Oops! The story that you are looking for is no longer here!

It is now part of the new story: "Murder in Cerulean Blue", now up!

The author's note has been left in places for the sake of historical reference (mostly for the author).

PLEASE FORGIVE THE RIDICULOUSLY LONG AUTHOR'S NOTE. I DO FEEL THAT THERE ARE SOME THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GET TO THE STORY.

Author's Note: My dear readers,

I find myself now in an interesting position of having so many ideas to convey to you in this note (read: long, heartfelt letter that took me two hours to write) that I have difficulty finding the proper place to begin, so you must forgive me if you find this a bit rambling and disjointed. I am also going to take the liberty of speaking to you in a tone of personal friendship that I've inexplicably come to feel for the complete strangers that have read my tales so far. I suppose I shall try communicating my thoughts chronologically, beginning with where I last left you, at the end of "Denial in E minor."

I loved writing this story, and while I have written fan fiction for many, MANY years, this was the first story with a complete enough plot to warrant posting. I was also honored to feel that it was enjoyed by many people all over the world, which gives me no end of joy and satisfaction. However, I am not entirely satisfied on two points. The first point came with my own reading of the story after it had been published, and I discovered several previously unnoticed typos through-out, the worst of which is an entirely missing paragraph in chapter 8, which makes part of the narrative seem a bit random. On a related note, I think the formatting of the story could be improved in such a way as to make the transitions easier to follow. I will admit that my first point can be remedied with a bit of editing work on my part that would be more tedious than difficult, and I have every intention of getting my rear end in gear and fixing that. However, my second point of dissatisfaction is a little more difficult to resolve. I must admit to you that I find myself increasingly displeased with the final chapter. I find that it feels rushed, in places it is sentimental to a degree that it is uncomfortably sappy and out of character, and it is all together not up to the quality of the rest of my work. Part of that I can attribute to the fact that it was written at Christmastime with the intention of publishing on Christmas day. It feels rushed, because I was rushing to finish it, and I hope that the sappiness was, at least in part, the result of the holiday spirit. (I'm pretty sure that I am unbearable for the month of December; I get choked up about everything: Christmas movies, Christmas hymns, Christmas tv-specials, people collecting for the Salvation Army… it ALL makes me kinda weepy.) Back to the point I was trying to make: I'm just not happy with it, but I'm unsure how to fix it. I'm not sure if some tweaking in the right places would fix it or if I just need to scrap the whole thing and rewrite it from the top, but something must be done. When I figure out what that is, I can add that to the other corrections that need to be made, and I can leave you with one clean and complete final version.

Now that we have thoroughly covered my first story, we can move on to my next one. You know how at the end of books you sometimes find a short sampling of the next book in the series? Well, that is what this update is supposed to be (once you get past this interminable letter). Why, you may ask, is the author doing this rather than just starting the new story? Well, I'll tell you. There are many reasons, all of which I will touch on, but the biggest one is this: I'm stuck. This isn't just "I'm up to this part of the story, but I don't know how to proceed from here" kind of stuck, but I'm genuinely having a hard time nailing down any kind of series of events. I have simply TONS of possibilities for this next story, but they're so broad that I'm having a hard time getting a basic storyline. I need a more solid framework to build a story around. One truly aggravating thing about this is that I have a significantly clearer idea for a third story, and even a fourth story, however, I am unable to just jump to those ideas without skipping some of the things that I know will be necessary for the over-all arc.

All this being said, I am, and have been for some time, feeling guilty about leaving you for seven months without a word of update or notice about what I've been up to, or what my plans are story-wise, or even if I still live. So, what you are seeing today is essentially the part of chapter one of the new story that I got down in January before everything came to a screeching halt. (Honesty compels me to admit that at that point, I was five months out from my wedding, and that sort of took over everything. On a side note, I am very happy to announce that, as of June 11th, I am now Mrs. Ballerina Terminator. So, now I am just surfacing from my first month of wedded bliss, and I am finally getting back to this.) What you are getting today is little better than a rough draft and it is not even a full chapter, and it is subject to change, depending on what the story will need; but, more importantly, it is also my sign to you that I'm still here, that I don't intend to say "I'd love to do another story" and then never be heard from again, that I have plans, however vague, to continue on with my chronicles of the adventures of our intrepid heroes, that I don't want to be absent so long that all interest is lost.

I'm sorry for the length of this preface to story which is nearly as long as the story itself. If you've made this far in this author's note, your commitment is to be commended; thank you for humoring me. I hope very much to be able to provide you with a great deal more story in the near future. If anyone feels so inclined to try to assist me with my literary difficulties (listen to some of my ideas, tell me what sounds good, tell me what stinks, give me an alternate point-of-view) send me a message to my fanfiction account. So, without further ado (and more information than you ever wanted to know), I give you your teaser for my second Inception installment.

All my best,

Ballerina Terminator

P.S. Anyone who wants to see a wedding pic, I've updated my avatar pic.

P.P.S. Also, Inception belongs to Christopher Nolan. The only payment I get is the joy that comes from reader feedback.

Oops! The story that you are looking for is no longer here!

It is now part of the new story: "Murder in Cerulean Blue", now up!

The author's note has been left in places for the sake of historical reference (mostly for the author).