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for A Song from the Divines

11/4/2020 c1 Guest
I like it! Please continue!
11/1/2020 c1 A Noble Guest
Hello, good sir.

Ok, I've decided to say my piece. As much as I would have liked to use my profile, I don't want to get nagged at by the two users below if I manage to say something that upsets them. If you ask me, you need to distance yourself from folks like them because they discourage anyone who wants to give you feedback from posting a review and it will encourage more trolls to harass you. Speaking of trolls, pay no attention to the comment down below. If all that fool can say is 'this sucks' and can't even spell it right, then they're not a person to be taken seriously. It sucks that I'm giving the troll attention but it had to be said.

Now, first off, I want to congratulate you on breaking more than 1 million words. That's very impressive and I hope you will continue to write more. Though you have your faults...and you have a lot of them which I'm going to point out in a moment...you are an absolute treasure in this archive and I mean that from the bottom of my heart. In the mess of endless yaoi fic, cringy ships, cheesy self-inserts, I'm glad there are stories like this one around. I've been following this story since last year and despite the changes that keep happening, I smile because they are so well-written and so clean that I don't mind them one bit.

But that patience is slowly coming to its end.

Don't take this personally, plz. I'm saying what I want to say because I want to help you and I want to see you get better. The truth hurts I know but you need to suck it up and listen to what I have to say. I've just reviewed your profile and I appreciate the roadmap you've created and displayed the percentage of how much you have completed them. But there are too many that are low in percentage. My friend, that is a sign of incompetency. I am fully aware that you want to expand the world and move on to other stories but this one is the cornerstone of your series. I've seen users get drawn to this story from your other works and that's fantastic, but how are you going to get them to understand your fantasy universe if most of it is incomplete?

Please, I encourage you to fix this story first before moving on to your other ones. The stories in Song from the Divines need to be completed 100% before you move on to other works. You posted a new story some time ago and that left me shaking my head in disappointment. Stop. Put a hold to all your other works and finish this story for God's sake!

And another thing. I noticed that in your School of Kings summary that you cut the story short because you wanted to 'impress' somebody. Don't do that. Don't ever do that. You say you have a draft already written from your time high school. Well, get to it and finish that segment of the story. You could have given us something amazing but you cut it short because you wanted to keep one person interested. You made the same mistake with the Cora story, which is another one of your works that I enjoy. So one person bitched about the direction you were going and you decided to scrap it and rewrite it. In the end that person you wanted to keep around never came back so that interesting plot twist that left me shocked was removed for nothing. I like the rewrite though. That's what I like about you. Even when you rewrite something, you make it so good and compels me to want to read it.

But that doesn't mean you should change things again and again. There has to be a point where you say enough is enough. Don't go changing Cora's ending again because I said so. I said I like the rewrite and a part of me is glad you scrapped killing Cora off and she's back. Just keep it the way it is. You're not going to please everyone okay? Follow your heart. Follow the road you want to take. Do what you want to do and don't listen to people who say otherwise. Please.

I want to see where TheSingingSword takes me, not the opinion of so-and-so because they're mad the story went down a path they didn't like. I liked the Banner of Yeyu. I like the plot of House Dragonheart and the Gate Wars. If others don't like it, tough. Don't kill characters off and bring them back because someone whined about it. If you ask me the mortality factor you add to your works is a good thing and it brings in that Game of Thrones element you want to implement to Song. It gives off this vibe that no one is safe.

Going back to the trolls. Develop some backbone and tell your friends or whoever they are to piss off. It's childish 'standing up' to people who have nothing better to do than make jackasses of themselves. They're trolls. They are pathetic, smelly, bottom dwellers who thrive for attention and if you or your readers call them out, you're giving them what they want. Just ignore them for goodness sake. Stop standing up for yourself because you're making a fool of yourself.

