This was an interview I sent to Kkat, the writer of the original Fallout: Equestria. She was too busy to do it in real time, but she answered the questions, nonetheless. As always, our questions are in red.

What inspired you to write in the first place?

In general? An active imagination. I’ve always been a storyteller, from my earliest childhood memories. I’ve had stories in my head that I wanted to tell, and I’ve explored various mediums for telling these stories -- art, writing and even running roleplaying games.

As for Fallout: Equestria in particular, the inception of the idea was from an artwork by Dan Shive called “Pony Vegas”. It was a wonderful piece, playing on my twin loves of Friendship is Magic and the Fallout series of games. But at the same time, it didn’t make sense within the context of the show. My imagination immediately started trying to figure out how you could make the combination make sense, and the story began to take form.

The story made the jump from imagination to written word because I wanted to share Friendship is Magic with my friends in a Fallout online community.

[color=redNow that we know where you got your first inspiration from, where do you get most of your inspiration now?

I had a lot of music I would listen to when brainstorming. And of course both the Fallout series and Friendship is Magic were constant sources of inspiration. But the most vital motivation came from my readers themselves. The commentary from the fans not only helped improve the story every step of the way, but it helped me keep going despite how huge the story was and how much work it took to write it. Without that feedback, Fallout: Equestria would never have been completed.

Additionally, the fans drove me not only to continue writing, but to try to make the story the best possible version of the story that it could be. I was so overwhelmed by the positive responses, the art, the music, the side stories... and just the sheer love I was feeling from this community... that I knew I needed to do right by all of them. I needed to do my best, and always strive to do better. I owed it to them.

Thank you for that.

What are you reading now, and which authors influenced your works? Which of them influenced your life greatly?

There are several authors who influenced my overall writing style. The largest influences were Stephen King, Joss Whedon, S. Andrew Swann and J. Michael Straczynski. Straczynski (and his phenomenal television series Babylon 5) is by far the greatest influence on the way I craft epic stories.

Is there any author you remember working with that you would like to mention?

Not yet. I’ve done preliminary work on a story I hope to write as a joint project, but writing hasn’t started yet because my free time has been eaten by other things.

Any authors/stories you think are really good that should get way more recognition than they have so far?

I have not read nearly as many stories as I would like to, particularly when it comes to MLP: FiM fan-fiction. Many of those that I have read, or at least partially read, have been very good. I’m hesitant to put any on a pedestal until I have read more, however.

In regards to published works, there are several authors who inspired me. Most are well-known, but one whom I think deserves much more recognition is S. Andrew Swann. His writing has influenced my style in several areas, most notably in how I write action sequences.

What do you do when you have a tough case of Writer’s Block?

As mentioned above, I would often immerse myself in music from a playlist I had dubbed “Fallout: Equestria Instrumental” or read back over the latest feedback. These never failed to get me through the doldrums of Writer’s Block.

What’s the hardest part of writing for you, and how do you deal with it?

The hardest part is always starting. Writing that first word, sentence, paragraph. I find that once I start, it is easy to keep writing. But forcing myself to sit down and start typing is often horribly difficult. I generally have to assign myself a time to start writing, and make myself stick to that. But I find that my own determination isn’t usually enough. It helps to know I have readers counting on me. If I’ve made promises to others, that’s more of a impetus than my own desire to write.

What do you believe is the best way to determine what you are good at?

Trial and error? I’m such a CMC.

When writing, do you have a particular thing you like to do, like listening to music?

Yes. When writing Fallout: Equestria, I had my own set of little rituals to help put me in the right mood and frame of mind. For example, I had a playlist of music that I would listen to while writing (my Fallout: Equestria Inspirational playlist), and I would always start with the same song: “Winter Wrap-Up (In the Everfree Forest)” by I Am Not a Clever Pony. I also had a particular brand of soda that I would drink. All part of psyching myself up for a writing marathon.

When you have trouble concentrating, what do you do?

