Yamaku Book Club (20220124 Dish Washing)

[brythain]

NOTE: Any piece that dates from before 2012 is likely 'pre-canon', and anything from 2012 onwards is likely post-canon.

President: Oddball
Secretary: brythain
Bannerman: craftyatom

Current Meeting:

Dish Washing


The Oddball Era:
— in these listings, the first link after the date goes to the discussion, and the dashed link below goes to the story

14 Jan 2018—a very old piece of writing (2007)
— 'Some Lilly Scene' by Lulz
21 Jan 2018—a much newer piece of writing (2016)
— 'What Happened?' by danbuter
28 Jan 2018—a piece from 2010
— 'Constant Companion' by darrin
04 Feb 2018—a one-off from 2013
— 'Birthday' a Hanako fanfic by Nevice
11 Feb 2018—an oddity from 2013
— 'Eat My Shorts. Stories That Is' by NekoDude
18 Feb 2018—well, and truly, from 2009
— 'Schwäche' by WetCrate
25 Feb 2018—a famous writer's 2013 piece
— 'The Diary of Tezuka Rin... or Rin Tezuka' by dewelar
05 Mar 2018—something unleashed in 2010
— 'Madam Lillian's Specialty Service' by kosherbacon
19 Mar 2018—a 2011 dev piece (sort of)!
— 'The Escape' art by Moekki, story by >>>???<<<
26 Mar 2018—from Hell, 2012…
— 'Avici' by Beoran
09 Apr 2018—wall of text from 2013
— 'Two Sides Of The Same Coin' by Fergard Stratoavis
23 Apr 2018—anti-hero story from 2012…
— 'Nomiya POV' by spirizu
07 May 2018—shared story from 2015-16
— 'Reliable Narrators' by oddball, brythain, Blank Mage, Umber
14 May 2018—story fragment from 2013
— 'Scar-Crossed Lovers (OC x Hanako)' by MutilatedMannequin
28 May 2018—Lilly/Hisao from 2011
— 'The Ties That Bind' by hatori1181
11 Jun 2018—really old Emi story!
— 'Lost Opportunities' by Silentcook (cooking you for 10 years now)
25 Jun 2018—a double header!
— 'Heartbreak (2012)' by SuperKatawa
— 'Mirrors of the Sun (2009)' by Aura
02 Jul 2018—recent (2015) alternative universe!
— 'Phantom Pains: Mirror Shoujo' by swampie2
16 Jul 2018—four pieces (2013-2017)
— 'Some One-Shots' by emmjay
06 Aug 2018—Oddball's oddball selection!
20 Aug 2018—Oddball's own (2015)
— 'Blue Haired Girls' by Oddball
03 Sep 2018—Hanako from 2012!
— 'Gamble of Life' by CosmicGhost
10 Sep 2018—Searching for…
— '… a Certain Someone' by demonix
24 Sep 2018—A 2011 adventure!
— 'The Adventures of Sherlock Hisao!' by Rocket Royal
29 Oct 2018—Jigoro tale from 2012!
— 'Birth of a Fighter' by spirizu
05 Nov 2018—2010 fantasies!
— 'Afternoon Astral Projection' by kosherbacon
03 Dec 2018—Rika fan route 2017!
— 'Cup and Saucer: A Rika Fan Route' by Flopsy
10 Dec 2018—"It just doesn't work as a KS story."
14 Jan 2019—Misha/Rin 2013!
— 'Revenge & Ice Cream' by Oscar Wildecat
21 Jan 2019—Pre-release entertainment!
— 'Lilly/Shizune Goodness' by Kosherbacon & Extremist
04 Feb 2019—Shizune 2012
— 'We, The Council' by Megumeru
18 Feb 2019—Epic poetry, sadly short, 2010.
— 'KS Pentameter Style' by Mirage_GSM
04 Mar 2019—A sort of Guinness Book, 2012.
— 'Irish Stout' by Mealforthree
18 Mar 2019—Dark-haired girls, 2014.
— 'Yamaku's Cheshire Cat' by CloudGrain
01 Apr 2019—A sort of Longjohn Silver, from 2012.
— 'Silence Falls' by WiseSilver
29 Apr 2019—Sad Lilly, from 2012.
— 'Pictures of Lilly' by Andonymos
20 May 2019—Yet another Lilly, from 2014.
— 'Overdrive' by Hotkey
10 Jun 2019—Shizune x Hisao, cooked up in 2008.
