Sunday, April 27, 2008

HASA Announcement - Forums

HASA ANNOUNCEMENTS – April 27-May 4



BIRTHDAY DRABBLES



The following members have birthday this week. If you're in the drabbling mood, why not write them 100 words as a birthday card?

fliewatuet (April 29) asked, "Since my all-time favourite character is Aragorn, I would like to read how he dealt with that age (or the Dúnedain equivalent of 40). This can be anything from a birthday party to mid-life crisis. Though I wouldn't mind reading about your favourite character either :-)"

The following drabbles have been written in the following week:

"Deliverance" by Imhiriel for Elena Tiriel

The May thread isn't up yet, but should be sometime this week – be on the look-out for it.

If you have a birthday in April and would like a drabble about your favorite character or topic, you can request it here.

The May thread isn't up yet, but should be sometime this week – be on the look-out for it.




This week's focus:

FORUMS



One of the best ways to get involved at HASA is through our forums. People are discussing research questions and stories as well as having fannish squees regularly there.

Some useful forum links:

"On Our Minds" displays the ten most recent posts in forums open to all HASA members. It's a good way to catch up on what you've missed, though the page can move quickly when lots of forums are active at once.

If you've been out of touch for longer than a few days you might want to use the "One Month of Posts" page. This page has just what it sounds like: a list of forums that have been posted to in the last month, beginning with the most recently updated.

Workshops are specialized writing communities. They allow you to share stories you aren't ready to post to the whole site, and many have interesting forums attached to them. Explore workshops to find a group of members interested in similar topics. (You must be logged in to see this link.)

Now, here are some of the most recently-updated threads in HASA forum. Don't be shy. If any interest you, why not jump in?

Prospective Challenges
Subject: Science in Middle Earth

HASA Birthday Cards Forum
Subject: Deliverance

Prospective Challenges
Subject: Minority Rulez!

Here's hoping this week finds you having many interesting discussion about all things Tolkien. Because, really, you were trying to cut back on sleep anyway, right?

Until next time,
Marta

PS- Do you have something in particular you would like included in next week's announcement? If so, please contact me here.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

HASA Announcement - Recently-Updated Stories

BIRTHDAY DRABBLES



The following members have birthdays coming up. If you're in the drabbling mood, why not write them 100 words as a birthday card?

Fliewatuet (April 29) requested, "Since my all-time favorite character is Aragorn, I would like to read how he dealt with that age (or the Dúnedain equivalent of 40)."

The following drabbles have been written in the following week:

"Paranoia is Sweet Revenge" by Vistula for Larner

If you have a birthday in [month] and would like a drabble about your favorite character or topic, you can request it at




This week's focus:

RECENTLY UPDATED STORIES



All of us writers love feedback. It is the lembas and miruvor that sustains us as we write our story, and leaving a few words about a story is always a nice thing to do, whether the story is new or old.

Every fifteen minutes HASA hilights a story chosen at random from the Reviewed and General stories in the archive. The current story is

Weary beyond Joy or Sorrow by Imhiriel
"When Aragorn 'could labour no more, he cast his cloak about him, and slipped out of the City, and went to his tent just ere dawn...' (RotK, The Houses of Healing) - but what awaited him there? Drabble."

Why not go to http://www.henneth-annun.net/ and check out the currently featured story?

Many talented writers are publishing every day. Check out these stories just added to HASA:

Reviewed Stories

Lothiriel's Journey by Lady Bluejay
A light-hearted look at how Lothiriel and Eomer could have met. Contains some fun sexual innuendos and humour.

Final Choice by Meril
Nimloth's last moments in Menegroth.




General Stories
Leather by Marta
Sometimes, a sensation as simple as touch can have a powerful affect. Boromir/Theodred.

A Cat in King Elessar's Court by Agape4Gondor
A royal descendant of Beruthiel's cats spends time with us, reminiscing about life in Minas Tirith once a certain Hobbit arrives. Drama/humor. (WIP)




Beta Stories
(Please note, you need to be logged in to view these stories.)

