FFA Officer Task

Admin Claire 'Bloom' Guyan interviews and reviews SunKing

One of the greatest benefits of being involved with a group like FanFicAholics Anon is the fantastic reccommendations we receive on a daily basis. Through many of these rec's, I've heard tale of a wonderful author called SunKing, but for many months never ventured over to her profile; until now.

Recovering from meningitis with Dr's orders being to do nothing but rest and relax, left me with lots of time to read many of those fics that just sit in my favourites list. I decided to check out SunKing and discovered 18 wonderful TwiFics and 1 published novel on her FF profile.

'Beloved' captured my attention immediately, as I adore Vampire fanfiction, and the lure of an Edward deep in despair and aching with longing for the sweet release of a death he was denied over 300 years prior, had me clicking on the link before you could mutter 'Robporn'.

Here, so close to her final resting place, he was able to see and hear again. The green of the trees was oppressive. She had not been fond of the color green. To her, it meant wet, cold, sunless, and pungent. Bella had been convinced that green was even a smell. The rain that had been scarcely a whisper upon his entry of the churchyard now seemed to thunder in his ears. He could hear each individual drop as it landed on each blade of grass. The return of his senses was both a blessing and a curse. He had begged whatever higher power to allow him to feel again, but now that sensation had returned, so had the pain.

Edward doubled over again, feeling completely eviscerated for perhaps the thousandth time. Wracking sobs heaved his body once more as he crawled across the cemetery floor to her memorial. With each inch of travel, he could feel the weight of three hundred years of grief crushing his shouders, pressing him further into the marshy ground. It seemed as if hours had passed before he was able to trace the letters of her name.

ISABELLA MARIE SWAN

BELOVED

Believing Bella died after her cliff jump, the Cullens mourn her in their own, individual ways, but none are more poignant than the grief felt by Edward.

Somewhere in the deepest recesses of his mind, Edward could sense that the night was drawing to a close. Within moments, the sun would begin its ascent, and his precious hours with Bella would be over. Even with the cover of clouds, he couldn't risk being spotted clinging to a centuries old grave. Slowly, painfully, he unfurled his arms and pressed his hands to the ground.

I had to read more. Reviewing 'Beloved' I quickly moved on to another and was eager to feel as much with her Human Edward as I did with her Vampire Edward. SunKing did not disappoint.
'Long time coming' captured my heart as I witnessed Edward, as a child, fall in love with his neighbour Bella, and learning of her likes and dislikes, he shapes his future to become the man he believes she wants.

For all that Edward wished that he could drum up the courage to talk to Bella, he found that his fantasies about her made it even harder. Suddenly, he couldn't even discuss the merits of JD Salinger without having to run home and take care of his problem. He tried, really tried, to talk to her about normal things, but no matter the conversation, he found himself staring at her lips, or her hair, or her chest.

With empathy and affection for Edward as he grows, learns and silently adores Bella from afar, I was reminded of my own experience with unrequainted love. It drew me further into the lives of the characters and I became so involved with this story, I wanted to jump inside my screen and shake Bella to make her see him, finally.

'Long time coming' is one chapter, covering his entire childhood and adolescence, but none of it is rushed. You will find yourself falling in love, all over again, especially with the man he eventually becomes.

You would think I'd be done with two wonderful fics already devoured, but SunKing had only whetted my appetite. Her words and intricately woven tales had captivated me and so I opened up 'Brave' and my heart was broken and then restored. In another poetically beautiful story, SunKing gives us a frustrated Edward who battles daily with debilitating anxiety attacks. But Bella see's something deeper than anyone else ever did, and her patience and strength help Edward to realise his dreams and with her support, reach his goals and finally face his future.

I heard her quiet voice as she asked Mr. Mason to please call her Bella. I somehow heard that sweet music through the rushing wind that seemed to fill my ears. Through the stars that filled my vision, I watched as she approached the desk to my right. Her eyes were glued to the floor.

The sensation of falling finally overtook me as she plopped gracelessly into the chair. It was always the last step, and the hardest for me to work through. I pulled in deep, cleansing breaths; holding them for several seconds before expelling the air slowly and silently. I could feel her eyes on me, making the falling sensation even more intense. I clutched the edges of my desk and fought to remain conscious.

