes, Mortal Instruments is quite infamous for starting out as a Fan fiction that plagiarized other books quite blatantly.  I've never read the series but people I know who follow and read that stuff, that series is a very sore subject with them.

They say "50 shades of grey" started as a fan fiction of Twilight. (Haven't read that either)

I'm not adverse to fan fiction becoming a printed book , if anything I think it's great that people can get  their foot in the door anyway  they can as writers.

If it's a terrible hack work, I don't think it matters if it started as fan fiction, ditto if it's beautifully written it's nice if it goes forward.

To those who said that books are influenced by other books/writers I totally agree.  It's hard if not impossible not be influenced unless you live in a vacuum.  However the issue with "the Mortal Instruments' is that people claim its just an out and out plagiarism.

Sidenote:  That is some ugly stuff going on between Robin Thicke and the Marvin Gaye family over "Blurred Lines" vis a vis "Got to get it up."

[MoviesAreLife]

Maybe because I personally always prefer engier characters on tv, I am personally much more drawn to season 1 and the first half of season 2 Kurt. There was perfect balance between his good traits and bad traits. And I really really miss his snark, sassy Kurt is just the best imo. Also I don't know since when it seems bad things are happening to Kurt over and over again without him being responsible for them (well except for you know being the wrong kind of gay ... ) .. he is mostly a victim. I personally would much rather watch seeing him screw something up, being aware of what he's done and then face consequences than being repetadly "punished" for things he can do nothing about...

Also people always explain to me that Kurt grew up, wore shield in season 1 etc etc when I complain that Kurt is too much different person than he was and while I understand that, I still think that some of the things are too ooc for him , like his action in the Jackson episode...

(I also remember I kinda expected more after their gliffhanger of Blaine singing Tony's song, being offerered the role and Kurt watching it... I remember even Chris joked somewhere that he thought Kurt will give him poison or something and was surprised he got him flowers. Maybe I just would like to see him more act on this natural human feelings and not being always the 100 % supportive boyfriend, friendd to Rachel etc. I think it would make more interesting television, at least for me).

I also hate when the writers makes him to preachy and use him as their mouthpiece or when they let him say things I don't agree with and that would be totally cool but to me it seems the writers present their opinion through him and it's presented as the right opinion.. I probably don't make any sense...

I think Kurt has gone through this perfect "Goldilocks" moment throughout the series. (I am SO sorry for continuing this off topic discussion, but I just find Kurt's growth fascinating. Please, feel free to move our discussion to the general Glee thread or something). Chris has portrayed Kurt's personality maturation so beautifully.

IMO, season one and early season two Kurt was too much one way...that overly bitchy, overly snarky.icy character. The only thing that kept him bearable and stopped him from being the male Santana was, for me, Chris' portrayal of his vulnerable side, and softer, sweeter moments.

But mid season two and season three Kurt was too much the other way. A bit too much of a doormat, too much of a taker of the high road. There is too much of a good thing.

And now in season four, especially with the addition of Adam into his life, Kurt has that perfect, adult balance of snark and mature kindness. He is still a kind, moral and generous soul....but he also as his snark to use as a weapon in order to defend himself (against Rachel's diva behavior in "Diva") or others (Adam against those nightmare gay guys, also in "Diva"). He uses his snark properly now, and only when he has to. He no longer uses it on everyone without provocation and he doesn't use it to tear into his friends if they have done nothing wrong.

I hope he uses this newfound, perfect balance in order to tell Blaine to fuck off....properly, of course.

[brisallie]

I've finished TLOS, but I think I should read it again because I've nothing else to read in the meantime, in addition I feel like I skipped some details.

As regards the ending, though it tore me down the twins took separate ways, I understood as the natural transition someone does from puberty to teenage. Alex and Conner had been together since their birth, and though it was always clear they different personalities and likes, they were inseparable. But now they're in a quest of define who are they. Having said that, still I'd love to read a third book, because I want to know how Alex and Conner will deal with their new life without their other half.

On a side note, Red is starting to grow up on me. I know she's still the childish stubborn queen we all know, but in this book she proves she's more than four sides, and more than once she took me by surprise.

P.S Probably I should read more fantasy books or toned down my HP obsession, but when Alex met Lucy,Alice,Wendy and Dorothy, it came to my mind when Harry met Dumbledore in book seven.

[ColferGirl]

*revives from the land of nothingness and the black hole of depression*  I just finished The Enchantress Returns today while riding the train to college, and wanted to talk about it, so here I am.  For all concerned....I'm taking each day one step at a time.  It's all I really can do.  I have good days where I feel okay, and bad days where I really really don't, but I keep going - I want to make my mom proud of me.  I'm back in college now so that's a good distraction for me.  If anyone wants to know more, I'm more comfortable with PMs when it comes to details....

