"I'm okay with it"

by AlesFlamas

"Really, I am."

Arthur Renai Craftswell is an artist, a student of the traditionalist style. He sculpts and he paints and he draws, not for money, but for the sheer sake of art. He has never sold a painting or had his work displayed in a gallery of any kind. He has a job that he's not terribly interested in but it pays the bills that allow him to keep doing what he loves. He's not one to socialize and there aren't many ponies that know his name or the work he does. In other words, Arthur is nopony special. And that fact doesn't bother him one bit.

Being special or openly unique or outgoing in Equestria, and in Ponyville especially, usually meant that one way or another, you would get pulled into some kind of hi-jinks. Arthur was not a fan of hi-jinks, or shenanigans, or tomfoolery of any kind. But he had a close foalhood friend who was. A friend who by some turn of fate had also come to live in Ponyville. Arthur and this friend, a perky and outgoing mare, had been incredibly close growing up, and when he had moved to Ponyville some years ago, they had spent a great deal of time together, when she wasn't busy brightening up the days of others. But then a certain purple unicorn, who was now an alicorn princess, moved to town, and Arthur's friend became subject to the hi-jinks and shenanigans he was so eager to avoid. So he left her to her adventures, and though her schedule was much more hectic now, she always tried to find some time to get together with her old friend, a day when they could sit, she could bounce new comedy material off him and he could educate her on the nuances of ancient Equestrian artistry. This was one of those days.

---

"And then the farmer turned to the quantum physicist and said, 'That's no particle accelerator, that's my daughter!' "

"Diane?"

"Yeah, Artie?"

"Remember that conversation we had about punchlines without context?"

"Well, duuuuh. How can I forget when you remind me about it everytime we see each other. Silly."

"No, you're silly. Because no matter how many times I remind you, you always seem to forget the start-up to at least one joke."

"Huh. . . I swear I told somepony the beginning of that joke. Was I talking to myself? Or maybe I just-"

"Don't sweat it Diane. It's no big deal."

"It is so a big deal! We spend so little time together, I want every moment we do have to be filled with more laughs than the last."

"Honestly, I don't think anypony but you would be capable of accomplishing that feat."

Arthur chuckled to himself. That was Diane alright, or as so many others seemed to know her, Pinkie. Always trying to please everypony, bring a smile to their faces. So far as he knew, she had never failed in this regard. At the very least, she always made him smile.

Arthur took a look at the clock that hung over his front door. A clock of his own design, modeled after the classical statuesque ruggedness of Starswirl the Bearded. By the look of his beard-locks, it was about 9:35; about time for Diane to be heading home.

"How the time flies.", Artie said absentmindedly.

"Oh, that reminds me of a really good one, about this gryphon with dyscalculia and-"

"Diane, you really should get going. We both have work in the morning."

"But we were just starting to have a good time."

"Any time I'm spending with you is a good time, Diane."

"Aww. Well, aren't you just a big ol' sweetie. Oh, speaking of sweeties, did you enjoy that triple-decker tri-color lava cake I brought last time? It took a really long time to make and-"

"Yes, Diane, it was delicious. And you're stalling. Go home and get some rest."

"But then you'll be here all alone. And I can't, in good conscience, leave one of my bestest friends in the whole world by himself, lonely and depressed, in his lonely and depressing house. . . no offense. But that's just not how I do things!"

Artie sighed. He'd had this argument with Pinkie the last few times she'd been over for a visit and each time she was more obstinate in her desire to stay. And this time, he wasn't so sure he'd be able to convince her to go home. Unless. . .

"Diane, do you want to hear a story?"

"Ohh, I love stories! Is it a fairytale or a tragedy or a dramedy or-"

"It's a work of non-fiction. Something you may be familiar with, in fact. Just sit back and listen."

Pinkie did as she was asked, though she was jittering so violently she seemed fit to burst- of course this was nothing new for Pinkie. Arthur sat and thought to himself. How to begin this story, he wondered. After a brief moment of though, he decided to go with the old standby.

"Once upon a time-"

"I love it when stories start out that way."

"I know you do. Anyway, once upon a time, there was an artistic, young earth pony colt who lived in the city of Canterlot. This colt had discovered at a very young age what his special talent was, and his parents were very proud of him. They spent hundreds upon thousands of bits ensuring that the colt's talents would be nurtured and increased upon. But the colt did not care for any of this lavishing and attention. He did not care that all these bits were being spent to improve his talent. The colt just wanted to paint. He just wanted to express himself. But his parent would not listen. His parents would only keep encouraging him to shoot for the stars, so that one day he might be a renowned artist, so that one day his art might be featured in galleries all across Equestria. Maybe even all around the world. And while the colt had to admit that the prospects of fame and fortune were quite dazzling, he could not bring himself to shoot for the stars. But his parents would not quit.

