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Coalesced Diffusion  by Thundera Tiger 6 Review(s)
obsidianjReviewed Chapter: 2 on 4/22/2014
This captures Merry so well. His mixture of stout hobbit sense and responsibility with the adventurous side of him. My favorites are Expert and Behind.

AdrianneReviewed Chapter: 2 on 6/30/2013
Bravo! I read this a few nights ago but did not have time to leave a reply. I'm back now to play catch up. I am loving this exercise. You capture the character of each member of the fellowship with poetic precision.

I love Petal, Snowflake, Renew, and Prescribe. Actually, I love all of them and it was difficult to narrow down my favorites.

Thank you for your marvelous insights.

Author Reply: Thank you so much for your review! I was actually hating this exercise when I belatedly realized I would need to create 225 responses to word prompts, but it was good for me. :) I need to get better at more descriptions in fewer words. It's why I have such admiration for drabble writers. What a hard writing style! Sheesh!

Thank you again!

LarnerReviewed Chapter: 2 on 6/28/2013
Again, an exemplary use of each prompt, and oh, so true to my own imagined character for Meriadoc Brandybuck. It was prompt 20 that struck me most this time, the comparison of himself to the fates of the snowflakes that fell too close to their fire atop Caradhras and realizing he is losing himself in like fashion--that somehow strikes close to my heart.

Author Reply: Hey again,

I had such trouble figuring out what I wanted to do with "snowflake" as a prompt! Caradhras was the immediate thought, but it felt too obvious and I wanted to focus more on the latter half of Merry's story. He really doesn't do much on Caradhras or in Moria. Not that we know of, anyway, and a single sentence didn't feel like the right forum to create excessive backstory that doesn't exist in canon. That's when I remembered his sword burning away and thought maybe I could do Caradhras and the Pelennor at the same time. ::shrugs:: It seems to have worked.

Thank you for the review!

FiondilReviewed Chapter: 2 on 6/27/2013
Another excellent chapter. The last prompt was my favorite, but I also liked "Violating". To see that scene from Merry's viewpoint... *shivers* Looking forward to more.

Author Reply: When I started outlining the events I wanted to depict in the prompts, I was surprised at just how often Merry came up wounded. There's the Barrow, Bree, Amon Hen, and the Pelennor. So I had to include each one, but "Violating" is probably my favorite, too. Someone should look into that and write a bigger story. Volunteers?

DreamflowerReviewed Chapter: 2 on 6/26/2013
Oh my goodness! You truly captured Merry's spirit in each of these, particularly his longing for adventure and his need to be in control of his path and that of those he loves!

Author Reply: Merry is such a fun hobbit! I love that guy! And I had a blast trying to weave a few key aspects of his character into all 25 prompts, admittedly with limited success in some. But he's such a put-together hobbit that it actually came pretty quickly. Would that all the hobbits could be so easy to write...

Thank you so much for the review!

shireboundReviewed Chapter: 2 on 6/26/2013
Goodness, these are marvelous. What clear and complete pictures you're painting of these beloved folk. "Expert", "Renew", and "Courteous" are especially good, but the way the tale's closure wraps around again to the beginning is quite masterful.

Author Reply: Thank you SO much for the review. As for the tale wrapping around...Merry is unusual in that. I couldn't quite pull it off in some of the other Fellowship members. At least, not to the degree that Merry provided. But I've always liked Merry, so maybe the preference made him easier to write. Thank you again!

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