Never shall the sun that morrow see by Peregrin Ionad.
"Find the King's son" the call came, cutting through the sound of the upon the rocks, echoing off the surrounding mountains. Please beware this story is very AU. (WIP)

Untold Tales of the Mark: The Banishment of Eomer by Katzilla
A very dark AU take of what Eomer's banishment could have been like... angsty as you would expect from me. (WIP)




And now for your mid-month nuzgul. Because the only way to get stories to read is for someone to write them, and that requires our fangy little friends.

Minority Rulez!

"So, there was recently a minority_rules challenge over at LJ that was inspired by the fact that the Democratic nominee in the U.S. presidential election would likely be a woman or an ethnic minority. I missed the sign-up for that challenge, but it got me thinking about the many women and racial minorities who are in places of authority in Middle-earth. There are obvious canonical women rulers like Eowyn and Galadriel, and less obvious ones like Gollum's grandmother who is described as a matriarch.

"And then there's possibility for original ones, situations where the younger men would likely be away, for instance at Dunharrow or in the Angle, or after the destruction of Laketown when so many of the men rode north.

"That's not even touching the problems faced by the ethnic "other." A Sindarin Celeborn in Valinor would have likely faced problems, as would Eowyn in Gondor. And let's not even talk about the ways Eol was misunderstood in Gondolin.... I'm sure there are other possibilities, too.

"So why don't we have a challenge of our own in honor of the fact that a woman or minority might soon be the U.S. president? Write me a story, poem, drabble, or essay about the challenges a woman or ethnic minority might have faced in Middle-earth? "

If you don't feel the tickle of little fangs in your ankle yet, there are many more potential stories just waiting to be written. Read all of HASA's many story prompts in our Nuzgul hutch.

Do you have a suggestion you'd like to see added to the hutch? Submit it using the "Submit a Story Suggestion" form.

Happy reviewing!
Marta
PS- Do you have something in particular you would like included in next week's announcement? If so, please contact me here.

Friday, April 18, 2008

HASA Announcement - Funding Update, Challenges, Drabbles, & Resources

Hey guys,

There was a slight confusion between Arandil (the other volunteer who helps post announcements) and myself; we each thought the other was posting the weekly HASA Announcements. Sorry about that! Here's the highlights of what would have been posted the last two weeks, and I'll post the normal Sunday announcement starting this Sunday.

HASA FUNDING UPDATE



No website is truly free. HASA does not display ads or charge for memberships, but there are still costs associated with running the website. The website depends on member donations to pay its monthly hosting fee of $150.00.

Currently available funding: 285.50
To provide funding through: May 2008

Ang asked me to pass on the following message about the First Quarter funding drive:

"Since December 25th, when the drive started, site members and the public have donated $345. HASA's Secret Admirer has donated her original $200 pledge, and then has gone on to match every donated dollar for a total of $345. After Amazon and Pay Pal fees are deducted, this gives HASA $682.05 in new donations. Added to our base amount before the drive began, $203.45, HASA has a 2008 donation total of $885.50.

All three Quarter 1 hosting payments have been made, for a total of $450 in hosting costs. This leaves HASA with $435.50 for Quarter 2 hosting costs, only $15 short of all expenses through June.
"

[Please note, this amount of $435.50 was before the payment was made for the April hosting fees. 285.50+150.00 = 435.50]

If anyone would like to make a donation, you may do so here.




BIRTHDAY CARDS



The following members have requested a birthday drabble. If you're in the drabbling mood, why not write them 100 words as a birthday card?

RS (April 4th) requested: "My favorite character is Aragorn. I would love to see a relaxed and fun Aragorn... or Aragorn on vacation! Or maybe Aragorn and Arwen in an argument (there's no such thing as a perfect couple!)."

Ainaechoiriel (April 7th) requested: "In light of our now-started adoption process of a little girl from Russia[...], I request adoption stories. Please, not all Aragorn and Frodo[...] Anyway, orphans that needed care. And there were likely adults who chose to take them in. Let's meet some of them and find what's in their hearts. Interracial or intercultural is a plus.

Larner (April 13) requested: "Following a perceived insult of some kind, Frodo has determined to play a prank on his friend Aragorn. It can be anywhere along the road. [...] One of the others may warn Aragorn of his peril, and that he's in danger of retaliation by a master of retaliatory pranks."

