Post 99: A Trip Down Memory Lane

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WRITING IN RIVENDELL

Ah... this blog.  Started on March 11, 2013, Writing In Rivendell is now approaching its second birthday.  It's been a good time, at least for me.  This blog has been a great way for me to share my writings and my thoughts, and connect with people I might  not otherwise get to meet.  It's been a joy to have an outlet for my creativity, but the best part of all is to be able to get to know my readers, even if it's in just a small way.  Seriously, you guys are great.  After I put out a post, I check back several times a day, just waiting for your comments- I love to hear from each one of you.  You, my readers, are what makes writing and blogging fun, and I hope to keep it up for years to come.  :)

As I've been not-so-subtly hinting at for the past few posts, the next post I do will have a big announcement, which will begin to take this blog in a new direction.  Much will remain the same, with one great difference- but enough of that for now.  I'll not spoil the surprise.  :)

For the time being, I want to take a look back at this blog and it's history before it moves into the next chapter of its existence.  So, without further delay, let us look back on... The Best of Writing In Rivendell

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The Introduction:

Hello! My first post... how exciting!

Let me start off by introducing myself. I am Rayne Speryll, a self-proclaimed geek and eccentric dreamer, as I have already mentioned in the title of my blog. I am also a homeschool student and a Christian, and I seek to honor God in all that I do...

This was, of course, my very first post.  I was so excited!  I hardly knew what to say, so I just decided to start with the basics: who I was.  That introduction was improvised entirely on the spot and underwent very little editing.  I think I only combed through it once- and even now as I read it again I see that I made several mistakes.  Still, it got the point across, and opened the door for every future post.

Top Six Favorite Antiheroes:

There's something you need to know about me. Actually, there's three things you need to know about me. And they are as follows...

1. I LOVE characters- movies, books, TV shows, all of them! Sometimes, I tend to obsess over them.
2. I love antiheroes, more than most people can understand.
3. I also love 'Top' lists!

This was the first post that got a lot of views- far more than I ever expected when I first started blogging.  I listed six of my favorite antiheroes, that is, Zuko, Loki, Elphaba, Anakin, Turin, and Guy of Gisbourne.  The fans of said characters began finding my blog as they searched the web for things pertaining to their lovable antiheroes.  It was great fun for me, and was also the beginning of my Top Six lists.

Darth Writer's Block: A Writer's Worst Enemy

She sat, staring desperately  at the blank screen in front of her, her fingers poised over the keys.  The dark figure behind her rested a hand on her shoulder, his presence weighing down on her like a thick, cold blanket... 

This post was, and still is one of my most popular posts of all time.  Not the most popular, (we're getting to that), but one of them.  And though I can't be sure, I believe it was the post that began bringing in a larger audience for me.  The personification of writer's block as a hooded, antagonistic figure proved quite humorous and inspiring for writers.  I myself was suffering from terrible writer's block at the time, so the post was helpful to me in getting rid of it.  The post was followed not too long afterward by its sequel Sir Inspiration:  A Writer's Best Friend, which also proved to be a popular post, though not quite as popular as Darth Writer's Block.

And speaking of popular posts, that brings us to...

Rayne's Comedy Hour:  Entertainment Just For You!

Just some funny pictures I've found for you.  :D  I hope you enjoy it!  

(Disclaimer:  None of these pictures are mine.)

Rayne's Comedy Hour was born during yet another fit of writer's block.  But I didn't want to lose my viewers, so I scoured the internet for comical images (or Memes, as I soon learned they were called... ;)  and put them together in a post.  Inspired by the Comedy Amon memes, I named the post Rayne's Comedy Hour.  It was a hit, and to this day, when I put up another episode, I can count on getting a lot of views, even if it's not from my usual readers.  There has since been five episodes, and there are more on the way.  

But the comedy hours were eclipsed after the publication of...

Lessons  to be Learned from the Avengers

Hello, Readers!  My siblings and I watched The Avengers for about the millionth time yesterday.  Surprisingly, it doesn't seem to get old... at least not for us.  But as I watched it this time, I was wondering how I could use this movie, which is purely for entertainment, for something useful and wholesome... 

In this post, I outlined Christian object lessons based on a scene with each major character in Marvel's The Avengers.  It was done much in the style of Sara Arthur's Walking With Frodo, which is a Bible study book for Lord of the Rings fans.  This post remains one of the best posts in Writing In Rivendell history.  

The Silver Chair Dreamcast

Tom Hiddleston as Prince Rillian

Now I know that the likelihood of us getting a Silver Chair  movie any time soon is very little, but a girl can dream, right?  Anyway, I hope that someday we do get a good adaption of The Silver Chair, and if we do, here are some ideas I had for the casting...

This one goes down in WiR history as the post that garnered the most views in a single day.  Typically, this blog gets between 30 to 50 views in a day, even when no new posts have been added.  But on the day this post was published, the views shot up to a shining 100!  

Needless to say, I was impressed.  And since none of the other dreamcasts I'd done up to that point had attracted so much attention, I realized it must have been the subject of The Silver Chair itself.  (Either that, or the picture of Tom Hiddleston.)

Deciding to put this idea to the test, I wrote this post...

A Study of Prince Rilian

I'm the sort of person who loves to get in depth with characters, especially my favorite ones.  As a kid, I had a pretty big crush on the guy, but when I got older, I started thinking, what do we really know about him? ... 

Once again, the views on the day this was published shot up to 100 in a single day, and continued to stay in the upper 70's for the next few days.  The subject of The Silver Chair proved to be a win.

This post was also the start of my latest tradition:  Character Studies.  Since this is a fairly recent post by comparison with the rest I've mentioned today, I have only done two character studies since then, each featuring Mablung and Thingol, respectively.  

But even the Silver Chair posts pale in comparison to  our winners today...

Enola Holmes Fanfiction:  The Mission,

The Client Part I

The Client Part II

I breathed deeply, my eyes fixed on the neat brick building in front of me. The fine, gold lettering on the door seemed to mock me, taunt me with its significance.221B, Baker Street...

The Enola Holmes-Sherlock Crossovers proved to be THE MOST popular posts on this blog EVER.  The views after The Mission shot up to the triple digits and stayed there for quite some time.  Even still, months after their publication, each fanfiction gets several views every week.  I really enjoyed writing them, and to see them so successful was a great encouragement.  These posts brought in viewers from all over the place- most of them complete strangers to the blog.

To those of you who are languishing while you wait for another installment- don't give up hope.  I am working on another fanfiction with Enola and Sherlock, this one much longer.  It will be a combination of all the Enola Holmes books, all set in the modern Sherlock Universe.  I can't say when it will be released, but hopefully someday I'll finish it and be able to share it with you.  :D

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Ah, yes... it's been a good two years.  And, with any luck, it will keep being god- if God continue the inspiration necessary to keep up a blog.  :D

What are some of your favorite moments from Writing In Rivendell?  Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Thank you so much for being such a great audience.  :) Love you all!

-Rayne Speryll

(DISCLAIMER:  I'm in a sappy mood tonight, and my corny words of affection are by no means meant to harass or unnerve my readers.  ;D  )