I agree with Yung Warrior. When your main story is finally complete you should definitely write an appendix or something like the Silmarillion but PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do it after you're done fixing up the gaps in Song from the Divines. And I am glad you've taken the advice from your friends about the prologue. As interesting as it was, it really slowed the story down. I'm happy you're doing audiobooks for the story but it was a mistake starting things off with the prologue. We want to see Yuri and his story first and foremost. The backstory and things like that can come later.

I'm sorry for the harshness but it had to be said but I say this because I care about this story and I want you to be recognized as a great fanfiction writer not a clown. This is one of the best stories I've ever read and I want to see it go down a better path but that all depends on you the author.

I'm sure the first commenter has been quoted a lot but they're right.
DO NOT ABANDON THIS STORY!

Good luck with this project. Good luck with the channel. And I hope your health improves. Condolences for the loved ones you lost as well. Stay strong and remember you have plenty of readers who stand behind you.
10/29/2020 c106 Witch of the Black Roses
Glad to have you back! I love the videos you made. OMG, the jump scare in the first part of the prologue made me scream!

So Obelisk is dead. The Winged Dragon of Ra is with Crystal, Slifer is with Avi, and all of the world's heroes vanish into the portals. Where is everybody?

Yes, please, find Yuri he needs to fix this mess.
10/26/2020 c106 Aldra5500
this's... suck.
10/21/2020 c1 24Yung Warrior
Finally starting this out, I expect it'll take me a rather long time to get through it lmao. I'm fairly intrigued at this beginning here, I just hope I can remember the various names and worldbuilding elements. I mean you are going absolutely hard in the paint with this and I appreciate it. Would you ever consider writing an appendix? Perhaps you have already somewhere else and I'm just not aware. At any rate, the creativity shown here is really something else, as is the impressive scope of the story. The prose is vivid and engaging. Only quibble is that it seems the Pegasus diary entry and accompanying Beethoven quote was double posted at the beginning, unless I'm missing something? Anyways cheers and I look forward to checking this out some more.
5/27/2020 c1 Bluefaxi
Hi.

Really cool story you made. I'm sorry you were harassed by trolls and the lack of feedback you get. You deserve more. But I'm glad you're taking a new direction.

I like the first chapter but if I may make a little nitpick?

It's a really long and I lost my place multiple times haha
No offense but it's gotten kind of irritating. If I may make a suggestion? Could you post the parts into individual chapters so it can be a little more easier to read?

I hope you continue writing. And I wish you luck.
5/27/2020 c100 15TheSingingSword
Please. That's the last thing I want to see here. A big nasty debate. I'm not blaming anyone for anything here. All the bad decisions that were made was all me. The only thing that upset me was the trolls and the lack of feedback I was getting.

But Legionstone is right. I let a lot of dumb things control my way of thinking. I let the numbers get in the way of my love of writing. And I did let a few nasty people get under my skin when they shouldn't have.

Some people whether they were vocal or not have every right to be disappointed in my actions. I made a lot of stupid changes which means I still have much to learn about being a writer. And if I have to stop what I'm doing to learn more, I'm more than happy to do it. I'm not going to whine anymore.

I learned my lesson and from now on I'm going to write for myself and for the few who enjoy what I make. If other people just want to enjoy the ride, that's perfectly fine.

I appreciate your support nonetheless. But if you detect I'm going a direction you don't like, please let me know. Send me a PM or leave a comment and I'll do my best to fix my mistakes.
5/27/2020 c99 1BlackfyrePhoenix
Dude.

We're not a crew and he's not a captain. We're just a small group of readers who want this guy to go in the right direction because we love what he's doing and want him to be in good health because some of us love him as a friend. He's a very nice person who didn't deserve the things that happened to him. He's suffered a lot in the past year. He had to deal with the death of his mother and other members of his family. It hasn't done good for his health and the stress of coming here and not only dealing with a silent fanbase but cowardly trolls who have nothing better to do than use the guest reviews to mess with him is only making things worse which is why he's leaving for a while.

