Oh, and I forgot to say - in Britain, it's "petrol", not "gas". Because it's not actually a gas. One of the few times that the British version makes more sense than the American, haha.
Author's Response: Thanks! :)
Well. Where to start? I really enjoyed this fic. It was well built-up, characterisation great, romance just right, plot concepts entertaining and realistic. Very well done.
Except... well, usually I wouldn't bother bringing this up, but you've evidently made an effort to be relatively British (what with the sweets and mUm and all) so I thought I'd just give you a hand and point out some Americanisms that jumped out at me (I'm Australian, but that's closer to British than it is to American).
*Going steady - there's not really a British equivalent, but something like "be my girlfriend officially" would do it.
*Overuse of "dating" - it is used in Britain, but not regularly. I think the Brits do the same as us in that we say "going out" rather than "dating". So, my boyfriend and I aren't dating, we're going out. And we don't go on dates, we go out. Geddit? That said, as Americanisation takes over the world, "date" is probably used as much as anything. But HP is decidedly more old-fashioned and British than modern-day teenaged Australia, so...
*"Road trip" - I've actually only ever heard this term once before, and that was in an American film. Probably just "travel" would work... let me think. My mum regularly tell ms how she and dad "drove around Australia" twenty years back, and she's certainly never referred to it as a road trip. That's a snarly one.
*"Diner" - decidedly American. "Takeaway" might work better there.
*"Don't say anything until I'm done" - done in this context is another Americanism, though few people realise it. You might want to use "finished" instead.
*You sporadically switch between British and American spelling. There are a lot of "realiSes" but still "favOrites" etc. Just whack it into Word and change the language preference to British, it'll pick up the American spellings.
But, they're all about as nit-picky as you'll get. I don't have any criticism for the actual story. Well done. :)
xoxo Phia
Author's Response: Thanks! I appreciate all the pointers -- I'll have to fix all that :) I'm glad you enjoyed the actual story!
Yowza! that was ...WOW!
Its always so great to see people using their natural talents. Yours is amazing. I love how you made this so realistic and funny and quirky all at the same time.
Keep it up-you're BRILLIANT.
Love Always,
The V94
Author's Response: Thanks very much! I'm glad you liked it and thought it realistic but funny, too! :)
WOW! this made my day! it was so cute and well-written :)
best harry/ginny story yet!
Author's Response: Thanks very much! I'm glad you think it the best ;)
that was just incredible, perfect, and every wonderful adjective you could possibly imagine! harry and ginny to the point where you'd think that J.K. Rowling her self gave you a lecture. and i don't JUST say that. i have high standards, i don't usually finish reading these stories, they are either too far fetch from the potter story or the writing is just unberable, but yours was the first i couldnt stop.
Author's Response: Thanks very much! I'm glad it wasn't too far-fetched and it seemed in-line with the Harry Potter universe! Thanks for the review :)
I liked this story alot. You did a great job staying true to the characters, and I always love to see Harry get to be happy.
Author's Response: Thanks! I always like to see Harry happy, too :)
Well here's some sugar for your tea ;)
I loved this fic!!
it was really sweet, not overly lengthy, and had some really cute lines in there!
The only thing I would have liked even more is if you continued to write about the family reception and fluff :). But then again, I also wish the harry potter books continued until one was titled "Harry Potter and the Balding Baffle" or "Harry Potter and the Missing Cane", but we all can't get what we want now can we? :p
-megan
Author's Response: Thanks very much! It would have been fun to include more of the Weasley family, but I couldn't make it much longer without making it multiple chapters, and I wanted to keep it as a one-shot. I'm glad you liked it!
wow i've read a lot of Post DH H/G stories which pick up from right after the battle and this is definitly one of my favourites! i really enjoyed Ginny's POV too.
thanks!
Author's Response: Thanks very much! I'm glad you liked it :)
Another wonderful story coming from your mind! How do you stand all this wonderfullness practically bursting outta your ears!! If you ever wanna trade minds, im totallly for it!
Author's Response: Haha, thanks very much! :) That's high praise!
I enjoyed you story Wait, I think it was an original and inspired idea. It was an interesting collection of stories, although I was dissapointed to see that Ginny's final year at Hogwarts wasn't written here, as that would certainly come under the category of 'Wait'. You simply had Harry describe his pain to Ginny, and his speech was not recorded and I think that that would have added a new element to this story. Never mind though.
I liked the way you included the dictionary definitions for the word 'Wait' as it added interest to the read and gave it variety and diversity. Well done, that was a great story!
Author's Response: Thanks very much! I could only fit so much into the story without making it multiple chapters and more of an epic project than I wanted to take on. I'm glad you liked it nonetheless!
Absolute perfection. Best H/G fic I've read by far. And I loved that it was a oneshot, but part of me still wants more!
Author's Response: Thanks so much! I'm glad you liked it. I could have easily split it into chapters, but I thought it was best all in one. :)
This is my absolute favorite Harry/Ginny fic. I love the use of the word "wait" scattered throughout the story- it made your writing fresh and really stand out from other fanfics. Also, you portrayed the characters very well. Harry and Ginny were incredibly believable, which made your fic ten times better. I LOVED IT!
