Hi! I'm Katrina and I am not J.K. Rowling (just to avoid any confusion there).
I've been writing on MNFF since about 2010, but up until a few months ago had not written anything for quite some time. So I am trying to get back into writing, and have quite a few stories percolating in my head, but I just need to find the time to write them.
I basically only write one-shots (I have one three chaptered story), and they're usually character explorations and snapshots rather than long plots, but I've written about a variety of characters, so hopefully there's something you'll enjoy. I like experimenting a bit with form too.
Anyway if you have stumbled here by accident, I do hope you enjoy something.
Aww this was really sweet. I'm quite surprised it doesn't have any reviews...
I liked the way you explored Cho's previous relationships and what it had been like for her after the war, and what she had given up to be with William. You created a feeling of hopelessness nicely at the beginning.
The only thing is, I think it could have been a bit longer - perhaps you could have included when she met William or somehow developed that relationship more.
Still it was very cute and nicely written, good job :)
I loved your characterisation of Seamus and picking up on his boggart being a Banshee in PoA was a really good premise for a fic. I would have preferred it if you'd explored Mrs Finnigan's illness a bit more - I presume it was somehow
more fear-based than real, but it would have been nice to see a bit more of that. But as a character piece on Seamus it was great :).
I loved the folky and at times eerie feeling you showed through the setting and the isolation as well. Great job!
Author's Response: Hello again!
Hi Neil,
So I've finally got around to starting this. Great starting chapter, I really like how you show Ginny's character. The try-outs reminded me a bit of when Harry was captain in HBP, but I suppose that's logical because Ginny would now be something of a celebrity.
I loved the idea of Luna being Head Girl, that would just be... bizarre.
I liked how you sometimes referred to Hermione as "Head Girl Hermione", because it really shows that that side of her personality is really coming out in the absence of Harry and Ron. I imagine she feels very isolated without them.
Anyway, it's a great beginning and I'm looking forward to the rest.
~Katrina
Author's Response: ~Katrina
Thank you.
The tryouts were an homage to the ones in HBP, but Ginny was better organised. This isn’t simply Quidditch trials, there is a lot of important stuff in this chapter.
Hermione’s relationship with Harry (and especially Ron) is two way. She gives a lot, but she receives a lot, too. I can see her rules-conscious “Head Girl” tendencies coming to the fore without her boys to rein her back.
Neil
I thought I'd drop in another review... I really like how you're developing Harry and Ginny's relationship. I think the awkwardness between them is very believable, because they hardly see each other and letters are somehow different. I'm hoping they resolve things soon, though, because otherwise Harry will probably be terribly upset about it for a while.
I like the way you include more minor characters in your story, eg Lavender and her relationship with Seamus, Michael chatting up girls, the friendship between George and Dennis (which I think is a great idea, by the way), the tensions between the Hufflepuffs etc.
I never would have thought of Neville and Romilda... but having read this (and it's in some of your other stories too, I think) it's getting stuck in my head. I often think of Neville as being like Harry, but he goes through everything a bit later (as in, he finds his courage when he has to, but that's not til his seventh year), so I suppose Romilda is a bit like Cho was for Harry?
I loved the toast to Umbridge.
Ginny's relationship with her brothers was interesting, too. I loved this part: Ron would love the publicity, but he knew that it would never be his. She’d wondered aloud why Ron didn’t get more annoyed. “I don’t need to,” he’d told her, “Harry gets annoyed enough for both of us.” It was during that conversation that she had realised how selfless her youngest brother could be. Great characterisation of Ron there.
So sofar I'm really enjoying this fic :),
~Katrina
Author's Response: ~Katrina
Thanks again.
Harry and Ginny have had four months together since the Battle, and are now separated by school. He’s eighteen, she’s seventeen. There are a lot of pressures on both of them and there are bound to be awkward moments, and misunderstandings.
The DA (or some of them) will continue to play a role in my stories, but I’m also introducing a lot of minor original characters. Lavender (in particular) distracts me from my other stories, but Neville, Luna, Terry, Susan and Dennis will continue to play important roles too.
I don’t really see Romilda as like Cho, not exactly. In my stories Romilda is a girl seeking fame by proxy. She tried for Harry and failed, but Neville is eighteen and famous and not used to the attention of girls, so he’s an easy target for her.
Umbridge? Harry has a wicked sense of humour!
With six brothers Ginny needs to get the measure of them. I think that she has different attitudes towards all of them. I also think that she is more like Molly than she wants to be. I’m glad that you liked my characterisation of Ron. He’s a good man and a loyal friend.
