Actually, it's been more than a year since I first created an account here, since I first started posting here. 

My goal was to finish something--but more than that, to improve. 

I'd like to thank everyone who's been with me on this long journey. To everyone who's managed to read through my fics (especially to those who've commented) and to everyone I've met here--I couldn't have come this far without you guys. Special thanks, of course, to my beta-readers and my real life friends who have to put up with me every day (you know who you are). 

A list of completed fics so far (with side notes after rereading them recently):

• (Because It's) Worth It: First fic I ever completed. The first things I noticed upon rereading were the tense issues and the fragments (both of which are still a work in progress). Also, there was the inevitable amount of cheesiness, as well as the paragraph format I insisted on using. I still remember scribbling this down in the heat of summer, trying to capture a certain feeling--the freedom and the unknowns of life. I can't quite say that I accomplished it, and the fic as a whole seemed too short and flat, but it's not nearly as cringe-worthy as I'd expected. 
• Because Perfection Isn’t Ideal: I also remember the inspiration behind this, and I have to say that this does a far better job in capturing certain emotions than my first fic. I still stuck to the paragraph format, and some words were needlessly repetitive. There were still tense issues here and there, but I personally like it better than my first fic.
• I’ll Pick the Stars for You: I read the first three fics together since they were all connected in inspiration. This fic is a prequel to Because Perfection Isn’t Ideal (above). I changed abruptly to block format halfway through, and yes, I did have trouble writing in present tense (as helpfully pointed out in my now-removed note—thank you, past self). Some of the scenes are too abrupt, without definite transitions, but the feelings. A lot of the meaning behind this relies strictly on its predecessor. (Aren’t prequels meant to be read after the original thing…?) Anyway, there was definite improvement.
• If We Run (Let’s Run Together): This was a personal favorite of mine, and as far as imagery goes, I think it was okay. No obvious tense errors (for once; this is also the first fic I got edited by a friend—so that’s probably why), although the transitions could have been smoother. Other than canon being canon (why blame me…?) and the excessive monologue sometimes, this is still one of my favorites.
• Vanilla (with a Hint of Almonds): And this is where I have to roll my eyes at the excessive parentheses and the poor title capitalization skills (still have trouble with that, honestly). I’m still smiling at the jokes and the names (which are probably jokes in themselves). The transitions are a little smoother, and other than the lack of significant build-up, it wasn’t as bad or cheesy as I thought it’d be. Honestly, it makes me want to write more het pairings. ((Haha nope.))
• Two Halves of a Star: The art of writing without actually writing—I think that’s what happened here. This reads so much smoother, even written in past tense with a pairing I don’t even ship ((secrets)). I feel like there’s a lot unwritten between the words, but there’s also nothing I can think of that could add to the fic. The imagery is pretty convincing, although there were times I tacked on an adjective or adverb (never overuse those, really) just for the sake of it. My only qualm with this is the amount of subtlety, which made the pace seem much slower than it really was.
• Made with Love: Is it bad that I started smiling halfway through this? Other than how short this was (twenty minutes—how did I even) and the incredible amount of cheesiness (so guilty), this was a quick and light read.
• In My Heart (It’s Only You): I kind of rambled here a bit in the first part. The second part was kind of confusing—the time skips, specifically; the three different POVs were written in reversed chronological order (why am I writing this here don’t ask). I personally like the third part the most, even though there was one obvious typo near the end. The third part was supposed to end differently, but after the first two, I just couldn’t go along with the original plan (because Luhan’s plane wasn’t going to land—oh, and by the way, spoiler alert). I’m glad, now, that I didn’t, allowing the story to end where it did. I think that says a lot about me not being much of an angst writer, though.
• Inseparable: Ignoring the exaggerations I added and the disgusting cuteness… Oh wait that makes up like all of the fic.
• Yesterday’s Dreams, Today’s Stars: First and only Shinee fic, honestly. There was a lot of crack in the beginning (something I’d picked up over the years and dropped in the recent few months because it doesn’t fit my ~style~), but I still like the end. It’s all so subtle, though.
