All Comments on 'Idle Hands Ch. 06'

Everyday, I checked for the latest update. Incredible writing and story!

You've done such a great job with authenticity of your charaacters, I almost hate to point this out, but it is a bit obvious, mostly because I work with metals.

You wrote:

"Gingerly, she lowered the edge of the bronze blade to the leather strap. Bright orange sparks flew as the friction ground away the rough edges, leaving a finely-honed edge in its wake."

First, a leather strap would not be used to roigh grind anything, it has no abrasive property. You allude to a proper abrasive medium being used in the next paragraph as Althea recalls her father helping her with her first sword., (granite stone driven by the muscles of an angel, I believe was written).

A leather strop, (not strap), IS used in the sharpening process, but it is used as a final finish, honing process. Thinnk aearly 20th, or 19th century barber stroping his straight razor, just before he applies the 'razor sharp' edge to a bearded throat. The leather strop is the reason the term 'razor sharp' came to be. It is just brasive enough to rid a ground edhe of its miniscule abrasions, ans roughness.

Last, bronze is a non-ferous metal, (not iron-based). Because of that, grinding bronze, (all non-ferrous metals, actually: copper, brass, aluminum, etc.) produces no sparks. A bit of trivia about grinding sparks from ferrous based alloys. The color, shape, and length of the sparks, when held on a grinding wheel can be used to identify the metal alloy being ground.

Some old timers can hit a grinder with a piece of 'mystery metal', and tell you exactly what it is; us mear mortals, need a chart!

(Please excuse any misspellings; either my eyes have just failed me, badly, or it's the miniscule font in this new interface, or I'm having a fucking stroke. If the later, this may well be may last comment on Lit. Enjoy.

Tremendously well done tale. It should be used as a model for how to write a story. Great character developement; technically superb, a well paced storyline, and but for the bronze grinding faux pas, well researched. (Especially impressed with Yasna's physiology explanation to Sarah, (my university education produced an exercise physiologist, I work in metals and other materials to satisfy my penchanct to create, and to keep me sane.)

GeoD

The next and final chapter is coming way too soon. Almost sad to reach the end of this wonderfully written tale.

Thanh you for sharing this with us here. 5 bright stars !!!!!

Loving this series. Whilst I really want to have the next chapter available to read it's going to a bit of a downer as it means the series has come to it's end.... assuming no unanticipated twists in the plot to add more content ;)

Extremely well written. Many thanks for sharing with us all.

Love the story I can't wait to read the next chapter!