Fliewatuet (April 29) requested, to mark her 40th birthday: "Since my all-time favourite character is Aragorn, I would like to read how he dealt with that age (or the Dunedain equivalent of 40). This can be anything from a birthday party to mid-life crisis. Though I wouldn't mind reading about your favourite character either."

The following drabbles have been written so far this month:

--- Symbols of Love by Larner for RS
--- Paranoia is Sweet Revenge by Vistula the Dunadan for Larner

If you have a birthday in April and would like a drabble about your favorite character or topic, you can request it here.




CHALLENGES



There are no challenges currently open. Why not propose a challenge at the Prospective Challenges Forum? If five people are interested, we can get a challenge going. Or, if you're looking for something to write, check out the Nuzgul Hutch. (You'll need to be logged in for that last link.)




This week's focus:

RESOURCES.



The HASA Research Library is a very useful resource for writers as well as for online discussions on book canon. You can find entries on characters, settings, events, and items, containing cited quotes about the item you are trying to find more information on. This portion of the site is available to both members and non-members here.

Would you like to get involved with Resources? If you like researching and want to help develop this section of HASA you can contact the Resources & Research Library through the contact form here.

What's new in Resources:

Timeline Events:
--- Reinforcements arrive from the Outlands for the Siege of Minas Tirith (March 9, 3019 T.A.)
--- Elvensmiths of Eregion begin to forge Rings of Power (c. 1500 S.A.)

Character Biographies
--- The Brandybucks
--- Herb-master of the Houses of Healing

Places
--- Straight Road
--- Imloth Melui

Things
--- Palantiri
--- athelas

Good luck researching your story! If you enjoy this section of the site please feel free to thank the researchers, listed at the bottom of every entry.

And always remember, grasshopper: the path of wisdom leads through proper citations. *grins*

Marta

PS- Do you have something in particular you would like included in next week's announcement? If so, please email me.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Forums

NOTE: Please be sure you are logged in when clicking on the links.

BIRTHDAY DRABBLES


The following members have birthday this month. If you're in the drabbling mood, why not write them 100 words as a birthday card?

RS (April, 4th) requested: my favorite character is Aragorn. I would love to see a relaxed and fun Aragorn...or Aragorn on vacation! Or maybe Aragorn and Arwen in an argument (there's no such thing as a perfect couple!).

Ainaechoiriel (April, 7th) requested: ...in light of our now-started adoption process of a little girl from Russia[...], I request adoption stories. Please, not all Aragorn and Frodo[...] Anyway, orphans that needed care. And there were likely adults who chose to take them in. Let's meet some of them and find what's in their hearts. Interracial or intercultural is a plus.

Larner (April, 13) requested: Following a perceived insult of some kind, Frodo has determined to play a prank on his friend Aragorn. It can be anywhere along the road [...] One of the others may try to warn Aragorn of his peril, and that he's in danger of retaliation by a master of retaliatory pranks.

If you have a birthday in April and would like a drabble about your favorite character or topic, you can request it here.




This week's focus:

FORUMS


One of the best ways to get involved at HASA is through our forums. People are discussing research questions and stories as well as having fannish squees regularly there.

Some useful forum links:

On Our Minds
"On Our Minds" displays the ten most recent posts in forums open to all HASA members. It's a good way to catch up on what you've missed, though the page can move quickly when lots of forums are active at once.

One Month of Posts
If you've been out of touch for longer than a few days you might want to use the "One Month of Posts" page. This page has just what it sounds like: a list of forums that have been posted to in the last month, beginning with the most recently updated.

Workshops
Workshops are specialized writing communities. They allow you to share stories you aren't ready to post to the whole site, and many have interesting forums attached to them. Explore workshops to find a group of members interested in similar topics. (You must be logged in to see this link).

Here's hoping this week finds you having many interesting discussion about all things Tolkien. Because, really, you were trying to cut back on sleep anyway, right?

Hugs and Cookies,
Arandil

PS: Do you have something in particular you would like included in next week's announcement? If so, please email HASANews.