Neil
This was a great study of Remus' character and it worked well in relation to Horatio. I haven't actually read Hamlet yet, but I know a bit about it. It was a really great way of demonstrating Remus' loss without getting cliched or overly wordy. Great fic :)
Author's Response: Thank you! Don't read Hamlet, see it on stage-- I personally recommend David Tenant's.
Aww it was really sweet and cute, but at the same time not overly fluffly. I thought you did a great job of Harry especially, but also Ginny.
Just some small things - you've written "She was so chuffed, albeit the dire situation that they were in at the time." Using 'albeit' there doesn't actually grammatically make sense, I think you mean 'despite'? Also I thought it was a little rushed and unnecessary that Ginny was Teddy's godmother... I didn't think Ginny and Tonks were ever particularly close... but that's just my opinion.
I also thought you wrote perhaps more of the song lyrics than necessary - I felt like it took me out of the story a bit.
I thought your portrayal of Ron's grief was really great, you wrote his character really well and having a bit of sadness balanced this fic out nicely.
You wrote everything really well actually in general. I liked the details about the setting or people's actions, it really added to the story. So overall great job!!
Author's Response: I'm really glad you reviewed this. It's got so many reviews on here so far I'm glad you've upped the count by one more. I'll address your concerns first--this was written more than a year ago, in a rush, for an SIYE competition, which was why it seemed rushed. I think it was necessary to use all of the lyrics of the song for it but I understand where you're coming from. As for the grammar stuff, to be honest, this story is my oldest on MNFF and I'll bear that all in mind for my WIP, Checkmate, because I can't be bothered to correct it. Call me lazy, but...yeah. As for your praise, I'm relieved you thought I wrote Ron and Harry and Ginny all well. I pretty much know Harry and Ginny inside out but Ron, well, it's another story. Thank you for the review. I really appreciate it. Have a nice day!
~Soraya~
I can't believe this fic has so few reviews!!! I think it's great, I loved your characterisation of Lavender particularly, and I especially liked her conversation with Parvati. Mark Moon was great too. I liked the irony about his name.
I thought Janey Scott was an effective and original catalyst for the story and I liked her characterisation.
I liked the contrast between this chapter and the previous one in Mark and Lavender's interaction - shows how far they've come in just a few days.
The Scottish setting added a nice touch to this fic too. Great job!!!
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review.
Until the Quicksilver Quills award this was by far my least read story. It is still my least read story, but not by such a large margin. Yours is the first review since the Quills, too (I think). Marks surname works because it is both ironic and canon. The second I saw the name moon on the classlist I knew that I would have to use it.
I would like to bring Janey back, but I have no idea how. The next chapter of “Tales of the Battle” (Waning Moon) features Mark’s battle and explains one of his comments to Janey.
N
Once again, great fic! Probably not my favourite of your 'character studies', but still very good. I loved the LOTR reference... I'd never thought of Remus as like Aragorn, but I see the comparison. Ginny's part was interesting too. I thought you repeated the line "He was her friend" just a bit too much in Lily's part... initially the repetition added emphasis but I think you overdid it a little.
I think this is the last (as yet) of these character studies that you've written, are you planning to write more? If yes, I hope you do one for Ron - of the trio he seems to be left out the easiest, and I think your writing style and ability to write his character well (his characterisation was great in both "How Much a Heart Can Hold" and "The Gates of Happines"), so I'd love to read that. I guess you'd include Molly, Ginny, Hermione, Rose, Lavender... and I'm sure you could find others. I'd also love to read one for Lily Evans, I guess you'd have her father, Snape, James, Harry, Remus... can't think of more off the top of my head, but I'm sure you could. Anyway, I can't wait to read your next one!
Author's Response: Thank you! A lot of people were surprised by Ginny's inclusion by this, but she was one of the first ones I thought of when planning it. I'm glad you thought her part interesting! This is the last I've written, yes, and I've started another and plan to do seven total, but real life has been awful lately, and my writing has been on the back burner for several weeks now. Keep an eye out, though! :)
What was it like to be thirteen? Oh, yes...hiding from mad females and complaining about class assignments with your best mate. It may not be what every boy dreams of, but there are worse things.
But for Nick Barnaby, the every day doldrums would become a distant memory as one of those scenarios becomes very real.
This is the story of Nicholas Barnaby, a minor character of mine from The Vindication of James Potter. If you've read that story, I believe that you'd enjoy this one. It gives a little bit of insight as to why he is the way he is.
Firstly, I'll mention that I haven't read "The Vindication of James Potter" (yet - I hope to soon), so I don't know anything about these characters.
