Saturday, August 3, 2013

New Trials Chapter 69: The Betrayal

New Trials Chapter 69: The Betrayal is up at my website! Many apologies for the long delay.

I have mentioned in my chapter endnote that this chapter was the most difficult one to write to date. Those of you you have already read the chapter probably understand why it was so difficult to complete it. I'm almost scared to check my hotmail inbox (which sadly I haven't been able to check in months--I do not like the new layout). But on the brighter side, hopefully the next two chapters will be out quicker since Chapter 70 is 70% done and I've also worked on Chapter 71 already. 

I feel like I am always giving excuses on why it's taken so long to update a new chapter (which you guys know are the size of a moderate-length YA novel.) But you guys have been so understanding and supportive, which I am utterly grateful for, so I though I might give a brief run through of life.

This is my take two on this blog post-I was finished with a very long update on my life and my internet crashed on me literally as I typed in my last sentence which irritates me exceedingly. And I thought blogspot was supposed to save interim drafts?


So, as I may have mentioned before, I work in journalism which is a very time-consuming, exhausting profession which leaves me little time for hobby-writing. My poor fingers are exhausted at the end of the day. But anyhow, I was aiming to get this chapter up for Sakura's birthday but in March, I changed beats hence work got hectic. May, my Sony VAIO driver crashed, and I took the my laptop to the A/S center in my country. They told me I had to get the whole thing reformatted, and I told them, the whole reason I brought my laptop to pro technicians was so that they can fix it--I can reformat the computer myself at home if I want to. So, I had to say bye-bye to three-years worth of files and programs. Actually, I did manage to save most of my important files onto an external harddrive. But it was a pain to install programs all over again and I kept delaying the process of transferring files throughout the rest of the month. Needless to say, I am very sad that I have so few songs on my computer at the moment. I need good BGM to write. Also, I am not liking Microsoft Word 2010. 

Flashback to several months ago, I was asked by a close sister-like to be a bridesmaid for her June wedding. She's Korean, he's Chinese-American, and they had a beautiful garden wedding albeit chaotic. It was a very international wedding, and her other bridesmaids were coming from abroad, and I was busy running about interpreting for the guests. Funny story, it was so hot during the ceremony outside that I almost fainted from heatstroke. The interpreter just made the whole process very slow, and I hadn't eaten or drunk anything all day because it had been so hectic. I began to see white spots, and I kept telling myself I could not faint and ruin the wedding. I almost tripped as we made it back down aisle but thank goodness for the groomsman--I wouldn't have been able to walk in the straight line otherwise. Lesson of the day: eat and drink before big events. 

July was the busiest month ever because I was working on a feature series, people were gone for holidays so we had to write an extra article a day, and it was so hot my brain worked twice as slow. Sorry Syaoran, but it was a horrid month, and I'm glad it's over. 

The song the Tomoyo sings in Chapter 69 is "I Do" by Ilaria Graziano and composed by of course Yoko Kanno, a part of the Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex OST. I was surprised to realize that there actually was a Yoko Kanno song that I didn't know, but recently I listened to an amazing cover of the song by Rasmus Faber (in his Platina Jazz ~Anime Standards Vol.4 album), which might even be better than the original version. It had been a long time since a song captivated me and low and behold, it was Yoko Kanno's song. 

Some notes on the recent chapter that are not too spoilery. First, I was scouring the CCS Movie 1 to figure out where Syaoran lived. The CCS crew went up the tram to Victoria's Peak and then the next scene panned to Syaoran's mansion. Victoria's Peak is one of the most expensive real estate neighborhoods in the world. Yes, Syao-chan has just been that humble all along. Second, I really didn't care much for Erika in Arc 1 but she's grown on me over the arcs. Jinyu also was a sideline character, but it was fun seeing what his personality was like for the first time. Thirdly, oh my goodness, is it really the 15th anniversary of CCS? I'm very excited about all the pretty new CCS artwork I've been catching glimpses of.


18 comments:

  1. D= What a cliffhanger!!! Can't wait to see Sakura break through her limits to become a level 1 magician. Please update both blog & NT ASAP! I'm gonna continue checking everyday. =) Thanks for the latest chapter!

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  2. The ending...*cackles*
    what a nice gift for Syaoran's birthday huh?

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  3. it really is a difficult chapter, Sakura´s death was almost identical of her death in Tsubasa Chronicles Shunraiki, the only different thing is that in the chapter she doesnt try to say that she loves Syaoran before dispersing into petals xD

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  4. Wish-chan, your chapters are always worth the wait. Seriously, there is only was scenario where you owe us an apology and that's if you apologize for not being able to finish NT. As we know that's not going to happen, don't ever be sorry!

    Thank you so much for the detailed blog post about what's been happening with you. We really appreciate it.

    I can't believe how many times you've experienced computer crashes in the history of NT. Thank you for overcoming these technical difficulties and not giving up!!

    Take your time with the next chapter. The fan expectation is to get another chapter before the year ends, so you have lots of time to play catch up with your e-mails and comment on the wonderful fanart and doujinshi that has been done since you've last commented on deviantArt.

