The Prettiest Thing - Chapter Thirteen

Chapter thirteen of The Prettiest Thing is now posted on AFF.net so read it, review it, and let me know what you think. Thank you a thousand times to Lauren for making the piece of art of Ella below. Please enjoy the chapter. I am already working on chapter fourteen and I am also working on chapter four of Ghetto Gospel so I will let you know when there are more updates. Thank you.

Profiles

So this is probably one of the most random things I have ever done but I made profiles for the four main, main characters of The Prettiest Thing. I don't know why I did this but I just wanted to get their basic facts down on paper and this is what came of it. Sorry chapter thirteen is taking me so long. My computer has been acting up lately and it is becoming a pain to deal with but I promise that the new chapter will be up soon. You have my word. Have a wonderful Thursday everyone. It's almost the weekend! Below, enjoy the randomness that is me.

Name: Brett Dawson
Age: 18
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 200 lbs.
Marital Status: Single

Favorite Food: Cheeseburgers and French Fries
Fav. Drink: Mountain Blast Powerade
Fav. TV Show: The Wire, The Shield, Friday Night Lights
Fav. Movie: Scarface, American History X
Fav. Band: Smashing Pumpkins, Evans Blue, Foo Fighters
Fav. Song: "Everlong" by Foo Fighters

Personal Quote: "The pursuit beings when this portrayal of life ends." - Evans Blue

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Name: Trevor Scott
Age: 18
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Brown
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 190 lbs.
Marital Status: Single

Favorite Food: Chicken Quesadillas
Fav. Drink: Coke
Fav. TV Show: ESPN, Cops, Friday Night Lights, The Wire
Fav. Movie: The Lost Boys, The Godfather, Pulp Fiction, Boondock Saints
Fav. Band: Avenged Sevenfold, Beastie Boys, Kanye West
Fav. Song: "Almost Easy" by Avenged Sevenfold

Personal Quote: "All in the game." - Omar Little from The Wire

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Name: Ella Scott
Age: 17
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Brown
Height: 5'5"
Weight: 115 lbs.
Marital Status: Single

Favorite Food: Chicken Sandwiches, French Fries, Hershey Kisses
Fav. Drink: Dr. Pepper
Fav. TV Show: 30 Rock, The Office, Supernatural, Friday Night Lights
Fav. Movie: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, The Princess Bride, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
Fav. Band: Incubus, New Found Glory, Aqualung, TV on the Radio
Fav. Song: "Echo" by Incubus

Personal Quote: "Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end. Then stop." - The King from Alice in Wonderland

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Name: Joy Benson
Age: 18
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Brown
Height: 5'3"
Weight: 102 lbs.
Marital Status: Dating

Favorite Food: Red grapes, Peanut Butter, Spanish RiceFav. Drink: Raspberry Iced Tea
Fav. TV Show: Bones
Fav. Movie: Moulin Rouge
Fav. Band: Mazzy Star, Portishead
Fav. Song: "1,2,3,4" by Feist

Personal Quote: "Everything is beautiful at the ballet." from A Chorus Line

Inspiration

I was on the internet a few months ago, randomly looking for something, when I stumbled across this picture. I wanted to post it since it has inspired me with a lot of my writing since then. I can't explain it but ever since I found this picture, I have stared at it frequently and many story ideas have come from it. I had the name of it written down but now I can't find it. If anyone knows the name of the photograph, please let me know. I believe it is from the 1970s but I would really like to know the title. Thank you and I hope you like it as much as I do.

Random Post

Happy Tuesday everyone. I woke up, trying to convince myself that it was Wednesday, but alas, it is only Tuesday and I have about a foot of snow out my front door so I am trying to put off shoveling by posting on my blog. I hope everyone is doing well. I am working on chapter thirteen of The Prettiest Thing and I think I have finally accepted the fact that pleasing everyone is damned near impossible. I received a lot of criticisms for chapter eleven and how choppy it felt as I jumped from Ella to Joy to Lyla back to Ella again. Few people seemed to actually like that chapter. So for chapter twelve, I focused on Brett and gave more insight into his mind and actions. People didn't like that chapter either because they wanted to know what Trevor and Alex were thinking too. I just cannot win with some of you it seems lol.

This story is my own and I am going to write the chapters however I feel like. I also need to apologize for the past few chapters being less than perfect. I had some point out that my grammer wasn't the best or my writing not being necessarily good and I suppose that I was thinking faster than I was thinking. I know you all want me to post as soon as possible so I think I was just typing so fast and posting afterwards that I didn't read and edit as closely as I usual do. I apologize for this. I suppose I'm just so busy, I get so excited to post a new chapter just like you are excited to read it. I will take more time on my writing from now on.

