Zach Caldwell Posted May 8, 2014 Report Share Posted May 8, 2014 (edited) [Special Note: The new website is now live. As a result the links throughout this thread are invalid except for the latest posting to the thread. All of Rilbur stories can now be found at Rilbur] 'Family Values' is a phrase often used to describe the traditional, nuclear family. But Joseph Peterson's family is anything but traditional, and when political forces try to split them apart those forces are going to find themselves battered, bruised, and bleeding. Story Completed http://www.castleroland.net/library/author/rilbur Edited October 6, 2017 by Zach Caldwell Link website notification Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David McLeod Posted October 13, 2014 Report Share Posted October 13, 2014 I read through Chapter 2 yesterday and already I know something really, really bad is going to happen. I do not know how he did it, but Rilbur created a "Hitchcockian" scenario without my having caught on. Outstanding foreshadowing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rilbur Posted October 13, 2014 Report Share Posted October 13, 2014 Oh just wait until you enjoy chapter 3. Or chapter 4... chapter 5... um... Yeah. Just wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David McLeod Posted October 16, 2014 Report Share Posted October 16, 2014 Thanks a lot! You have no idea how good that made me feel. As long as there's no blood in the bathtub drain... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Schaeffer Posted December 8, 2014 Report Share Posted December 8, 2014 I started to read "Family Values" this morning. Not sure about the Joseph Patterson person mentioned in the synopsis above,,,but I've only read Chapter 1 so far. Tim and Tom are very cool characters, and I am intrigued to find out if they are good guys or bad guys. It's just vague enough to leave me on the fence... And I loved this line: Mr. Walters' voice was cold enough to freeze glaciers, and sharp enough to shave with. I actually stopped and read this two or three times, smiling. I love this. Wish I had written it...grin. Good stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rilbur Posted December 9, 2014 Report Share Posted December 9, 2014 Tim and Tom are very cool characters, and I am intrigued to find out if they are good guys or bad guys. It's just vague enough to leave me on the fence... I'm sure their elder brother would very much agree with 'bad guy'. Then again, Joe is their elder brother. It's his job to be down on them... and the job of little brothers to be pests to him. And I'm glad you liked that line. This story went very well, overall, though as you've noticed the first chapter probably should have been skipped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Schaeffer Posted December 9, 2014 Report Share Posted December 9, 2014 Rilbur, I read Chapter Two - and now I know who Joe is...grin. I think Chapter 1 was a perfect introduction to this story - it captured my attention, drew me in, and made me want to read more. What could be better than that? I think I'll go read Chapter 3 now and see what they get up to... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Schaeffer Posted December 10, 2014 Report Share Posted December 10, 2014 I've made it to Chapter 8, and I have to say, I almost put it down when the government types started their attempt to take the kids away. I got so intensely angry at just the idea of such a thing that I had to put it down and walk away. But...I already have such respect for your writing that I had to see it through. And as a reader who likes a happy story, while not totally averse to some conflict here and there, I was thrilled with the outcome thus far. I can only hope the rest of the story plays out accordingly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rilbur Posted December 10, 2014 Report Share Posted December 10, 2014 Glad you're enjoying it Jack. You're over the worst of the humps, but I think you'll find the ones in store to be just as entertaining. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Schaeffer Posted December 10, 2014 Report Share Posted December 10, 2014 Okay. I finished the story - and I absolutely loved it! I was so disappointed it ended, just when it was getting good. There are so many directions you can spin off of the foundation you created. Has anyone else written anything with these characters? Did you ever write them again? If I wasn't swamped with my own work and story, I would love to explore them further myself, though I doubt I could do them justice. Joe is a fascinating guy - a curious mix of mature and immature, wise and foolish, good and bad (well, call it not-so-good). But when the chips are down, he's like James Bond - whatever it takes. I read your end of story author note: I have only attempted to write one story, and I am barely underway on it. I think I definitely write the more sweet, romantic things, because the world always seem so dark to me, so I get why you branched out into "nice". The fruit of your efforts was not sickening sweet - I think it struck just the right flavor. And if you think of the action and drama as savory, you have achieved the perfect palate for the story, IMHO. Rest assured I am now intrigued with you as an author - I am known for reading everything an author writes once I latch on to something I liked. What would you recommend for me next? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rilbur Posted December 11, 2014 Report Share Posted December 11, 2014 Jack, glad you enjoyed the story. The twins and Joe are definitely coming back, the real decision is if they're going to get a book 2, or if they're just going to get rolled into Resistance. As for where to go from here... pay attention to my Author's note; this was my single, strongest story to date, and also my most light-hearted. You could try starting in on the Revolutions Universe stories as a good first step -- my own Resistance might be your first step in that direction. Alternatively, you could try my Defenders story Unexpected Reactions, or Sword of Light. I'd probably avoid Guardians / Redemption; Guardians is very dark, and very rough compared to my other works. I wrote it when I was first getting back into writing. And Redemption... the more time that passes, the more I think the only redemption possible for that story is to reboot it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Schaeffer Posted December 11, 2014 Report Share Posted December 11, 2014 Rilbur, Thanks for the direction. I'll head towards Resistance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rilbur Posted December 11, 2014 Report Share Posted December 11, 2014 Just be warned it's not half as light-hearted as FV was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Schaeffer Posted December 11, 2014 Report Share Posted December 11, 2014 Rilbur, Duly noted. I'll wait for the right timing...grin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darian Posted May 24, 2017 Report Share Posted May 24, 2017 Hey Rilbur, just finished the family values story, the last one on the page of the universe. And I am touched and impressed. But as usual the story quite ends in the middle of the story. I'd suggest to recycle the characters into a next story to connect them to the actual universe actions. What about Brian Richardson and his Uncles? As we know in november 2012 California is destroyed by a big earthquake. What happend to them? To their jobs, to their lives? And did they reunite with their other nephew? What about the Bryant family and their fight in the town? Did Laura become mayor? Did the old mayor fight her somehow? Does the AoG interfere? Maybe is it needed to get contact between the twins and the UNIT? Or with the scireians or the Alteran. Maybe you can link the story with the Alteran colony, what about lesbian women in this nation? There is still much space for fantasy and development of your story. Yours Darian Fey Al Norris 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rilbur Posted January 25, 2018 Report Share Posted January 25, 2018 On 5/24/2017 at 3:46 AM, Darian said: Hey Rilbur, just finished the family values story, the last one on the page of the universe. And I am touched and impressed. But as usual the story quite ends in the middle of the story. I'd suggest to recycle the characters into a next story to connect them to the actual universe actions. What about Brian Richardson and his Uncles? As we know in november 2012 California is destroyed by a big earthquake. What happend to them? To their jobs, to their lives? And did they reunite with their other nephew? What about the Bryant family and their fight in the town? Did Laura become mayor? Did the old mayor fight her somehow? Does the AoG interfere? Maybe is it needed to get contact between the twins and the UNIT? Or with the scireians or the Alteran. Maybe you can link the story with the Alteran colony, what about lesbian women in this nation? There is still much space for fantasy and development of your story. Yours Darian Fey I did in fact have plans to continue, but they got overtaken by reality. As mentioned in other places, my writing came to a stand-still a few years back when I entered a new phase of my life. It turns out that financial stress kills my ability to write, and I was living in a feast-or-famine work cycle, either too busy to write, or too broke to concentrate on writing. With luck, there will either be a Family Values 2, or some of the characters will get folded into Resistance. I already know full well the twins have a place waiting for them, and a half-brother who knows nothing of their existence (and will be very prepared to deck his father over the situation). As for connections with other stories... we shall see. I'm not sure that will happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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