    I am so looking forward to your art updates!!!

    Loyally yours,

    ~Amethyst Beloved

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    1. Amethyst-chan~ Always so on top of things and to whom I'm always utterly grateful to for inspiring me to keep going. Now that you mention it, I've gone through so many computers crashes over the years. Let me think how many... Too many to count. But I'm so excited to catch up with all the new fanart and projects that have been ongoing while I was MIA. That's really the best part of finishing a chapter (until I begin full-throttle on the next one).

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  5. Wow, you've had a very busy time of things! You should never apologise for having to prioritise! We all understand that you have important things to do and as much as we (and I'm sure, sometimes, you) would love for you to be able to write to your heart's content sometimes that just isn't possible. And sometimes it's not to your heart's content. And sometimes you would like to but the words just won't...come...out. Writing is a difficult, time consuming task and we're just lucky that we get to enjoy the fruits of your labour!

    I thoroughly enjoyed the latest chapter and I'm hoping to use some of my free time this week (I'm smack in the middle of a two week break from work...convenient chapter release is convenient!) to reread the latest few chapters as a whole. It will certainly help me stop thinking about the amazing cliffhanger!

    (also, yes, July was evil...I had similar problems with being run off my feet at work due to people on holiday/sick/leaving and it being soooooooooo hot...I definitely empathise! Neither Syaoran's nor my birthday made the month any better...although the birth of my newest nephew did redeem it a little)

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  6. Aww, belated Happy Birthday Selenity~ I'm sorry July was tough for you as well but thank goodness that's over. And back in school days, I never wanted July to end. And how exciting to have a new nephew! No matter how bad of a day I'm having, babies make me feel happy and all giddy inside.

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  7. Aww... Hope everything is alright and well.

    Oh my goodness Wish-Chan, I am completely stuck on your new chapter. Your are giving everyone quite a scare with that last scene. Theme of the chapter or not, foreshadowing or not, that was heart-stopping. Your writing is seriously amazing. I think you have succeeded in freezing everyone inside and outside the story. Whenever it is possible, you have seriously got to share your thoughts about that ending. Maybe when you finish NT? I know talking about it now might spoil the rest of the story.

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  8. Hey Wish-chan! It's Vanessa, a.k.a. asocialcat/nekochan213 (serves me right for having such different usernames over the years), the doujinshi artist. We've all been really shaken by that chapter ending. However, I think beneath the shock we know deep down that you have a very good reason for it, which will be clarified in time... We've even speculated some reasons for it. (Though I still won't give up hope that Sakura might have staged it until I read more. :P Wishful thinking, I know...) Your writing is thoughtful, detailed, and compelling as usual. It is well worth the wait between chapters, and I'm sure most of the fans understand how difficult it is to balance your real life responsibilities with hobbies... so don't worry too much. ;) The fact that you've stuck with this so long is truly exceptional! :D

    Good luck on the next few chapters!

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  9. Hey Wish-chan,


    Since we're nearing the end, do you have any idea of what the last chapter will be? I was thinking 72 (since there are 36 chapters in the first 2 arcs), but do you have any idea of what the last chapter will be (or is there an epilogue as well?)

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    1. I was initially thinking of 72 chapters, But I think it might be slightly longer. Yes, there will be epilogues.

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  10. hey Wish-chan,

    My name is tiffany and i have been reading NT since the age of 14. I am now 23. Ive been a fan for over 8 year and will continue until you can no longer write. I have checked daily to see if you would post another chapter and have never been let down. Reading this last chapter that u uploaded has literally brought tears to my eyes. You really make me feel as if im part of the story and you are amazing at what you do. I look forward to chapter 70 to see what unfolds next. Thank you for being a complete inspiration and cant wait to see whats next!!!

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    1. Hi Tiffany, I'm touched that you've stuck around for so long, and I hope I do get to keep on writing as long as I could. I also started out as a teen writing New Trials and now am in my 20s. Sigh... Time flies.

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  11. It's hard for me not to feel late to the party. I've been a fan of CCS since it came out, but I only managed to find this recently. You have a new reader: I've only just begun the tale. I have a lot of reading to do, but I will do it, and thank you for such a long, dedicated epic.

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    1. Hi Josh, welcome to the community! I always get excited hearing from old CCS fans/ new readers of this fanfiction. Hope you stick around because it's a long tale!

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  12. hi i have read all chapters of ccs and i am such a great have... i really can't wait to read the rest of the chapters... iam looking forward to chapter 70 and thank u for ccs...

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  13. hi i have read all chapters of ccs and i am such a great have... i really can't wait to read the rest of the chapters... iam looking forward to chapter 70 and thank u for ccs...

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  14. I started reading ccs 3 weeks ago... i am great fan of ccs since i was a kid.. chapter 69 sure did put me on the edge with sakura's death... i understand y it was difficult to finish the chapter... i mean sakura can't die right she is the heroin of the story so i really hoping that u have a surprise twist in the story... so i am really looking forward for the rest of the chapter... thank u for ccs

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