Also, in regards to Ghetto Gospel, for the few people who read it and like it, thank you for letting me know what you honestly think of it. I know some are having a problem reading it because of the less than perfect English but I am trying to be realistic and this is how some of these characters would actually speak if they were in fact real. I understand that it might be difficult to read but thank you for trying. I knew when I started that not a lot of people would like this story but I am glad some of you are enjoying it. In regards to chapter thirteen of The Prettiest Thing, we are going to have a Trevor and Joy talk as well as a Brett and Ella talk. Remember that this is going to be a long story so the pacing is a little bit more slow than my other stories. I am building different storylines up and I know already that there are going to be some things in this story that people won't like but remember that I already have my outline so I am sticking by my stories and will not change any of the plots just to please.

I suppose writing and posting on-line is a double edged sword. I love writing and I love posting my stories for anyone to read. And I have some of the best readers in the world. I consider you all to be my friends. But posting on-line, I am opening myself up to a lot of criticism and some less-than kind emails. I appreciate the CONSTRUCTIVE criticism and take it all to heart and keep it in mind as I write but it is the cruel criticism that hurts me. Just remember that I don't have to post my stories. I think my skin finally might be getting a bit thicker though which is good. The picture posted below is a piece of art Alessandra made for me of Amelia Aldridge-Reed and I love it so thank you once again, Alessandra, for making it. Have a great day everyone and I will let you know when chapter thirteen is complete.

Ghetto Gospel - Chapter Three

Chapter three of Ghetto Gospel has just been posted on AFF.net. I also tried to post it on Fictionpress.com but was having some problems but I will try to post it on that site as well later. Please read and review. I know that the story is not as well liked as some of my others but I know that some of you are really enjoying it so please keep reading it and letting me know what you think of it. Thank you to Lauren for the fanart of Preston and Jane below and also are pictures of Jerome King and Tim Benedict, the two men who will have their own war between them in this story. Thank you.

Jerome

Tim

The Prettiest Thing - Chapter Twelve

Chapter twelve of The Prettiest Thing has been posted on AFF.net and you know the drill. Read it and let me know what you all think of it. This story is progressing nicely and once again, I am proud of this new installment. In this chapter, a painting named Angel by Abbott Handerson Thayer was mentioned and I posted a print of it below. I just want to thank everyone who is reading this story and letting me know what you think of it. It means more to me than you would ever think. Please continue to read and I hope the newest chapter is enjoyed by most. This chapter, Brett begins to find himself become jealous over Ella's new friendships and of Trevor's football future. I am already excited about the next chapter. Thank you in advance for reading and reviewing for me.

"Angel" by Abbott Handerson Thayer

The Prettiest Thing FanArt

I wanted to post this piece of fan art by Alessandra when I posted the announcement for chapter eleven but the site wasn't allowing me to post pictures at the time so I wasn't able to. I want to post it now for everyone to see and enjoy. Lauren also made me some art for Ghetto Gospel which I will post when I let everyone know when chapter three is complete. I love all of the art I get from all of my incredibly talented readers and I love you to death for taking the time and making all of these for me. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Hands On Me

Despite the few reviews I received, for the most part, people seemed to have chapter eleven of The Prettiest Thing. And if you have ever seen "This is Spinal Tap", you can just picture me then saying the infamous 'these go to eleven' scene whenever I write about chapter eleven. Wow. That was random. I am really tired. Anyway, most people seemed to really dislike this chapter considering I received hundreds of hits and thirteen reviews. It actually hurts my feelings a little bit. I love this chapter. I thought it was one of my best-written... possibly ever. I wanted others to love it too. I think people except action in every single chapter and while I could do that, that's not what this story is. It's about every day life in high school. Was every day in your high school action-packed? Mine certainly wasn't. This story is about Brett, Ella, Trevor, Joy and everyone else just getting through each day with decisions they made the previous day. Like I have said, chapter eleven is actually very important to the overall story.

Below, I have posted a song: "Hands On Me" by Vanessa Carlton. I have been listening to it constantly lately and every time I hear it, I think of both of my stories right now. I think of Brett and Ella and of Preston and Jane. Give it a listen below and let me know what you think. I am actually working on a soundtrack list for The Prettiest Thing. Every chapter is named after a classic rock song and then on top of that, there are songs I hear that remind me of the story so there will actually be two soundtracks coming soon. Now tell me how crazy I am and how I just need to ignore people in the comments section but also let me know what you think of the song. Thanks everyone. Have a magnificent Thursday.