Anyway....

I enjoyed the second TLOS much more than the first.  It had a tighter-written, faster-paced, higher stakes plot that felt much more entertaining for me.  The first book felt more like Chris was only introducing the world and the characters, while this one felt more like a true good vs. evil fantasy story where he could really explore the relationships between the characters and what they're made of.

I loved Ezmia as an antagonist.  I love that she's a layered character who did have sympathetic reasons for doing what she did, but in the end refused to accept anyone's pity and was unapologetically evil.  It made her feel real to me, and a better villain for it.  I personally believe no one is wicked without reason, so I don't like "I'm evil cause I want to be nothing caused it" characters, so I really like what Chris did here with Ezmia.

I loved how Chris wove the fairytale characters into an even more intricate web of connection - how many fairytales were caught up in Ezmia's jar of souls, or how Beauty and the Beast are Sleeping Beauty's relatives, or Rumplestiltzkin being related to the Seven Dwarfs.  Each time a new connection was made I'd smile, it was one of my favorite parts.

I liked the set up at the beginning with the twins and Bob and their Mom.  In the first book I felt the real world side dragged, but in the sequel I felt engaged the whole time with how Conner had writing talent, their struggles with accepting a stepfather, and then their lockdown with Mother Goose and the gnome soldiers later.  It was intriguing and had me flipping the pages much faster.

I love love LOVE that there was more Red, Froggy, and Goldilocks in the sequel.  Especially Red.  I love her in all of her annoying, prissy, vain glory - and love her even more for her moments of strength and courage and kindness.  Having those glaring flaws and her virtues together make her a great character for me, and a lot of fun.  Having them and Jack there with the twins for most of the story made it more entertaining for me.  I like the twins, but I loved the interplay with all of them together quite a bit.  

I really like how Alex took center stage in this one.  The showdown with Ezmia was really great.  I teared up when Alex declared the greatest power of all was compassion, and that's what defeated the enchantress.  It actually reminded me of Kurt - that's what I love most about him, too.  And it's something I agree with, the power of compassion.  I thought it was a great moral and twist in one (not actually using the wand) and had a fantastic echo to the finale of Avatar: The Last Airbender, which is one of my favorite TV shows and stories of all time.  I love that TLOS did something similar to it, with its own spin.  I liked the dream chapter as well, where Alex drew courage and strength from the fictional characters she'd grown up admiring.

The ending was bittersweet but I liked it too.  I liked how nothing felt wasted in this sequel, every piece of the plot lead up to something, and everything was set up well to create that ending - Alex and her magic potential, Conner and his writing ability, how the two of them together can carry on the Fairy Godmother's work in separate ways; both being important.  I did feel very badly for Conner, though, having to lose his sister thrust suddenly upon him....

I study literature in college so writing flaws are really glaring for me.  So please don't throw stones when I say that Chris still has a ways to go and he still has technical writing flaws.  But he's definitely improved between book 1 and book 2, with much better description and fewer (but still notable) saids, better written plot, etc.  He'll keep getting better and better.     (and maybe one day he'll get an editor who won't be afraid to tell him that you don't need to use said, or any signifier at all actually, every single time someone talks....?)    

The thing is that fantasy books have certain elements in them that most other fantasy books also have. Over the ages there is this standard fantasy land and its inhabitants that has been steadily created by many authors as a sort of starting point for fantasy books. So how many of the elements from TLoS come directly from a specific book source is impossible to guess.

Tolkien has an older, wiser wizard in his books, and so does Harry Potter and e.g. Belgarion (David Eddings), and many fantasy books have an older mentor of some sorts (Obi Wan Kenobi and Yoda, anyone?). Tolkien has a young person stumbling unawares  unto magical powers, and so does Harry Potter, Belgarion, Narnia, Alice in Wonderland, Percy Jackson, Oz, and TLoS.
There are dwarfs, elves, witches, ogres, trolls, unicorns etc. in most fantasy stories (although I think J.K. Rowling managed to surprisingly twist the stereotyping of some of these magical creatures, lol). Same with all kinds of magical objects, like crystal balls, magic mirrors, wands, spells, potions, etc. 

What I'm trying to say is that it's practically impossible not to use those elements without those stories being somewhat similar to those other books. It's not like all crime stories don't have murder, dead bodies, guns, a detective, etc. Each genre has its topics and usual instruments.
 

As an obnoxious Creative Writing major, I can't resist not joining this discussion.  