— 'Sweet Voice' by Silentcook
01 Jul 2019—Saki & Rika, April Fools girls in 2015.
— 'Saki meets Rika' by Oddball
15 Jul 2019—What happens when reality breaks, 2012.
— 'Radioactive (or Katawa:Call of Yamaku) (or something)' by Scissorlips
12 Aug 2019—Darkness, 2012.
— 'shit nobody cares about: the game' by Henry Spencer
26 Aug 2019—CplCrud, a progression.
— this is a list of works by KS dev CplCrud, including one hosted on his blog outside this forum.=
16 Sep 2019—Rin, silently cooking, in 2012.
—'Yields Six Servings' by themocaw
07 Oct 2019—Hisao, writing, from 2015.
—'A reply to Iwanako' by sam7005
21 Oct 2019—Incomplete(?) horror from 2018.
—'Inkyukasu—A KS Supernatural/Horror Fic' by Bricktycoon
11 Nov 2019—Two old pieces from 2010 (!)
—'Costume Day' by chaix
—'Yamaku's Annual Sweet Rave Party' by SnigendePind
02 Dec 2019—Suzu, from 2012.
—'The Pusher' by Catgirl Kleptocracy
16 Dec 2019—Crossover 2012!
—'KS-EVANGELION' by LordDarknus
13 Jan 2020—Miki route from 2015.
—'Project Indigo' by Req
27 Jan 2020—Kenji gains a power, in 2010.
—'A God Among Men' by Neumann
24 Feb 2020—Interesting OC, 2012.
—'This Padded Cell I Call A School' by AusJake
23 Mar 2020—Experimental, 2014.
—'Objects in Space [ Hisao ]' by Doomish
27 Apr 2020—A double shot: Rookie/FunnyWeird.
—'Rookie Error' by Revvy
—'Oh Mah Drills' by Myshina
08 Jun 2020—A triple shot: More fun and weird.
—'Mutou Gets Fired' by Atario (link to Archive)
—'There were Five' by Megumeru
—'Life doesn't loop like a music box tune' by Ben KSTF
29 Jun 2020—A very early Cold War (2008!), perhaps?
—'Queens of the Land' by Silentcook
13 Jul 2020—An eternal triangle, 2012
—'Scarred Angel' by Beoran
03 Aug 2020—Some sort of intro, 2014
—'Before Yamaku' by TomokoNoKokoro
24 Aug 2020—Man of mystery, 2013
—'Zade Wither' by AlphaWarMeister
07 Sep 2020—Angelic tale, 2007(!)
—'Another Omake Scene' by Penguinmayhem
02 Nov 2020—Short and sweet, 2018
—'Just Live' by Oddball
16 Nov 2020—Four crazy tales, old times
—The links are there, if you really want to have a look, various authors, including one Roxius.
07 Dec 2020—Natsume gets some love
—'The Ooe Way: A Natsume fic' by motokid108
04 Jan 2021—A colourful imagination
—'Red Fish Blue Fish' by Oddball
25 Jan 2021—Slice of track
—'A Runner's Afternoon (This Is Not Canon)' by cpl_crud
15 Feb 2021—Shizune
—'You And I Both' by Scissorlips
08 Mar 2021—An Emilogue
—'Ungraceful Reunion' by scratchminus
12 Apr 2021—Hanako/Jigoro
—'Convoluted Toughts' by Ascended Flutist
—'Of Jigoro and Hisao' by Guestdude
03 May 2021—Molly?
—'From Tokyo To Mumbai' by Zerebos
28 Jun 2021—Hisao's surprise...
—'Reunion: Hisao & Akira Avoid The Family' by FluffandCrunch
17 Jul 2021—Detective story!
—'Kotani's Agency for finding things' by Ario
23 Aug 2021—Surprise Hisao!
—'An Apology to the Nurse' by lolawesome
20 Sep 2021—Wrintings!
—'Writings of AA' by AapoAlas
22 Nov 2021—Shizune is Maid!
—'Maid in Hell: Starring Shizune' by Murex
06 Dec 2021—Emi & Rin...
—'Calamansi' by KosherBacon
13 Dec 2021—Twilight Katawa?
—'Katawa no Tasogare' by Episcia
27 Dec 2021—Christmas noir
—'Christmas Complications' by stetson
24 Jan 2022—Dishes
—'Dish Washing' by Roxius

Oddball became President of the YBC on 21 January 2018. Dates given here are to the nearest Monday.

