• Member Since 8th Nov, 2011
  • offline last seen March 11th

Cast-Iron Caryatid


More Blog Posts91

  • 13 weeks
    Merry Christmas, all!

    My track record with Christmas releases is no longer perfect, but I do try! Only one 5k chapter of Sharing the Nation this year, though I'm hoping to have 5k more out before the new year. To make up for it, though, I've also brought out the Harry Potter crossover that's been languishing in

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    4 comments · 171 views
  • 117 weeks
    Nothing this year, sorry

    Man, this has been… a year. Shortly after my last blog post, I had some (non-covid) medical issues that somewhat took over my life for a while, and while that's all in the past now, I'm only back where I was beforehand—completely unproductive. I was determined to get back into things at NaNoWriMo, but work steamrolled those plans and I just haven't been able to find the words to write something

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    16 comments · 825 views
  • 157 weeks
    More burned out than I thought

    Jeeze, it's been four months since I decided not to force myself to generate updates for the sake of Patreon and gave myself the freedom to write whatever I wanted… but I haven't really written anything. I've done a thousand words or so here and there to play around with other fandoms, but nothing of significance.

    Shocking, I know.

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    9 comments · 859 views
  • 170 weeks
    Tis the season for status updates. Not as much the other kind of updates as I would like, though

    It wouldn't be Christmas if I hadn't been completely incommunicado for at least a month or two beforehand, right?

    Unfortunately, I don't have chapters of Sharing the Nation to post for Christmas this year. I do have some Equal Opportunity Ascension chapters that only Patreon has seen, and I'll post those, I guess, but it's clear this… isn't working.

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    2 comments · 561 views
  • 222 weeks
    Christmas Updates!

    Merry Christmas!

    As I've done every year since I started writing, I have updates here for you on Christmas day.

    ( It might look like there's a missing one, but the chapter for Sharing the Night that year was taken down and reposted)

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    2 comments · 409 views
Apr
12th
2014

50 Bandwagon Things · 4:42am Apr 12th, 2014

Hey, so, I just found out this was a thing. I don't do enough things, so imma do this thing. I guess I should follow more people?

I don't keep just one headcannon, so all answers are in the scope of Sharing the Night where applicable.

The Thing

1. How old are Celestia and Luna?

Roughly two thousand years. I want to specify that this has nothing to do with any dates in real life, I just wanted them to be "relatively" young while still giving Luna enough time before being banished for it not to be too weird.

2. How old is Cadance?

Negative two years (Sorry, Chapter 11 joke. It'll be funny in a few weeks, I promise!)

Cadance and Shining Armor do not exist in Sharing the Night. In Twilight™, however, Cadance is secretly the immortal queen of the faeries and has a love/hate relationship with her corrupted sister, Chrysalis.

3. Were Celestia and Luna always alicorns, or did they ascend?

They were born "two ordinary ponies, to ordinary ponies." If anyone ever does an audio book reading of chapter 2, I will have a lot of confused listeners.

4. Are Cadance Spike and Twilight immortal?

Twilight is demonstrably immortal in every way no matter how much she whines about the details. Spike's immortality hasn't kicked in yet and won't until he reaches his third stage of growth.

5. Have there been other alicorns in the past?

This depends on your definition of "other" alicorns—and no, the "fourth alicorn" doesn't make this an automatic "yes." Lets see you try and figure that one out :trollestia:

6. How much authority do Celestia and Luna have in Equestria?

As much as they want. Equestrians are all too eager to follow alicorns and the nobility in particular aspires to emulate them. The thing is, they don't actually want very much, and Equestrians are pretty blind to the reality of the situation. More transgressions happen in Celestia's name than against it.

7. Does Shining Armor rule The Crystal Empire along side of Cadance?

Not since the silicate alliance uprising in the fifth Twilight™ book. Queen Maud the Mad rules the lifeless wastes of the north now, after Sombra filed for divorce citing irreconcilable communication issues.

8. Other than Twilight, Luna, and Cadance Spike, what relationships have been important to Celestia in her lifetime (students, close friends, lovers, family)?

Celestia is very much the married-to-Equestria type. Her previous students have filled certain needs of her motherly nature, but in general, she has always felt perfectly fulfilled all on her own.

