Dan's Conundrum

[Circle]

A thread for the discussion of Dan's Conundrum.

 

 

This is the story description:

 

 

Dan has a problem. Or rather, many problems which combine to form one big... how do you call it, a conundrum? Unlike a lot of people though, he already knows what it will take to confront the conundrum and he sets out, on paper, how to do exactly that. In this coming out/coming of age story told with a personal touch, I challenged the fundamental building blocks of a writer's craft, and aimed to comment realistically on the struggles of a gay teen living in modern UK.

 

 

I'll try to post updates to this every Saturday .

 

 

Status: Chapter 2 posted! Enjoy!

 

 

[Ieshwar]

The story can be found here. 

 

To Circle: It's a great story. I like Dan, his quirky thoughts, his cuteness... Amazing.

 

To everyone else: Read it! You won't regret it. 

 

Cheers

Ieshwar

[Circle]

Damn, forgot to link it

 

Thanks so much for your kind words .

 

P.S. How did you make that link?

[Ieshwar]

Highlight the word you want to link (for example, here). Click on the 'Link' button (it's the one with the gray link and a green circle underneath). A pop-up appears and paste the url of the page. And click ok.

 

If it's too complicated, you can just copy the page url and paste it here directly. I'm sure no one will mind.

 

Cheers

Ieshwar

 

P.S Thanks for the reply to my review. I was like  'Really?'. LOL

[Circle]

Or they can click on your post

 

 

Yeah, I stumbled across your story way back in writing.com like YEARS ago. Maybe like 2006/2007. I printed it and kept it in a secure folder ever since for my own reading leisure .

Edited March 10, 2013 by Circle

[Circle]

Chapter 3 is up!

[Circle]

Chapter 4 is up!

[Bleu]

I finally got to read the first four chapters yesterday. Your writing is very subtle and your characters are well defined and likeable. It makes for a very enjoyable read.

[Fishwings]

I have some catching up to do :0 Will read it asappp!

[Circle]

I finally got to read the first four chapters yesterday. Your writing is very subtle and your characters are well defined and likeable. It makes for a very enjoyable read.

 

 

Hi Bleu! I'm glad you stopped by. As someone who's been there and read *everything* I put on GA to date, that means a lot to me . Once again, thank you for reading and I'm glad you find the characters somewhat likeable hehe.

 

 

I have some catching up to do :0 Will read it asappp!

 

Lol, take it easy, man. Mid-terms first, and then I am all yours .

[Circle]

Chapter 5 is up, I suppose...

 

I love trolling .

[Circle]

Chapter 6 uploaded... as Part 1: Acceptance draws to a close.

 

I am taking a few weeks' break from this story... though I might return sooner if the interest in the story picks up .

[Circle]

Nope, this thread is still dead.

 

Anyway, I won't be around much on Saturday so I'm uploading Chapter 7 roughly 18 hours ahead of schedule

 

As part of launching of Part 2, the story's rating has been upgraded to Teens.

[Ieshwar]

So Part 1 was Acceptance. What's Part 2 called? 

 

I love this story. Your style is so different. It's fresh. You write about real stuffs but with a certain humour. Very well done. 

 

Cheers

Ieshwar

[Circle]

Lol, those were the names I wrote when I planned the story hehe, but I was going to remove all of them hehe.

 

Fyi though, Part 2 is called Identity

 

I'm glad you're loving the story so far! I really appreciate the time spent on reviewing and posting on here . I'm glad the writing feels fresh to you hehe. Thank you so much for your lovely comments and insights to the story. I would have been so lucky if I had 5 more readers like you .

Edited April 26, 2013 by Circle

[Thorn Wilde]

Huge fan of this story! It's what brought me to this site. One of my readers on Archive of Our Own recommended it to me. I feel for Dan so much. It's not easy to come to terms with both your sexuality and a more or less alien culture at once. 

[Circle]

I had no idea! Do I know this person? I should thank him/her for bringing to GA another talented writer

[Thorn Wilde]

I have no idea. On AO3 she calls herself Sayure. She is, as I understand it, Moroccan.

[Circle]

No idea then

[Thorn Wilde]

She doesn't seem the type who'd register to leave a review. AO3 has guest reviews, so... But she linked me to Dan's Conundrum and said I might like it. Which I very much did.

[Circle]

Yeah, it's a shame they don't do guest reviews here. But then, someone registered just to post a review on my other story, lol, so it might go both ways. Time for me to write better and she might show herself 

 

To others: Chapter 8 is up, by the way. Some of you may find its content surprising

 

(Edit: And do notice the fishing symbolism at the end, when a net is cast into the ocean. A certain resident Cephalopod needs to take extra care )

Edited May 4, 2013 by Circle

[Circle]

To whom it may concern: Chapter 9 is up.

[Bleu]

Thanks. When I read it, I had a feeling it went down too fast Was it shorter than other chapters?

 

Anyway, I enjoyed it. David is being quite comfortable with Dan's feelings... thereby keeping his hopes high.

Looking forward to the rest of the story.

[Circle]

Hehehe, happy moments vanish in a flash :D

 

Yes, it is shorter than previous chapters by about 50%. There are two main reasons: By now, there have been at least 5 characters that were cut since the first draft, half a storyline, and a few scenes. These were cut, I think, to make this a better story.

 

Also, I think people are avoiding this story because they don't like long and boring reads . I hope this would change by cutting it back to ~2k a chapter. I have like 5 readers, lol, and I think I generated most of the view counts O_o. Anyway, if this doesn't change then it might just be another flop like Brotherly Love is in my illustrious career of flops. Thanks for sticking with this story anyway. I know I have at least 5 more readers than some .

 

End of Part 2 next week, and I'm taking a break.

Edited May 12, 2013 by Circle

[Ieshwar]

End of Part 2? You're taking a break?

 

 

Now, I'm sad.

 

This story is no flop. It's one of my favourites! It deserves more recognition, though, I agree. 

 

Btw, one thing has been bugging me. The scene where Chris shows how to look at guys in the locker. He never said who he used to watch like this. Was it meant that he was normally watching David? Am I reading too much in between the lines by thinking it might be Dan?

 

Cheers

Ieshwar