*****

Message from Founding Club President, Sea:

Hello and welcome to the Yamaku Book Club!
Here is the place to discuss all things fanfiction in an effort to stop cluttering up all the fanfic threads with all our excess words.
Note this isn't the place to rant about which fanfic is the best or worst, but where everybody can get all their repressed fanfic feels off their collective chests.
You may recommend some stuff, but if you're looking for a fairly complete collection, head over to the Library.

General Rules:
1) All problems can be reported to me, not posted about. [Note: I guess that's brythain Oddball now.]
2) Once again, no 'this is the bestest fic ever' or 'that fic sucks'. Constructive discussion only please.
3) This should be previously known, but for your own safety, NO REQUESTING! Bad stuff will happen to your internal organs.
4) At least try to retain some semblance of on-topicness.

And with that, I'll let it loose, thanks to Comrade for helping this out of planning stages and to all the amazing writers, this wouldn't be here without you.

***

Membership Qualifications:
1) Attend at least 2 meetings (1 to start out).
2) Contribute in some way to the discussion at hand.
3) Don't be an ass.

Members can vote on the future of the club and have some input on the next fic we cover. Those who miss 2 meetings in a row will be put on the reserve list, but can rejoin by attending any 1 meeting, the technicalities can be sorted out later.

***

Original Members:

Kagan Emeritus: Sea
Khan Bek: Comrade
Banner Maker of Amazingness: Craftyatom
Helbereth
forgetmenot
Mournful3ch0
dewelar
Mahorfeus
Mirage_GSM
brythain
AntonSlavik020
Oscar Wildecat
ProfAllister
Oddball
Blank Mage
Blasphemy

***

Archive:

2014-02-28 Katawa Kijo 28th February, 2014
2014-03-05 United States of Misha 5th March, 2014
2014-03-08 Titanium 8th March, 2014
2014-03-12 When Hisao was Rin 12th March, 2014
2014-03-18 KS: Bloodlines 18th March, 2014
2014-03-22 The Night Before Tomorrow 22nd March, 2014
2014-03-25 Numbered Days 25th March, 2014
2014-04-03 Hideaki - A Tale of Manliness 3rd April, 2014
2014-04-08 A Bowl of Noodles, a Cup of Coffee, a Glass of Beer 8th April, 2014
2014-04-13 Shower Scenes 13th April, 2014
2014-04-25 The Decision 25th April, 2014
2014-04-30 Weekend At Hisao's 30th April, 2014
2014-05-09 After The Dream (Rin's Story) 9th May, 2014
2014-05-16 Terror in the Night 16th May, 2014
2014-05-20 The Fireman 20th May, 2014
2014-05-25 Closure 25th May, 2014
2014-06-02 Greater than the Sum 2nd June, 2014
2014-06-09 Can You Open Your Heart? 9th June, 2014
2014-06-14 Victory Day 14th June, 2014
2014-06-19 Some Old Shit 19th June, 2014
2014-06-23 The Most Surprising Thing 23rd June, 2014
2014-06-27 Broken Dolls 27th June, 2014
2014-06-30 A Future 30th June, 2014
2014-07-06 Mendācium 6th July, 2014
2014-07-16 Rooftops 16th July, 2014
2014-07-20 Exceeder 20th July, 2014
2014-08-05 Panda's Stuff 5th August, 2014
2014-08-12 Ascent: An Emilogue 12th August, 2014
2014-08-16 Constant Companion 16th August, 2014
2014-08-20 Starbursts 20th August, 2014
2014-08-31 Classroom Game 31st August, 2014
2014-09-07 Whisky, Saki, and Other Spirits 7th September, 2014
2014-09-15 Turn to Stone 15th September, 2014
*2014-09-22 Change in Management 22nd September, 2014
*2014-09-25 The Moonlight Meeting 25th September, 2014
*2014-09-29 Ups and Downs 29th September, 2014
*2014-10-04 The Library: States of Meta 4th October, 2014
2014-10-15 Shades of Distinction 15th October, 2014
2015-02-16 Two Queens 16th February, 2015
2015-02-26 Katawa Shoujo Bloopers 26th February, 2015
2015-03-20 Rin: Hisao's Gift 20th March, 2015
2015-04-02 Prelude To Another Future Yet 2nd April, 2015
2015-04-18 Going the Distance 18th April, 2015
2015-05-15 A Dream Hisao Has Of Lilly 15th May, 2015
2015-05-25 Reunion (Shizune Bad End One-Shot) 25th May, 2015
2015-06-01 Reunion: Hisao and Akira Avoid the Family 1st June, 2015
2015-06-16 Other Hisao Fics:
2015-06-16 Observations, Boundaries, A Walk in the Park, In Which I Have Been Reading Too Much Raymond Chandler, The New Class Rep 16th June, 2015
2015-07-01 Iwanako Fics:
2015-07-01 The Past Catches Up, Challenge Accepted, Finality, Slightly Different 1st July, 2015
2015-07-01 Iwanako: Mean Time to Breakdown 1st July, 2015
2015-08-01 Mutou Fics:
2015-08-01 Why He Lights Up The Night, MishMutou, A Different Future, Pavane 1st August, 2015
2015-08-22 Sisterhood 22nd August, 2015
2015-08-22 Hanako Fics:
2015-08-22 Hanako's Story, The Purest Form of Love, H&H: Road to Tokyo, Scar Tissue, Reconciliation 22nd August, 2015
2015-09-18 For Want Of A Nail 18th September, 2015
2015-09-18 Misha Fics:
2015-09-18 Katawa Kijo, Closure, The United States of Misha, Blame, and many others 18th September, 2015
2015-10-09 Shizune Discussion: "The Sound of Silence"
2015-19-09 After Graduation, Christmas with the Hakamichis, and many others 9th October, 2015
2015-10-31 Jigoro/Hideaki: "Father and Son"
2015-10-31 Of Jigoro and Hisao, AkiraHeartsHideaki, Feels For Jigoro, and many others 31st October, 2015
2015-11-21 Akira/Lilly: "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes"
2015-11-21 Akira Pseudo-Route, Testament, and many others 21st November, 2015
2015-12-28 Developments: dewelar's big ensemble fic
2016-03-31 Emi: "Fastest Thing On No Legs"
2016-03-31 Four phases of Emi Ibarazaki 31st March, 2016
2016-04-21 Nurse/Meiko: "Supporting Cast"
2016-04-21 A few pieces about Emi's two favourite people 21st April, 2016
2016-05-18 Rin: "Mostly Armless"
2016-05-18 Direction, and some shorter works 18th May, 2016
2016-07-01 Hanako/Hisao: Road to Tokyo redux 01 July, 2016
2016-10-31 Hallowe'en Selection 31 October, 2016


* the Library Anniversary collection (discussions mostly in that thread)

[Mournful3ch0]

I just know a 'KS General' thread will be great. I'm not sure about the rest of the Renai's population, but I have some things to say.

In this case, Misaki fanfiction. We are in uncharted waters here and I am now experiencing something that I never saw coming. When I learned that somebody else was writing a similar story, I just sorta stopped writing. Anyone else have that happen to them? Are there any other 3-3 characters left?

Also, I see that a lot of my favorite fics are coming to an end. Developments[?], Tomorrow's Doom, Akira PR, and Hanako's Story among others. No, it shouldn't drag on, but I think that the forum's biggest hits will all be ending likely within 3 months of each other is kind of a bummer.

That's all I have to say for now, I think. I sure hope that's what this thread was about and I didn't just make an ass of myself

[Silentcook]

Hrm. Good luck.

[Munchenhausen]

[...] where everybody can get all their repressed fanfic feels off their collective chests.