9. Are there still cultural differences between earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns, or is the culture homogeneous by the time shown in canon? Are there cultural stereotypes (positive or negative)?

Cultural differences abound even in multi-racial cities, thanks to the simple fact that different fields are dominated by different races. Most ponies in weather-related fields are Pegasi, of course, which results in a certain subculture being pegasi-dominated and therefore associated with pegasi. The same goes for unicorns, whose social organization and general tendency towards erudition comes as a result of the fact that their magic can be learned and shared, and earth ponies, whose talents tend to dictate their entire way of life.

10. Are there foods or items native to Cloudsdale that are uncommon on the ground? Are there foods or items on the ground that are uncommon in Cloudsdale?

Let's just say that the term "pop rocks" means something very different in Cloudsdale than it does in certain earth pony communities. Neither one is something you want to mistake for the other.

11. Can all unicorns learn all spells, given the time and effort spent practicing them, or is magical talent usually limited in some way?

Yes and no. Unicorns need some connection to the kind of spell they want to learn—and cutie marks are the strongest connection of all—but as any DnD player knows... A little creativity goes a long way towards making something work.

12. Earth pony magic: Does it exist? What is it?

Earth pony magic absolutely exists and it (as well as pegasus magic, for that matter) can do anything that unicorn magic can do (and vice versa). Magic is defined by the personality, and by extension, the cutie-mark of the pony. What differs between races is how their magic manifests. Basically, when it comes to using magic, unicorns may have fingers, but they're all playing with the same clay.

13. Some pony families we’ve seen seem to have naming conventions (the Apples, Twilight’s family) and others don’t appear to (Rarity’s family, Pinkie’s family), which is more common? Are there reasons for one or the other?

Pony names are like cutie marks. Nobody knows where they come from, but they're always appropriate. Ponies that inherit family interests or businesses are more likely to have similar names.

14. How much formal schooling is an average, middle class pony expected to complete?

A pony is generally expected to get their cutie mark in early to mid adolescence, so compulsory education is only designed to last about that long. Most ponies will have several years of education to go through post-mark, but children who have already earned their cutie marks sometimes move on to specialized schooling or apprenticeships, with their general education requirements instead dealt with on off-hours.

15. What’s the average lifespan for a pony? At what age is a pony expected to be independent of their parents?

For sake of simplicity, I use human numbers. Maybe years are longer or shorter in Equestria, though.

16. Are there roughly an equal number of male and female ponies?

Yes.

17. How informed are most ponies about things that happen in other parts of Equestria? What about other parts of the world?

Equestrian society is limited to print, so "not very" and "not at all".

Libraropolean society is demonstrably more knowledgeable.

18. How old are the Mane Six? Spike? The CMC?

I see the mane six as being about twenty and the CMC, being cutie mark age, about ten to fourteen. Since Spike was hatched when Twilight earned her cutie mark, he'd be about the CMC's age, perhaps a little older, if Twilight got hers particularly early.

19. Did Fluttershy remain on the ground after getting her cutie mark? Were she and Rainbow Dash friends all along, or did they drift apart for a while?

Fluttershy spent the rest of her compulsory education in Cloudsdale pining for the fjords (and the forests, the plains—really, all of the ground world, when you get right down to it.)

20. Rarity and Applejack both seem to have grown up in Ponyville. What were their interactions like before the show?

They were acquaintances at best. As fellow business ponies they could share a conversation, but rarely had need to.

21. What do Twilight and Spike consider their relationship to be?

Ambiguous. Primarily, they are siblings, but Twilight is officially Spike's guardian, and like many siblings without a strong parental presence do, Twilight over many motherly duties. Sometimes. She's kind of bad at it.

22. When did Pinkie move in with the Cakes? Is she a worker who rents a room, an apprentice, or is there some other relationship?

The cake and the pie family trees resemble nothing so much as a pair of ficus trees planted too close together. Pinkie Pie and the cakes aren't actually related (probably), but they were close enough friends of the family that they seemed a good place to ship Pinkie Pie off to so that they could get some sleep she could fulfill her dreams.

23. Who among the Mane Six had the best parents growing up? The worst parents?

Twilight.

Twilight.