"Spending increasingly exorbitant amounts of money, his parents decided that the colt would do best in an environment that provided no distraction. So they shipped him off, with all their love, to the Canterlot Academy for Advanced Artistic Inclination. The colt would spend many years here.

"The Academy was not the worst place to be. But there, much like at home, the colt was constantly accosted by stallions and mares, teachers and students alike who constantly told him to reach for the stars, prepare himself for fame and fortune, or who wished to tell him of their aspirations for the very same. Here, art was institutionalized and made into something less than what it should be. Rather than an expression of the self and of emotion and of perception, it was made into an assignment. Little more than something to be done for credit."

"That sounds awful," Pinkie said.

"Oh believe me, it was. So awful that the colt began to lose interest in that which was supposed to embody his life's purpose. He began to lose interest in the arts. But then the second semester of his schooling began, and the colt was provided a golden opportunity. Apparently, the first semester of every school year was spent "learning" the drivel that had been shoved down his throat, while the second was spent abroad, giving the students opportunities to take the techniques they had learned and find the beauty in wherever it was they decided to send themselves. At last, the colt thought to himself, a chance to be rid of all this pressure. So taking a look at the list of locations he had been provided, the colt decided on what he felt would be the perfect getaway for him: a moderately successful rock farm, a few miles outside of a village that was only about a days journey from Canterlot. Surely their would be no one to bother or pressure him on a rock farm. And for the most part, he was right."

"Hey, I grew up on a rock farm! And what do you mean, for the most part?", a confused Pinkie questioned.

"I'm getting there. Now, when the colt arrived at the rock farm, it was more than he could have asked for. Peaceful, quiet, and the owners themselves seemed like friendly, hardworking ponies. Here, there was nopony constantly prattling on about the potential for fame. Just two hardworking Earth ponies and their four daughters. The daughters themselves were sociable enough, though one held and almost abnormal fixation with the rocks she was supposed to farm. Two were content simply to work the fields, perhaps collecting a geode or precious stone here and there. The final daughter however was a different story entirely. He rarely saw her in the fields, and quite honestly, if not for the multitude of family portraits which she was a part of, he would have assumed her to be adopted. For this filly was very different from her sisters, in personality as well as in her bright pink coloration."

"I'm bright pink too! And I look waaaayy different from my sisters."

"Do you now? I hadn't noticed. Anyway, the colt was fascinated by the filly. And she, in turn, seemed fascinated by him. A pony whose talent was to throw parties was baffling to him, just as she was baffled by a pony whose talent was to paint and sculpt, but who didn't want to do either. He made it clear to her just why it was he held no interest in any of it, but still she was confused. After all, she said, If you like to paint and sculpt and draw, why should other ponies trying to support you bother you? The colt explained that if you did something strictly for profit or recognition, especially something like art, then you were doing it for the wrong reasons. The pink filly understood that. But still, she argued, even if that's true, and everypony is telling you to reach for the stars and get famous, does that mean you can't do your art for other reasons? From what she was hearing, those were all just suggestions. Nopony was forcing him to paint or draw for those reasons. The colt had no answer. Perhaps he'd been viewing his situation all wrong. And maybe this pink filly could help him look at things the right way.

"The colt and the pink filly ended up spending a lot of time with each other. They played, they planned parties for her family members, every now and again they would help in the fields. And when inspiration struck, they would sit and he would paint. Sometimes it would be a painting of the landscape, sometimes of the pink filly's sisters and father at work in the fields. But wherever the colt painted or whatever he drew, the pink filly would be by his side, providing moral support and enough jokes to fill a book on comedy. The colt was happier than he'd ever been. He'd regained his passion for the arts. And somewhere along the line, he'd made a friend in the pink filly. Which is why he was so devastated when he had to return to school. But the pink filly wasn't so sad. She said that she knew he would be back. Maybe not tomorrow or the day after that, but she knew he'd be back."

"And did he come back?"

"He certainly did. He spent every spring semester after that at the rock farm. Every time he went, the filly got funnier and more energetic and he grew more inspired. The years went by like this, until finally, the colt had grown into a fine young stallion, and the filly into a beautiful, perky and especially pink young mare."

