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Update Diary: Hell/Dolls (June 18th, 2025)

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I AM LATE BUT I AM HERE~!

I apologize for the delay getting to the story update, but I’ve been finalizing(ish) the prelude and first chapter of the story for release, which should be available sometime this month or next. I’m very excited that we’re so close to release!

In other news, here’s the current status of the series:

Current Chapter: 10 (Status and Poison)

Pages (not including title and ToC): 138

Current Word Count (same): 62,730

I think that I’m nearing the middle of this part of the story, if I’m being honest. I was originally envisioning the first “book” to have 30 or so chapters, including asides. With the way things are playing out writing-wise, I may end up only releasing 25 chapters, if that.

I also wanted to clarify something I may have forgotten to mention in the last update; I had to rearrange some of the paragraphs as I reviewed the story to fit the… “pacing” of the speech and thoughts. I’m not a professional, and I’ll never (truly) claim to be until I release a physical book or something. I rewrite my chapters regularly and I read and listen to my story whenever I can to catch hiccups and mistakes. But I am not perfect, and I have learned to accept that.

The story’s endgame has not changed, just some wording and clarifications fixed or added. Because I haven’t really said anything about the story, I realize it is a completely mystery to anyone reading these updates. But please believe me, I am putting all my effort into making this story enjoyable to some degree.

As I said previously (I think in the March update), I am using Autocrit to help me close the gaps. I want to be very clear about this, however: Autocrit is a support tool for me. I use it to catch repetitive mistakes and unresolved plot threads, but I do not generate any of the text that will be released. I do not like the idea of writing a story completely with AI, and I greatly enjoy creating my own worlds from scratch and mind. I take any suggestions from Autocrit with a grain of salt, but I do trust that the mistakes it catches can help me improve.

Sorry, a lot of infodumping at the last minute, but I felt I should be very clear about everything regarding the story – why I’ve been delayed, what I’m using and why, and my level of dedication to this project. As I said, I’m extremely excited to share this.

Keeping in touch,

-M. Isif

Anime Review: Sengoku Youko

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It’s been a while since I’ve posted an anime review, so I figured I’d pad my site with a fairly recent series!  Sengoku Youko is an emotional rollercoaster from start to finish, and I’d love to spoil it for you.

In case you didn’t get it, spoilers ahead.

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Update Diary: Hell/Dolls (May 15th, 2025)

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Hello again everyone!  A new month, a new update on the progress of my story.  Summer this year is going to be busy, but I will keep updating my progress at least once a month.

Here are the stats for today:

Current Chapter: 9 (Truths and Lies)

Pages: 112

Current Word Count: 59,215

As y’all can see, I’m plugging away at the story at a breakneck pace compared to the last few months.  I did remember this time to omit the counting for the title page and Table of Contents, so these numbers are for the raw story.

I do have something I’d like to ask of anyone willing to answer:

Do you prefer stories with chapter titles, or just chapter numbers?

I personally like stories with chapter titles in case I take a long break from reading something – the names help me remember what is currently happening.  The current story for Hell/Dolls has chapter names (primarily to find story points easily when editing), but I know that a lot of mainstream YA novels don’t have them.

Once I start releasing the chapters, I’d like to consistently provide chapter names if the public prefers.  Ultimately it’s a personal choice, but I’d like to know what others think.

For now, please be patient for the release of the prelude and first chapter!  Thank you to all who read my ramblings and stories!

-Marcosias

Anime Review: Yozakura Quartet (Hana no Uta, Hoshi no Umi, and Tsuki ni Naku)

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Anime review time, y’all! And a doozy at that: a fanservice-y, action-moe-comedy adventure, that is Yozakura Quartet (the later episodes, not the original series)!

I decided to review these three arcs together, since they are meant to be part of the same continuity (the original series deviates a bit compared to these ones, which is why we’ll be ignoring it for now).

Here is a brief synopsis from MAL (this one’s hard for me to explain for some reason):

The world of Yozakura Quartet is actually not one, but two worlds: one of humans, and one of youkai. Despite appearing mostly human, youkai may have animal like physical traits, along with a number of special abilities. Normally youkai are confined to their world, but some have found their way into the realm of humanity. As a symbol of peace, and a bridge between the two realms, a city was constructed within the protective barrier of seven magical trees, otherwise known as the Seven Pillars. This city of Sakurashin is home to both humans and youkai, with the peace between them maintained by the Hizumi Life Counseling Office.

The director of this office is Akina Hiizumi, a teenager with the inherited family ability to perform “tuning,” which can send harmful youkai back to their world permanently. He is aided by a group of girls, including the town’s 16 year old youkai mayor, Hime Yarizakura, their town’s announcer and resident telepath, Ao Nanami, and Kotoha Isone, a half-youkai who can summon objects just by stating the object’s name.

As new residents enter and mysterious events begin to take place, this quartet of protectors and their closest friends must continue to guard the city of Sakurashin, and maintain the fragile balance of peace between humans and youkai.

This show is one of my favorites, though as I rewatched this particular series, I realized it may be a bit… much for people just getting into anime.  Some of the fanservice and jokes may not have aged well, also.

So take everything I say with a grain of salt, and as always, spoilers ahead!

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Anime Review: Vivy ~Fluorite Eye’s Song~

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Good morrow!

Today, we will be taking a look at a show that tackles a specific future: AI and the destruction of humanity.  Did you guess right? It’s “Vivy ~Fluorite Eye’s Song~, a series that has one hell of an opening scene, and even more hell of a story!

A little look at the plot synopsis, created from my own mind:

The story follows the beginning of artificial intelligence’s rise to commonplace, as AI begins to grow in both popularity and usefulness.  Specifically, a musical-type AI named “Diva” struggles to gain an audience, though she is “encouraged” by a human child to aim for the big stage.  Her coding is suddenly intruded on by another AI named “Matsumoto”, that tells her she is the key to preventing an AI apocalypse.  As she tries to ignore him / get rid of him, she becomes more aware of how true his mission is – for better and for worse.

And for once, I will ACTUALLY be spoiling some major points, so SPOILERS AHEAD!

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