Hey :)

[Diol]

Hey, I'm Diolmhain (pronounced Dylan, it's the super irish spelling). I haven't forumed in a while, so my usual, glitter laden, flame covered "this guy looks deaaadly!" inducing stock intro isn't readily to hand, so bear with me.
I'm 15, i'm irish, and I really like the look of your site
I found it last night, while half heartedly trawling the net for something similar. Read an rp, joined, and today I read another.
I'm excited. By the quality of writing, and the well crafted characters, the emphasis on story, and the lack of run of the mill fantasy bullshit. And I suppose for similar reasons, i'm a little bit intimidated.
I haven't really role played before (at least not in the purer sense of the word). I've done a good bit of writing, which i'm hoping should count for something, but I still get the feeling that I might be leaping into the deep end... Might stick up some short stories later down the road for your appraisal.
And finally, if you'd like to check out my music, there's a link to the myspace in my profile, its kind of, electroacousticy stuff. (plugplugplugplugplugplugplug)
So yeah, i'm looking forward to contributing to your site, and hope to see you all soon

[Bird of Hermes]

Greetings, Diol! Here’s some advice so that you don’t get lost in there. (I like your name.)

Welcome to Footsteps of Ghosts!

Check out our rules, etiquette and "What is FOG?" sections.

If you have any trouble using the forum itself, try the FAQ.

If you have any questions, our staff will be more than happy to assist you.

Take a moment to browse our fourms and perhaps find a role-play to your liking, a place to receive input on your works of literature or simply to converse with people of similar interests.

[Silvan Arrow]

Welcome to FOG, Diol! You're definitely in the right place for high quality of writing and everything else you've ever wanted in good RPs. Please don't feel intimidated. Everyone here is really nice, if a little psychotic at times (and I mean that in the best possible way ^^), and more than willing to answer any questions you might have. As for never having role-played before, everyone has to start somewhere. I recently started a few months ago and don't consider myself anywhere near a "pro" at it, but I also had quite a bit of writing experience that helped tremendously. It sounds like you'll do just fine. Hope you enjoy yourself and get into some good RPs!

[Shadow Moonseye]

Welcome to FOG!

Don't worry, we don't bite too hard here. It might seem daunting at first (I know it was for me) but everyone here is super nice and helpful!

I'd recomend sticking to the Casual Roleplaying section at first, as its standards aren't quite as high as the Advanced Roleplaying. There's quite a few newer RPS that are just about to start or have just started, so you might have some luck if you're looking to join one right away.

As for getting to know your fellow FOGers, I'd suggest checking out the OOC section of FOG. There's places to show off your writing, art, and talk about just about anything. The games are fun too!

Another good place to hit would be the Chatroom. It can get quite silly in there. ^^

I hope you enjoy your stay, and hopefully I'll see you around sometime!

[Weiss]

Welcome to Footsteps of Ghosts, Diol! I'm glad your name is easier to pronounce than I thought when I first looked at it. I can't even begin to imagine how all of that manages to condense phonetically into Dylan, but I'll go with it, anyway.

I'm sure you'll find that FOG is a friendly and lively forum full of writers of all types and styles, so you're bound to find some delightful chaps to roleplay with and friend who will help you improve where you're lacking. Just look around, find a place to jump in and have some fun! Just be sure to observe the rules, as Hermes has indicated in your always-helpful welcoming post.

See you around, Diol! In fact, you're in the chat right now, so I'll see you there!

[Kathryn Lacey]

Welcome, Diol.

I'm willing to bet that, phonetically, Diolmhain is actually a little more than the oversimplified two syllable "Dylan," but if that's the way you like to present it, that's your prerogative. Then again... if one says "dee-ohl" quickly, it does sort of condense itself into "dyl," ((especially will an Irish sounding accent in mind)) so meh... It's not my place to tell you how to say your own name.

Is that your true first name, or is it just an Internet alias? It's interesting regardless.

I'm glad you've found a place like this. I was quite pleased when I learned about it, too. The creator, Fate, who is currently on a hiatus had a really great idea and the means by which to place it into action.

Enjoy your stay. ^^_^^

[Sunwolf007]

Welcome to FoG! Don't be to afraid to post here. It may seem intimidating at first but you get used to it really quick. So what part of Ireland are you in? I did a trip over to Ireland 2 years ago and it was awesome. We had really good weather when we were there too because it only rained 3 times in a total of 3 weeks. Also (just because I am curious) I have to ask are you bilingual? When I was over there a few of the signs were in 2 languages (English and Irish) so I was wondering if everyone speaks two languages. Anyway like the others before me said if you are looking for a place to improve your writing you have found the right place. Anyway welcome and I hope to see you around FoG.

[Kathryn Lacey]

Sunwolf, did you mean English and Gaelic? "Irish" isn't any language of which I've ever heard, but I also thought that Gaelic was a dying language, so... yeah...

[Weiss]

Irish Language

It pays to do a bit of research first.
In retrospect, my original statement sounds quite stand-offish. Allow me to rephrase.
After a few seconds of research (via Google), I found a Wikipedia page with information on the Irish language, which is, in fact, a language of its own.

[Kalon Ordona II]

Welcome to the FOG, Diol!
The Irish truly have an amazing way of spelling. I've been bewildered and fascinated by it for a long time. ^^ And to everyone else, I too can attest that indeed you can pack a lot of letters into just a few syllables with that kind of spelling, and often you'd never imagine how to pronounce it if you were using the phonetic rules in English. Even a simple one like /sidhe/ is pronouced /shee/.

Anyways, welcome again, Diol! I think we're all going to like having you around!

