"Casey Toh (I was reviewed by one of the best, that's you by the way, keep up the good work!)"

This was Kristen00's note to me (and other reviewers) in her latest chapter of her fic, "All is not lost."

Hm...interesting...

I mean, when I joined Fanfiction.net in 2000, I started out purely in the Batman fandom and remained there for about 2 years. I made quite a name for myself in that fandom, because I was considered a rather okay writer, and had written quite a few fics there.

Within those 2 years, I branched out a wee bit into the X-Men, Mortal Kombat, and the Magician fandoms. With only one/a few fics in the first two, I wasn't too well-known there; the Magician one I was definitely known, because I was one of the less-than-ten writers in that fandom at that time, and we all know one another well, except for a few newcomers and one-timers.

Then, came the Lord of the Rings fandom. It's too big for everyone to know everyone else, but we have "cliques" and all, for lack of a better word. And, within each clique lies many who are acquaintances of the clique but who read the authors' works. And within my own "clique" I'm an okay writer. Not good, but okay enough for a few established and awesome writers to place me as one of their favorite authors.

Okay...LotR for 2 years. Now...Pitch Black/Chronicles of Riddick fandom. I've got two completed one-shot works, and one WIP, and already, people are starting to notice my works and tell me I'm a good writer.

I guess this really pleases me--the acknowledgement, as well as the knowledge that I have improved over 7 years of writing. Valar. Now, I don't dare to even *peek* at my writings from the past. They were THAT terrible, yes. I shudder to even think of them. But it had been those truly pukeable works that had made me fall, get critisized, flamed, and stuff that had allowed me to improve, and I'm really glad for that.

Even now, I write terrible works that I don't show to anyone else. But it's those works that let me see my mistakes so that I can write good ones to post online. :)

Yay. :)