This isn't about captains or ships or whatever you were going on about. He just wanted to know where he stood in this community and sadly his lack of feedback and harassment from internet bullies made him feel unwelcome, which is really sad considering the number of people who support him as Legionstone said. There's more people with him than against him and he sees that now thankfully.

But if you want to stick to the passenger analogy, go right ahead. Just so you know even passengers are asked to let the captain know how he's doing. They're given surveys at the end of the trip to let the company know if the captain did a great job or needs to find another career. You said you had concerns about what was going on with the story. You decided not to use your free speech then to express your concerns so don't go wagging your finger at him now.

The lesson has been learned and there's nothing more that can be said. You're right. There's no need to start an internet debate or start fighting because that won't help anyone.

Let's just let him take his break in peace and pray for his health and that he comes back a better writer and person than he was before.
5/27/2020 c6 1ArchivesofaDreamer
My look at that, seems like the 'crew' still 'exists' after all, it's always a sure way to get them out of hiding isn't it? Sigh, oh well, doesn't really want to start some internet debate here, on something like blame party to boot. Neither I want to preach on something like the basics of free speech.

Just want to tell the author or 'captain' maybe? That not everyone who abroad your ship is your crew, there are all sorts of people in the world, there may be some who admire you and wish to have a hand and be a part of the crewmates, there's also those who have ill intent that will exploit anything possible for personal gain, that's just the reality of life...

But there exists another kind of people may abroad one ship, they are what you call the 'Passengers'. What passenger do you may ask? well we do what passenger do, we sit tight and we enjoy the ride, of a promising Journey that we saw, we wish to be a part of it in which mean we wish to experience the Journey, the scenery, the travel, to a fantastic destination that we may hope exist when we first know it. Do Passenger have a hand in how one Ship sail? no we don't, neither we wish to, we only there to experience the journey abroad the promising ship, commandeered by hopefully a great Captain, whether the captain is a One-man Army, or surrounded by some reliable crew is not a large part of our concern.

Personally I'm no writer, neither I am a storyteller, but if I may give advice on some little experience I've got being a passenger is if you struggle maybe you should think once more from the scratch, you might want to figure how one wish to sail, which ship one wish to sail with, will you allow a crew in having a hand on sailing this ship, or will you make the Journey private? it's open only to people you close with & those you trust, and all other things. it's your choice as the captain, your role as a captain.

This all I can offer, from a passenger who hopes that one day he may commandeer a ship of his own, may you have good luck and smooth sailing in this ever turbulent seas. And always remember, you are not alone.

Sekian.
A Passenger who dreams.
5/26/2020 c101 11presea221
First of all, sorry it took me forever to respond to this. I was gone for a long time today and needed a little time when I got back to properly formulate my thoughts before I sent you this.

You need to know that you are an amazing author. The reason why I first started getting into your stories in GX with Zane and then eventually this and everything else you have is because it is something different. With all the fantasy lore you have created (from Houses, magic, goddesses, etc.), I felt (and still do feel) like these are ideas that could be in real fantasy novels. A refreshing and creative change from the usual endless variations of "My OC/"Jaden" is going to Duel Academy so I can talk smack to every character I hate, fix what I don't like, get the hot girl Alexis, and show off my TCG knowledge" that I usually see in GX fanfiction. You had me hooked from the start.

However, I started noticing that you let yourself get discouraged way too easily at times. All these people who come on your stories to bitch about things just to be jerks or troll for fun don't know how to write for shit, and are just taking out their own frustrations about that on you when they see a chance to. You shouldn't let them get you down. I have seen you delete, move, change ratings add and take stuff out, change names, and add ANs more times than I can count. To your credit, you have learned a lot and are willing to actually take honest feedback when it comes to you. So many other authors I have seen either throw out lists of excuses or discontinue their stories altogether if they get even the slightest bit of genuine constructive criticism. But not you. When I told you that I thought Cora and Krissa's relationship was going too fast in Cora Maiden with Eyes of Blue, you didn't whine or ignore me. You went back into your story and rewrote all their encounters into something much more believable.