Chapter 11 will explain everything. :trollestia:

24. Why didn’t the CMC hang out more/know each other before Call of the Cutie?

They clearly did. They're together in the pilot!

25. Is Scootaloo an orphan? Will she ever be able to fly?

No, Scootaloo's parents are just very very boring. Yes, Scootaloo will be able to "fly."

26. Will Apple Bloom’s cutie mark involve an apple in some way, even if it’s unrelated to farming or baking?

Yes.

27. How is Sweetie Belle’s relationship with their parents different than Rarity’s was?

Sweetie Belle gets treated more like their granddaughter than a daughter. Poor Rarity.

28. Is Mr. Cake the father of the Cake twins or not?

Yes, and the three of them will join together to become the fourth alicorn.

29. Are Big Mac and Cheerilee an item, romantically?

Eenope.

30. How did Prince Blueblood get his title?

Due to the specifics of its founding, Equestria has many noble families whose heads bear the title of prince or princess. Ostensibly, they are equal in standing to Celestia and Luna. In reality, Celestia and Luna stand several hooves taller. Because they're alicorns.

31. Is Silver Spoon equally as bad as Diamond Tiara?

No.

32. Is Zecora’s magic common among zebras?

Yes, but it is her special talent.

33. Why does Daring Do publish her stories as fiction?

Because we can't all have the same limitless imagination as the author of Twilight™.

34. Do you have a strong headcanon for any non-speaking or one line background ponies that you want to share?

No, though I am fond of Octavia/Vinyl Scratch stories since they represent a very different type of story in the fandom than most other characters do.

35. Does Equestria differentiate between speaking and non-speaking species, in terms of respect, rights and legal responsibilities? Is there some other line or scale used? (For example, how are cows classified? Diamond Dogs? A chimera?)

Equestria was founded after the defeat of Discord, so as a result, there is little to no differentiation between any creature, speaking or not. As Equestrian law is based in common law rather than civil law, though, being able to plead your case is kiiiiiinda important.

36. Do other speaking species form their own nations, or are all nations largely integrated, with some having larger populations of a species than others?

Yes, minotaurs, griffons and other have their own nations.

37. Are minotaurs related to cows at all?

They are both mammals, so yes.

38. Do all zebras rhyme?

No, the rhyming was a result of poison joke, which she got used to after not being able to buy ingredients for the cure from Ponyville for some time. Personal revelations and character growth were involved.

39. Do zebra cutie marks work the same way as pony cutie marks?

Yes.

40. Do any species have types of magic, other than ponies and zebras?

Yes, though ponies are one of the only races who have a large amount of magic within themselves. Most other races use their inner magic to manipulate external sources of magic, like Zebra alchemy and shamanism or griffon sorcery.

41. Is the lack of buffalo presence in Equestria cultural, or simply because most pony towns aren’t built to accommodate a full grown buffalo?

Cultural.

42. Do you consider official sources other than the show (comics, card game text, movies, novels, etc.) to be canon?

Generally not, no, as I don't tend to see/watch/read those. I don't consider the movies a separate thing, but they are nonetheless unlikely to contribute anything to my work, as they don't interest me.

43. Do you have one headcanon that you always use, or do you switch depending on projects?

See above. I can and will use any canon I can think up to tell a story.

44. Can you easily accept the headcanons of different writers? Do you prefer when stories match your headcanon?

As long as they either make sense or are clearly intended to be unique.

45. Is there a part of your headcanon that you wish was more popular among writers?

Not really, though I do have a problem with other people trying to enforce theirs on others. I groan every time I see someone quote that twitter message about how "Twilight will not outlive her friends." It's true, she won't do that... in the show. More than likely, it will never be addressed, and in all possibility you could say that "The CMC will never earn their cutie marks" with the same level of conviction.

46. Is there a popular piece of headcanon that other writers use that you dislike?

I'm not a big fan of Faust as a character, though not enough that I won't read stories that include her.

47. Have you ever written a story or blogpost just to explain some part of your headcanon (other than this one)?

Does my April Fools entry count? How about reminding people that Shining Armor and Cadance don't exist in Sharing the Night?

48. Does your headcanon influence things like your favorite pony, ship, or episode?

All shipping is headcannon, so yes.

