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Sunday, 28 December 2014
quote [ An introverted teenage girl with an unconventional superpower, Taylor goes out in costume to find escape from a deeply unhappy and frustrated civilian life. Her first attempt at taking down a supervillain sees her mistaken for one, thrusting her into the midst of the local ‘cape’ scene’s politics, unwritten rules, and ambiguous morals. As she risks life and limb, Taylor faces the dilemma of having to do the wrong things for the right reasons. ]
1.75 million words...and worth every second you spend reading it.
The story, titled Worm, takes the form of a web serial, posted in bite-sized reads in much the same way that authors such as Mark Twain would release their works one chapter at a time in the days before full-fledged novels. Worm started in June 2011, updating twice a week, and finished in late November, 2013. It totals roughly 1,750,000 words; roughly 26 typical novels in length (or 10-11 very thick novels). The story updated on Tuesdays and Saturdays, with bonus chapters appearing on the occasional Thursday, as explained below.
Worm just finished, so those of you nervous about reading a WIP that may never be completed (cough George Martin cough) need not worry. Yes, its long. Very long. And its worth every bit despite its flaws. Super powers are unique and used intelligently ---perhaps the best I've seen in the genre. The side stories break up the linearity of the story, flesh out the world and characters beautifully, and are well-integrated with the main plot. The twists can be a kick in the teeth but you won't feel like you were cheated with deus ex machina. If you like the web-serial format, the author just started a new serial, Pact. I'd love to see what podcasts/web-serials you all enjoy. I am on the road 3-6 hours a day so the audio stuff is particularly nice. I've been listening to: Making fun of the fucked up places of the internet. Fantastic science and logic discussions and updates. Love it. Fun little science/skepticism blurbs. Now with 100% more drama as the original producer is in prison! Just wrapped up, fun story if a bit heavy on the tropes. I'm sure everyone here is familiar with Dan, and while I disagree with him at times, he always brings humor and insight to human relationships. Its Scientific American, so you need to take it with a grain of salt since they are likely to get a bit fast and loose with details, but its interesting stuff. Back after a 3-year hiatus, I enjoy listening to the creative process and interplay between these two more than I enjoy the comic itself most of the time.
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Comments
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sanepride said @ 5:08pm GMT on 28th Dec
Good opportunity here for a shout-out to lilmookie for alerting me to this guy's 'hardcore history' series' in my Christmas Truce post. Not sure if I agree with his interpretations, but he does have an engaging style with an interesting knack for making current-day analogies (which probably many 'serious' historians would find annoying).
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ComposerNate said @ 8:21pm GMT on 28th Dec
badgerbaiter from SensibleErection led me to Dan Carlin. I'm up to episode 34 of Hardcore History. Interesting and occasionally enlightening, a hard slog while driving.
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JWWargo said @ 5:54pm GMT on 28th Dec
If you like your satire and absurd humor mixed with conspiracy theory and cosmic horror, check out the Welcome to Night Vale podcast: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welcome_to_Night_Vale
Listen to or download episodes here: http://podbay.fm/show/536258179 |
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Headlessfriar said @ 7:07pm GMT on 28th Dec
I've been reading this one for a while now, still have a lot left to go. Never thought of posting it, but still modding for the fact I like it.
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conception said @ 12:57am GMT on 30th Dec
Serial
The Bugle Hardcore History Moth TAL Thrilling Adventure Hour Planet Money The Penny Arcade D&D games from the D&D podcast are comedy gold Startup Radiolab Episode 1 of Girl on Guy is amazing, especially if you watch archer |
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Dienes said @ 1:12am GMT on 30th Dec
OMG I forgot the PA D&D games. Yes, those are golden. I like the early ones better than the recent ones, though. The new ones feel more like filler.
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Dantron said @ 4:10pm GMT on 31st Dec
Just spent two days reading this and so far its been a good read. Thanks for finding this
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ubie said @ 9:42pm GMT on 2nd Jan
Holy crap this is good, thank you!
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DjonnDoh! said @ 6:13pm GMT on 4th Jan
I read this about a year ago (and didn't think to post it). I'm on my second readthrough and it's still as good and gripping. I love the intelligent characters (go read the link by E. Yudkowsky of Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality fame (go read that too if you haven't already. Sure it's fanfiction but for good reasons (read that first link) and it's better than a lot of published non-fan fiction out there)).
I've also been reading Pact since it started early last year (it should be finishing soonish, the author said it wasn't going to be as long as Worm) I'm not as much of a fan though. I'm not sure why, I suppose I can't really relate to the characters in the same way. |
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Dienes said @ 10:22pm GMT on 4th Jan
I'll be honest, I think a big reason that I related to Taylor as much as I did was I was bullied about as badly and I remember thinking and doing the same things she did. Hell, I had some of the same shit done to me (barring the locker incident). There's a lot of realism in a book about monsters and superheroes, and a lot of moments that hit like a punch in the gut.
I'm waiting to read Pact until its done. GRRM has made me wary of starting things that are not finished.... |
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cb361 said @ 8:31am GMT on 21st Apr
Oh. I was hoping that the author was employing creative license. I had stones thrown at me at bus stops, but nothing like the organised school bullying described. But I think this 'popular people' culture must be something unique to the US. In the UK, the school-years pecking-order is based on capacity for casual violence, and (I think) ceases by "high-school" age. A lot of teenagers stay on at their regular school for those two years, but with status and perks like common room and no school-uniforms that make it a sort of college-lite. When I did IT for a school, I saw one of the nastiest little shits start acting relatively adult-like when he joined the "Sixth form".
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ubie said @ 2:37am GMT on 23rd Jan
Finished Worm a couple of days ago. Pretty good stuff, def. strongest in the middle and the end, while a little underwhelming, was pretty solid. Thanks for providing me with nearly a month's worth of reading material!
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Seneki said @ 8:28am GMT on 16th Mar
Just finished reading this and really enjoyed it, thanks!
Took a while due to my limited spare time. |
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