Scootareader Looks Into: Fanfiction · 6:27pm Feb 11th, 2018
I forgot about posting these for a while, then my work schedule changed, then... yeah, I get lazy sometimes. I came back, though. I always come back. 
This is probably the topic that's most applicable to this site, thankfully, and this is the last of the big three media. This one was posted on 1/29/2013. After I did the big three media, I started getting more exploratory with my topics. For those two of you who have actually read all of these so far, you've got that to look forward to. 
The written word. Considered one of the greatest tools created by mankind, this has been used to sculpt our society in so many ways, both immeasurable and tangible, that to imagine a life without writing would be to imagine a very primitive society compared to what we have today. Harness this power, and you can shift perspectives and sway practices. For good or bad intentions, a good writer is a very powerful man, indeed.
Which brings us to the new article subject: Fanfiction. This can take the form of any language, any genre or sub-genre of writing style, and any topic. It's no mystery, then, why there is several years worth of reading on a single website that is completely devoted to pony fanfiction.
The drive that causes an author to spin such stories is not lost on this fandom. There is no limit to what can be written, so long as ponies are concerned in some way. Human in Equestria? Done. Pony on Earth? Also done. Cross-dimensional Equestria-Earth war? Written long ago.
Pony fanfic is an integral part of the fandom, as it tells the stories that the writers of the show themselves can't do. There are stories that parallel those given by the show, there are others that diverge a little bit and tell of other characters that the show doesn't focus on, and there are some set into the far-flung past or future and tell of a war-torn Equestria or of a wasteland that is nigh uninhabitable.
Departing from the strictly Equestrian universe, there are shows and movies that have been rewritten to star ponies instead of their original race, there are ponies being warped to universes that contain characters from some of our favorite shows, and famous movie actors find themselves trapped in an Equestria in which they have to live with ponies and learn their ways. Writers pour their creative talent into these enrapturing tales, and the only thing that they all have in common is that they're pony in some way.
A few cases in point. Ever heard of Fallout: Equestria? A story of a young mare who lives in a stable—or a vault, for those who have played the Fallout series before—who escapes into a post-apocalyptic Equestria, and her fight for survival in the wasteland. How about My Little Dashie? A destitute man in a dying city who finds his very own living, breathing Rainbow Dash. Cupcakes? A deceptively cute name; it's actually a slasher-type fic concerning (originally) Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash.
Who comes up with these? A fandom that watches a show about—you guessed it—ponies. How are such rich stories told about a show originally intended for little girls? This is attributed to the adult mind. A brony sees a perfect world, a world that most can only dream of, and they want to give it a dash of realism. The creative genius it takes to synthesize such stories is rampant in the fandom; many a brony has contributed at least a short story, regardless of what others may think of their creation.
And it doesn't just stop at realism. There are many who want to see ponies in a cute, adorable, fun-filled world, not the dark, dismal call of reality. These types of fanfiction typically manifest in one of two ways: Alternate non-canonical stories, and shipping.
Non-canonical stories commonly follow a guideline similar to the main show. There is an antagonist, a main character (or characters) being focused on, and a lesson learned that is recounted at the end. These can possibly put the main character(s) in a somewhat more adult situation than what canon can provide, but the message and the spirit of the show still exist in these alternate stories.
Shipping... is interesting. It most often puts two of the main characters together, or a main character with a supporting character (though shipping concerning only the background characters is quite popular as well), into a romance that could never possibly be allowed in the show itself. These are typically attributed to the hopeless romantics of the fandom... you know, all those guys between the ages of 16 and 24 who are single and not really finding anyone. Speaking of that group of bronies, I should write a shipfic.
Of course, there are those fanfics that don't fit under any of the categorization that is so carefully laid out for common story elements. Some are so random and off-the-wall that Lauren Faust herself would be lost for words, were she to know of their existence. Needless to say, these stories are usually comedy. (Did somebody say Helicopter-Tank-Castle-of-Scootaloo?)
In conclusion, there is a staggering amount of fanfiction that is written by almost every conceivable angle. It is constantly having more stories contributed every day, and if you're looking for the dark, the bizarre, or the cute, you can find all of it in one place: Pony fanfiction. The fandom is fortunate indeed to have so much talent contributing the stories of their minds in the name of ponies.
