Ask Me Anything and Midnight Update · 5:03am Oct 1st, 2020
New Chapter of Midnight will go live Friday, October 2nd. Probably around 10am to 12pm, Pacific Time. I don't know if it's truly done, or if it's as good as it can be. It's just as done and as good as I can make it.
As a bit of a behind-the-scenes info... this upcoming chapter opens with the original ending of the previous one. But, once the last chapter hit twelve-thousand words, I decided to cut it early, and save something for next time. To my own shame, and personal weakness, I chose to cut it where I did because I was tired. I just wanted to get that last twist out of the way so I could post Sunset Glimmer, which I had been dying to do for too long. I really should have either powered on through to the true ending, or cut that chapter earlier.
I might go back and fix that. One day. But, we all live with our mistakes. This is one of mine.
Now, onto a little something fun! Last week or so, I asked for questions, that I may answer with either truth or blatant lies. And I even got some! Not many, of course. But... a couple. So, I'm just gonna take a few minutes here to answer those questions, and... procrastinate on all my other stories for a little bit.
Why do you like Halloween above all?
It's the atmosphere. The culture. There's something wondrous about the haunting and the spooky, and this is the one time of year you can shamelessly indulge in it. The weather turns chilly, and the leaves turn gold and red and brown. The nights grow long. And the wind begins to howl. I grew up on the classic horror stuff. Ghosts, ghouls, vampires, and old Hammer Horror films. There's something terribly nostalgic about being 'scared', but not 'scared'. It's a complicated emotion.
It seems like you love Trixie above all when it comes to ponies or other Equestrian characters. Why is that? Or how did you come to like Trixie a lot?
Because Trixie is Best Horse. And it's because she's the saddest character in the show. Easily one of the most relatable. From my own experiences, I love stagecraft. I worked a bit in that life, and I know how freeing that sort of lifestyle can be. And how lonely. Trixie is sad because it's easy for me to see the implications of her life. Trixie lives out of a wagon. She's a vagabond. A traveler. A con-mare, considering the lies she tells and the typical company such a profession would lead her into. She's never shown interacting with family. Even after her successes, she barely has enough money to eat, if her trip with Starlight was anything to go by.
Basically. She's a failure. She struggles to make ends meet, and all of her talents are either super-niche, or subpar compared to the one pony who got all the breaks in life, who she inevitably compares herself to. She's bitter, and envious, and mean-spirited. I mean... her life is so miserable that she literally made a suicide attempt the moment she thought she'd screwed up her first and only true friendship. And yet... she never gives up. Trixie keeps on going, in spite of everything and everyone telling her to stop. I admire her dedication to her dreams.
She's relatable, is what I'm getting at. Combine that with her extreme self-confidence issues (I mean... no one with actual self-confidence talks like that), her fragile-as-glass ego, and having the most bomb-ass character and color design in the entire show, and how could I not love the Great and Powerful Trixie?
Seriously, I think her eyes might even be slightly larger than everypony else's. They certainly have a unique coloring effect, with the flat color gradient.
How did you become a fan of Friendship is Magic and join this community?
Had a friend who got into it when the show first started. I mostly just was like "Um... that's a little girl cartoon." I respect the guy immensely, and I accepted that the show was probably a lot better than I thought it was... but I was really busy with school at the time, so I didn't have time to watch much of anything.
And then, the Series Finale happened. I got bored over summer, and decided to check out the show, since it was ending and I wanted to know what the hype was all about.
I loved it. And now I'm here forever.
And who's your second-favorite character?
That's hard. Mostly because I think lists and value judgements on that stuff are 1) complicated, and 2) bullshit.
Trixie is Best Horse, due to having the best character in the show... but I would call Rarity my waifu, based purely on her Element. None of the Elements, save for Generosity, actually call upon their bearer to sacrifice something of themselves in order to be the Element. Sure, they can cost something, but it's explicit for Rarity. And despite her own flaws (of which there are many), Generosity is a virtue that I have always, personally, found to be the most meaningful in my own life. To willingly sacrifice something of yourself, for others? That's beautiful to me. Rarity's Generosity hits me somewhere primal. In my heart.
But... I also love Applejack's dedication to her family. Pinkie's desire to help those around her smile. Fluttershy's kindness, and Dash's unwavering dedication to others. And Twilight's optimism and genuine belief in the better nature of others.
Oh, third place would go to Luna (no contest), but I can't rule out the other M6, if I'm being honest.
Wait, there are people who don't celebrate the month of Halloween
Heretics. Heretics and fools. But soon... yes, soon, my brothers! The Great Pumpkin will return, and slay the unbelievers!
Ahem... got a little carried away there. Sorry about that.
Have a nice night!
That last one amused me for some reason.
Looks like I missed the ask me anything, damn. Oh well, the answers are good, specially your vision of Trixie, which I totally support and is why I love when you write her in that light.
I need to write more stuff with Best Horse.
Good luck!
I'm really hoping midnight goes on her first date with aria
I dont remember you announcing you'll be taking questions till now
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Sorry, my previous blog asked for questions. I'd be happy to take some more, if you have any?
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Well, I have a few:
What's your favorite Trixie moment?
Do you believe her Equestria Girl's version has similar hardships other than what was shown in Forgotten Memories?
Is there a type of story different from what you've written until now that you would like to try in the future?
Which type of horror do you prefer reading?
Is English your first language?
When was the last time you felt truly happy?
I agree, Trixie is a good character.
Also, Halloween is the only holiday I really care about anymore because it has good entertainment associated with it.
Yeah, I really don't get that because we don't celebrate Halloween over here at all. It's the reason why Christmas technically starts at September for us: not really much of a big major holiday starting from September until November (which is where we have All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day).
But I do appreciate free candy.
Yup. I could even say that she's a proto-Starlight Glimmer given her background: we see bits and pieces of her forlorn backstory before her return in Season 6, and even before that, we already had fics here and there about a tragic Trixie.
And her ego aside, her persistence is still amazing. That she antagonized the Element of Magic herself (under evil amulet influence, but still) and continued to try and one-up Twilight isn't something the average pony could pull off. It really does make No Second Prances a great episode in my opinion.
Given your energy for someone coming in that late into the show's cycle, I'd be hesitant to see the hype and energy you'd have if you'd joined earlier and went through the whole Trixie arc from day one. On the other hand, you know the show's really good if it's still bringing a steady stream of fans in to this day.
In terms of ideal, I think that'd be good to have: an Element to aspire to the most. But I think it'd also be good to see which Element you relate to the most in terms of who one is right now: like, I relate to Applejack a lot not just due to the Honesty thing but also because she's a simple and traditional-going family-centered gal with a hard work ethic to admire and something I can relate to (or at least try to, he-he!)
It's been fun seeing the AMA come into fruition! Hope it was good for you, Mr. Beard!
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Will midnight still go on her date with aria?