Nick seems like a really interesting character - you've set him up as what I imagine to be a 'traditional' Ravenclaw from the riddle a the beginning. I also loved his recital of the "British Magical Constitution of 2001", particularly how you tied it in with your point about justice.
You certainly gave a different view about justice, and I can imagine Harry making those changes because he likes to give everyone a second chance, but it was interesting looking at it from the other perspective... which is why your title is so fitting to this story.
There's so many things I could praise about this fic, Jess, I really loved it!! And hopefully I'll get around to reading "The Vindication of James Potter" soon :).
~Katrina
Author's Response:
I love that you read this story, because OC stories barely ever see the light of day. Nick is a complex character in VoJP, and a lot of his ideals about how the world should work were skewed and ripped apart in this story. I just felt that he deserved to have his own story told.
As for VoJP, I'm actually planning on editing it heavily, pulling it down, and re-posting it. Right now, there are so many things that need to be fixed in it in terms of style, characterisation, and all that, I actually recommend waiting around for its second coming. Of course, if you want to read it now, go ahead, but I hope to present a better project at a later date.
Thanks so much for the review, and I'm glad you picked up on Nick's latent Claw-ness and his ways of coping with stress. He's a brillant boy, but life isn't kind to him.
Until later, and take care!
~Jess
**beams** This story won the third round of the Character Clinic Triathalon! Category: original characters
**beams again** This story was nominated for 2010 Quicksilver Quill ~ Best Original Character
I really liked the story - Kenley was a great character and your characterisation of James was quite how I have always imagined his grandfather! One small thing, at the beginning when you talked about Kenley's father, I think you didn't need to say that their relationship was dysfunctional - I had already realised this and it seemed a little repetitive. But just a small thing. Otherwise very nice!
Author's Response: Hi again. :) Thanks so much for reading this. I always feel a little sad for this story, as it gets so few reads. I was delighted to see the number five appear on my reviews list. Hehe. I'm glad you liked James. Some of those traits you recognize just make sense to me considering he's a Weasley/Potter kid... but he won't be the legendary prankster his father was, so hopefully he will be his own person as well. I am working on turning this into a chaptered fic, but for now, it stands as a one-shot. I actually gave your crit a lot of consideration and discovered I agree with you. I have changed it now... thanks for pointing it out and helping me improve the story. And thanks for the review!
Remember ol’ Archie from GOF? Well, now you’ll know why he refused to give up his flowery gown for a pair of trousers.
Written for the April Fool Challenge at the beta boards. Nominated for a QSQ in the Best Humour category. :D Many thanks to Rachel (lily_evans34) for her help with Latin.
DISCLAIMER: This is not J.K.Rowling, though characters you recognize and story premises belong to her.
Hilarious! Very creative to come up with an idea like that... I never would have thought of building a story around Archie!! And obviously with your amazing writing you really made this work. I loved the stroke of inspiration in calling his twin Theobald by the way, very amusing. And Bilius Boot has a nice ring to it as well.
Author's Response: :D
I really enjoyed this (like pretty much everything else of yours that I've read). I loved the beginning when Fenella is trying on Muggle clothing - using a simple example you really showed the difficulty people can have understanding a different culture. I really loved your depiction of Colin in this - you really showed some development from what we see of him in CoS. It made me think more about his death in DH.
You evoke a great sense of place in your writing - I've never been to anywhere near Barnard Castle, but I had a great sense of what it was like from your writing.
I also liked the idea of Slytherin girls practising to get on the Quidditch team. And interesting that Fenella was in Slytherin but had no problem with Colin, a muggleborn and Gryffindor.
The ending was quite sad, but still really well written.
~Katrina
P.S. The optimist thinks that the glass is half full, the pessimist thinks that the glass is half empty, Luna Lovegood wonders why the glass is twice as big as it needs to be. totally made my day!!
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review.
Fenella was simply supposed to be a very minor character in Grave Days, “Colin’s Slytherin friend”. Somehow, she’s managed to make an appearance in almost all of my chaptered stories. The complexities of Muggle clothing must be difficult for robe-wearing Purebloods and Fenella would have been happier dressing like a middle aged lady in tweeds.
The fact that Barnard Castle is a real place, and I’m familiar with it, which helps with the descriptions.
Colin’s appearance at Hogwarts fascinated me and I’ve build several stories around it, and him (including several chapters of Tales of the Battle. Fenella and Colin have a lot in common. Both are enthusiastic photographers and both are noticeably at the edge normal height for their sex.
Why does the supposedly “cunning” house field a team of arrogant and violent male Neanderthals?