Okay.
Scissorlips' Suzu route.
The bad ending.
IT'S BEEN A GOOD FEW MONTHS SINCE I READ IT AND I STILL FEEL BAD.
AND NOW MIKI HAS NO FRIENDS

[Numb]

This idea. I like it.

My personal recommendations are Helbereth's "Tomorrow's Doom", Rikabro's "Can you open your heart?" and Scissorlips' Suzu route if you're looking for something nice and long to last you a few days or weeks, depending on your pace. If you're willing to wait for updates though, which I know a lot of us are, then definitely go for forgetmenot's Kagami route. There aren't enough fan fictions based around music, and the way forgetmenot executes it in Kagami's story is great, made better for me because I'm somewhat of a music nerd, and research has clearly been done as the technical terms and names of pieces used are perfect.

Oh, and Mournful, don't stop writing Misaki on my account. I rarely have time to work on my route between school and VN work, so feel free to take the spotlight as the main Misaki writer

[MyCaptain]

Are there any other 3-3 characters left?

Well, all male characters for a start. Other than that for 3-3:
Ikuno, got some lines in a Molly-fic series that I think is abandoned.
Molly, people have tried but it seems to suffer from the same issues as Miki-routes.
Naomi, some scenes exist, but that's pretty much it.
Natsume, same as above.

[Mournful3ch0]

Oh, and Mournful, don't stop writing Misaki on my account. I rarely have time to work on my route between school and VN work, so feel free to take the spotlight as the main Misaki writer

Oh, God. Gulp. Spotlight...

I'll see what I can do, but I don't like those. Anyhow, thank you![?]

And MyCaptain, a buddy of mine on FF.net is writing for Naomi at the moment so I think I'll avoid her. Other than that you're largely correct, so thank you for the research.

And Sea, it looks like SilentCook gave this the go-ahead so congrats and thank you!

[Oddball]

Why limit yourself to just the 3-3 characters?

[Mournful3ch0]

Why limit yourself to just the 3-3 characters?

I'm just a beginning writer, as you'll see if you choose to read the finished product. A visual representation will help me with creating a solid mental picture of a character and gives me a clue as to how I want them to act. You'll find some correlation between her class photo and the outcome. The reason I have done this is to try and avoid cliche' while I can. I mean, they're just waiting there for somebody to give them dimension.

When I become more comfortable, I'll likely delve into the unknown for new characters that need to be made. All I know so far is that there will be second years and they will have to like [Redacted]. There are some other ideas tumbling around, but they'll need solidifying before I give details.

[WarbirdHD]

Hey, all!

I've been thinking about posting my FF.net fic over to here, but I've no idea how to do the posting thing. Do I post replies, or what?

I also write from a mobile device, so it just becomes more confusing for some uncanny reason. If anybody could tell me, it'd be much appreciated.

[Helbereth]

Hey, all!

I've been thinking about posting my FF.net fic over to here, but I've no idea how to do the posting thing. Do I post replies, or what?

I also write from a mobile device, so it just becomes more confusing for some uncanny reason. If anybody could tell me, it'd be much appreciated.

Sent you a PM on the matter.

Let's see... I haven't had a chance to do much reading over the past six months here, but there are some gems I should mention. Luckily, I've written something like this for an old thread, so I'll just expand on it a bit.

Hoitash (United States of Misha, Hisao and Kenji Master Detectives)
Hoitash deserves more press for being one of the few who really takes AU fiction and crossovers seriously - well, semi-seriously.

Doomish (Misha route, Apologies to Harlon Ellison, etc.)
You have to download a file to see his stuff now, but it's worth the effort.

Oddball (Shower Scenes, etc)
Probably the biggest egomaniac on the entire forum (kidding!), Oddball makes oddly poignant, funny stories. He listed several of them here.

Scissorlips (Pseudo-Pseudo Suzu Route)
It gets a little shaky and drags through the last act, but his Suzu is adorably broken, and some of the weirdest moments in all of KS fan-fiction comes through in the course of that story.

DanjaDoom (Hideaki - A Tale of Manliness)
Most anything by DanjaDoom is worth a look, but I'd consider his Hideaki series the best of his contributions. His alternative Suzu route, which recently got updated, takes a very different look at the narcoleptic, and it's worth a look, especially if he decides to follow through to completion.