49. Would it bother you if the show proved part of your headcanon wrong? Any specific piece that would really bother you to lose?

It bothers me more if it's proved wrong before I can use it. Divergence from events in Sharing the Night gets a shrug and a sigh, but anything that contradicts stories I haven't published yet are a lot more vexing.

50. Is there something that wasn't asked about here, but you feel like you need to explain to everyone?

Shining Armor and Cadance are dead do not exist in Sharing the Night.

Yet.

:trollestia:

Report Cast-Iron Caryatid · 749 views ·
Comments ( 16 )

Interesting!

And, thanks for the link! :twilightsmile:

Twilight.
Twilight.
Chapter 11 will explain everything. :trollestia:

You tease.

That's two of these I've seen so far. It's neat to see how people's opinions differ on these questions. I'm tempted to make a blog on it as well, though 50 questions and answers seems like too much of a time-sink at the moment... In any case, it's nice to see your point of view on these things.

I'm not a big fan of Faust as a character, though not enough that I won't read stories that include her.

Yeah, that one kind of rubs me the wrong way too, along with the "swear to faust" thing.

Not so much that I won't read a story though.

PPS

Can't wait to see what sort of weird memory/reincarnation shenanigans are going on.

But then one day, Celestia will complain of a headache. To fix this, Luna will hit her on the head with a hammer and Cadence will spring forth from her brow fully formed.

I'm pretty sure that this "50 things" thing is made for authors to troll us poor readers :trollestia:
I'm so teased right now it's not even funny :pinkiecrazy:

Don't let divergence make you drop an idea into the garbage bin. Whenever you get around to writing it, just make a note on the story description that it diverges from a certain point or something. I've seen authors outright cancel stories because of divergence and I just can't fathom why. So many good ideas that could have been saved by just an AU tag. ;-;

But I'm not sure if I'm allowed to have an opinion... Never finished season 2 and on! I care more about the fan fiction than the show.

In reality, Celestia and Luna stand several hooves taller. Because they're alicorns.

:rainbowhuh:

Is that

Is that a pun

Also, did I miss something?? What's Twilight™??

2005716
In-universe fanfiction with Twilight as the main character. Lot's of shipping. Sunset Shimmer was involved, if I remember correctly.:twilightoops:

2002667
Do it! It'll only take, uhh, a couple of hours probably. :unsuresweetie:

2002742
:trixieshiftleft:
:trixieshiftright:

2005716
Sorry, missed the question in your post. As 2006818 says, "Twilight™" refers to the in-universe book (series) mentioned several times over the course of Sharing the Night. They are, of course, a parody of the real life Twilight books, and vampire romance novels in general.

“I didn’t think you read those kinds of books, Twilight,” Celestia grinned.

“I—well... you know... a little,” Twilight admitted, trying not to see how amused her mentor was. Alicorn books were usually romantic power fantasies for teenaged fillies who thought that Celestia would swoop down one day and recognize how much harder their life was than that of all their peers, bestowing them with immortal princesshood so they could be apart from the society that spurned them and have their comeuppance, after all. “It’s just... I am your student, you know,” she explained. “Some of them are even based on me—one is even called Twilight—it’s... bad.”

They've come up several times since, not the least when Luna resorted to reading one or more of them when Twilight was avoiding her. I thought I was done with the joke at that point, but I was wrong. Very, very wrong. It's such a good place to keep bits and characters of the show that aren't canon to Sharing the Night, too. I would totally read about Sombra and Maud's divorce :rainbowlaugh:

2006867

Theirs would be a drama to rock the ages. :moustache:

Reading this reminded me of Twilight being a thing in your story. Ah, that was amusing- especially the autograph request.

Best way to deal with the show derailing your story plans? Write: DIVERGES FROM CANON AS OF EPISODE X in your summary. You'll still get complaints because this is the internet, but reasonable people will be accommodating.

"Pining for the fjords"!?!?!?

What kind of talk is that??? :rainbowlaugh: :trollestia:

2069565 You know, I'd much rather read this version of Twilight than the Stephanie Meyer version... which I actually read. I'm sure it's entertaining enough, and Twilight herself is just obsessed with accuracy and stuff. Or maybe the fact that it defames her.

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