2005 Author Reviews for
Aliana

Aliana is another author who excels at writing original characters, and isn't afraid to write a fic entirely populated by them to get at the sideviews of Middle-earth. Atmosphere is something one notices immediately in her work: she can really set the tone and stay with it, so that it stains or tints the entire story. There's no unevenness?she writes with great confidence, and does very well to capture the anxiety and dread of Gondor at its most desperate hour. She also captures very well that transition from the Third Age to the Fourth Age, the move from a magical to a mundane world. Aliana is also one of those author's with the enviable talent of being able to string together scenes without describing every detail. She's not a realist in that sense?things hold together in the plot because the plot fits the interior life of the characters often times, I think. It allows her to shorten the story and intensify the focus on whatever issue or emotion she's trying to bring forward, but without doing a disservice to the continuinty of the plot.

Most good authors find a way to punch the reader in the end. Sometimes that's through a twist, sometimes through a profound observation, and sometimes with a final clue that pulls it all together. Aliana's style seems to resemble the latter, but there's a difference between her and other authors. Where some drop the clues slowly over time, Aliana drops most of them in the beginning, but they're scattered amidst other observations and a reader doesn't put them together until the very end, which is where the punch comes in. It makes for quite a remarkable read and an even more remarkable second reading, because on the repeat journey, a reader knows what to look for and can see just how much was missed. Very effective writing and a very refreshing way to get that end punch in.

There's just one day left of voting and I'm only on the A's of the author list, so I'm afraid I'm going to have to sacrifice points for time here. It's not that Aliana doesn't deserve all ten. In the future when I run into someone who claims that a Mary Sue is equivalent with being an OFC I think I'm going to point to "Fallen". Here is a protagonist who is an original character in a story populated almost entirely by other original characters, yet there is nothing Sueish about her in my mind. She has real faults, real temptations, faces real problems. I don't normally read WIPs, but "Fallen" is one I'm willing to make an exception for. And I know Aliana can handle almost anything -- from the pathos we see in "Object Lessons" to the sidesplitting humour of "A Proper Course of Action". And she showed us in "To Labor and to Wait" how she really can write short pieces with a lot of punch, too. I'm looking forward to seeing how they all fit together in "Fallen" -- and whatever else she decides to try.

There's just one day left of voting and I'm only on the A's of the author list, so I'm afraid I'm going to have to sacrifice points for time here. It's not that Aliana doesn't deserve all ten. In the future when I run into someone who claims that a Mary Sue is equivalent with being an OFC I think I'm going to point to "Fallen". Here is a protagonist who is an original character in a story populated almost entirely by other original characters, yet there is nothing Sueish about her in my mind. She has real faults, real temptations, faces real problems. I don't normally read WIPs, but "Fallen" is one I'm willing to make an exception for. And I know Aliana can handle almost anything -- from the pathos we see in "Object Lessons" to the sidesplitting humour of "A Proper Course of Action". And she showed us in "To Labor and to Wait" how she really can write short pieces with a lot of punch, too. I'm looking forward to seeing how they all fit together in "Fallen" -- and whatever else she decides to try.

Aliana really didn't have many problems winning me over with "A Proper Course of Action" because the political scientist in me loved all the ways Aragorn could go about overthrowing Denethor. But what really sets Aliana apart as an author is the fact that not only did she win me over but she kept me. The possibilities discussed were more or less plausible (Legolas as a seducer might have been pushing it) and Aragorn's indignant reaction at accepting something less than king was perfect. The timing, the characters, the suggestions and the discussion all combined to make this one of the most hilarious things I've read recently, and I thank Aliana for pulling all of these elements together in the formation of a truly entertaining story. You have my gratitude!

There's just one day left of voting and I'm only on the A's of the author list, so I'm afraid I'm going to have to sacrifice points for time here. It's not that Aliana doesn't deserve all ten. In the future when I run into someone who claims that a Mary Sue is equivalent with being an OFC I think I'm going to point to "Fallen". Here is a protagonist who is an original character in a story populated almost entirely by other original characters, yet there is nothing Sueish about her in my mind. She has real faults, real temptations, faces real problems. I don't normally read WIPs, but "Fallen" is one I'm willing to make an exception for. And I know Aliana can handle almost anything -- from the pathos we see in "Object Lessons" to the sidesplitting humour of "A Proper Course of Action". And she showed us in "To Labor and to Wait" how she really can write short pieces with a lot of punch, too. I'm looking forward to seeing how they all fit together in "Fallen" -- and whatever else she decides to try.

Aliana is another author who excels at writing original characters, and isn't afraid to write a fic entirely populated by them to get at the sideviews of Middle-earth. Atmosphere is something one notices immediately in her work: she can really set the tone and stay with it, so that it stains or tints the entire story. There's no unevenness?she writes with great confidence, and does very well to capture the anxiety and dread of Gondor at its most desperate hour. She also captures very well that transition from the Third Age to the Fourth Age, the move from a magical to a mundane world. Aliana is also one of those author's with the enviable talent of being able to string together scenes without describing every detail. She's not a realist in that sense?things hold together in the plot because the plot fits the interior life of the characters often times, I think. It allows her to shorten the story and intensify the focus on whatever issue or emotion she's trying to bring forward, but without doing a disservice to the continuinty of the plot.

There's just one day left of voting and I'm only on the A's of the author list, so I'm afraid I'm going to have to sacrifice points for time here. It's not that Aliana doesn't deserve all ten. In the future when I run into someone who claims that a Mary Sue is equivalent with being an OFC I think I'm going to point to "Fallen". Here is a protagonist who is an original character in a story populated almost entirely by other original characters, yet there is nothing Sueish about her in my mind. She has real faults, real temptations, faces real problems. I don't normally read WIPs, but "Fallen" is one I'm willing to make an exception for. And I know Aliana can handle almost anything -- from the pathos we see in "Object Lessons" to the sidesplitting humour of "A Proper Course of Action". And she showed us in "To Labor and to Wait" how she really can write short pieces with a lot of punch, too. I'm looking forward to seeing how they all fit together in "Fallen" -- and whatever else she decides to try.