Fabric Squares, by mari4212

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Title:  Fabric Squares

Author:  mari4212

Categories:  Carson, gen.

     
The quilt had been finished his first year at college, but his mother had been working on it for years.  There was the scrap of lace and satin from her wedding dress, ivory with age.  The rough wool was from his father's favorite suit jacket, the one that had been ruined in an incident involving a forgotten pen and a washing machine.  The neat square of white cotton came from a handkerchief, he knew, but Mum had never told him the story associated with it, just blushed when he asked.  Brightly colored silks, sturdy cottons, a piece off of his first graduation robe, every patch was a memory of someone in his family, some special event.  The back was solid, one long piece of tartan wool.  When he had said he could only take one item from home, his mother had shoved this into his hands.  Lifting the heavy fabric to his face he smelled home, a mix of tea, the scent of the air in his mother's garden, and the sachets of spice that she placed in her hope chest along with the linens.

     Carson finished making his bed, and smoothed the quilt down over the top.  Maybe this would make Atlantis seem like a home.

First story, so I'd love any comments on how to improve. 

Comments

[scrollgirl.livejournal.com]

A quilt! Awww, call me old-fashioned but I love the idea of quilts and wrapping a symbol of your family around you to keep warm. This is so sweet, thanks for sharing!

As for comments on how to improve, I can only suggest that you insert breaks between your paragraphs. It'd make your story easier to read.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

And I originally did have breaks between the paragraphs. I don't know where they went.

[hth-the-first.livejournal.com]

Very nice! I have a soft spot for Carson being the giant mama's boy that he is, so this was perfect for me. I thought your first story was just fine -- everything you wrote said something, no wasted space, and the final thought seemed very in-character for him; I can see him being one of those people for whom *home* is a huge deal. Congratulations! The second story is always the hardest! *g*

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much. I'm not normally a story writer, I tend to be the editor, so I'm not sure where this plot bunny came from.

And yes, I was trying to give him a sense of home. Quilts are a large part of my family life, and he seems so traditional that I can see it being a part of his life too.

[tigs.livejournal.com]

Oh, I really liked this. And it's something that I can totally see Carson bringing. Very nice.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

[(Anonymous)]

Awww...:-) I love Carson, that adventurous homebody. Nice job!

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much.

[mice1900.livejournal.com]

This is very nice and feels quite in character for our dear Scot. Congratulations!

You get paragraphs here by putting a line between each one.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

Let me try to put the lines back in. I swear they were there when I typed it.

[lapislaz.livejournal.com]

This is lovely. Sometimes, short is best.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

[zulu.livejournal.com]

Carson-as-homebody pleases me muchly. Yes. It is a good thing.

If you wanted to, you could edit this down to a hundred words...not really because it *needs* it, because it's fine as it is, but just because cutting things often makes them stronger; you learn to keep the best words and leave out the extraneous ones. Just a thought.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I see him as needing a sense of home, wherever he is.

I can see where cutting things out makes it stronger, and in fact I did edit this down a bit before I posted. This was what fit the scene I was trying to make.

[elvinborn.livejournal.com]

aww, that's lovely. makes me want a quilt like it :) Seems very like Carson

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Have I mentioned I come from a quilt-toting family? Thanks for commenting.

[wickedwords.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's so sweet! And so Carson. Thanks.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Aren't I supposed to be thanking you for commenting?

[heylittleriver.livejournal.com]

Oh, Carson. Awww.

This is beautiful. Lovely descriptions and it evokes a wonderful homey and personal feeling. Gorgeous.

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

*blushes* Thank you!

[heylittleriver.livejournal.com]

You're welcome. :D

I'm wondering though, why you didn't tell those of us over at Spec Ops about it. Because it's a really good fic. And not only that, but it's a really good Carson fic. We deserve to know about the goodness! :P

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Um, I didn't think of it? This plot bunny bit me in the middle of the night, and I had to write it. If you want I'll post a link.

[sdwolfpup.livejournal.com]

What a sweet story and, as others have said, so Carson. Lovely!

[mari4212.livejournal.com]

Thank you!