Buck · 9:40pm Jul 8th, 2013
I've talked before about words which draw my ire. Last time, it was "headcanon". This time, it's "ponify".
Actually, strictly speaking, it isn't. I have nothing against the word "ponify" itself; it's nothing more than a ponification of "personify" (which makes ponify an autonym). It's some of the abuses of language done in the name of ponification to which I take issue.
If you have somehow managed to find this blog (or, indeed, FIMFiction itself) without coming across this term before (in which case I am both confused and slightly envious), "ponification" or "ponifying" is the act of taking a common, English (though I suppose it would work in Spanish, too) word and mutilating it into a form more appropriate for the whimsical world of MLP:FiM. Mostly, this pertains to terrible puns and equine anatomy.
So, now that we're all on the same page, let's look at some of my least favorite ponifications. Anything from the show itself is automatically exempt from scorn (well, mostly). Expect this list to grow as I accumulate more literary sins.
Prance: France; on the surface, this seems perfectly acceptable. It's a single-letter substitution, recognizable immediately as both the original location and the pony-related pun. Effective wordplay? You'd think so, but no. France is to French as Prance is to...? Fill in the blanks yourself, because I cannot bear to put such an abomination down in print. Even more damning are the multiple uses of "French" in the show itself.
Plot: hindquarters, rump, boat take, etc.; I am completely familiar with this term's origin. I think it's an inherently funny descriptor, and a neat little inside joke for the fandom. What I will not abide, however, is its use within fan works as though it were a term used in Equestria.
Buck: fuck (see also feather); ah, the big one. In some ways, I can understand this; MLP:FiM is a family-friendly show, and the characters therein have never been seen or heard to swear. Trying to stick to that idea by replacing "banned" words with euphemisms has long been a staple of family media. It even bleeds back into real life, which is why the words "dang" and "crap" are so widespread. While I don't necessarily agree with even this (intent is often more important than syntax), I won't deny it as a part of modern writing.
Using pre-existing words with defined, non-vulgar meanings, though, is unacceptable. Using "buck" as a euphemism completely changes the meaning of applebucking. Mostly, though, it's lazy, and this is why I include "feather", even though it was used in-show as a stand-in for "fuck" (well, I could debate that, but let's just go with it), and I didn't mind it there. The difference is that fan writers (as a broad, sweeping generalization) tend to do a one-to-one swap, rather than attempting to use creativity. The phrase "nopony else gives a flying feather" could conceivably arise as an actual Equestrian expression. A vulgar one, at that. Thus, it works, while simply swapping out any appearance of "fuck" with "feather" does not.
France is cannon, not Prance. Unless the "French haute coture" Fluttershy mentioned is badly named. I have a little joke about Dash complaining it's weird, but she can't explain why. The implication is of course that it isn't full of pony puns.
I have never used plot that way in a story and probably never will. If I do it would be a subversion where it first sounds like I'm using it that way but that isn't what the char meant.
I think buck can work sound wise though it's a far milder insult. Seriously, anything can be a euphimism for sex, "we were really baking those waffles", and it seems like a leg kicking out in a short burst could easily be connected to sex. Though it's also somewhat childish, like duty/doodie jokes. So of course I've written AJ talking about how Dash and her make crude jokes about Applebucking when nopony else is around. The real problem is most people are lazy about it and don't think how the word might actually fit in equestrian culture.