So what now?

[Academia Nut]

As those of you following it know, I've almost completed my latest story Thousand Shinji, a Neon Genesis Evangelion/WH40k crossover.

This has pretty much been the first story I've completed.

So, now the question becomes what now? I'm at a bit of a loss really. Here, however, is a list of projects I wouldn't mind working on:

Thousand Shinji sequel. There's still room for stories in that timeline, but I'm a little burnt out at the moment, so while I probably will go back one day, I doubt it will be right away.

Valour and Mayhem sequel/reboot. I wrote myself into a bit of a corner, but I still love the character of Mosegi, so I am considering picking up his tale at a somewhat different point in time.

The Misfits continued. Pick up where I left off with those crazy Chaos followers who aren't quite as evil as their fellows and are ostracized for it.

Hellsing/WH40K crossover. This one was in the silly idea thread.

Berserk/WH40K crossover. Ditto as above.

Shadow of the Tyrant. I'll pick this story up again one day, but getting into the mood kind of requires summer weather, and right now there is still snow on the ground where I live.

However, right now I am somewhat in the mood to write something with an eye towards getting it published, which pretty much means an original work, not a fanfic. Now, Thousand Shinji was quite good for me in that I actually finished it, mostly because I had a plotline already created for me by Gainax to work with, so I didn't get lost with what to do next. So I have a slight suggestion to make.

As evidence by the unholy (*snicker*) activity in the Armaggedon??? thread, this site really gets in on collaboration with the right incentives. So if those of you out there would like, you could help me come up with a story and plot so that I don't get so lost. You wouldn't experience all the twists the same way, but the story would (hopefully) get done at some point. Part of my problem is that I am really good at coming up with settings and characters, but then I lose my way in the plot. So if you want, you could suggest some things to me and then I could create the first two. Then we come up with a basic plot outline: beginning, middle, end and all that jazz. Then as I'm writing, you can make suggestions as to how to get connect the various dots. I dunno, a bit of a complex idea, but I'm mostly brainstorming here.

So anyway, what you all like to read? Admittedly, I might just ignore you because I want to do something else, but I like getting feedback.

[Sidewinder]

Personally, I'd like to see 'Valor and Mayhem' completed-- Mosegi is a fun character to read about. Secondarily, I'd like to see a 'Berserk'/'Warhammer 40,000' crossover-- I had a similar idea, but I haven't given it serious thought, so you're free to develop it-- with Guts as a Space Marine.

[[R_H]]

Personally, I'd like to see 'Valor and Mayhem' completed-- Mosegi is a fun character to read about. Secondarily, I'd like to see a 'Berserk'/'Warhammer 40,000' crossover-- I had a similar idea, but I haven't given it serious thought, so you're free to develop it-- with Guts as a Space Marine.

I'd also like to see 'Valor and Mayhem' finished, I found it very amusing and light hearted (relative to most other 40K themed fiction).

[Academia Nut]

Yeah, here's the thing, it wouldn't be finished, it would be rebooted and carried forward to a point in time where Mosegi is a full blown Inquisitor. And it was about to go dark real fast when last we left off, what with the planet being subjected to an Exterminatus when the extent of the corruption becomes clear. They would then hunt down a rogue Thorian Inquisitor rapidly slipping into Horusian Radicalism. After that arc and Mosegi being promoted to full inquisitor would then get in a fight with his old mentor, accusing him of being blind to corruption in the upper strata of the Imperium because he likes to abuse his authority for the various perks made available. This would lead Mosegi to secretly take up the cause of the Recongregator faction with a hint of Istvaanism, whereby he believes in purging the corrupt, especially high level officials, with fire and lots of it. The details however are rather muddy at this point as I had no overarching plan.

As for the Berserk/40K crossover, it would have featured Guts as a lost Primarch... found in M41 instead of M30. So it would feature a massive political SNAFU in the Imperium as everyone tries to figure out what to do with him. My primary problem there is in deciding when in the Berserk storyline to make the cross. If set before the Eclipse then you can have Griffith's fall from grace being inspired by Guts being taken away by people from the sky, and there is less of a headache for why the Imperium wouldn't just shoot on sight a guy with what to them would appear to be a Mark of Chaos. On the other hand, Guts with an upgraded Dragon Slayer and a bionic arm with integral plasma cannon is kinda hard to resist. Again though, other than the initial set up, I'm rather lost on what exactly the plot would be.

