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download the PDF file - Whoa is (Not)

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'The <strong>Not</strong>-Particularly-Excellent Adventures of <strong>the</strong> Keanu-Spawn' had its beginnings almost five yearsago in 2005, as short sketches to end off each chapter of a series called 'Matrix Revolutions: The O<strong>the</strong>rVersions' that I had been writing. I never really intended <strong>the</strong>m as anything more than joke fillers, butover time those short sketches started to form a proper story of <strong>the</strong>ir own, and eventually I decided toturn <strong>the</strong>m into a full-fledged novel. I wrote it as a sequel to 'Real World', my first novel, which involvedfive characters – including Neo and Ted – entering <strong>the</strong> real world and having to deal with <strong>the</strong> d<strong>is</strong>coverythat <strong>the</strong>y were fictional.Part of <strong>the</strong> motivation for th<strong>is</strong> fic was due to me m<strong>is</strong>sing <strong>the</strong> characters and wanting to write more about<strong>the</strong>m; ano<strong>the</strong>r part was due to my growing appreciation of Keanu Reeves' films and <strong>the</strong> fascinatingcharacters who inhabited <strong>the</strong>m. H<strong>is</strong> characters have always been <strong>the</strong> focal point of my fandom.Contrary to popular opinion, I find each of <strong>the</strong>m to be completely different, unique individuals, andthought <strong>the</strong>y warranted fur<strong>the</strong>r exploration. I also thought that <strong>the</strong>y would make an excellent ensemblecast. The fact that th<strong>is</strong> story actually works already says something about <strong>the</strong>ir diversity; a cast ofidentical characters would probably not result in anything very interesting happening, and nei<strong>the</strong>r woulda bunch of characters who know no o<strong>the</strong>r word than 'whoa'.So th<strong>is</strong> fic was for me as much a character study as a piece of fiction, and when I started out, I wasactually unfamiliar with most of <strong>the</strong> characters I was writing about, having yet to make much headway in<strong>the</strong> Reeves oeuvre. Many initial character<strong>is</strong>ations were based off nothing more than screen captures,music videos off YouTube and movie trailers; but <strong>the</strong>y were often enough for me to get a sense of whata character was like, which I think says something about Keanu's skill as an actor at least in <strong>the</strong> realm ofcharacter portrayal. Each of <strong>the</strong> Keanu-spawn felt like a separate individual, and I liked – and still like –<strong>the</strong>m all in different ways, though my favourites are Neo and Conor.If 'Real World' was for me an integral part of my early teenage years, th<strong>is</strong> novel achieved <strong>the</strong> samepurpose for my late teenage years, which were largely spent in Keanu fandom – running <strong>the</strong> articlesarchive at my Keanu fan site http://www.whoa<strong>is</strong>notme.net, defending him and h<strong>is</strong> acting on <strong>the</strong> Internetwith <strong>the</strong> rest of <strong>the</strong> Keanu SWAT Team, and forming countless invaluable friendships among fellow fansin <strong>the</strong> fandom. It was ano<strong>the</strong>r chapter of my life, one filled with lots of angst and whoa and growing up,and it <strong>is</strong> one that I'll never regret or forget, <strong>the</strong> possibility of amnesia aside.As for th<strong>is</strong> novel, <strong>the</strong> characters still live on in my imagination and in <strong>the</strong> films that gave me a window to<strong>the</strong>ir world. Their story does not end here; shortly after fin<strong>is</strong>hing <strong>the</strong> first draft of th<strong>is</strong> fic (or perhapssome time before), I continued writing about <strong>the</strong>m in short stories and scripts, <strong>the</strong> characters broughttoge<strong>the</strong>r with <strong>the</strong> ITDTs. My friend and fellow Keanu fan Caitlin was a large contributor to th<strong>is</strong>; we spentmany days and nights toge<strong>the</strong>r on MSN Messenger co-writing what <strong>is</strong> at present close to 100,000 words(more than th<strong>is</strong> novel has) of chat-style scripts about <strong>the</strong> continued adventures of <strong>the</strong> Keanu-spawn ando<strong>the</strong>r people <strong>the</strong>y met along <strong>the</strong> way, several of those o<strong>the</strong>r people forming <strong>the</strong> bas<strong>is</strong> for what I plan tobe <strong>the</strong> next Kenselton novel. Our scripts will eventually be uploaded once I format <strong>the</strong>m properly.But for now, th<strong>is</strong> <strong>is</strong> <strong>the</strong> end of th<strong>is</strong> novel, and I hope that you've enjoyed it. As always, feedback <strong>is</strong>greatly appreciated; feel free to e-mail me at starwars<strong>is</strong>notdead@gmail.com with any comments youmay have, positive or negative.And now, repeating <strong>the</strong> last part of my afterword for 'Real World', written more than three years ago inDecember 2006 but which still holds true for me:There are still o<strong>the</strong>r stories to be told, <strong>the</strong>re are still o<strong>the</strong>r ideas waiting to come. Sohere ends th<strong>is</strong> novel and th<strong>is</strong> part of my life, because it’s time to move on to startano<strong>the</strong>r.The Author13 February 2010

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