"Hey, you didn't tell me this was going to be a love story!"

"Oh no, it isn't. The stallion and the pink mare had no romantic interest in each other. They were just friends, albeit very close friends. Which is why the stallion's last semester at school was so depressing. As per usual, he decided to make way to the rock farm. Upon arriving however, he learned that the pink mare had moved away from home. According to a note she had left for him, she had gone to spread the joy of laughter and parties to others less fortunate than her. She told him not to be sad. She assured him that they would see each other again. Perhaps not tomorrow or the day after that. But they would definitely see each other again. These words, though they warmed his heart, did little to soothe his sadness. His final semester of schooling went as his first did: lacking in inspiration. Still, he graduated, and moved back home with his parents, where he learned that they were in immeasurable debt. And so, though he hated himself for it, the stallion sold a large quantity of his original pieces to the curator of the Canterlotian Museum of Modern Art to pay off his parents debts."

"Did he get famous?"

"No. He asked that he not be credited and remain anonymous. Remember, fame and fortune were not his goals. Unfortunately, they seemed to be the goal of everyone in Canterlot. He tired of it. So he moved away."

"To where?"

"A quaint little village, a few miles from his friend, the pink mare's rock farm home. He expected only to find peace and quiet there. But he found something much better: The pink mare. Both were overjoyed that they were able to see each other once more, and spent nearly every waking hour with one another, discussing art, telling jokes, and sometimes just loafing around. The stallion was happy again."

"Aww. I love happy endings."

"But then the pink mare made new friends."

"Pardon?"

"She loved these friends with all her heart, just as she loved the stallion. But she could not be everywhere at once. So she and the stallion were not able to spend as much time together as they once had. It all came to an apex when the pink mare made one final new friend. This friend, a unicorn, became very close to the pink mare and four other mares. They became the best of friends and went on heart-pounding, pulse-racing adventures all across Equestria. The pink mare had almost no time now to spend with the stallion. But the stallion did not mind. He knew that she did the best she could, and that if she could spend more time with him, she would. That she was there was enough for him. She would always be there for him and he for her. And that's all he needed."

". . .I think I get what you're trying to say, Artie."

"Do you, Diane? Do you finally get it? You don't have to be here all the time. I understand that you have a busy schedule. I'm okay with it. Really, I am."

"I know, Artie. But it's not in my nature just to leave you by yourself. I'll be back sometime, okay? Maybe not tomorrow-"

"Or the day after that. But definitely sometime."

The two smiled at each other. Pinkie yawned, gave Artie a goodbye hug, and went on her way. Artie sighed and glanced at the clock. 10:10. Time for bed. So he turned off the lights and made his way to his bedroom. As he got into bed and prepared to close his eyes, he couldn't help but look at the picture that hung across from him, the last of his original paintings from his days in school. It was of Pinkie, floating from a bouquet of balloons as her family desperately tried to get her back onto the ground. He chuckled. He closed his eyes. He went to sleep.

Arthur Renai Craftswell was nopony special.

But being friends with Pinkamena Diane Pie certainly made him feel that way.

Comments

[The Goddamn Batman]

Give THE GODDAMN BATMAN time to read this, then I shall point out your errors

[xluferx]

Interesting description i will read this and try to see what wrong

[HapHazred]

Well, I've looked it through, and there might be a few reasons why it's recieved the negative response it got.

First, there's Artie's introduction. Most of that is just handed to me, and I don't really know what to do with that. He's an artist, and that's great for him, but really, if you took that out, I don't think it would have made much of a difference.

What a lot of people will take offense to is the relationship with Pinkie. It's not really worked in, and if you wanted to make the idea of a childhood friend work, you need a lot more time and words than just a paragraph. Again, I'm just handed the fact that he's friends with Pinkie, if that makes sense.

Then the story takes a weird turn where he tells a story. Asides from being a bit difficult to read in terms of content, it's again a case of me being given information as opposed to having to discover it for myself. I think people call that showing and telling, but not being very literary, I kind of never got how that worked.

I think this would be a lot more palatable for people if you took the time to introduce Pinkie and Artie's relationship a lot more, instead of diving headfirst into this story he's telling. In fact, the medium of a story probably isn't the best way to give all that information either, but what the heck do I know. All I do know is that I don't have much reason to care about Artie because I don't know him, have not been given the time to discover him, and don't have any real, visible example of his relationship with Pinkie outside of what he tells me, so I find myself unable to care about that either.

