Due South Podfic: Kowalski is Bleeding, by Speranza

[darkemeralds]

Kowalski is Bleeding, by Speranza
Fandom: Due South
Pairing: Fraser/RayK, Vecchio/Stella
Rating: Adult
Read by darkemeralds, with Spanish language sections by vampirefan
For ratherastory, Podbang 2010
Running time: Just under 7 hours

MP3 here
M4b podbook here

This is one of my favorite stories in fandom. It has a beautiful woven structure, a terrific plot, and Speranza's usual great characterizations. I hope I've done it justice.

Thank you to the wonderful mods at amplificathon for running this show and zipping up the files to the archive, and to general_jinjur for providing the archive space.

Comments

[andeincascade]

This recording is absolutely extraordinary. I've been listening to it exclusively since it was posted - I did the same thing when Eight Sessions was recorded, just had to listen over and over - and I love what you've done here.

I love how expressive you are. You seem to "get" the story in the same way I do. I especially love your voice characterization of Vecchio who we don't see often enough in podfic. You nailed him. Actually, you nailed all of them.

Thank you for this wonderful gift. I really hope you'll record more due South some day. You have made me an ardent fan!

[darkemeralds]

Oh my gosh, thank you! Best feedback EVER. Podfic is a funny critter--I think it gets listened to a whole lot more than it gets commented on (the ratio is terrible in written fic and I think ten times worse in podfic), but we who make the stuff put it out there for the love of the game, and then fret and stew and wonder if we fucked up completely.

In short, it goes out into the void, and I am so very grateful to you for listening and commenting at all, let alone for liking my effort so well and saying such nice things! I spent a fair amount of time watching Vecchio-heavy episodes and trying to get his voice, hoping against hope that I would not offend my Midwestern friends with my overly-broad attempt at Chicago-speak.

I'd love to do more dS fic, and I probably will, but at the moment I'm in the middle of a massive Supernatural BigBang story that runs over 100,000 words, so it may be a while. Any faves you think I should consider?

Thanks again, so much! You really made my day!

[medeine]

It looks like the m4b link just opens this page.

[darkemeralds]

Oh! Thanks for letting me know. That shows how many people have tried to get the M4b from here--there was no URL in there.

I've updated the post. The M4b direct download link is:

http://podfic.jinjurly.com/audfiles/5201012147.zip

I hope you enjoy the story.

[medeine]

I thought I might have done something wrong, as I always choose the m4b file. Maybe other people just switched to the mp3 when the first didn't work.

Thanks for the link; I can't wait to have a listen. :)

[bluemeridian]

I just now finished listening to this - you kept me company through a long gardening session yesterday and I couldn't leave it for the next one and had to listen to the rest of it today. It's very, very good with divisions between the characters I could feel and such a natural rhythm! I've only listened to a couple of other short podfics before this, so I'm perhaps not the most informed listener, but I've listened to enough audio books to know how important the reader can be to the enjoyment to this form of story and may I just say that this was absolutely top notch, Em!

[darkemeralds]

Oh my goodness--thank you so much! I'm just delighted that you enjoyed it, and so grateful to get feedback. Podfic is a funny part of the fandom world, where I think people enjoy it, but hardly anybody ever finds out for sure, because it takes a real commitment to come back online and leave a comment.

So thank you for going to the extra trouble. It really means a lot to me. And I adore your icon!

[abbylee]

I commented on the (I think) LJ amplificathon post a while ago, but I was listening to your reading again today and wanted to tell you again how much I love it. I keep a lot of audiofic on my phone, even though I often can't listen to it, so that I have it available when I can and need it. So I tend to hit shuffle so that I can hide out in a story, and I love how quickly I fell into your storytelling, even though I jumped right back in to part three. The way you inhabit Vecchio, especially, makes me just feel all wrapped up in it. Thank you so much for sharing.

[darkemeralds]

Thank you! What a lovely note, and so timely. I've just this evening been organizing a new recording setup, trying to simplify the process of making podfic so I'll make more. I can't tell you how encouraging your comment is!

Thank you so much for listening, enjoying, and taking the time to let me know. It really means a lot.

[abbylee]

This makes me so excited to hear! Enough that it's partly to blame for me taking so long to figure out replying with more than !!!!!, but I finally decided: that is good enough. !!!! It makes me happy when people have the time and energy to do things that make them happy (as I assume recording does for you) and then I also get the bonus of stories that I get to listen to. So thank you again for sharing :)

[cantarina]

Listening to this is an awesome punch to the gut, every time. You handled the windows of text really well too! Your Ray Vecchio is all kinds of awesome - kind of brash and full of energy - and man, Fraser is so mellow in comparison. Well, the few times he can actually manage mellow during this story! Also, the music is a really interesting choice that I don't think I'd have ever picked out, but it really really works in a way I'm having trouble qualifying. Thanks for sharing it :)

[darkemeralds]

Oh, thank you. What lovely feedback. I really enjoyed trying to channel Ray Vecchio.

The music is from the Due South soundtrack--"Neon Blue," by the Holly Cole Trio. They performed on-screen in one of the early episodes, where Fraser is charged with looking after the Canadian ambassador's runaway daughter. (It's the one with the macguffin of the book of matches.)

So even though you don't hear much of the song, it does have a connection with the Ray V. seasons. I'm glad it fit for you.

Thanks again.