Author's Response: Thanks so much! That's high praise. It's really important to me that characters stay in-character in my stories, so I'm glad to know you think I managed to that in this! :)
Great, but it was a really long chapter.
Author's Response: It was really long, you're right. I'm glad you liked it nonetheless!
This is a very good story. Its cool how you did the things with the different meanings of wait.
Author's Response: Thanks! I'm glad you think so. :)
That was awesome, totally loved it, couldn't of thought of a more awesome story myself.
Author's Response: Thanks! I'm glad you think so :)
I was giving this another read and wanted to leave a follow up reveiw because I noticed some changes since my review and wanted you to know that it's always nice to think that the comments you make in a review can have an effect on the author. The changes you have made may only be small, such as the odd American to British word here and there but they really make a difference to way I read it and it's good that you took the time to do them.
Hannah
Author's Response: I always like it when people leave help in reviews -- if there are typos or small words I can change that will help the story, then I want to know. So thank you for telling me! I'm glad you appreciate the changes :)
What a lovely, lovely story. The time period immediately following the Final Battle is on that I am usually the least satistifed in general for some reason with canon compliant stories, and this was great! The time period right after the final battle to the transition to their careers was nice all the way to their marriage - everything felt nice and...real. I also related to this story on a personal level having been in a long-distance relationship for several years, so I definitely identified with Ginny's frustration, lol. Even if I hadn't though, the "waiting" theme was wonderfully done and this story was a delight to read.
Author's Response: Thanks so much! I'm glad you found it realistic -- that's always something I strive for in my stories. I've read a lot of fanfictions that take place right after the final battle, and while I have read a lot of good ones, I generally -- like you -- aren't very impressed by them. It's good to know you think mine does a good job! :)
That was great. I really loved reading it. Thanks for writing it!
Author's Response: Thank you! I'm glad you liked it.
One of the good things about modding is that it does mean I get to find fics which are a great read and make me want to come back and tell you the author so. And I have to say wow – you took a period of time that most people would cover in several chapters and squeezed it all in to a long one-shot and it still worked. I felt that each segment gave me enough detail to understand Harry and Ginny’s thoughts and feelings and the development of their relationship, but without any of them going too far and becoming boring or repetitive. I liked the restatement of the definition of wait used to split the sections, rather than just the simple use of a horizontal rule, as I felt it really emphasised the point of your story.
It is hard to pick a favourite segment of this story as one of its strengths is that they all fit together extremely well. I did like Harry’s proposal, however, and the wedding scene, particularly this part: Hermione and Ron both protested and tried to convince them to reconsider. Ginny told them if they didn’t want to come, then she’d owl Luna to act as witness. made me smile.
The plot was good and addressed some interesting issues. I like that you stuck closely to canon, incorporating all of the information that JK has given in interviews. It is true that with Harry and Ginny both starting such hectic careers they would have struggled to find time to spend with each other and even after the war, waiting still would have played a part in their relationship. I found the idea of elopement believable as Harry, especially, has shown his hatred of extra attention. It was interesting that they were able to convince a priest to marry them in the middle of the night, but sweet nonetheless.
Your characterisation of Harry and Ginny was excellent and I really felt you understood the characters you were writing about. The Christmas Eve scene was especially fitting and it is very easy to believe Harry reacting to Ginny’s letter so literally, by quitting the program to be with her. His actions seemed perfectly natural for Harry and exactly the way he would deal with such a problem. Ginny’s reaction: “Harry, you’re an idiot!” she exclaimed. was very fitting and a realistic response to Harry’s behaviour.
Being nit-picky, I did notice that there were some canon capitalisation errors in this sentence: All the bodies had been taken to the great hall and the House Elves had already done quite a job cleaning up most of the blood and lesser debris. Great Hall should be capitalised while house-elves shouldn’t and should also be hyphenated. Other than that, however, it was technically strong.
The only other thing I noticed while reading was that the tone of the dialogue occasionally became Americanised which did have an affect on the flow of the chapter and moments of the characterisation. It was mainly only simple things, such as the use of the word ‘candy’ and Ginny saying “You smell like arse,” which are simple to change but have a big impact on the way a British reader, especially, might read something.
All in all, this is a great one-shot and a really good example of a Harry/Ginny romance.
Hannah
Author's Response: Thanks so much! I greatly appreciate you taking the time to leave such a wonderful review -- and for pointing out those errors, which I'm about to go fix. My biggest problem with writing Harry Potter fanfiction is the tendency to Americanize, and I apologize for that. I'm glad you enjoyed it otherwise! I've read a lot of fanfiction that takes place in those years right after the end and while I have enjoyed most of them, I've always wanted to try my own hand at it without having to devote myself to a chaptered-story. It's good to know you think I was able to write it out well in only one chapter! :) And as for understanding Harry and Ginny -- that's high praise and I think you very much! I love Lily and James and Ron and Hermione, but Harry and Ginny always have been and always will be my favorite.
wow. what an amazing story!!! that made my day, thank you!! :-)
Author's Response: Thanks! I'm glad I could make your day -- it certainly brightens mine to know that! :)
