:::hugs::: I'm not all that good at writing supportive or insightful things. But as you described your story now and back at Nimbus I was facinated by the concept of it centering around an ice palace. I've never been in an area that had these, but I've read about them. It always baffled me that these great structures of ice still were warm enough inside to allow people to go there and have fun and be comfortable.

Now as an ice palace is being constructed it starts out just as cold on the inside as on the outside (and empty too), so somehow the interior has to warm to some sort of comfort level despite the necessary cold icy exterior needed to maintain the palace. It just seems to me the story that you're possibly trying to tell is how this architect can create this palace that is a metaphor for herself. She's still subjected to the cold exterior of daily life in modern society, which she can't change, and maybe needs to maintain the structure of her persona. But somehow we all need a mechanism to warm up and maintain that warmth inside. Its a fascinating balance. Is this what you're trying to do with your story?

I don't presume to know what you really want to say with your story, but the parallels would really make a great impact to show that these dichotomies *can* be balanced, but it takes work and effort and pain. But then I'm probably just now getting what you've been saying all along.

You always were really great with parallels and mirroring and showing similarities in apparently oppposing situations. Anyway, I hope you find what can give you that warmth inside enough to thaw your fingers so typing doesn't cause them to break off. :) I want to read this book! It has such great potential!