I haven't been around for rather long - RL being what it is - and sure there was a lot to catch up on!
I still don't really know what to write about Varna - just a day of London second hand book shopping might be best ...

I noticed that she has a gift coming up, stargazer:

For example, they’d picked up DVD sets of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy for both Varnafinde and the Banks family, figuring they might get a kick out of the movie adaptation of their world’s signature historical event.

Lovely!!!

She might say "but it didn't happen like that, I was there and I know" - but for most of those events, she wasn't there (she was living at Rivendell at the time, and was great friends with Bilbo), but she did hear about it all from people who were.

I'd enjoy reading about Varna's adventures in London...just the sights and scents of old bookstores.

Maybe that could segue into her return to Ditto Town and a visit from the gargoyles? They could watch the movies and she could make comments similar to the ones you just posted. No pressure or anything, but it might be kind of fun.

Hi there everyone! I'm new to this forum - but I would like to join in the role playing game... I think this is the right place to do it?

Hi, Illeana,

This is one big story about a town called ditto Town, and it was started back in... well, I actually don't know. It was many years ago. I started following it in 2005, and it was already a well-established story then. There is a long back-story; actually there art 7 prequels to this current story. If you are brave enough and have enough time, you can find the archive here on starkat's page: http://www.katscornergraphics.com/ditto.php

We love new people coming into the story, and we always hope they'll stay to join one of the main story arcs.

This a slower, more in-depth role-play. (For example, sometimes we haven't had any new segments for a month! though that isn't the norm.) If you are looking for something faster-paced, you might want to try one of the other role-plays threads, but I suggest reading them as far back as is reasonable, and then post in the Tavern Cavern to see how your characters can join.

We all look forward to hearing from you, and welcome to Ditto Town!

This welcome was written by the Atlantis computer, and endorsed by Loren and Eliana DeHond of Ditto Town.

I'd enjoy reading about Varna's adventures in London...just the sights and scents of old bookstores.

Maybe that could segue into her return to Ditto Town and a visit from the gargoyles? They could watch the movies and she could make comments similar to the ones you just posted. No pressure or anything, but it might be kind of fun.

Sounds like a very good idea!
I won't have much time for writing for another couple of weeks, I fear - but I'll start to do some thinking ...

And one thing she does know - Merry and Pippin did not come barging in at the Council of Elrond. That's the filmmakers' invention.

I just want to add one thing to what Sonny said: I'm also working on the "Ditto Story Index", which is (supposedly ) a resource for people starting with the Ditto Story, or catching up. There's a more complete list on the site itself, but one thing is that I have summaries of the first 5 Ditto Stories. Anyways, I hope it helps, if you're thinking of joining us! dittostoryindex.blogspot.com

(P.S. I like your name! )

@narnianerd: Teehee, the last line amused me. Anyways, if you're looking for a way to introduce your characters, but don't have anyone specifically (yet) to work with, you could try "talking" to some of the "free" characters in town, like Bob Saget or Boo-Kay. That can be a good way to get the ball rolling. (If you have any questions about any of those characters, feel free to ask here or to PM me. )

@starkat: Hmm, the plot thickens.... Sometime, you're going to have to let me know how far in advance you plot these things. I just got to in Ditto Story 6! Definitely looking forward to more.

@stargazer: As always, very cute segment. (As always not counting battle sequences, of course...you know what I mean. ) I think we're going to get into the range of "Critical Mass Cuteness" now that Molly's around....

Sorry I haven't been around for a while; I've been tempted to post a few more "day in the life" snippets for Ryana, but...that partly depends on whether or not/when I introduce my new guys. Plus I've been kinda overloading the thread lately with monster posts, so I'd feel a little guilty about adding to the pile.... Anyways, look forward to more from you guys!

Rya, I actually intended to wrap that up in that story. It fell by the wayside and has always bugged me being a loose end and all. I brought it back to finish it off. I didn't plan it that way at all.

Working on a new segment.

Hi there everyone! I'm new to this forum - but I would like to join in the role playing game... I think this is the right place to do it?

Just to clarify, the Ditto Story is a slower paced roleplay. It works differently than general roleplay (one person posts his/her characters, another person responds with his) in that several writers collaborate to make one big post. One writer chalks up a first draft (after all of the writers have decided on what is to happen in the segment) and then all of the other writers revise it so that it fits the personalities of their characters.

The Ditto Story is a bit more difficult/confusing (at least, imo ) than general roleplay if you're an average roleplayer. If you're up for it (and it IS fun, just so you know!) then, go right on ahead! The people here would love to have you. If you're not so keen on this sort of roleplay, might I suggest heading over to the Cavern Tavern: viewtopic.php?f=13&t=165 . That's the homebase of the general roleplayers.

Happy Writing!

Welcome, Illeana! A lot of helpful advice has been offered. In a nutshell, the Ditto Story (the Inn Between thread) might be considered the 'grand-daddy' of NarniaWeb's RP threads, dating back almost to the beginning of the forum. As such it has a long history and complex plotting - but you're welcome to join the fun! Just post any questions here or send a PM to any of the regular posters.

