A Long Eventide Indeed · 1:03am May 2nd, 2022
So.
I didn't have a very good 2021.
(It's the post-2020 world. The fact that I lived through it means that I had a better one than plenty of others did...)
Launching into The Long Eventide was part of trying to give myself something to work on after 2020. A project. I normally like having projects, and I planned to be pretty consistent about it. I finished the revised script for chapter three not long after cutting the scene I felt needed to be cut. I started to introduce what I call "small ripples." Little AU things that don't massively change the trajectory of canon events and are in fact more of a nod to them, as opposed to the "big ripple" of the central what-ifs of a story. Part of the advantage of working after the series' conclusion is that I know exactly what can potentially be foreshadowed. I liked the result. Was proud of it, even.
And then I got through converting the first scene into prose, and everything screeched to a halt. I tried to keep going in fits and starts, but the part of me that felt driven to finally write this story that had taken up residence in my head felt inspiration plunge straight into ice-cold waters. I still read, but writing became mental gears grinding against each other, and in the emotional state I was in, offering something I wrote to the public would be... a poor idea, anyway. Then, ironically, when things started to look up and my spark started coming back, time to write became an issue.
(Not to mention that I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. It feels like something too good has happened, something I don't deserve, and that the world will correct the mistake and snatch it away.
But on the upside, if it doesn't get taken away, I'll be able to finally afford to sponsor people on Patreon whose work helped get me through things. The guilt for never throwing those content creators a dime was not insignificant. I just need to put together a list, sort out a budget, and become the last person on the Internet to figure out the details of how it works.
At least, somewhere along the line, they started automatically translating the amounts on Patreon pages into my country's currency. Easier to do the math that way.)
I did my best to finish it off, and polish it, over the time that I've felt better, when I could. I've also modified my outline, added some things to my plans, given an ambitious cast size a little more breathing room. The fact that the show already has a large main cast, and Luna was the focus, before factoring in the OCs, makes for quite the juggling act.
But I'm back. I might even try a couple of short stories, soon, if I can squeeze them in while still delivering the next chapter in a timely manner.
For everyone who gave me a chance in the first place, thank you. For anyone willing to pick the fic back up after the hiatus, my thanks to you as well.
Now that I'm back on my feet, it's time to dust myself off and get back into the race.
Yeah, the last couple years have been rough. Good to see you get started again.