The fact that you like to revise your work and also add in new scenes is a good thing because it means you are always evolving as a writer and getting new ideas. But unfortunately, with all the other constant changes with moving and deleting things, these additions are just adding more to the disorganization and indecision that I see from you at times. A lot of times, my phone alert will go off 5-10 times in a row with your updates and changes, and I have ended feeling lost on just what has been changed when I see the latest chapter looks exactly the same and I have to dig to see just what has been changed in the first place. And then, I'll see stories and even your whole profile disappear and wonder just what the heck happened. Or I'll see a story at the top of the page and be left wondering if my story alerts malfunctioned only to see that no new chapter has been added at all. There is no need to delete a whole story just to edit. The document feature works just fine. Deleting and reposting to engage in "story bumping" to get your story more attention by being higher on the page doesn't work. This along with constantly changing your ratings from T to M, changing your titles, and switching back and forth between Yugioh, Yugioh GX, and even the crossover sections aren't going to help you. You can give me any excuse you want, but I can tell that these are usually just desperate tactics to gain more attention from readers. Believe me, I have been on this site since 2014 now and I have seen every trick in the book by authors and readers even in order to get noticed more. They don't work. If anything, all these constant changes just end up frustarting the people who do want to read your stories and may even make them more inclined to quit on you. To your credit, you have recognized some things that have not worked for you and done things to change. For example, separating Yuri's main story from all the loremaster side stories was a good idea and gives more organization to it.

I know how the lack of attention on a story can feel disheartening. Believe me, I've been there myself. To work hard at trying to create real relationships with conflict and character growth in my stories and then see something like a two chapter story that is over 90% of the anime dialogue copy pasted in with simply a few fanservicey ship moments and saying "The main character is going to have a harem and there will be lemons!" receive more favorites and follows in just a few days than even what my most popular story had that took almost a year to achieve. Yeah, it is frustrating. And yeah, I bitch about it a lot, as you know. XD However, ultimately, I don't let it get me down. I keep writing and posting. You went on about the lack of attention, saying you are always met with silence and nobody listens. But that is simply not true! What about me and the others like Blackfyre Phoenix, Time Thief, Texas Red, and even the ones from a while longer ago who have left you supportive comments and suggestions? We're here, and we weren't silent! I told you I was interested in your Youtube channel idea. You have to understand that you can't always receive new attention for a story. There are a lot of reasons why people stop reading, reviewing, or following. It has happened to me. I've had people unfavorite/follow some of my stories and me as an author even. It is sad, but it happens. Same with reviews. I've lost some reviewers on my stories over the years. It can happen when you have had a story for a long time. Sometimes, people got busy with life, changed tastes, or probably just sick of the fact that I was too dang slow to update some things. It is normal and you can't let it get you down. Sometimes they come back, and sometimes you get new people eventually. All you can do is keep writing. If anything, I think you should feel less upset about it after working on Song for years and already gaining an amazing amount of support. Your frustration I am seeing looks more like something I would see from someone just starting out with a story instead of after being a writer for so long on here.