• The Déjà vu of a Secret: I really like character vulnerabilities, and this was one of my attempts to explore them (and a lot of times, it’s with Junmyeon—I’ve noticed). The plot wasn’t perfect, but it flowed smoothly. Other than a few minor errors, there’s not much that really stood out.
• Sunsets with You: This was really cheesy and a few scenes made me cringe, but overall, it wasn’t that bad? The word fluff doesn’t even exist in my dictionary, honestly, but that’s pretty much what this whole fic was.
• Playing Cupid (Playing Stupid): This was one of the fics that I really, really did not want to reread. And even now, I only skimmed it. I was pretty much stuck in writing like eighty percent of the fic, so if you ever want to read word vomit (you don’t), yeah. The characterization was bad, the plot barely made sense, and the ending, although not that bad, didn’t make up for the whole thing. I think this was one of my last attempts on outright crack, and I’m glad, because it really doesn’t suit me. I can’t do it, and I understand that there are probably more plot holes in this fic than in any of my other ones. I just can’t bring myself to look at this, much less rewrite it, so yeah. This. I take it as a lesson learned, though.
• Fireflies: The ending was kind of forced, and I remember that at the end, I was running out of words and the minimum word count for the fic exchange I was writing this for was 2K words. Hence the exact 2K and the “poetry” at the end. Honestly, I really think the ending kind of saved me on this, even if the dialogue sounded forced. Can we just say that this was done in the name of Chen and leave it at that thanks.
• Stars Fall and the World Goes Blind: I remember writing this in like size five font on a sheet of white paper, pretty much single spaced with no margins, in the middle of Spanish. (I wrote a lot of fics like that, actually. Those good old days.) I actually still like the imagery in this, the little meanings in the words, but sometimes, those things are like hit or miss. I’m just sorry about the Chen, and obviously, I never attempted to write another even slightly rated fic (though more for horror themes than anything else). But otherwise, Xiuhan has always been a secret favorite of mine.
• Where’ve You Been Hidin’ (Haydn) All My Life?: So I expected this to be crack. Obviously, it didn’t turn out that way. I also think that some parts are probably repetitive, especially if you read it in one go (I didn’t write this in one go, so I didn’t notice). I don’t even play the piano, but this was me trying to express my own feelings about music through writing. The end was okay, I guess? Personally, I like that kind of ending more, and it just felt more natural, even though I’d originally planned it differently. I write for the characters, not so much for myself or the readers. (But that’s totally not recommended, and I know it’s not recommended, but it’s better to be livingly wrong than dead write except why am I quoting biology now.)
• This One’s for You: Not counting all the recent fic exchanges, this is my most recently finished fic. Considering that I finished this in less than a month and it’s over 20K… that’s pretty impressive for my standards. I hadn’t even originally planned on submitting this, but the one I’d originally started just refused to budge and an idea grabbed hold of me and I just couldn’t stop. I can’t deny that I got really attached to the characters while writing this, especially Junmyeon, or that this may or may not have been me venting out my KarRoy frustrations in the form of Exo characters. And while I definitely didn’t fulfill the KarRoy dynamics, I really enjoyed creating my own. This is the kind of fic I always wanted to see, so in writing this, I pretty much wrote for myself. The ending was admittedly rushed, since I was writing for a deadline, but I don’t want to go back and change this. I think there are just some things that come to me when I’m in the midst of writing, and if I ever go back and tamper with it, it kind of disturbs the whole setting? That’s probably just me though. This still isn’t perfect, but it’s enough that I can look back and think, I really wrote that? Honestly, it’s the characters that captivated me from the start, and all the little sources of inspiration that mixed into this fic. Maybe it’s just because I’m still so close to this fic, and it hasn’t been long since I’ve finished it, but I’d love to explore a similar universe, or failing that, similar dynamics, and maybe that will happen once I actually find the time. 

A list of unfinished fics so far: 

• Consequences
• Turn Up the Volume
• Victim of Conformity
• Words I Never Said 

(Masterlist here)

So here's to another year together; here's to the next decade promised to us so we could move forward together.