Question Sorting out what still needs reading - help a guy catch up

I'm over 50% of the way through the much smaller Gen 2 archives, but I'm still badly behind on Gen 1.

I vaguely recall falling off the wagon somewhere after Kodiak picks up the rest of the Kodiak, Loophole gets a spirit, and before Tansy's face Heel turn or the loophole/Kayda sex tape incident (which i learned of from the wiki and accidentally reading a few stories I should have waited on). I've also read Wine Woman and Ayla, the Combat Finals piece, and Pomp and Circumstance.

Which Loophole and Kayda stories do I still need to read to start catching up?

I haven't touched Sappho or Hank, but where do those fall in the timeline order? I want to roughly read stuff in chronological order if possible, but to do that I need some help working on the chronology. Can I get some help with that?

The wiki has the full chronology if you want to read everything in the order it happened.

But my advice, having done the same rapid catching up on Gen 1? Don't.

Many of the stories overlap chronologically, but not in a way where they make cohesive sense. In a lot of ways, publication order has a better flow to it. Find a good launching point, go through them in the order they were posted, and fill in the blanks by reading characters you find interesting by checking the wiki for their appearances.

Personally, I think Buffalo Gal Won't You Come Out Tonight (beginning of Kayda's arc) or Even Murphy's Law has Loopholes (Murphy/Lanie's) are the two best launching points where Gen 1 is now. Read form whichever you choose forward. Kayda's good because it is from an outsider's perspective, and Murphy/Lanie's if you're more familiar with it all.

Then go after the Outcast Corner stories, Parkour Jam Hooligans, Bad Seeds (Jobe, Jadis, and Nacht), and Vamp (just because) because they set the stage from those varied perspectives and give the best sense of world building. Jadis especially because that girl is an explainer.

Then fill in random stories with Wondercute's founding, Star League Junior, Spy Kidz comedy relief, Charge, Envy and the Gilded Cage, Seraphim's (There's an Angel in Father John's Basement, etc.), and so on.

Skip Ayla's stories, skip much of Team Kimba in general. It's not to say those stories aren't great, they are, its just that there is a lot, and unless you want to seek out a particular story, for example when Halloween 2006 is referenced, you won't feel like you're missing out on too much. A lot of this is due to author activity level. The forum community will be absolutely certain to correct you when you make a mistake, or hadn't read something.

When you read a story, and they bring up something, like...the BIT Slicer, make a note to yourself and then use the wiki to find the appropriate stories. When you're out of stuff to read, that's when you go back to Mom I Don't Feel So Good and start filling in Team Kimba.

To clarify? I've read the beginning of Kayda up to about ... that's what I'm not sure of. After the hottub social... I think? No, before the hottub from Kayda's perspective, but AFTER the hottub from Elaine's POV. I've read Everything Jadis, Envy, Whisper, Wondercute Founding, ALL of Team Kimba's available POV stories except the very most latest Tennyo, Bits of Charge and a few others.

I'm 100% caught up on Outcast Corner. The only reason I was motivated to come back was finding out there was new Outcast Corner content. I've read the very latest Murphy story.

At the very least, I need to figure out where I am on Loophole and Kayda.

The hottub social is considered from both Kayda's and Loophole's POVs in two different stories, so it's easy to get confused as to where you are in the two.

When I started on Whateley, I simply downloaded all the stories (lots of cut and paste) numbering them starting at 001 from the very first published story, with the sequence in the published order. Then I laid into it. And ready very late a LOT of nights. And kept reading.

With Kayda and Elaine, you need to read them pretty much in published order, they are tied together in what's going on.

Imp's stories are completely independent until she starts teaching.

Whisper is almost completely independent, until Sleethr writes more.

Steel Ribbon, Round and Round, Roulette, Mama's Boy,Rise 'n 'Shine, A Tenuous Blade, Soaring are all origins for Gen 1 Year 2 Freshmen. You should read those before There's No Place Like Poe and The Bear, the Bitch, and Everything.

Hank 1 shouldn't be read until after The Riddle of Sappho. (Spoilers)

It's going to be a couple months before I actually catch up on Gen 1. Gen 2 had far less to catch up ON, thus why I decided to try and Catch up on that. It's also why I realized if I want to write fanfiction with the angle of someday being elevated from a lowly peon, Gen 2 was more likely... which reminds me I need to edit Dice/Hollow #1 with that in mind.

elrodw wrote: When I started on Whateley, I simply downloaded all the stories (lots of cut and paste) numbering them starting at 001 from the very first published story, with the sequence in the published order. Then I laid into it. And ready very late a LOT of nights. And kept reading.

That was more or less what I did for about a year, too. Was great having so much material to read.

I started reading whateley back before they'd gotten to christmas 06. Then at some point, I dropped off the radar for a while, then came back, caught up (this was pre-elrod), then dropped again, and didn't make it back until post Elrod. At which point the stories went through massive changes that, at the time, I just couldn't accept (Loophole/Kayda centric plotlines, + death of aung). I was also already behind and never actually got back up. That was prior to the switch to this new site. Then, one day, I randomly took a look at the tropes entries for old times sake, and learned there was new JG content. So naturally, I just HAD to read it. No offense to everyone else, but JG was always my favorite author.

This time, I'm still hear, and trying to sort my way through all the massive backlog of content. I've read... bits of the new 07 freshman (Ribbon, roulette, sphere) and Envy and Whisper(i really want more whisper). I read some stuff out of order to give me a grounding (Charge, combat finals, graduation), but I haven't caught up on the stories threaded through the main driving plotlines at the end of the spring '07 school year, so those are what I need to dig up before I get to any more of the summer classes. I will. It's just going to take me forever and I'm trying to figure out which Kayda stories I still need to read. I THINK I may be caught up on everything Loophole except The Bear, The Bitch, and Everything, and apparently Tansy made a face heel turn. That one caught me by surprise. As did Ayla and Charge dating.

I hope to finish G2 this week and start on G1 once that happens, inbetween writing fanfiction.