I don't think it's deserving of nothing but dislikes, but I can certainly see why it's not getting an overwhelmingly positive response, either. I have no strong feelings for or against it, aside from a bit of respect for how you tried to tell the story, which I don't think I've seen done all that often, so points for taking risks.

I hope that helped, because I'm not all that great at explaining this stuff. Maybe someone else can do better.

EDIT: also what Weatherstorm said on the promotion thread. There's a fair bit of distrust towards OCs, but if there's something else afoot, this might be part of it. Or I could be talking out of my arse again, that happens at least twice a week.

[TheOneAJ]

Okay, I think I get the biggest issue, author is nothing more than a whinner, whin, whin, whin. I mean, the 'not for fame and fortune idea' sounds nice, but it just dosnt work.
You want to make this story work, here's a start, and I stress, start:
Make his parents more intrested in him running the family bussiness than peruse his talent, take out the 'no fame part' entierly, and the part whee pinkie is to busy for twilight, start it where aurthor is meeting up with pinkie after a long time, have him on ther ok farm because he ran away from home, don't make him so pestamistitc, and ur on your way to a good story.

[CloverQuill]

There weren't any grammar issues that leapt out at me. It was a little bit boring, but not terribly so. It was weird that he called Pinkie "Diane" instead of Pinkie. It is definitely Slice of Life. I don't see anything here that warrants that many downvotes.

[ErraticOverlord]

What a fairly sweet little story.

I liked it but as far as any problems with it I'd say maybe,

1 You've got a little wall of text problems and that turns some readers off, better paragraph spacing and more paragraphs would probably be better

2 Being told as a story rather than being shown as a story threw the pacing off a little bit. This dynamic might be better served in a non-one shot so we can get a better idea of this character, rather than him just telling us.

3 Some people might rag on the 'show don't tell' particularly in the beginning but I thought it was nice, reminding me of Tolkien in the Hobbit, actually.

4 There really isn't much happening in the story. No real arc to it. No one's disposition changes and nothing really new is taken from the experience. It's a nice story but it seems like a smaller part to a potentially bigger story

It's nice (I can't imagine how it got so many downvotes, but then again I either upvote it if I like it or just don't so there's that). It's a cute little story and that's really all it is. You did a lot of things right, particularly handling the tell don't show aspect and the characterization of Pinkie Pie but if you wanted to do more, I'd say this concept could do very well in a larger idea.

I liked it, I favorited it. It's nice, that's all.

[JMac]

You need to break up the paragraphs into small bits. While you're at it fix the formatting, you missed some paragraph breaks.

Your biggest problem is this is pure Slice of Live, and that doesn't appeal to many because it lacks conflict. It's a nice little, well told story, but it's not exciting. A lot of readers would find it boring. You'll just have to be patient, and let an appreciative audience find it in time.

[xluferx]

Well i liked the story to be honest but i found some erros that you might correct like you use alot of times the point ''.'' alright, so that give the paragraphp idea an abrupt end. Then you said this was for a contest right? So you couldn't imagine that others participants who also are in the contest would unvote you? Is just an possibility.

With the story itself, well i found some erors which i think you should fix

It's no big deal."........ why not.......''it's not a big deal'' or ''Is no big deal''

"It is so a big deal!'' are you sure is wrote like that? I have my doubts

[quote]I want every moment we do have to be filled with more laughs than the last." I thought of this ''I want every moment we spent together to be happier than the last one''[quote]"Honestly, I don't think anypony but you would be capable of accomplishing that feat." I prefer like this "Honestly, I don't think anypony besides you; would be capable of accomplishing that feat."

please everypony, bring a smile .. i believe it is better ... please everypony and bring a smile to theri faces

time to make and-" I believe the word prepare or bake would sound better

spent to improve his talent ... I thought of this... '' all the bits spent on him for improve his talents

The colt would spend many years here. Here? you wanted to say there, right?

it was more than he could have asked for. Peaceful, quiet, ... I think you could change that part it seems a bit strange from my part

Here, there was nopony constantly prattling on about the potential for fame. You tried to make him look like he corrected his words? Because I don't why you should put here and there together

A pony whose talent was to throw parties was baffling to him, just as she was baffled by a pony whose talent was to paint and sculpt, but who didn't want to do either. I think that who is unnecesary

. He tired of it. So he moved away." You need to combine sentences because separating them sounds bad like: ''How he was tired of it, he decided to move away''

He chuckled. He closed his eyes. He went to sleep. Arthur Renai Craftswell was nopony special. Again dont do short sentences and put them in a paragrph those are awful unless they are alone, turning them into a paragraph, but i think I can do something with this; He chuckled as his eyelids felt heavier than usual meaning one thing; it was time to go to bed and prepare for the next day.