The ending could never be anything other than sad, but I wanted Colin to have some good memories, and too be remembered. And I couldn’t resist the Luna joke, especially as Colin and Fenella were in Luna’s year.-N-
How easy it was to break them.
All it took was a smile, a few good conversations, and some daredevilry on your part to take risks and do the impossible.
I loved the way you wrote this fic - you took something almost cliched and made it completely fresh and new. I loved your use of first person narration and the way Scorpius spoke to the reader. I liked the last line especially - it's almost a challenge to the reader.
It's amazing how much you can communicate in such a short story - you had Scorpius' character perfect and I got a great sense of Rose as well.
Author's Response: This was writt3n during a phas3 wh3n I’d fall3n in lov3 with first p3rson narrativ3. :D And I am so glad that I manag3d to writ3 from a t33nag3 boy’s p3rsp3ctiv3. Glad you lik3d th3 story, and thanks for r3vi3wing. Th3y ar3 always, always appr3ciat3d.
This was a great story, I liked the way you focussed on Isla's relationship with Bob but the darkness of her story was in there as well. I loved her letter at the end - seemed like something Sirius would do.
I would have liked to have seen more interaction between Bob and Isla - perhaps you could have shown one of their conversations or something.
But other than that, it was great!
Author's Response: Thank you for the lovely review! I considered another scene with the two of them, but decided it would be better if left to the readers. Some of the best stories leave more to the imagination.
This was a very interesting story, Gina. Personally this is almost the opposite of my own beliefs about marriage... but anyway, that's not the point here, because what you've done fabulously is step into Lucius' character. Just fantastic. Both the language and the actual plot were so true to his character. I had always imagined that Lucius and Narcissa had a big 'society' wedding, but I quite like your explanation, that it was because she got pregnant and then they hurried it.
I loved the style of this, and the way you simultaneously used a young and an older Lucius to tell the tale, so for a fair bit of it, it felt like we were inside the young Lucius' head, until there was a comment from the older one about how he should have known something or another comment of the kind. You made that work really well.
Your language had that slightly formal and almost philosophical tone, not at all colloquial, which really suits Lucius in my opinion.
Our relationship started out honest enough, but our marriage was born out of necessity, not love. It quickly became a duty to our family, a requirement of society—a deception to ourselves. I can't possibly imagine any way of expressing this better... just wonderful.
I liked the exploration between Lucius and Draco as well, and the comparison between them was well-drawn.
~Katrina
Author's Response: Katrina, thank you so much! It was so nice to find a review for this little-reviewed oddball, lol. What's funny about this story is that I don't agree with Lucius's views on marriage at all either, nor do I think that he ran off with Narcissa. Of course they had a big wedding! And yet I was in the middle of a big story about James and Lily's wedding, and it was giving me fits, and I needed a break. James and Lily are of course a bit more romantic and fluffy, and so my mental break presented itself as a bitter, snarky Lucius Malfoy. Your comment about his character makes me so happy, because I really wanted to capture his voice with this story. I think if an author can do that and stay true to the character, then the story is much more readable when it's something that probably didn't go that way in canon, like this. Anyway - I'm glad someone else read this and maybe even enjoyed it. I really appreciate the review and your kind words. They are very encouraging - I might have to try out my snarky voice again sometime. Thanks again!! ~Gina :)
Firstly I have to commend your characterisation of Lily - the idea that she's the 'go-to' girl for comfort really fits her character, and that she would bottle up her emotions and only let them out in private worked really well. I thought your take on Regulus was interesting, and although I'm an avid Lily/James shipper, you really made this relationship work somehow. The last line is perfect, and really shows Regulus' true colours and the decision he makes in the end.
I also loved the idea that Lily was crying for the Muggles from her area - the most innocent because they didn't even know what was happening. Fascinating.
Great story, all in all!!
~Katrina
Author's Response: Thank you! I'm a pretty avid Lily/James shipper as well, but this plot bunny just attacked me and I couldn't let it go. >.> <3Mere
I really loved this fic - it was a nice combination of humour and seriousness. I liked your idea of Hermione returning to Malfoy Manor to face up to her fears/nightmares. I liked the way you talked about everyone who had been in the room at the time she was tortured and how they had changed/where they were now. It showed how she could put things in the past.
Also, spot on characterisation of Hermione and I liked your interpretation of the Malfoy's post-war. All the minor characters (Harry, Ron, George etc.) were also nicely portrayed. I didn't really see how the Blaise of the books turned into your Blaise, however not much is said of him in the books and anyway, the character you created was very believable (even if not entirely IC), if that makes sense.
I liked the Portbook - very creative :).