This is actually a frequent point of discussion amongst literature folk.  There's even an entire well-researched book on the subject - The Seven Basic Plots by Christopher Booker that I highly recommend if anyone is really curious and fascinated by this.

But basically, there is indeed a theory with quite a lot of evidence that there are only seven basic plots amongst all stories, with a few exceptions.  (The plots are Overcoming the Monster (Star Wars), Rags to Riches (Cinderella), The Quest - which is what TLOS is, but you could also argue it as the next category as well -, Voyage and Return (Alice in Wonderland), Comedy (Much Ado About Nothing), Tragedy (Death Note), and Rebirth (A Christmas Carol).  Quite a few stories fit into one of those seven basic templates either loosely or explicitly.  Sometimes, they even combine templates, and you have hybrid plots.  Humans have a basic fundamental need to tell or engage in stories, and we tend to tell the same ones over and over and over again, just in new skins and new ways, but with many of the same skeletal elements.  The way I like to explain it is a clothes mannequin.  The mannequin is always the same - the skeleton of the plot - but you can make the clothes you put on it as unique and beautiful and original as you'd like, which is why those seven plots can create such a richly diverse amount of stories that feel so different to each other and yet have similarities.

One of my creative writing professors said that an aspiring author should never worry about trying to make a story original as you write.  For there is no "true" originality - *something* will be shared with another story.  And human experience itself - loss, love, fear, betrayal, anger, etc. - they are powerful because all people experience them, we all share those feelings.  What's important is how you tell that same old story.  How you make it your own, how you change it, what you add to it, the life and depth of emotion and the sincere voice you bring to it.  I personally think originality still exists, but in the ways we respin the old tales.

So it's absolutely okay that Chris's book shares some common fantasy elements with other books.     Just as long as he, or any other new author, isn't blatantly ripping someone off.

(Disclaimer: I'm aware there's other theories that claim stories can still be 100% original so if there's another English major in this forum please don't bite me I know that  )

[arina]

I am so happy to hear from you, Erin, and hope more and more good days will dominate over the bad days for you in the future.


And I am sure nobody will throw stones at you, I think we all here are aware Chris's books aren't without flaws and we don't claim them to be. But It's nice to hear even from someone more knowledgeable that he got better since the first book. And yes his repeting of "said" is kinda glaring even for me and I am surprised that his editor still didn't point it out to him. The connecion between diffeent fairytales characters was also one of my favorite parts and agreed about Red, she was probably my favorite character in the second book :-) and overall the dynamic between the characters was very entertaining.

[Lottie2303]

I am also happy that you are "okay" Erin and wish you all the best for the future (I know that sounds so hollow, but I genuinely don't know what to say. I won't even pretend to know what you must feel like). It is great to hear your thoughts, especially as a English major. I hope you'll contribute a bit more, in case you are in the mood  

[Glorfindel]

It's so good to hear from you again, Erin! I have been thinking a lot about you. Good for you that you're back in college.

Thank you for explaining that theory of 7 main plots/stories to us. It is what I was trying to say, but I didn't know there was an actual theory about it.

The reasons you named why TLoS is so entertaining are also mine: a good layered villain, the chapters in the 'real' world, the dream chapter, theway Ezmia finally got beaten without needing the wand, the bickering between Red and the rest of the travellers. But especially this:

I loved how Chris wove the fairytale characters into an even more intricate web of connection - how many fairytales were caught up in Ezmia's jar of souls, or how Beauty and the Beast are Sleeping Beauty's relatives, or Rumplestiltzkin being related to the Seven Dwarfs.  Each time a new connection was made I'd smile, it was one of my favorite parts.

My kids and I made a sort of mind map to see how all those fairytales connected to one another. It's very smart of Chris and it somehow all makes sense, whereas the danger of connecting 'solid' things (like era's old fairytales) is that it can get a writer stuck in a corner.

[MoviesAreLife]

I'm so glad you're doing as well as you can be, Erin. You are such a strong person. It's no wonder you are drawn to characters like Kurt and Alex, really. We will always be here for you. *hugs*

And don't feel bad! I love hearing what you have to say! I love to hear expert opinions on every aspect of Chris and his talents/career! Whether it's Marie's vocal reveiws, of your book reveiws...I love the depth you all bring to various discussions on this board! Don't ever feel like your veiws will not be appreciated here.  

[brisallie]

I'm just here to say Welcome Back Erin. I hope reading TLOS have helped you to going through the hard days you had.

And personally I don't hate you for points out the flaws on Chris's writing, because I think is for his good. And you know, sometimes I'm also picky with those things, because I've read in other novels that is not necessary to put all the time "said", there are other ways to indicate who's the character who talked. Sadly, there's any example that comes up to my mind at this moment.

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