Poiting all of that is what I found but maybe there are more errors which i didn't catch but I'm not perfect anyways good story and I hope that it get upvotes

[AlesFlamas]

5702122
5702105
5702066
5702046
5702037
Thank you all for the little reviews. For clarification, I wasn't expecting my story to be featured or front page material, I never do. I just didn't understand the influx of dislikes. I'll try to rectify the mistakes you all pointed out.

Also, if you thought Artie was boring in any way, then that's good. I tried to write him as a sort of dry, boring guy.

[Helloman892]

Ok. I've both liked, and favourited this. Do you want to know why?

My reasoning lies solely in this: This has a beautiful undertone of friendship (basically the only value the show represents), and the relationship with Pinkie Pie isn't necessarily a bad thing. Sure, she's a canon character, but it means that you don't have to define every last character trait of two OCs for this kind of relationship. Hell, describing one OC is difficult enough, let alone two!

All this needs is a bit of editing. I really do not understand the (now-slightly-unbalanced) like bar being so full of red. I enjoyed this.

Now, to the constructive criticism. Most of what I would correct is the same as what 5702122 said earlier on. The pacing was, for all intents and purposes, absolutely fine. I saw no issue with you launching straight into a monologue-typical story, although paragraphing could have been used in a less sparse manner. The relationship explored by Arthur's story was vaguely in-depth, and was just perfect for showing the deep friendship he and Pinkie Pie share.

However, all the way through I felt that Arthur was building up to something drastically important, and (to be honest) the climax wasn't really a climax - although it did serve its purpose remarkably well. The fic came down from a monologue to a small wall-of-text narration in the pen-penultimate paragraph [The two smiled at each other...] which, while not strictly an issue, was a bit jaunting to read - although it sweetens their friendship just that little bit more with the painting of Pinkie Pie.

Overall, I enjoyed this story and would read it again if it had some edits put to it.

(N.B.: If you want, you can PM me here or send me an email at [e-mail] and we can talk about proper editing habits (and also you can get me to edit it for you =D).)

[Politicalunrest2400]

Official/ Contest Review: "I'm Ok with it...Really I am"

Link: I'm ok with it...really I am

Description: "We don't need to smother our friends to let them know that we're there for them. We just need to be there for them. Nopony understands this more than Artie Craftswell."

Pinki Pie has another friend that isn't part of the main six... just a good old friend. This story is his story.

9/10 For Writing Style/ Skill: This is perhaps the best slice of life story involving an O.C. and a member of the Main Six that I have read. The flow, the character's behavior, the characterization of Artie Craftswell, it all works together so freaking well! This type of writing is on level with high end publishing. Perhaps I missed a few spelling/ grammar mistakes, but I didn't catch any. If I did, it was because the flow of the story, its pacing and tone are so powerful I forgot all about it! Certainly professional level work here.

5/5 For Family Friendliness: This teaches a very good lessen we all have to learn, and its a painful one, when we are younger. We cant spend all of our time with our friends. Some times we have to choose to be with one, rather then another... and that sucks. It does it is such a beautiful and peaceful way that to be honest? i felt a little bit of warm fuzzy's in my heart! Recommended for all ages, including the shows original intended audience! (this is quite rare for me to do).

Comment: Sheesh... I felt like I could be reading this in an anthology of nice fuzzy slice of life fan fics about the main six, with a warm fire, a cup of hot coco and a good blanket on a cold winters night! This story made me feel... safe... emotionally as I was reading it... I have never felt safe while reading a story. I mean there have been times i have felt good, or I have felt 'not in danger' while reading... but, I mean, I have never actually felt SAFE while reading anything before. Good job!

[Fayte]

I'm okay with this.

[TheOneAJ]

5721566 really?

[Politicalunrest2400]

5733835
Yes really. This is an official review from my blog. I find that providing structured reviews things tend to go better.

Also... i really really liked this one haha

[TheOneAJ]

5734214 if you say so. Though, feel free to check out mine if u can

[asylum1388]

Hello! I'll be judging your submission, so let's see what we've got here!

[DualSoul1423]

Very nice. Very nice indeed.
I even got a little choked up at one point. Quite the accomplishment indeed.
Very well written.
Have my 'stache of approval.