Hello there. I'm the original darklover. If you try and look up my penname you'll come across many others who have taken on that penname but I've been here since '02. I originally wanted to be darknesslover but that penname was taken. Why that name? I enjoy series that pertain to the supernatural. As you can tell I'm an ancient member of this site. Most of the writers I've had the pleasure of reading their works have retired altogether from writing instead of a particular fandom. I'm amazed at all the changes this site has gone through. Most for the better.

For most of my tenure here I have been mostly a reader rather than a writer despite my intentions to be both. It's only within the last three years that I finally delved into my writing. My first attempt at writing was poor(edits have been made since then). I struggled to get the formatting right and to get my stride in writing, even though I've always been naturally good at spelling and grammar and an avid reader. As I continued writing other stories, I improved. Writing is an art and only through practice can one improve.

I'm thoroughly grateful to all my first readers who offered me advice and guidance to improve my writing abilities. Your support was invaluable. I continue to strive to do my best and offer advice to others. It is through feedback that writers improve.

I invite others to take the time to provide constructive criticism in a polite and honest matter to writers whom you feel are in need of instruction. Please do not flame them. We all learn from mistakes and grow from them. Everyone has the potential to improve in writing. Some people have natural talent to write, but everyone hones their skills with practice and time.

Every writer has a distinct style and talent. Keep that in mind. I'm sure you have realized this from all the professional works you have read. Some writer's strengths lie in their plot writing and characterization (J.K Rowling) while others are amazing describers.

"A writer is someone who writes, that's all," Gore Vidal, novelist and social commentator.

"Writing is (like) making a table. With both you are working with reality, a material just as hard as wood. Both are full of tricks and techniques. Basically very litte magic and a lot of hard work are involved...What is a privilege, however, is to do a job to your own satisfaction." Gabriel Garcia Marquez, author of Hundred Years of Solitude

I know some of my stories have been neglected. (sighs) Life, lack of ideas, and concentration have been the culprits. I have to admit writing the middle part of my stories has been incredibly difficult for me and thus has left them in limbo for many years. Ascension is the first story that many of the main plots were born with so much detail and planned for.

My advice to anyone who has also suffered completing a story or intends to write a story for the first time: Plan out your story. Grab a notebook and pen and jot down the main ideas that come to mind. Once you have these ideas down then begin to write. It will help you keep a better focus as you move from one chapter to the next and it help you stay on course to finish it. The details from getting to point A to point B will eventually come, but as long you have them written down your brain will work on trying to come out details for all your chapters.

BTVS story statuses:

Inner Revelations will be updated once I finish typing out the rest of the story. I do not want to keep you guys waiting anymore than you have already.

Once I'm done with that I will edit and revamp Watcher's Son in order to complete that story.

Favorite TV Show of all Time: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

I'm a major Spuffy fan. I've read so many Spuffy fics ever since I joined that I actually ended up believing that they ended up together. That reality came crashing down when Joss Whedon decided to continue BTVS and ATS on comics books. At first, I thought perhaps this would be okay if gave a finite ending, but was I nervous about the series getting ruined. I grew disappointed when the number of issues continued to grow. I was okay with the idea of ending the show. The truth is you can continue any series infinitely, but you might mess up the characters by just adding a bunch of twists just because you want to make it interesting.

On that note, I feel that Joss has definitely changed whatever his original plans were for the series. Granted, the comic book medium allows him to explore the characters more in ways he couldn't have in the tv series and that writers/artists ideas are constantly evolving as they create a story and its characters, but I feel that he is just dragging out the story. I'm disapppointed to learn he has allowed the writers he has hired to make a mockery of BTVS and Angel with the scenarios they have written which are not true to the characters or series. I never imagined he would allow such a thing to happen, but he has. I have called fanon discontinuity upon the comics books. It was never truly canon to me, but now it truly isn't. What has happened in the fanfics is canon to me.

Favorite Anime/Manga: Sailor Moon (Have to mention it, since it's the first one I've ever seen. It's a classic after all), Full Metal Alchemist, Bleach, and InuYasha.

Bleach is my second favorite series of all time. I'm not surprised it went downhill but I have to say I will love always the SS arc and its characters.

Fave Bleach pairings:

Ichi/Ruki (I love them! They're just so good together!)

Hitsu/Hina

Bya/Sana

Kyoraku/Nanao

Shinyori

KenMashi

Ascension Status: Ongoing

I've been trying to edit my older chapters so that all my chapters contain the same formatting, but I haven't gotten around to uploading all of them. I know it's more important to actually finish the story, so that is my main focus.

Edited chapters: All old chapters have been edited :) (I'm always annoyed to discovered little errors)

Art for Ascension:

By yours truly: asdarklover on deviantart

You can view fanart by the amazing KidRou( it's the cover art for the story), IrisIrine, and Laikkuseia under my Favorites on my deviantart page. I'm sorry that FF still doesn't allow us to post links.

Honors for Ascension:

Named one of the 'good' non-AU Ichiruki fanfics on Sept. 8, 2011 on this site:

http (colon) //fuckyeahichiruki (dot) tumblr (dot) com/post/9979775896/ichiruki-fanfics-non-au

Ichiruki tumblr

Thoughts on Bleach:

Bleach is a series that became a victim of its own success. The first arc was rather promising and relatively well written. It gave readers the impression that the author had a plan and would elaborate on the world and problems introduced in the first arc. Sadly, this failed to be the case. Many plot points were forgotten and never addressed. Kubo himself admitted after the end of Bleach that he lost many of the initial ideas he had written down and could never remember them. Kubo also admitted in 2014 in the 13 Blades book that he originally only thought he could write 3 years. Both he and his editor didn’t think he could write six years like Shonen Jump wanted. He claims that he eventually felt like writing more, but his work speaks for himself that he had no clear direction. He admitted he would draw in characters when he didn’t know what to do. There are many rumors out there that Shonen Jump forced him to extend the Arrancar Arc and shorten the Lost Substitute Arc. Kubo’s health eventually started to take a toll due to his heavy workload thus also contributing to the quality of his work. While it is fairly obvious Kubo became a victim of his publisher and that his health suffered as a result of his work, it still doesn’t change the fact that Bleach’s story at its core was disjointed by the end of its final arc. The story would have not suffered if the series had not been prolonged and had Kubo come up with an actual plan. Fans may be massively upset due to the series’ abrupt end, but Kubo’s story had long fallen away from being consistent and coherent. And that is the greatest disservice to the fans. Bleach would be remembered much more fondly if the series had ended after the defeat of Aizen albeit in a manner that thoroughly wrapped up the plot points. The way Kubo wrote the end of the Fake Karakura was too rushed and questionable, giving the impression that he was forced to end that arc by his editors. Bleach is a grave example of a series destroyed by lack of planning as well as prolongation. The best selling series are those that actually are well written like Full Metal Alchemist.Of course, in the case of the latter it was written for a monthly magazine rather than a weekly magazine, which really makes a difference. It's unfortunate Kubo was not allowed to take an extended break to deal with his health issues.