Author Name: RaindropSoup
Story: In Love and War — Caius and Bella
Where to find RaindropSoup: FanFiction - Twiwrite - RogueFanFic - In Love and War Blog - For The Love Of Non-Canon Site
CareMarie: Tell us a little bit about yourself.
RSoup: I’m 27 years old and I have three wonderful kids. Greg—or as we call him “Goose” is four, Roslyn is two, and Gabriel is one. I was born on a military base, was a military brat, and I am now a military wife. *snickers* So, I guess I’m still a military brat. I grew up all over the place, but Japan is my favorite country. *Points to everyone*, you should all go—even before Europe! I was in Japan for seven years, through high school, and a few years after; it was so fucking awesome, especially the food. Being a military brat really helped me appreciate every culture and all history. I’m also really into designing; whether it’s designing a site, refurbishing and creating furniture, interior designing, painting and graphics in general, or any and all architectural designing—*laughs*—just designing period. I didn’t get to finish my major in Architectural Design because I wanted to stay home with my son, and I probably won’t major in it now, but I just love creating something from scratch and designing to make that something entirely unique.
CareMarie: You’re the creator – the “VSire” – of this site, The LUV’NV, tell us why did you created it.
RSoup: *laughs* There are a few reasons. One, I was tired of having to go through the “Featured Stories” list on sites. You have to click on each story to know the story summary, the pairing, etc. It’s tedious. I was looking for good fics that had specific non-canon pairings, and I wanted to find a fic it easily, but it essentially wasn't.
Two, I’m tired of Jasper and Bella, or even Edward and Bella. *giggles with her hands up in defense*
Three, I love The Twilight Awards site, and though they’ve recently changed it, you used to have to scroll down the long list of fics, and it's always with the newest fic on top. Again, it can be tedious. The same applies to FanFiction.net or Twilighted.net; I can search for certain characters and pairings, but I always asked myself, “Is it good? Or am I just going to be disappointed?’ *chuckles and shakes her head*
I know authors can’t please everyone, but personally, I have hard time reading and getting into fics that are grammatically incorrect to the extreme. I think obvious mistakes, especially a lot of mistakes, can mess up the flow of a story, so I move on. I want The LUV’NV to be a source of good, well-written fics. I created it so that anyone could easily find a fic by pairing, category, etc. including the summary, all that story’s media, and anything to do with that author. Now, the Fandom has one.
CareMarie: How did you get introduced into Fan Fiction?
RSoup: I couldn’t wait for the new Vampire Academy book to come out two years ago, and I stumbled on FanFiction.net then. I don’t remember how exactly, but from that moment on, I’ve been addicted. I actually didn’t get into Twilight Fan Fiction until a year ago.
CareMarie: Do you remember the first story you read?
RSoup: Yes, for the Vampire Academy, I read steffy2106’s Expect the Unexpected. It’s a Rose & Adrian pairing and so good, I fuckin’ cried. For Twilight, the first story I read was Master of the Universe by Snowqueens_Icedragon. I think we all know that one, and let’s just say my husband’s very… thankful for Snowqueen's fic. *laughs*
CareMarie: Is there a story behind your pen name?
RSoup: Yes. ‘Raindrop’ is a nickname I’ve had since 7th grade. *chuckles* My first name is Raina—pronounced as ‘rain’ + ‘uh’—and all my foreign friends called me RaindropSoup because most of them couldn’t pronounce my name correctly; yet they could always say, ‘Raindrop’, oddly enough.
My last name is Campbell—exactly like the soup. Then I came up with ‘RaindropSoup’.
CareMarie: What story (ies) are you reading right now?
RSoup: Umm… * laughs nervously and fidgets* I’m not reading any fics right now. I’ve been so busy with the site—*a book smacked in the face. wonderwoundedhearers is glaring teasingly*—I know! I’ll read it soon, I promise! *wonder smiles* Umm… yeah, I’m supposed to be reading some fics so I can give my own review or even just checking out fics that need “adVocating”, but umm… I’ve been so busy with the site *looks contrite* and setting up new staff that I haven’t gotten the chance to actually sit and read. Not to mention I have three kids. Moreover, it’s harder than people think to design and run a site! It’s not smooth sailing, and most of it is by trial and error. I'm constantly adding and changing it! *laughs* Sorry Vbabes!
CareMarie: Do you have a favorite character and if so, why that character.
RSoup: *turns head to the side* Hmm… *minutes of contemplation* I actually don’t have one. *laughs* I wish Stephenie Meyer delved deeper into the other vampires’ lives and their human lives, that’s for sure. In fact, I don’t like Edward or Bella per se, but I loved the series. *chuckles* I know that’s weird. Ultimately, I think women love Twilight because they can relate to Bella—being a teenage girl that feels insignificant or boring or not enough—and only want, need, to be loved. Bella’s an ordinary girl, made extraordinary because of that love—that’s what’s so great about Twilight. Though you may not agree or even like some of the relationships and the characters, it’s that love story that makes the book so appealing. *shrugs* Or maybe that’s just me.
--Stories--
CareMarie: First off, tell us a little bit about your story, In Love and War.