Ascended Flutist (And to Live in Peace)
This abandoned fic is one of the more promising stories that never got completed.

Paddy (A Memory Hisao has of Lilly)
The style conjured some debate, along with the religious overtones, but I found it thoroughly enjoyable. (this one isn't listed in the archive, incidentally)

MeguMeru (The Haunting - A Love Story)
Another abandoned fic that held a lot of promise, but apparently fizzled. Worth the read just for the paranormal intrigue.

Total Destruction (Touchdown Breakdown)
This is another abandoned fic that's suspiciously missing from the archive. It explores the Hanako bad end through Miki's eyes.

Meadows (Miki Route)
So many aborted fics on my list...

RikaBro (Rika Story)
This story has a lot of Hearts. One of the few, the proud, the completed pseudo-routes, this story balances dark overtones with sarcastic optimism, and is worth the read.

DaGarver ((Un)Broken, (An Emi Prologue))
This isn't in the archive either? Cripes, who's running that thing?

spirizu (Starbursts, Reunion)
More stuff that's missing from the archive...

lolawesome (The Manly Pick-Me-Up)
This one I know is there because I made the request. It's short, and not spectacular writing, but the story is worth the read.

Brogurt (Mendācium)
Controversial? Definitely. Still one of the best written fics on the forum.

WetCrate (An Afternoon Wasted, Closure)
This author hasn't been around since shortly after I started visiting, but their entries are still relevant.

crushinator (Rebellion)
Another mysteriously missing AU fic, this sci-fi story was never finished, but it had great potential.

[Leaty]

Meadows (Miki Route)
So many aborted fics on my list...

My problem with that fic was that Meadows didn't really seem to care about the context from which they were drawing the story. In all the canon routes, Hisao learns something about the nature of love from the girl he's interested in, but with Meadows' route it felt like they just wanted him to hook up with her and be content. As a result, the story feels more like reading an Archie comic than reading anything in Katawa Shoujo.

Maybe the reason Miki routes never get completed is because she doesn't seem to have any kind of really complex anxieties or issues and it never feels organic to try and give her any. She seems more like an "action" love interest, the kind of girl Hisao would fall in love with as they were both hiding from a psychotic jewel thief, than anybody he could have some kind of long, subtle relationship with.

[Comrade]

So since this is a club, i suppose it needs to have members, no? So I suggest making a member list or something, and have all the people who were "present" on the first meeting as "founders", because lists are cool
We shpuld also have arranged "meetings" every week and have the meeting's number at the title or something

[Oddball]

Oddball (Shower Scenes, etc)
Probably the biggest egomaniac on the entire forum

You're just saying that because I'm awesome.

[forgetmenot]

If you're willing to wait for updates though, which I know a lot of us are, then definitely go for forgetmenot's Kagami route. There aren't enough fan fictions based around music, and the way forgetmenot executes it in Kagami's story is great, made better for me because I'm somewhat of a music nerd, and research has clearly been done as the technical terms and names of pieces used are perfect.

You're too kind.

Maybe the reason Miki routes never get completed is because she doesn't seem to have any kind of really complex anxieties or issues and it never feels organic to try and give her any. She seems more like an "action" love interest, the kind of girl Hisao would fall in love with as they were both hiding from a psychotic jewel thief, than anybody he could have some kind of long, subtle relationship with.

This would be an interesting angle to approach the Miki problem from. Sure, she seems like such a natural choice for a love interest, what with being pretty, athletic, and charming, but all the canon love interests have deeper-set issues that become the main points of conflict around which their stories center. I suppose Lilly's route is probably the least like this (the conflict is more external, yet exacerbated by Lilly's need to keep everything close to the chest). With Miki, some kind of internal conflict must shoehorned in if it is to play to those themes. What would be more interesting is to turn a story like that on it's head, i.e. making the central conflict the fact that there's really nothing wrong with the relationship, but Miki as a person doesn't really fulfill any deeper companionship needs. In such a story, a "good" ending would probably involve a breakup, with both characters realizing that they don't really do anything for the other romantically.