"Hi." I heard her speak, but I was afraid to turn my head. I knew the moment I looked directly into her eyes, my battle against self would be lost. I wanted to answer her. The sincere desire to speak to her warred with the need to stay upright. For a moment, the desire actually won and I turned my head, eyes still glued tot he pages before me, and offered her the best smile I could muster. I knew it was probably more of a grimace at that point, but the pride I felt achieving such a small victory must have softened my features enough that I didn't scare the poor girl.

As well as being one of the best Fanfiction author's I have ever had the pleasure to read, SunKing is also generous for she not only gives us, an entire story in EPOV and an Edward we want to take home and hold onto forever, she also gives us the beauty of 'Brave' but told from BPOV in 'Catch your fall'.

I could gush about SunKing aka Jen, all night, but with 18 TwiFics under her belt, I'm afraid there may not be room. I was lucky enough to convince Jen to answer a few questions for the FFA group:

Jen, Thank you so much for allowing me to interview you for the Author Rec on FanFicAholics Anon Blog.

1. The FanFicAholics Anon group is full of avid fanfiction readers, writers and beta’s, who’s passion for anything twilight related borders on obsession; for which we are not ashamed! Apart from your own rapture for TwiFic’s, what else in your life are you passionate or obsessed about?
Claire, your questions are really thought provoking! I hope my answers are as interesting as the questions...

I am fascinated by and passionate about quite a few things, to be honest. First, my husband never ceases to amaze me. I'm convinced that he's a genius, and he's able to do things in his work that just completely blow my mind. Beyond that, he's flipping GORGEOUS, especially when he puts his glasses on. I'm also quite fond of Ireland, which is his homeland, and I consider it my second home. I can't get enough of the magical feeling that I get when I'm there.

Music has always been a part of my life, too. I had intended to have a career in music before a car accident kind of messed it all up. I still love to find new bands, and I listen to just about everything. My all time favorite band is the Beatles, though, and I'll pretty much drop everything to listen to them.

2. I’ve been reading through your catalogue of fics and find it hard to pick a favourite, they are all so fantastic, and rather than review just one piece of your work, I had to pick as a whole. I’d like to ask, out of all the fanfic stories there are out there, which is your ultimate favourite? And can you provide a link?
Thank you so much for the kind words! I'm always just amazed when people like what I write, but that's exactly why I keep doing it. My favorite fics are pretty varied, to be honest, and I keep a running list on my profile. I love absolutely EVERYTHING that quothme writes, and I'll drop everything for a Glitch update. I adore realgirl-imaginarylife's quirky writing style, and I lay down and take it when she kicks my ass all over the place with Little Slugger. Another favorite just finished recently, but I'm planning to read it again straight through very soon, and that is WhatsMyNomDePlume's Legendary. I also do a lot of writealongs with the bouquet, but I was a major fan of Strange Bedfellows before I was ever able to call her a friend.

3. What genre do you prefer, AH or AU/Vamps?
To be honest, I've never been a huge fan of vampire stories. I read them for what they were, but I never got caught up in the fantasy. I haven't pursued any other vampire series since Twilight, though I am well aware that there are several from which to choose. Generally, I prefer the All Human stories, but I have read some Vampire fics that completely blow me away. These include the aforementioned Strange Bedfellows and Amethyst Jackson's Bonne Foi.

4. The majority of your fics are AH except ‘Beloved’ and 'The First Promise'. I found 'Beloved' incredibly compelling and was immediately drawn into Edward’s despair. As you wrote his torment so well, do you have any plans to write another vampire fic?
There are so many ways to mess up a Vampire fic, and I would find every last one if I attempted a full-length fic. I enjoyed writing the "missing moment" one-shots, The First Promise and Moirasmeni Psychi, but to expand would severely challenge my abilities. Beloved was a surprise when it flowed out one night, inspired by a song and an impending thunderstorm. I didn't think that I could ever recapture the magic, but I attempted for the Fandom Gives Back, and then again for the Fics for Nashville.

