Notes on New Blood: This story is written far, far ahead of time. I have months of backlogs of updates. So there will be regular updates -- generally twice a week, sometimes once. However, this also means that some of the updates will be short. I like to post things by scenes, not necessarily by "chapter". I like the pacing it provides. If you don't like reading such short updates, check back at the beginning/end of each month and read a bunch of new chapters all at once.

Current state as of 10/21: New Blood is being written ~90,000 words ahead of what is being posted. It is written up to mid April of 3rd year so far.

New Blood current chunk recommendations: If you prefer to read in plot-related arcs and chunks, the following chapters are good places to come back and catch up: 319, 327, 335

To my continued astonishment and surprise, I have repeatedly gotten requests from people asking how they can donate money to me. This astounded me at first -- this isn't a book you buy, I'm doing it for fun, it's free for everyone to enjoy -- until I realized that for some people, money is how gratitude is shown. Not everyone is good with words. For people who are uncomfortable reviewing or saying things in public, a quiet donation can help them show gratitude and thanks, without the need for words.

Part of me really, really dislikes that the capitalist society we live in has dictated that 'money' is always a good way to demonstrate thanks and gratitude. But another part of me is WELL AWARE that we do, in fact, live in a capitalist society, which isn't likely to change soon.

So. If you would like to, I have set up a ko-fi where you can tip me. It's under 'artemisgirl'. You can tip me whatever you like there.

This is NOT an exchange of money for fanfiction. You are not paying me for fanfiction, which is illegal. And you do not NEED to tip me. I will keep writing regardless, even if only a couple people kept reading along. And I am lucky enough to be financially stable, so I do not NEED the money. Please do NOT feel obligated to express thanks or gratitude in any such way. Reviews continue to remain highly desired and the gratitude currency of choice.

But if you do chose to tip me -- I will be grateful, and probably spend it on a hot chocolate the next weekend in the early morning, when I sit down to write.

I would like to gently remind readers that Hermione is a teenage girl, with all the baggage that comes with. Everything in this story is seen through Hermione's eyes, and as such, it's often a tinted portrayal of what is actually happening. If something seems 'off' to you, try to reread that part and strip Hermione's emotions and reactions to things from the scene. The objective truth of what's going on may differ from Hermione's subjective perception of reality.

Also -- there have been no pairings decided yet. As Hermione is still a child in the story, and there's a lot of the story still to go, it's completely up in the air who she will end up with. I have seen characters accidentally develop in unexpected ways too many times for me to try and plan that out in advance. Feel free to review and suggest what you'd like to see, but know that there's no plan just yet.

FREQUENTLY COMMENTED THINGS:
(so you don't also need to comment them)

New Blood is very long. You should split it up -- Your opinion is duly noted. That said, no -- it will just be very, very long. There are chapter groupings on the first chapter for readers to break it up by books themselves. If the length intimidates potential readers away, that's sad, but oh well. I like the story as one big epic, and I'm not going to split it up into a bunch of little smaller ones.

Deal with it. B-)

You have too many plot lines -- Ehhhh. This one is usually a criticism made by someone who is reading along with the updates. Yes, there are lots of plotlines, but that's what life ~is~, really -- a lot of things going on, a history of other things that comes back up, plans for other things for the future, etc. When you marathon read it, it doesn't seem like all that much, because you see plotlines complete. When you're reading along, it feels like a bunch of floating strings not yet woven into a tapestry, which creates a tension.

That's what makes New Blood interesting and fun, though, in my opinion. Try not thinking of things as "plot lines" but just as sociological things being explored from time to time. And don't worry -- I have a massive tracker for all the plot lines so nothing gets dropped ;)

Hermione is a Mary Sue -- Traditionally, a Mary Sue is someone who's an obvious self insert who is perfect and special and the best at everything and flawless. It doesn't mean "super strong character" or even "implausibly strong character". If a character earns their power, it's not a Mary/Gary Sue/Stu. If they have character flaws (feel hate, rush headlong into things, make bad decisions like semi-siding with Quirrelmort), that's not a Mary Sue. Sure, Hermione is powerful and fun, but it's a female-centric power fantasy -- what did you expect?

I get accusations of Hermione being a Mary Sue in New Blood a lot, but I notice Harry Crow never gets the same kind of criticism. I wonder how much of this internalized sexism, honestly -- the standards female fanfic protagonists are held to are not the same as the male.

(generic comment about me trying to be 'woke' and the plot suffering because of it) -- Yes, there is a fair amount of LGBTQIA people/issues in my fic. The sociological implications of how the wizarding world might handle such issues fascinates me, and I find it interesting to explore. Plus -- representation is important, I'm queer myself, and if I want to include LGBTQIA people and issues in my fic, I will. Deal with it ( ' v ' )

You should post this on Ao3 -- Look. Ao3 is very friendly to readers, but its document editing system is vastly inferior to FFN's, in my opinion. I grew up with FFN, and I love it here. It is very friendly to authors. I understand many readers prefer Ao3, but it is a hassle for me, and I don't love posting there. Uploading things there is a labor of love, and not easy and fun. And anything that slows down my writing and makes it less fun makes it less likely for New Blood to ever be done.

I will eventually get all of New Blood posted on Ao3, but it will be:
1. Not soon, and
2. Significantly after the same chapters have been posted on FFN

Alice1420 has a Spanish translation of New Blood! You can read it here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13181290/1/New-Blood

You can ask questions and submit fan art on my author page Artemisgirl's Fiction on Facebook. The (at) username is 'artemisgirlfiction', to put directly after the slash. I post updates and other information there, and it's an easier place to engage with readers than through FFN PMs :)

There is also a fan-run Facebook Group called "The official “New Blood” FanFiction fan group." which a reader asked me if I was okay with them making. As I understand it, readers enjoy posting New Blood image edits they make there as well as discussing the new chapters with each other and sharing fan art. It seems like they like having it as a place to chat with other fans and share theories, so you might like joining that group, too. :)

Hmmmmmm... a profile. What goes in these things, anyway?

Upon glancing over my profile, it recently occurred to me that I was so very young when I wrote it. So very young. Well, like 14, at any rate. Which means I've been writing and posting fanfiction for over 15 years now. FIFTEEN YEARS. That's a bit mad, really.

You can find my (really old) other fanfiction (little drabbles, real person fanfic, etc) at my Livejournal under 'Artemisgoddess'. Or on Archive of our Own under 'artemisgirl'.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the things in my fan fictions except the plot. One day, however, I am planning to write a book, and then write fanfiction for it, and then I can put in the disclaimer: "HA! I DO own everything! Nyaa Nyaa!" But that's probably not going to be for a while, so I don't own anything. Don't sue me.

Note to readers: It has come to my attention that the majority of people who read my fics don't bother to review. PLEASE review. It only takes a moment, and they mean a lot to me. I love hearing what my readers think.