Oh, one other small thing - you wrote "Grayback" and I'm pretty sure it's "Greyback" in the books.
I probably should stop this long review, but I really enjoyed this fic and will look at your other stuff soon hopefully :).
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review.
Blaise is, I have decided, the weak point of this story. You’re right that he is not portrayed the way he usually is in fanfics. In my defence, we really see him only once, at the start of HBP and I should really have reread that section instead of relying on my memory. I suspect that I could have made him slightly different. Ginny thinks that he’s “a poser”. That is something to consider when I edit this story (which I will).
I was a little uncertain about the mix of humour and seriousness, too. But I seem to have got away with that.
The Portbook has/will make other appearances in my stories and 9thanks to Ron) will prove to be a moneyspinner for Weasleys Wizard Wheezes.
Grayback! You’re right, oops.
N
But the worst has come. The worst is here. You know you aren’t ready. You aren’t even close to ready.
The Character Death tag is just implied, not actually during the fic.
Disclaimer: I. Do. Not. Own. Harry. Potter.
This was a really original idea and I think you pulled it off really well. Your characterisation of Scrimgeour was very nice - especially the way you showed his over-confidence and told the story in almost a report-like format. I also loved the second person (although maybe that's just me... I do love stories from that perspective). It really put the emotions on to the reader, which was very effective, because it humanised a character whose worse characteristics are perhaps shown in canon. But after all, Scrimgeour is just trying to do his best. (I hope that makes sense.)
I would have loved it to have been longer. I know it is basically about the moments before he dies, but I would have loved to have seen where his character came from etc.
Anyway, it was very well written, original and I really enjoyed it. Good job!
Author's Response: I'm glad you liked it so much. Perhaps I will extend it. When I wrote it, I was more of a beginning writer than I am now, so I think I might be able to.
Arthur Weasley has an obsession. He can’t keep it off his mind. It tinges every thought in his head and consumes his dreams. He can’t concentrate on anything else. His friends, the ones who haven’t given him up as a bad job, tell him he’s crazy and he knows they’re probably right. But that’s not even the worst part. Do you know what the worst part is?
She’s completely oblivious.
…And you thought it was Muggle Studies he was obsessed with.
Chapter 6: Quidditch and Kids is up!
So I just read "For Them", and I really enjoyed that, so I thought I'd check out some of your other fics. The summary for this looked really interesting, and I love Molly/Arthur as a pairing, although there doesn't seem to be much of it in fanfiction... anyway.
I really liked this opening chapter. I had a great sense of Arthur throughout the whole thing, and I loved the flashback scene. That was just so typical Molly, and the hex she used made me think of Ginny and her Bat Bogey Hexes... anyway, your portrayal of her was just great. Some people seem to dismiss Molly as "the housewife", but there's so much more to her than that.
Dumbledore was great, too. Particularly his comment to Arthur at the end. Great.
Just a few small things - no matter if they had no more claim on her protection then that- that they were weak it's a great sentence and conveys so much of her character, but it should say "than that", not "then that".
Also, why was Molly bemused when she returned to the common room at the end? I didn't really understand that...
I'm looking forward to the next chapter, it looks like this will be a great fic!
~Katrina
Author's Response: Oh, thank you! I am so so flattered that you wanted to read more of my stories! I'm glad you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll fix the then/than problem in a sec. Thanks for pointing that out, too.
As for Molly's bemusement, I think she just came away from Wentworth, who was trying to be very romantic, and she thought he was being silly. XP
Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Now I can't wait for the next chapter! I'm loving this story! I think the funniest part sofar was when Dirk was trying to 'subtly' tell Molly how good Arthur was... that really made me smile. I loved the interaction with the Black sisters, too.
Poor Arthur. Particularly over the Christmas holidays. And really... what does Molly see in Jonathan? I wonder what he sees in her... he doesn't seem to care a huge amount for her health (like after she was injured), he's more worried about how he'll look if she's been cheating on him... so why does he like her, when she's not the typical popular girl? I'm interested. And rambling lol.
Sorry about this review... it's not very structured or anything, but I just wanted to let you know that I'm loving this story.
~Katrina
Author's Response: Yay! It makes me so happy to hear that you are loving it!
Wentworth really has seemed a bit of a jerk, hasn't he? The truth is, he's not so bad normally... when he's not in Arthur's general vicinity, anyway. Arthur bothers him; he suspects Arthur's feelings for Molly. Wentworth doesn't know Molly very well, but he likes what he knows, and that is that she's pretty, she's smart... and she was not only available but lived just a few streets away over the summer.
Thanks so much for the review! I don't mind rambles in the least. A review of any kind is wonderful. =)