I am really sorry about everything in your personal life going on right now. Back when I first started my first story back in 2016, it was during a time in my life when I was having trouble deciding on things and suffering from a lot of anxiety. I won't go into it since I don't want to get too personal on this site. But my point is that writing was therapeutic for me since I needed something else I could focus my energies on just to clear my head and help me feel better. Writing can do that. But in your case, it is causing you more stress on top of your life issues more than anything else. You really should wait until you are feeling better before you come back and try writing again. If the lack of views and reviews is that problematic for you, you need to remember that you are writing for yourself as well. It isn't all about trying to please people or gaining more of an audience. For example, as a fan of rare pairings that I could not find any new content for, I realized that if I ever wanted to see stories about them, I would have to create them myself instead of just continually moping around and hoping something new would pop up that most likely isn't going to. Yeah, I have gotten less attention and flack a lot of times for not writing for the "correct" ships. But I am still writing for myself, because if I didn't, none of it would exist at all. There is enjoyment in the writing process itself with making up your own characters and storylines. And at the end of the day, even if it isn't the hottest piece on the block or hardly anyone says anything, you can still look back and say: "Hey, I worked really hard on this and I'm proud of all the effort I put into it. My story is out there in the world and that is an amazing thing. I did some dang good work here." But you've been letting the lack of attention from others and bad reviews get you down too much. You have deleted some amazing works that I genuinely enjoyed because of it, like your Heroes stories and your scary stories tales. I hate to say it, but it is getting seriously close to the point where I am hesitant to read anything new from you after Song, Cora, and Summoner, because I'm afraid that you'll just delete them if you don't get enough reviews or views to please you. And please, DO NOT bring anything back from the dead out of guilt just to please me if you are not 100% committed to finishing it. Because more than anything, I'm afraid you'll just end up repeating the whole process all over again.

Anyway, all things aside, I hope you feel better and can come back eventually. But you need to wait until you are ready to move forward as a writer and not let issues bring you down. Some people find writing relaxing during stressful times, and others don't. And you are the latter. There is nothing wrong with that, so take your time. If you are still feeling discouraged about the audience, you can always just not post for awhile and write and just keep the files on your computer for yourself to look at. Giving yourself more time before posting chapters is great for getting new ideas beforehand and revising. That way, you aren't going back into the stories to edit and add things in so much. Just take your time. As you told me once, you've got more words than Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows and other novels combined. You are cranking out multiple chapters about 7,000 or so words long at a time at a rate that is faster than what it takes me to write a lot of things in even a whole year. If you got the flow going and are genuinely having fun and ready to post, there is nothing wrong with that. But it isn't something you need to feel like you have to rush just to get more content out. Just take it slow, pace yourself, and remember that writing is supposed to be fun and a creative challenge to yourself more than anything. I hope I wasn't too hard on you. I wish you all the best of luck! You are a talented writer, so I hope you can learn and grow from this experience and only come out stronger in the end.
5/26/2020 c1 Ruby Crush
This is much better! Come back again soon! :)
5/26/2020 c100 2Legionstone
Okay look.

I understand where you're coming from, I understand the loss and I admire your tenacity and strength to keep going forward despite the circumstances that life has given you so far.

Here's the deal, you let the audience/readers control you, you seem to crave reaction from your readers but when someone gives you an opinion, you seem to overreact from it.

You say that you can handle negative reviews but you're still hung up about that danger blue-eye comment. You're still letting that control you to the point that you called the person out in this very chapter, even though that single mean comment was posted about a month ago. The guy is probably not even reading this and you're still feeding him.

I encourage you to take a break and remember that they're more people with you than against you.
5/26/2020 c100 Witch of the Black Roses
ArchivesofaDreamer you are in no position to sit there and tell this guy you're disappointed. It's people like you who are the problem. You're just a silent voice who starts yapping when things go south.

Oh, you bookmarked it a long time ago. Whoop-de-doo. What have you done since then to show TheSingingSword your support?

Sword. Take a long rest and I hope you have a speedy recovery. Stress don't do a weak heart no good and dumbass trolls like Connerkun don't help. Don't listen to him. He's a fucking moron.

But it's time I yelled at you, boy. I gave you lots of advice and you didn't listen. I told you time and time again to stop changing the ratings to hide your story when you decide to start editing things. People are going to find it either way and they'll only start thinking bad about you seeing it jump from here to there.

