I will enter the room when I can to look over the transcript. I think that would be just fine. I know the subjects you listed, Maria, are for the chat and not for debate here on this thread, but I wanted to throw in some things to consider and talk about since you will all be chatting before I can get there:

Story Time - I realize that we want to stress that this is a collaborative writing project and not roleplay. After having talked to Decius, I see that you could look at it either way and still contribute appropriately to the story. What I got from my brief discussion with him is that

a) It's okay to write in first person.
b) Individual writers may create their own story as long as it is plausible and appropriate to the time period; i.e., we are not all a part of the Montverre family storyline and therefore don't need to know everything that is planned.

But the problem with the time issue is that at some points writers may feel rushed to get something posted and on hold other times. We all have real lives and timing will be different for everyone. It's not really fair to go by the availability of one or two people. Things to consider are a) weekly check-ins from writers, b) freedom to include MIA writers' characters as NPCs, c) not adhering to a calendar-like format for time. I do a lot of writing in other stories, and things go fine without worrying about exactly which day we are on. It actually creates a lot more freedom.

Adding threads - Once the subjects of the different storylines are firmed up, we may want to create threads based on those stories, like an anthology under one board. The only problem I see with this, however, is that I expect there to be frequent crossover between characters in different stories, and then the quesion becomes "On which thread do I post?"

The suggestion of having a "London West End" thread or a "Southwark" thread may create the problem you addressed, Maria, where there are too many threads and too few posts. In my experience, too, I have learned that this makes it bloody difficult to see continuity in the story when the reader must leap from thread to thread, not really knowing where to go next. I rather like having the threads as they are, actually.

Okay, I've already rambled on more than I would have liked, so I'll end it here. Just some food for thought and discussion.