Talk:Even So/@comment-5342796-20151031031913

PARTS THREE - TEN

You are an incredible writer. Seriously. It's unbelievable. You've created such a complex plot, such a detailed and well-thought out environment, such an enormous cast of characters, and yet you still manage to keep track of them all. You weave them together seamlessly, you jump between plotlines perfectly, and your development is well-paced. There's a building sense of suspense as we discover each horror about life and how harsh it is, as we see through Lash's eyes how cruel the cats she's surrounded by can be.

I love the way you set up the story. It's a really good idea, and you've got very mature themes about power struggles, class struggles, and equality in it. The overseer, evil and awful as he is, is a very essential character--he's the perfect villain. Unlike other villains, who are unrealistically and stereotypically evil, you've given the overseer the power of manipulation, something absolutely essential to holding office of such a large group. He plays both sides; he forces and intimidates his high-workers into keeping the other cats in line for him, but at the same time he caters to the other cats' desire for revenge and lets them take their anger out on cats like Bear, who dare to dissent. He lets the citizens of the group think that their anger should be focused on anyone who threatens the set-up, which prevents them from being angry with the set-up itself. It's a good change from the classic "YARRR, BIG BAD EVIL CAT WANTS TO TAKE OVER AND FOR SOME REASON CATS ARE FOLLOWING HIM?" thing. The overseer has a measure of subtlety and cunning that makes him all the more frightening; the horrors he conducts are hidden, and I'm eager to find out what the mystery of the willow tree is and why he's sending cats out there.

Then there's the amazing, compounded dynamics of the groups of cats themselves. HOW do you do it!?!??! There's a camp of thousands of cats, and Lash's group is big, and her squad, though smaller, is still sizable. Yet you develop personalities for countless members and make them memorable enough for the reader to know them. I love Lash's squad; their youth and misfit-type diversity makes them more lovable. Ember is amazing; the part where he dived in to save the kits really showed the kind of heroism Lash has inspired in her group, despite everything about their home that drives them towards selfishness and "every cat for his/herself" mentality.

Lash herself is a great leader. She has all the qualities necessary to manage a huge group of cats, and yet still manages to find the time to be gentle with the littler ones; her relationship with Faith is so heartwarming. Her organization is impeccable. Her thoughts and vantage point on the going-ons of the camp provide the reader with the perfect way of knowing both background on the camp, but not knowing everything; there's still a lot more that Lash has to discover, and we know it, and eagerly wait for her to do a little more sleuthing to see where this is going.

Gingersnap is absolutely one of my faves <3 I hope that whatever the overseer has done to sort of brainwash him, he snaps (HA, PUNS) out of it soon.

I really shoulda read this sooner. Your writing is flooring; absolutely pure talent. I can't wait to read more c:

>SPOILERS<