The Author's Note on A Rather Large Adventure · 1:37pm Aug 4th, 2021
When I started writing this story, I envisioned it becoming one of the most renowned works on the entire website.
As you can probably tell, that didn't work out so well. Putting your heart and soul into a work does not mean it will invariably succeed.
A few things I had not considered before starting:
- This website had been around for many years before I joined, and traffic was slowing down. It wasn't nearly as much as, say, 2012.
- New and aspiring authors should create smaller pieces of work first, to not only build up their audience and establish a reputation, but to hone and develop your own skills.
- I was a newcomer to the trade at the age of sixteen who had very little experience writing actually good stories. The only credit I had beforehand was hours upon hours of absorbing other fanfiction in preparation for my eventual work.
Because that's why I joined here in the first place: I was looking for MLP adventure stories similar to the one developing in my head at the time. I had grown impatient and had hand-written down the first thirty-three chapters on lined paper, and just copied the words with slight variations into the chapter box. I think it was over three hundred and forty physical pages. It got to the point where I had to search for a really thick three-ring binder just to keep the pages intact and in proper order. I still have them. They're old and faded, but they're a landmark in my work. Four years later, when I am now twenty years old, I still think of them with fondness.
Once it transitioned away from actual paper and into Google Docs, then I started to hit a problem. I was going off an outline while the story was still in progress, but now it would all have to be translated from my head. But I couldn't just stop. The story didn't deserve that.
The story went from a series of loosely-connected action sequences in my head to an actual nuanced story with a plot and developed characters and stakes and everything. Not everything originally in my head made it in--you can find the original plan for my ideas here--but a lot of it did.
I've spent a lot of time on this story. Much more than I would care to admit. This story is longer than The Silmarillion, although not nearly as dense or as high in quality. At the end, I still often wonder, Was it all worth it?
That question is partially up to others to answer for me. But ultimately, I am satisfied with what I've done here.
Looking back, there are plenty of things I wish I could do differently. I wish the slice of life in the beginning hadn't dragged on so long. I wish I could create a more solid and likable characterization for Noble Blade. I wish I could have focused on the supporting cast a bit more. But I attribute this to my influence of many dozens of fanfictions I've read previous to my own work.
There are so many moving parts to this story. I could spend hours talking about individual things that converged together into something greater than the sum of its parts. Of course, there were also a ton of stuff that didn't go anywhere--most noticeably in the beginning, with Derpy and Octavia and Vinyl. I had to retcon the Fallen into warriors from Mount Nevermore in order to fit the new direction I was going. I was experimenting with plenty of new things. I knew generally where I was going to end up, but not really how to get there.
I know a general linear pathway I must take, and there are certain road markers along the way letting me know I'm on the right track. Sometimes they can be intricately detailed, and at other times it just says, "Major plot development." The rest of the time I'm kinda floundering about, seeking how to connect the dots on the path.
Here I impart some writing advice: you must always deal with what the rational and logical consequences of a character's action or a plot point would be. How does the way a character react to a given situation further the plot, create character growth, and generate conflict? Because the author is not driving; the characters are. You are simply chronicling their journey.
If your character's reactions to this event do not impact the story in any way or they do not suffer any consequences for their actions, then either the storytelling is flawed or your characters are. I have struggled with this many times. I have come to regard some of my characters as more flat or less fleshed out than I would have preferred. But this is an error that can be rectified. Only when you refuse to correct an error does it become a mistake. Thank you for the wisdom, Grand Admiral Thrawn.
Characters exist within us all. I firmly believe that there is a part in our heads full of ideas and characters waiting to be developed. We must simply excise them. We understand them best. If done correctly, a character is an entirely separate concoction from the author, and yet still contains a sliver of the author's self within it.
Man cannot write that which is contrary to his own self. He may try to imitate it otherwise, but an author will always put down truth somewhere. In fiction, where it's all a lie, truth shines and stands out from its background. Truth and knowledge are not really mutually exclusive, but I know people--and so do you--who know a lot of things, but they don't know the truth.
God is the source of all truth. God is my inspiration for making this story. Time and time again, the scriptures have made it into this story. I really don't want to wax philosophical on you all or deviate from what I was actually talking about. But this is important to me. When I say this, I mean, God's important. This story is important. It's the longest I think I'll ever write. I intend to de-ponify it in the future and release it on the side as a hobby or something. Here's the outline for if and when that happens.
Not many of you have made it this far. To those who have, I am humbled. I've made this story for myself, but I've also done it as something for you to enjoy. I have nothing more to say except thank you.
I drifted away from MLP and the fandom in the last few months. Long story short, I finally went outside and talked to people, developed strong bonds and strengthened a few older ones, too. I'm an extrovert compared to who I was when I came to this site.
It's funny, really. I remember how much I cherished this community and how badly I wanted to be included and welcomed in it. I spent hours on this site every day, reading fanfics and leaving comments for people to respond to, so I could look forward to receiving new notifications, and when there was some drama on the site, I paid close attention. I had childish dreams of becoming a writer, not exactly horse famous, but one with a loyal following nonetheless. Like I said, it's funny. It's astonishing how much wiser I've gotten in less than two years. But it came at a price.
Now I barely log on to the site. I visit it about twice a week to check my notifications, then proceed to not use it for another 3 or 4 days. I'm glad the Brony fandom has this corner of the Internet where they can feel at home, even after the show ended and so many left, but I'm just a silent observer now. I don't read fanfics and the last comment I wrote was posted a month ago. It may not sound like a long time, but it's an eternity compared to how active I was once. I don't care about the drama anymore. I only wrote one story and I got bored of it half-way through. I'm pretty certain the sudden loss of enthusiasm would be noticeable, if someone were to read it. I haven't written anything since then. It's been over a year.
I honestly don't know if my relationship with the fandom and this site specifically will ever be the same. I don't know if I will ever write again. I kinda want to. But if I do end up writing again, it will be because I have something to share, not for fame.
I will always be fond of the memories I've made while being a part of this exceptional community. I will never forget the insane creativity and overall friendliness of the Bronies, aside from a few bad apples, but let us not speak of them.
And, for the record, I don't want to leave the fandom, but, as Hunter said in The Bad Batch (shout-out to fellow Star Wars fanatics reading this, especially you, Brady): things aren't like before. Priorities have shifted.
And your priorities have shifted, too. I don't know what the future holds for you or me, or if we'll cross paths again (I hope so), but God bless you in your future endeavors. It was a privilege to get to know you.
P.S. Your memes are top-tier.
Well said Brady... very well said
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Congratulations, Brady! Wow. You've done it. You wrote and completed one hell of a story. (Not expressing religious terms, by the way. Just my excitement.) You conquered it with over 600k words! Wow, man. Just, wow.
I've said it before, when we first met, I'm gonna say it again. You're inspirational. Dude, you're one of the main reasons I picked up the pen again! Look, I know your journey on this site wasn't a smooth ride all the way through, but you made it. You showed the people who did not believe in you, who wanted to see you fail, that with determination and the right mindset you can do whatever the hell you want! With over 600k words, you accomplished it. Not your fingers, not your will, you.
Congratulations, man.
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Thank you all for your words. I'm grateful to have made this impact on all of you. You have made a tremendously positive effect on me as well. Knowing I am an inspiration is just so enriching. It does funny things in my chest. Not the romantic kind of way!
Again, thanks. I'm so happy that I have you guys to, uh, validate me.