Just stick to authors notes when you edit. If there are a few guys who don't want to read the notes and give you flack for inconsistencies, then don't listen to them. Having to deal with a few of these guys is better than jumping the story all over fanfiction because as TheBlackKnight said, you'll be looking like a fool who's desperate for attention. I told you not to do that. I get why you did, but not everyone knows your intentions.

Stop changing the ratings damnit! Leave an author's note from now on if you decide to put the story under maintenance. Got it!

And don't bloat Song anymore with all those short stories and extra content. This ain't no video game where we can manage our dlc with menus and stuff. Fanfictions menu sucks and Yuri's story is lost under a lot of stuff that has nothing to do with his tale. If you want to tell other stories make them separate.

Don't worry about the silent folks. Listen to Blackfyre Phoenix, Pressea 221, and everyone else who comments. We want to see more of this beautiful fantasy world you created. Our voices matter too, in fact they should matter more because we actually took the time to comment and communicate with you. If my voice doesn't matter to you then I'll move on. So be a fucking man and stop crying about the quiet guys because they don't mean shit!

And yes! I want to hear you and your friends make the audiobook possible! So don't give up on that. I think that'll be awesome.

Take it easy, cool off, get your stress levels under control and enjoy time with your family.

I also expect you back here when you get better! There's lots of stuff I want to see now that Song is fixed and completed. So you better get moving.

Good luck. Red out!
5/26/2020 c100 TheBlackKnight
I truly hope I'm not witnessing the fall of a once-mighty giant who didn't give a fuck about the masses and just wrote one of the most amazing fanfics that have ever been written. If you want to rest and take a break, please do so. It's a tragedy what happened to your family. I am sorry for your losses and I pray you a speedy recovery.

But don't quit just because so-and-so gets more reviews and more followers than you do. That's what you're looking for in the end. Don't deny it. Your actions give it all away.

I've seen the title of this story getting changed over and over again and shifted from one place to the other and I just can't help be feel sad that this great author has reduced himself to being an attention whore. You were once a hidden gem, but now you're a lump of coal that's better off discarded.

We may be a silent community, but don't think it means we don't love your work. I admit, maybe it's time some of us voiced our opinions on the things you do. I admit I sat back and watched as this great story fell from grace. It's my fault as a reader. I should have said something long ago.

If you continue writing and improving both the story and yourself, I promise I'll be a little more vocal. There's not a lot of good stuff to read around here so don't make me have to disregard this story as another piece of drabble that belongs in the trash.

Have a good, long rest, look after your loved ones, and I expect to see you back here when you feel better.
5/26/2020 c100 1BlackfyrePhoenix
To the commenter below:

My question to you is should TheSingingSword even care if you're disappointed? I don't see you in the reviews giving your two cents about the fanfic. Did you follow his story? Did you tell him you supported what he wrote?

And you're seriously going to ask if the author loves his story? Of course, he does! I've been following TheSingingSword for a long time and I (and many others) can say for certain that he LOVES this story. His decision making sucks, that much I will say. I ask that he stops because it's not helping anyone.

Also, did you not read what he said? I've seen him posting author notes in the past asking for feedback, thanking his readers, and asking for suggestions. You know what he gets? Nothing!

He engages with the community and they do nothing but give him the silent treatment. Why wouldn't he feel like no one cares or likes his writing? What's the point of sharing a story if ultimately there's no audience to enjoy it. He's not a clown for trying to take things in a new direction.

He posts new stories. No one reads them. He details his world with more lore and new stories to build upon it - no one cares! It's just me and two other people who give him support. Where are you?

If you truly did care for this story, you'd voice your opinion. Remember, Sword, like every author here, is a human being. You want him to get from point A to point B, help him improve!

If you want the story to get better, say something! Don't just sit there waiting for things to go bad to ultimately voice your opinion because at this point the plane has crashed and your disappointment means nothing.

And Connerkun2008. Shut the hell up! Fuck you and that dumpster fire you call a fanfic! He has his flaws, but TheSingingSword is a better writer than you'll ever be.
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