[Alferd Packer]

I must vote for Shadow of the Tyrant, summer weather be damned. Mary Tennyson must be plowed, right and proper!

[Academia Nut]

Bad Alfred Packer, bad! No Shadow for you this month!

Anyway, while sitting in nanoelectronics and learning about the Bloch matrix for graphene, I had a thought for those of you that want more Valour and Mayhem. Essentially, it would be a sort of question and answer session for Mosegi under the guise of a conclave of Inquisitors investigating his actions. I'm thinking that he could have stopped a massive Chaos invasion/insurrection in a sector by essentially dropping an Ork WAAAGH! on it and then playing the two off one another until reinforcements had time to arrive. While he saved dozens of worlds and annihilated both the Orks and the Chaos forces, his fellow Inquisitors are obviously concerned that he is falling into Radicalism and want to take him to task for it.

This would help me with my plot problem in that there wouldn't exactly be a plot.

I am however considering that a bit of a side project while I scheme up something grander. What do you all say to that?

[LadyTevar]

I vote The Misfits!

[[R_H]]

I vote The Misfits!

Oh yeah! I'm now split between "Valour and Mayhem" and "The Misfits"...I think I'll change my vote to "The Misfits".

[Sidewinder]

If set before the Eclipse then you can have Griffith's fall from grace being inspired by Guts being taken away by people from the sky, and there is less of a headache for why the Imperium wouldn't just shoot on sight a guy with what to them would appear to be a Mark of Chaos. On the other hand, Guts with an upgraded Dragon Slayer and a bionic arm with integral plasma cannon is kinda hard to resist.

Easy way to reconcile this: have Daemon Prince Angron take off Guts' arm, and have Guts find a power weapon comparable to Dragon Slayer afterwards.

The God Hand can easily be considered the Chaos Gods' heralds, with Slan serving Slaanesh, Void serving Tzeentch, Conrad serving Nurgle, Ubik serving either Slaanesh or Tzeentch, and Femto/Griffith as a champion of Chaos Undivided.

Have Farnese appear as an Inquisitor shadowing Primarch Guts to make sure he doesn't end up like Horus, with authorization to kill him at the first sign of heresy.

[Academia Nut]

Oh yeah, the God Hand are definitely daemons. Part of the problem is that I hate crossovers where characters take roles from another universe. It just pisses me off for some reason. Yeah, the characters will be changed by the crossing, that's acceptable, in fact demanded, but saying that a character in one universe had an analog in another just irks me. So Farnese wouldn't be an Inquisitor unless she was recruited by one after the Imperium discovers their world, which would take a while, if she were even trusted as isn't she learning magic?

Bah... I'm still trying to settle upon an idea I like, although I'll probably pick up the Misfits again simply as a distraction. Short, little silly chapters when I have writers block.

[von Neufeld]

Another vote for the Misfits.

Also a hint about coming up with a plot: Let the characters' motivations and desires shape the plot.

[Alferd Packer]

Bad Alfred Packer, bad! No Shadow for you this month!

Oh, uh, I meant that, uh, Mary should be treated with respect and allowed to explore her nascent sexuality at a pace most comfortable to her, until such time as she is ready to accept Eric as her partner. Should she so choose.

Then she should be plowed.

[TithonusSyndrome]

I would vote for Tyrant, but Alfred's already proven a fine guinea pig and shown the futility of such a move. I've got a few original ideas I'll toss your way in a day or two when I can get them all together in one place, some of them might be a little unlike what you're used to, but I have learned not to underestimate your authorial acumen.

[Academia Nut]

Sweet. Although I am teaming up with someone to write the Narrative Causality Survival Guide, that will almost certainly be a much slower story. Definitely in the mood for something original at the moment.

Although, just for the hell of it, I'll post the last bit of The Misfits I had written before I started focusing on Thousand Shinji again.