Fortunately, I live in a very quiet apartment on the top floor of our apartment building. My best friend shares the apartment with me but has a work schedule that leaves me on my own most hours that I am home and awake. So where I had trouble concentrating, it was easy to shut off the music and any other noise. And, when appropriate, take some headache medicine or drink something either caffeinated or relaxing.

On occasion, I would put on relaxing background music and lean back in my chair with a hot towel over my eyes. This was particularly nice when I’d been staring at a monitor for several hours.

Who is your ideal reader?

Readers who give helpful detailed feedback, whether praise or criticism. My favorite readers were those who wrote reviews and reading commentaries on each chapter as they came out.

As mentioned below, reader commentary was a major part of my writing process. The feedback and constructive criticism I received allowed me to continuously improve the story. Likewise, comments which included detailed feedback and writing commentaries always helped revive my interest in the story whenever it began to waver. Without that feedback, Fallout: Equestria would never have been completed.

Thank you all so very, very much!

How do you handle constructive criticism?

Whether an author, an artist or any other sort of creator, you need to welcome and listen to helpful feedback. Quality feedback and criticism are invaluable tools for helping you improve.

If I wasn’t receptive to feedback, my story would have had only a fraction of its quality. After every chapter posted, I read every comment, spending a few days digesting praise and critique alike. Those comments allowed me to see the reactions I was getting, to gauge what did and did not work. By listening to constructive feedback, I would see where the story could be made better by clarifying or expound on something, and it helped me remember threads that needed to be touched on again. I am told you can see the writing improve as the story progresses.

How do you deal with someone who just rages at you?

I do my best to just ignore them.

Any good critic has a few goals in mind, and if the critic wants (or expect) you to pay attention to them, then one of those goals is to help you improve. If the critic cannot take the time to be mature and civil, then why should you assume they are making the effort to be accurate or helpful? Even if a river of feces [might contain a diamond, you are not required to jump in and swim through it in an effort to find that diamond. Nor are you under any obligation to give the river's contents the benefit of the doubt.

If the critic's goal is to get you to listen to them, then they need to behave in a way that engenders your receptiveness. You do not owe them anything, much less an ear. If a critic's goals are to make themselves feel good by trashing your work, promote their own work, play to an audience for laughs, or simply insult or attack you then their criticisms are not for any purpose that would be helpful to your improvement, and you have absolutely no reason whatsoever to give them the time of day. Listening to them is likely to do you more harm than good.

On a similar note, if the critic cannot be bothered to view the entirety of the work they are attempting to critique then, whether good or bad, they are an uninformed critic, and should likewise be ignored.

How do you deal with failure?

Not as well as I wish I did. I’d like to quote a beautifully insightful passage from What’s Eating Rainbow Dash by Somber:

Rarity said softly, and her smile faded; her luminous blue eyes becoming a little sad. “When you’re a creator, deep down inside, you have a little voice telling you your creations are no good. That you’re wasting your time… and you’d be better off as a fry cook in Bucklyn.” She gave a little shudder before forcing a smile, “It’s not a bad thing to have, really. If you ignore it, you might create monstrosities of art, but if you don’t fight it then that doubt can eat you alive. You’ll stop creating. You stop everything. And you’ll prove it right.”

Every good artist has that little voice. And sometimes, it’s not so easy to fight it. That is part of why it is so important that you don’t listen to critics who aren’t capable of, or aren’t trying to, help you. I mostly have that little voice mastered... mostly. But it gets a lot louder when I fail.

I’ve recently learned that it’s just as vital to ask “How do you deal with success?” Success brings with it two ugly dangers of its own.

The first is ego. It is perfectly acceptable to be pleased, even proud, of your success. As Twilight says in The Mysterious Mare-Do-Well, “Celebrating your accomplishments is natural”. Even more, it is healthy. Those reasons for pride become your strongest defense against that cannibal little voice. But, as Applejack adds, “rubbing them in everypony’s face is not.” Not only will this make you a really unpleasant person, but it will be the death of your work. Ego threatens to blind you to your shortcomings. There is always room for improvement. Always room for constructive criticism.