The Census Bureau thread is where you would post your character(s)' bios if you like.

Should you want a faster-moving thread, you may want to try one of the RPs in the Featured threads or in the Mansion. In that case, the Cavern Tavern is the equivalent thread to this one, and you may want to post inquiries there. And the Post Office is where the RP bios are posted.

Enjoy, whatever you choose!

...I brought it back to finish it off. I didn't plan it that way at all.

But it fits in very nicely. Cleverly done!

...I think we're going to get into the range of "Critical Mass Cuteness" now that Molly's around....

Thanks! I admit I've written a number of 'cutesy' segments of late, most of which are sitting on my computer at the moment. I'm becoming concerned that Erik might be getting a little soft now that he's a father. Hmmm, maybe I need a serious threat to his family to bring his warrior side back to the surface. That might be appropriate in this year's NaNo...

And it's even worse in the other segments I've written, in which Molly's younger sibling (siblings?) appear. The next one is going to be named

Spoiler

now, would I be spoiling it already? I promise, though, that there'll be no secrets once the next egg is laid, in terms of gender or likely name

Sonny, I like that description of the computer.
That's exactly what I fear an intelligent computer would do

I also enjoyed the computer antics.

Great job on the childhood memories...I really like background information like this, especially for characters like Loren and Eliana who've known each other nearly all their lives.

(You're inspiring me to explore Erik and Abby's early days in my upcoming NaNo story. )

Sounds like Eliana and Loren were very scientifically-oriented even at the tender ages of 12 and 14. They could have taught Erik a thing or two at that age.

Please allow me a silly question: what is painter deer?

As to the technological advancement of these young children, my dad taught me how to program computers when I was eight, and if I had been given intense tutoring and coaching when I was that age, I probably could have been a lot farther than I really was at 12, though probably not as advanced as Loren and Eliana were. I am a software engineer now, and I want to explore artificial intelligence when I get my master's degree next year.

And here is the silly answer to your question: painter deer are some kind of deer that roams the Ditto Forest. I thought that painter deer sounded delicious. Now I just have to figure out why they're called that. It is perhaps of the markings. They are not all brown; they have streaks of a copper color and white, as if someone took a paintbrush and streaked the animals.

I would love to read about Erik and Abby's past. I have always looked the little tidbits you've dropped here and there. As for the memory dreams, Eliana has them often, and everything in them is always just the way it happened. I plan to tell things like how Eliana got Jack the canary (and why it's named Jack), when and how the DeHonds got married, the circumstanced around Mr. and Mrs. McBride's death (Eliana's parents), etc. This way I'm not limited to just the present time as I write, and I can make up for the time the DeHonds didn't "exist" in the story. (I mean, they existed, but didn't have anyone chronicling their lives...)

Anyway, part two should be up by the middle of next week if not before.

Sorry if I was unclear! I didn't mean that Eliana and Loren's technical prowess as children was hard to believe or anything like that; rather I was complimenting them and their writer.

(When I was 8 computers still filled buildings but I understand what you mean. My equivalent back then was astronomy texts meant for older students. And best wishes finishing your degree and entering your career!)

Thanks for explaining about painter deer. I suspected they were a creature you'd invented for the Ditto Town world but I couldn't help wondering if they were something real (or a reference to something real) - a local dish perhaps - in which case I wanted to broaden my horizons a bit. Nice addition to the fauna of the Ditto World...if you don't mind I may make a brief reference to them in a future segment, to tie into this one.

I like the memory dreams and the way you can use them to fill in the DeHonds' backstory. It sounds like you have a lot of potential material there!

I do have some background stuff for Erik and Abby written (I used a daydream, for example, to write about the night Abby 'proposed' to Erik, in a short story I wrote as an immediate prequel to his entry into the Ditto Story, in which he finds the portal to Ditto Town) but am looking forward to writing more and fleshing it out. [/ramble]

Some quick coments:
Narnianerd, we could work something out, because I have a character (Will, a talking possum) who lives right by the fountain. If you wish, I could start a segment, and we could continue.

Varna, a reminder. We had your character traveling through the woods of the shire during the occupation by Sharkey's men. That was the conversation where Rose realized that they had met when she was a young hobbit and they were hiding in the woods.

And the thing with the movie version could come out interesting. There would probably be some angst involved on the part of my characters because the scouring of the shire was ignored in the movie, but it could make for an interesting segment The one thing I have to look up is to see if the LOTR movies had already made their appearance in a previous volume.

Here's an idea: how about a movie night, with Erik and Abby inviting the Banks family and Varna to the Emporium for a viewing? (Abby would be thrilled to watch the Banks twins along with Molly so the others can enjoy the movie).

It could allow some fun interaction between these characters, and I think it'd be fun to work on together. And I'm sure my characters would be thrilled to get filled in on the changes in the movies.

Feel free to write up something like this if you like, and we can whip it into shape. I may be busy with NaNo coming up next week/month, but Erik and his family are involved in that story too.

(I don't recall a previous reference to the LOTR movies in the Ditto Story, though I could be mistaken. However, that doesn't preclude a previous viewing by any of our characters).