[ImmortalSin]

Welcome to FoG, Diol!

I see that you are in fact 1915 years old. You may possibly be the oldest resident of FoG so far! Oh wait... I can't remember how old Charlie is. I'll have to check.

By the sounds of it you're having no trouble finding your way around so there's not much left for me to say but I hope you enjoy your time with us and continue to like what you see!

[Kathryn Lacey]

Unlike some people, I can actually admit to being wrong without being snobby about it. I didn't realize that there was a difference between Gaelic ((considered Scottish Gaelic)) and "Irish" which is sometimes referenced as "Irish Gaelic." I thought Gaelic was all the same language.

However, Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic are just two varieties of seemingly the same language: Goidelic. Having varieties of the same language is also something heard in the Chinese language. I wasn't entirely wrong. I was simply misinformed and undereducated.

Thank you, Weiss, for providing a means of understanding for me. However, I wish you could learn to be more polite about it.

[Weiss]

And I wish you'd look things up before assuming you're correct; and that you'd not presumptuously tell someone he's pronouncing his own name incorrectly.

I'm willing to bet that, phonetically, Diolmhain is actually a little more than the oversimplified two syllable "Dylan," but if that's the way you like to present it, that's your prerogative.

Lastly...

Unlike some people, I can actually admit to being wrong without being snobby about it.

That's not true. You were wrong, and that entire post was you being snobby about it. Hypocritical, as well.

Are we done, yet?

[Attie]

Just for being Irish, you get the cool points from me, newcomer! Welcome to the site! ^^

[Kathryn Lacey]

I wasn't assuming he was incorrect, Weiss. I said I was willing to bet that it wasn't as simple as being pronounced as "Dylan." In such cases, "betting" is a gamble. I wouldn't mind being incorrect about it.

Sorry, but I'm afraid that you're wrong. You're all too quick to assume that I'm being snobby and hypocritical. You really should rethink calling others hypocrites until you look at yourself. Just because you seem to have a way with words doesn't always mean that you're superior to others in intellect.

Why don't you take a "chill pill," Weiss, so you can calm down enough to take that stick from your rump?

[Attie]

Whoa, Kathryn, this is someone's Intro Thread.. can't you take it to PMs? I feel sorry for Diol now.. what a welcome.

[Kalon Ordona II]

Kathryn wasn't assuming he was pronouncing it wrong; she was figuring that "Dylan" was a way to make it easy for Americans to pronounce, believing there was a high probability that certain letters present in the long version made it just a touch more complicated than just "Dylan." It's a logical assumption, if you ask me. Kathryn's into languages. Most foreign language names are more complicated than Americans are willing to pronounce, so they simplify them. I met somebody once whose name was Ryo, and he'd just say to call him "Yo," because Americans can't do the little /d/ sound for the R. And it must be noticed that Diol hasn't even responded yet, so there's little point in arguing the case if Kathryn didn't really do anything offensive. I think she just phrased it a little too strongly than she meant to.

Patience is a virtue, Weiss. Not all of us are spot-on all the time in all areas. All of us have both weaknesses and strengths. Your provision of the Irish Language wiki url was most helpful, and it was thoughtful of you to modify your original phrasing. I, too, tend to instantly look things up if I'm not completely sure about them. You may have been right about some things, but I think you're a touch brusque during confrontations.

[Kathryn Lacey]

Attie, you're right. I've sent an apology to Diol via a PM. Sometimes I get carried away.

Kalon, thank you for clarifying what I meant. You and I have similar mind-sets, but you do seem to be the more diplomatic of the two of us. heheh

[Weiss]

I completely missed that you mentioned your music!
The Sound Bytes thread would be a great place to post up your musical work if you'd like to share it with the FOG community.

[Gadreille]

Welcome, Diol! I think I ran into you in the chat room! Hopefully I will see you elsewhere in the forums, as I rarely travel to the chat room. I hope you enjoy yourself here at FOG, and aren't deterred by the slight off topic discussion previously going on in your intro thread.

[Diol]

Well its nice to have made a bit of a stir, even if I am a somewhat late to notice
In a way, Kathryn's bet would be fairly safe. As far as I know, Diolmhain is meant to be pronounced Diolvawn... or something along those lines, but my parents, in a stroke of genius, chose an easier to manage pronunciation, over social alienation for the rest of my school years. So i've been known as Dylan, albeit with a slightly confusing spelling. (The look of concerntration on new teacher's faces when they try to read it out loud can really be something)
Sunwolf, i'm based in Dublin, centre of culture, commerce and containing one of the most concentrated heroin hotspots in europe (so I've been told anyway). And sadly, I'm not bilingual. Irish is our first language, but hardly anyone can actually speak it, despite it being mandatory in schools. I'd love to speak it... but I guess saying that is a bit useless, when the only thing that stops me is my own inability to focus in class (its really hard... there's like seven tenses)
Anyway, thanks for all the welcomeseses (and drama) and I hope to see you all soon (I WILL MAKE SOME POSTS THIS, TIME I WILL!)

And thanks for the link to the sound bytes thread Weiss, it sounds (hur hur) like the perfect place for a bit of shameless plugging

[Weiss]

Well, plug away. There's also a monthly feature category for the Sound Bytes, so if you put up something that's catchy or meaningful or something that I just plain like, you could earn yourself a spot there.

And I know what you mean about hardly anyone being able to speak the first language in your country. English is practically the national language here (though we don't technically have one in America), and no one can speak English to save their lives!

I'm only half-joking...

Oh, and I honestly read it as Dohlmain when I first took a crack at it, but I was pretty happy to see that Dylan was acceptable. It's much easier, regardless.

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