The second is fear. Once you are successful, how do you continue? There is a part of me that knows everything I do from here on out will be compared to what I have done, and I fear there is no way my future works could live up to what I have accomplished. There is part of me that says I must either quit now, or I risk becoming the M. Night Shyamalan of pony fanfiction. That fear can be utterly paralyzing.

How do you motivate yourself to write and how do you stay motivated?

Again, the greatest motivation comes from all the wonderful friends and fans. This community is amazing.

What process do you use to generate great ideas?

Inspiration can come from anywhere. But it most easily comes from the things I love. Fallout and Friendship is Magic are two of those. I’ve had ideas for stories spawn from small scenes in an FiM episode, or from listening to good music. Once a story has started to take form, I go to the same well that I do to get through Writer’s Block: either reviewing positive feedback and constructive criticism, or losing myself in inspirational music. I find that while listening to music, I can let my imagination run free more than any other time.

Do you believe it is better to edit your own work, or have someone do it for you?

Someone else, no question. Authors make their own worst editors. We’re too close to our own work. We not only lack objectivity, but it is easy for us to see what we intended to write rather than what we wrote. There will be times when a writer will need to reject the advice of a proofreader -- I had several times where my proofreaders were unfamiliar with idioms that insisted on using anyway, for example -- but a writer should rely on their editors for advice and correction.

I owe a great debt to my team of editors and proofreaders.

What tips could you give to new or aspiring writers? Alternatively, is there anything you would like to warn them NOT to do?

There are seven bits of advice I have to offer for people who wish to write:

First: Start writing. Regularly. The hardest part of writing is actually beginning. Once you've started, I've found, the words come more easily. But putting down that first sentence, or even just the title, can be the most daunting part of a day's work.

Second: Keep writing. Even if you don't like what you have written -- your writing will improve the more you do it. The more you write, the better you will become at it.

Third: Write about something you love. You will find writing a lot more fulfilling, and a lot easier to continue, if you are writing about something you enjoy or care about.

Fourth: If you are writing something complex, such as a fan-fic: before you write (whether you are writing the whole story or just a single chapter), take some time to plot out major themes, events and other important notes you want in that story or chapter.

Fifth: Read. Find authors whose works you enjoy and read them. Occasionally pause to think about what made writing work for you.

Sixth: Be familiar with some of the pitfalls that writers, particularly new ones, fall prey to and make it a point to avoid them. For example: know what a self-insert character is and what a Mary Sue character is and put effort into making sure your characters aren’t either of those.

Seventh: If possible, find friends or other supportive individuals who will critique your work. This can easily be the hardest suggestion to follow, however. Don't be dismayed or dissuaded from writing if you can't find the response you are looking for. Continue to write; continue to improve.

These are by no means the only or even most important advice you can receive. So here are some links to some more great writing advice:

Here
And here

As always, I hope you enjoyed the interview, and I hope even more that you took something from this. It's why I do them, after all. Until next time,
~Bronymaster

nice

Dan Shive... as in, the same Dan Shive who draws El Goonish Shive?

This picture, perhaps?

-Tricondon

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Picture broke.

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I fixed it.

-Tricondon

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I was told to tell you that you would be correct. That is the correct picture.

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Hooray! I got something right!

-Tricondon

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I'll mark it on the calender.

Very interesting as usual. Thanks

How in the name of Celestia HERSELF! WAS I GONE FOR THIS!?!?!?!?!?

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Don't worry. I never delete my interviews, so you'll never miss anything. In fact, I posted this just last night. Oh, and I've secured one with ROBcakeran, as my blog will state.

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Too bad that one never ended up happening, but this interview is great anyway

Omg... T-That gun...

I... The humble beginings of little Macintosh I suspect...

Very useful, I always wanted to know kkats method, I think that's pretty much what we all do... one step closer to my fanfiction hero, awww yeah!

Wow. Great interview. Very insightful.