Quirky problem with latest patch

Yesterday I finally took the plunge and patched Sims 3 up to the latest version (I backed EVERYTHING up first, of course).

It all seems to work perfectly except for one tiny little issue - if I try to recolour the frames of photographs my sims have taken it goes a little awry! The tiny portrait size recolours fine, no problems. The next two sizes bizarrely change to a frame that isn't solid all the way around - the frame only goes halfway along each side.

But the big issue is the panorama frame. If I try to recolour it, the game freezes immediately and there is no way to recover it.

I'd love to hear if anyone else is having this issue or if it's just a quirk of my own game.

The wait is over!

Finally I have submitted Chapter 3 of The Jade Princess. I am very sorry it has taken this long but the past week I have done nothing but sleep and attend parties! I'm almost looking forward to going back to work so that I can have a break :D

This chapter is full of puzzles and traps found below the surface of Shang Simla. However, I have been very careful to mix things up enough that for those of you who haven't yet explored Shang Simla to its fullest, it shouldn't spoil the fun.

Hopefully it won't take too long to be published, so sit back, relax, and get ready for a bumpy ride!

~Illandrya

The Jade Princess

I'm sorry all, there is going to be a little delay before I get the next chapter of The Jade Princess out and will most likely not have time to submit it until after Boxing Day (the 26th). I am waist deep in tenders and overtime at work with little time to do anything at home but answer a few messages and sleep. Then of course there are the inevitable family obligations at this time of year :D which I'm not complaining about because I will take any opportunity I can get to kisscuddles from my nieces and nephews.

The good news is that the office closes for almost 2 weeks over the end of year break and I will catch up then (and hopefully get ahead), I promise!

~Illandrya

I wish you all the best of the season and hope that you find 2010 bright and prosperous

Life: A Gift

The muse visited me last night and bade me share this story with you. The seed was planted while watching movies with my brother, but my dreams took that seed and it blossomed into "Life: A Gift".

It is a short story with no plans for other than this one instalment, but I believe that the length does not diminish the message in any way. If anything, it makes it all the more powerful because it is not diluted by unnecessary words. 

I had intended waiting until the Jade Princess was done and dusted before I worked on this story, but it has not left me alone all day so I have written, taken screenshots, and uploaded the entire thing today. Besides, it is the holiday season, and the message seemed appropriate.

I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed creating it.

With best wishes for the season
Illandrya

PS - I have also submitted the first chapter of "The Jade Princess" today, so you will be seeing Veronika in action again soon.

The Zefryn Mansion - coming soon!

Yes, I know I said weeks and weeks ago that I would be uploading the Zefryn home to TSR. However, shortly after I built the shell of the house I got a promotion at work and that had to take priority and the decorating went by the wayside. I'm now settled into my new role and have a little free time on my hands so I have finished the lot and it is almost ready to share.

I used a lot of custom content to create the screenshots for the story, but I have been careful in making the downloadable lot mostly base game (there are a few free cc items and a little of WA, but no EA store items except the freebies). I do recommend that, if you are a subscriber, you download cyclonesue's colonial windows and use them to replace the base game windows - they look soooo much nicer and there is a lot more variety!

I just need to do some testing to make sure sims can use it, take a couple of screenies and upload to TSR. It will (hopefully) be available for you to use within a few days.

Happy simming!

PS - It's now available for download but for some reason is subscriber only. Sorry guys, not sure why that is.

Is Love Enough? The final chapter

Just in case any of you are wondering where my last chapter has disappeared, your guess is as good as mine! It seems to think it is being edited for some bizarre reason.

I have logged the issue with TSR and hopefully it will be available again soon.

Meet Veronika Storm . . .

Meet Veronika Storm.

She's beautiful, athletic, brave, disciplined, adventurous, and a little bit of a genius.

Along with her partner, Simon Chase, Veronika travels the world solving centuries old riddles and modern day conspiracies - picking up ancient treasures along the way.

When not saving the world, she masquerades as a travel writer in the sleepy coastal town of Butterfly Bay.

Want to know more? Veronika Storm is the heroine of a new series of stories I am creating at the moment. I hope to have the first chapters out within the next couple of weeks (once I can tear myself away from playing World Adventures which I am loving).

Enjoy!

Alyssa's Story: where to next?

I am overawed by the wonderful comments I have been receiving on Alyssa's story. When I first started this story I hadn't planned for it to become this big or complex. I just started with Alyssa and saw where her life took her. The fact that she fell in love with a man with two almost adult children who then went on to have their own crazy lives was all part of the game. Even a lot of Holly's actions I didn't make up, I just followed where story progression took her - she really did marry Dave Ramsey, make him change his name to Zefryn, got pregnant, then moved in with Malcolm Landgraab, all without me having to lift a finger!

There are only two chapters and an epilogue to go which I have written and need only to take a few more screenies for. I will be posting these within the next week. I am also working on an uploadable version of the Zefryn's new house (which you will see in the next instalment) for you to use in your game if you would like to. I can't upload the lot I'm actually playing in because the front porch has a bad food smell that I simply can NOT get rid of for some reason. It is a carry over from the old house somehow and I have absolutely no explanation for it.

I will be sad to say goodbye to Alyssa and her amazing, crazy family, but I have at least four other stories running around my head that I am dying to tell, so keep an eye out for them shortly after we farewell the Zefryns. I just need to get my hands on World Adventures because it will open up a world (three worlds?) of possibilities for storytelling.

I just wanted to take this opportunity to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who reads my stories and downloads my creations. I have just this morning hit 25,000 downloads - which may not seem like a lot, but it's a big thrill for me.

New Poll !!

Hi everyone! I have added a poll to my minisite today. With my story more than half over, I have started spending some time building lots again for you to use in your own game. Over the next few months I hope to publish a series of polls to find out exactly what you are looking for in a lot to make sure that what I upload to TSR is useful to its members. 

So, if you are a fan of downloading lots, I'd love to hear your thoughts - whether it's a vote in the poll, a message in my guestbook, or a comment left on one of my creations.

PS - Thank you to all the fans of Alyssa's story; your messages and encouragement have not gone unnoticed and I promise that the story will not suffer because I am doing other things as well. Actually, one of the lots I will be uploading soon is tied to the story in a big way ... so stay tuned.

Is Love Enough: Alyssa's Story

Unfortunately work of late has been a little manic and I haven't had time to create lots to share.  I have a few part-finished which hopefully will start appearing here soon.  Instead, I've been actually playing the game whenever I can snatch a spare hour or two.

Alyssa's story, which I submitted yesterday, came about because I decided to let my sims get a little bit of control back in their lives.  I'm such a control freak I usually have everything mapped out from birth to death and it can get a little boring. It's been a lot of fun to watch what Alyssa does, who she wants to talk to, and how she reacts to new challenges put in her path (with the occasionally suggestion from me).

I hope you enjoy her story as it unfolds.  I still don't know how it will end ... but I guess that is part of the fun!