RSoup: *chuckles* My story has so many twists and surprises that I don’t want to say too much about the plot. Umm… I should start by saying that In Love and War is the first story I’ve put out there. I’ve written so many things before, but I've always been too scared to have anyone even look my stories. I don’t know if people know how much courage it takes to post a story on FanFiction, to have it read by those you don’t know and trust. Critiques should be welcome in reviews because I don’t think they’re just about “kudos”, but critiques can hurt and discourage the author as well.
I originally wrote the first few chapters of In Love and War for myself because I had so many ideas in my head, and I just got tired of waiting for another Bella and Caius fic. Then I finally decided to just fuck it and post that story. *laughs* I’ve said it before that I wish Meyer delved deeper into the other vampires, and that’s part of what my story is about—the reason why specific vampires are the way they are—their history, how they were changed, what living for eternity can do to them and how they’ve really “lived”.
I feel that Meyer left some details open and I’m trying to close those little details. Of course, I twist those details, we all do, but for example, I’ve always wondered what happened to Taha Aki. *looks pointedly at CareMarie* and that’s why he’s a main character. Sarah Black, Jacob’s mom, isn’t really well known, or she's rarely even written about. The Volturi’s history is a must because Twilight wouldn't have been the same without them.
In Love and War is also about emotions and fate—how both govern a person. Although we're all different and unique—personalities, looks, upbringing—emotion is the one thing we all have in common; whether you’re a villain, a vampire, a wolf, or a human. *laughs* In Love and War is about all the facets of great, true love—parental, spouse, brotherly, you name it—and how it can be consuming in a good way and in a bad way. Especially in the time of war.*winks*
CareMarie: Why did you pick the pairings that you did?
RSoup: *throws her head back and laughs. Then looks at everyone* Please don’t hate me, but uh... I’m not really a fan of Edward or Jasper as leading men. *giggles and hides* I don’t find either of them very interesting anymore. There can only be so many of each before they’re all the same, and the pairing gets boring.
CareMarie: Do you have a favorite point of view to write in?
RSoup: *smiles dreamingly* I love writing in Caius’s POV. I just love Caius. *giggles* I do have a hard time writing in Bella’s POV now that I’ve written a few chapters in Caius’s POV.
CareMarie: Was there a part in the Twilight Saga that inspired you?
RSoup: Yes, the Quileute legend in Eclipse really inspired In Love and War. I really appreciate the countries I've been to and their cultures, and that legend fascinated me the moment I read it. I actually read more about real Quileute legends because of it.
Not knowing many of the vampires’ history inspired me, too. I wanted to know more about the Volturi, how each member came about; as well as the history of the vampire race. Even though I’ve only got ten chapters posted so far, more info will be coming up on all the Volturi, the armies and covens along with how the vampire race came about.
CareMarie: Have you ever changed your story outline based off of a review? If so, what was the review and what did you change?
RSoup: No, not yet, and I may or may not ever do that for this story. I did put a poll up once because I couldn’t decide what I wanted to do. The poll was "Who would you rather have as a traitor?" The choices were Carlisle, Peter, New Character, Edward, or Alice. I think Edwice traitors are overused, but I didn’t know if that’s what readers want, or if authors just did had them as the villains for easy drama and plot.
The poll’s closed, but I still keep changing my mind since I have a few outlines and a few traitors for each. *laughs* I’ll probably go by the poll results if I can’t make up my mind soon. As you can see, I do want to give readers somewhat of what they want, but I also want my story to be different. There will be death – maybe your favorite character will die, and a character already did. There will be things that you won’t be able to stomach – *grins* maybe Carlisle as a traitor. Authors can’t please everyone, and there will be readers who aren’t happy or satisfied no matter what the author does. *shrugs* I’ll just have to wait and see.
CareMarie: Do any of your characters in your story remind you of yourself?
RSoup: Well, not entirely. Every character has some piece of me because I write them. I can play the piano, acoustic guitar, alto sax, some violin (I can't remember much of that one), and I am currently trying to learn the drums, so many of my characters are musical. Umm… I guess I’d say Caius would be the closest to me in personality and experience, though definitely not the same temperament. *laughs*
In In Love and War he’s done many things, too many things, which you’ll find out eventually, and I dabble in everything I can get my hands on. *chuckles* He’s also been to a lot countries because he’s lived so long. I’ve been to so many countries that I’ve lost count. My Caius is a pilot; my husband’s actually trying to get his private pilot’s license. *giggles*
I won’t say too much because the next chapter, Chapter 11, is his story. You’ll find out what his human life was like and how he was changed. A huge hint/teaser/spoiler—whatever: he had a son. *wink*
CareMarie: *Gasp* Now you better hurry up and update, I'm gonna be on your ass now until you do so.... *Sticks tongue out at Raina*
RSoup: *throws her head back and laughs* I'm so sorry. I know I haven't updated. PTB is actually my beta—a beta service that gives authors two betas to edit each chapter. PTB is editing those ten chapters that didn't get beta'd or are utter crap in grammar and sentence structure. *laughs* We're playing catch-up. I hope I can post Chapter 11 right after the new year.
*Grins and hugs CareMarie* Thank you, Carrie, for interviewing me. Oh, and thank you for being my SIC here at The LUV'NV. ;)
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