As for torment, I love to write emotion. I'm working on some lighter stuff at the moment, just because I have a habit of turning to a bit of drama. I am fairly confident that I can convey sadness and anger, but it's quite a challenge to make people laugh.

5. Do you have any new ideas you’re working on, and can you share?
I am working on a new chapter story that I have offered up for the Fandom Gives Back. It is entirely comedic, and it centers around a very unlucky Bella and the friends that love her anyway. I'll post the prologue below, though no one has seen it yet except my best fic friend, Alverdine.

Jen, congratulations on your first novel 'The Kingdom' being published. Could you offer any advice to any other budding novelists out there, who are looking to get their foot on the first rung of the publishing ladder?
I'm also working on the second book in The Kingdom series, but it has been a struggle. I can tell you that this one is set in New York City and addresses some of America's most fascinating legends. It also delves a bit deeper into the history of fairies, so I have a LOT of fun with research.

As for any authors that are hoping to be published, I do have some advice that comes from the knowledge that I've gained SINCE I was published. First of all, you really should find an editor that can go through the book with you and approach everything with an unbiased eye. It is really hard to edit your own work, mostly because you will be very attached to every last word. Allowing someone to help you polish the book for publishing will be invaluable in the long run. Secondly, just do it. You miss 100% of the shots you never take.

Jen, very kindly gave me a preview of her new fic 'JINX':

Do I believe in luck?


As in, when something happens for no apparent reason at all, and it can either make your entire day, or completely destroy it? When you buy a lottery ticket with the dollar that you found right outside the door of the convenience store and that same lottery ticket turns you into a millionaire? Or, conversely, when you’re walking down the street, minding your own business, and a girl decides to get pissed off at her boyfriend and toss his television out the fourth story window and, though it narrowly misses you, it still manages to shatter into a million tiny pieces that imbed themselves into your skin and force you to spend a full day in the hospital having the pieces removed one by one with tweezers?

Is that what you mean by luck?

Then, yes. I believe in luck. I am, however, more likely to experience the second example and only dream about the first.

Let’s take this back to first grade, shall we? Back when I was Bella Swan, the new girl, and I was just learning what clumsy meant. The new, clumsy girl never gets picked first for any sports teams. The new, clumsy girl actually causes fights between team captains because neither of them wants her, and the PE teacher usually has to break it up before someone gets a bloody nose. I was that new girl. And the team captains definitely got into a fight over who had to choose me. And that PE teacher did actually have to pull Tommy off of Travis just before Travis took a fist to the face.

I didn’t even want to play the stupid game, so it all seemed really pointless to me. I kept trying to tell the teacher that I just wanted to watch and that I was likely to hurt someone other than myself. Instead, Mr. Deasy looked over both teams and decided that Tommy’s team had the definite advantage. Tommy had managed to choose the very best players in the whole first grade class, so Tommy got saddled with me in an attempt to even out the very uneven playing field.

We lost. I didn’t even play! All I did was sit on the bench, stare at the dandelions at my feet, and concentrate really hard on not finding some new and inventive way to embarrass myself.

It really made no sense whatsoever, to be honest. Tommy was the best kicker in the whole school. Andy could catch anything, even if it was just about to hit the ground. Becky and Korie were the fastest runners in the class. They were all on Tommy’s team, and they all played really well. Tommy kicked four home runs, even! No one broke a bone; no one messed up really bad. They just…lost.

Since I sat on the bench the whole time, no one even thought to blame me. I didn’t even think to blame me. Looking back, though, it was all my fault.

You probably think that it’s pretty stupid for me to blame the loss of that game on myself. Well, on my six-year-old self. The self that didn’t even get a chance to pretend like she’d kick the ball. Oh, it was my fault though, and I’ll tell you why.

Luck.

'JINX' has now been posted and can be found on FanFiction.net.

Banners for SunKing fics can be found to the right of this post. Just click on any of the banner's shown, and you will be taken straight to the Fic over at FFN.

Credit to whatsmynomdeplume for SunKing's 'On the fly' banner.

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