The Prettiest Thing - Chapter Eleven

Chapter eleven of The Prettiest Thing is now officially finished and posted on AFF.net so check it out. As I already said, this chapter focuses on Ella, Joy and Lyla, giving some deep insight into all of their characters and I hope that it is enjoyed. I know it may not seem like it when you are reading it but it actually is a very important chapter but it won't be obvious until later in the story. This story makes me smile and I am so excited when I look at my outline and see everything that is to come. I hope everyone is excited as well. Please read and review chapter eleven for me. I didn't have the best day but some kind words from the best readers in the world will certainly help me. I am already in the middle of writing chapter twelve but no promises as to when I will be posting that. I am working on chapter three of Ghetto Gospel at the moment so that will be posted first and then will come a couple more chapters of Ella, Brett and Trevor. Thank you everyone in advance!

The Girls of The Prettiest Thing

I am working on chapter eleven of The Prettiest Thing and I am really loving it so far. It's going to really be a focus on Ella, Joy and in Seattle, an insight into Lyla and Andy's marriage. We are going to see more of Corey and Monty, this time at their home, and we're going to see how Ella and Joy both deal with the aftermath of their two homecoming incidents. I am really excited to finish this chapter and have it posted for you all to read. Thank you for all of the kind responses this story has been getting. It means more to me than anything. Please remember to review for me after you read. It drives me crazy when I get hundreds of hits and only a handful of reviews. Thank you and be on the lookout for chapter eleven, which hopefully will be posted either today or tomorrow.

Ella

Joy

Lyla

The Prettiest Thing - Chapter Ten

Chapter ten of The Prettiest Thing has just been posted and it is the longest chapter so far of this story. I absolutely love thist chapter and I hope others will too. I have made a slight change to the story outline and that change involves Lyla and her husband, Andy. It will be more detailed next chapter. Please read and review for me. I am loving all of the feedback and encouragement I have been getting for this story and I thank all of you for that. Below are pictures of Ella and Joy's homecoming dresses, Andy Novak - Lyla's husband - and the song "So Sorry" by Feist which the couples dance to. Also, in this chapter, there is a sex scene and I know that it seems sudden but honestly, this is the exact pacing of which the story has been going in regards to this particular story line. I didn't particularly want to write a love scene. I wanted to write something a bit more realistic. You'll hopefully see what I mean when you read it. Please read it and review it for me!

Ella's Dress

Joy's Dress

Andy

Story Details

Okay. Let me explain something about The Prettiest Thing since I received a review and several emails about it. In this story, without a doubt, the main characters are Brett Dawson and Ella and Trevor Scott. Some feel that when I write about Alex, Lyla, Nick and Connie, I am shining too much light on supporting characters and taking too much focus away from the three main ones. I have explained this but I am going to do so again. Every character in this story is important. We're only nine chapters in and for some people to tell me how to write my story and what characters I should focus on is ludicrous. If you don't like fleshed out characters and something more to your stories than boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love, cliched drama, happy ending, then don't read my stories. Easy as that. The Prettiest Thing is going to be my longest, most detailed, and most intertwined plot I have ever written and I know most of you are excited for it.

As for Ghetto Gospel, it is not going to be like Romeo and Juliet. I love Shakespeare but I hate the fact that anytime two different people fall for each other, they instantly think of that play. Preston and Jane are two very different people, yes, and there are going to be a lot of complications in their love story but aren't a lot of love stories like that without instantly being compared to Romeo and Juliet? I am writing this story because I have never written something like it before. I wanted to explore stereotypes and hidden prejudices that every race has about others. I wanted to write a story about two people finding one another that normally neither would have ever thought of. I think finding love in something unexpected is beautiful. And a little spoiler - Preston and Jane won't be killing themselves at the end of it.

What it comes down to is this and it's rather simple. If you don't like my stories, don't read them. If you want the typical high school romance, go to Fictionpress.com and click on nearly any story there. If you want authors that throw characters in for no apparent reason and then have them quickly disappear, read something else. I am going to defend this story and these characters to the death because I am so in love with every thing I am writing right now. If someone wrote a story about me, yes, I would be the main character, but I wouldn't be the only one. There would be others with their own stories and their stories would relate back to me.

How does Alex dating have nothing to do with Brett? Alex is his father and Brett is deeply hurt by this action. How does Lyla's marriage have nothing to do with Trevor and Ella? They are all close siblings and Lyla is going to begin to set a rift between herself and her parents in an otherwise extremely tight-knit family. Every character is important to the three main ones. I know the summary seems simple to The Prettiest Thing but it is so much more than Brett falling for Ella and vice versa. I just hope that enough of you stick around to read and find that out.