My name's Sarah, and I'm a 14-year-old girl living in Birmingham, England. I adore both Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, but would never try to compare the two. They are superbly unique in their own way and I will be a loving fan of both up until the end of my days. Also I love the myths (or legends -- whatever you want to call them) of Merlin the Wizard and King Arthur. However, the first are the two I write about.

At the moment Lord of the Rings is probably just a small level above Harry Potter, but they are continuously swapping and sliding above and below each other all the time and so I love them both equally. In fact, I do not know how I would manage without either of them. I live for fantasy and magic, and my thoughts are spent endlessly with the tales of these amazing authors. J.K Rowling and J.R.R Tolkien have my deepest respects and thanks.

Harry Potter: I could read Joanne Rowling's books over again and again in repetitive circles, yet I would never gain a boredom of this wonderful series. The story is so simple, but complicated at the same time. My favourite characters: Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, and Albus Dumbledore. I take special interests in these three merely because of their different relationships with Harry. Whenever I begin a fresh Harry Potter fic, my chapters usually revolve around one of these special bonds.

Lord of the Rings: Well... what is there to say about the best fantasy novel ever written? Every time I sit down and read The Fellowship, The Two Towers or The Return of the King, I learn something new and it stores up, clogging my mind. It has so much fantastic depth, and stories take place inside stories; I did not think a human being had the actual ability to create such things. I'm always one for battle scenes: the cavalry, the swords, the catapults -- not to mention all of the anguish which fits in and merges with the action -- but in Lord of the Ring it's the emotional story behind all the adventure that seems to suck me in and trap me there. It is such a powerful tale, and not a thousand paragraphs could express my thoughts concerning it. I tend to write stories based around Aragorn and Frodo.

I have many fics, but all are handwritten (I'm not sure why, I just prefer using a pen); the sheets of paper litter my room. Unfortunately though, I'm a very slow typer and I find it so tedious, so it takes me literally forever to get them uploaded and onto sites. As for my writing itself, I don't write because I think I'm good at it (in fact that's far from my own opinion) -- I write for enjoyment, and also because it's extemely helpful when I'm feeling a little down. I find I can express things whilst writing and forget things that are troubling. I'm a lot better at drawing, and draw much more than I write, but I've been reading fiction after fiction on this site for quite some time now, and it inspired me to have my own stab at sharing my stories with other people. But I do my best and I'm learning... well, trying to get better more like :).

But just because I am not up to scratch, does not mean to say there are no writers at a very high standard on . Some of you are exceptionally talented and I secretly envy you. Your tales never cease to amaze me and at the moment I have no better pleasure in doing anything else. So keep writing, all of you authors!

My genre preference in fan fiction is angst. Actually, that's a bit of an understatement... I'm addcited to angst and cannot keep away from it! I squeal in delight after reading an enjoyable hurt/comfort story, especially when it is concerning a poorly, hurt Frodo and a gentle, caring Aragorn. I know I should really try something fresh and expand my appetite for fiction, but I truly love it.

One last thing... There is a very good fanfiction site I know of that is in desperate need of some traffic. I'm positively sure it would be become more popular if only people knew about it and spread it around... which is what I will try and do now. Please post your stories on this site! The busier it gets the better it will become, and it has catagories for almost anything you want to write about. Please visit http:// -- it will be appreciated! Thank you.

Silver Mearas

(And just to add: I certainly have not abandoned "When There Is Little Hope". The next three chapters are already written -- and have been for almost an entire year -- but I've been so busy lately with school [and the busy commitments of the 'Extra Curriculum' activites there] and I haven't found time to go through them, edit them and get them up. I will update ASAP though. The same goes for "Talking With Grief".)