I'm looking for beta readers! I'm working on a Fushigi Yuugi fic where I basically re-imagine the original Suzaku/Seiryuu story with two new priestesses. It's kind of been done, I know, but I love this idea and the priestesses I've created. Like Miaka said, I won't be able to escape this story until I turn the very last page. If you just really love betaing these types of stories, hit me up! It's going to be a long one, though, so come prepared. If you are knowledgeable about the written Chinese/Japanese languages or Chinese culture, I need you. I need you bad. I would bake you so many delicious cookies if you help me.

Basic things about me: I'm a twenty-something, part-time housewife/full-time fangirl. I love cats, video games, anime/manga, knitting, crocheting, reading/writing (uh, obviously), coffee, tea, music, and turning nouns into verbs and then back into nouns via my weird usage of gerunds.

Not knowing the end of a story, whether it be in a book, movie, video game, or this very site *cough*cough* drives me absolutely insane. Every time I find a fantastic fanfic that never gets finished, I die a little inside. Not that I'm dropping any hints, here.

Some of my favorite fandoms include, but are not limited to:

The Hunger Games
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age II
Fushigi Yuugi
Mortal Kombat
Borderlands
Fruits Basket

This list will no doubt grow as I remember more of my favorites. Whenever I finish a good book, it tends to become my favorite. Something similar happens with video games and TV shows, too.

One last little note before I get into the pompous writing advice section below. When you read a fic that is really, really bad, before you leave a flaming review, ask yourself if the story is meant to be satire. Then, if you come to the conclusion that it isn't, ask yourself if leaving mean reviews is helpful at all. Spoiler: it usually isn't.

If it's not too presumptuous - note to self: yes, it's too presumptuous, but you're going to do this anyway, aren't you? - I want to list a couple of tips for other authors out there. The first two have helped me immensely. They also come from professional, published authors that I've met. I think they know what they're talking about!

1) Once you've written something, read it out loud, especially dialogue. You will catch more grammar and spelling mistakes this way than when reading silently. Also, if a passage feels stilted or awkward when you read it out loud, it probably feels stilted or awkward to read silently.

2) If you set your work aside for a few days or weeks, then return to it, you will likely be much more objective about it. This helps you to be more critical (or less, depending on your attitude) of your work. The time away gives you a fresher perspective on what you've written.

3) It is incredibly important for your summary to get right to the point without giving away spoilers and to be well-written. Grammar and spelling are always important but they are absolutely crucial here, since a summary is the first piece of your work that potential readers will come across. If you feel the need to apologize in your summary for it being crappy, you should redo it.

4) Don't overuse capital letters. Please. I love each and every one of you, but I don't love reading lots and lots of capital letters. I have read stories where entire sentences were in all caps, over and over again. I usually turn away from those very quickly, because they hurt my soul. And my eyeballs.

5) Last but not least, don't be too hard on yourself! And don't be afraid to ask for help. Don't be wishy-washy with your work or let someone push you around, but don't be overly defensive, either. Good proofreaders can work wonders to spin your straw into gold.

That is all I have for now. In the meantime, swooping is bad.