Reset Password
Resend Verification Email
0
7
9
Joined June 2012
Groups
-
49w, 4dShipping
-
49w, 4dClopfics
-
49w, 5hSensual Fiction (SFG)
-
45w, 2dRaridash
-
27w, 6dEquestria After Dark
201
4,597
Hey folks. First off, thanks for reading Salvation. Writing it was an adventure, some details of which (as well as future ideas) I'll explain below.
Before that, though, a quick confession. As many of you have guessed, SexyBack is not my main account. When Kits announced his contest, I decided it would be an opportunity to write about two things I've avoided so far: shipping and sex. I had no idea how well I would do at this task, or how the contest would turn out, so I played it safe and published it anonymously. Now that it's done and, frankly, the reception was miles beyond what I had expected, I think I can lay claim to this story.
Some of you have already figured it out, but I'm really Cold in Gardez. For those of you who couldn't wait to read more of SexyBack's work, well, there's plenty of it.
Now that that's out of the way, some author's notes.
One thing I always try to keep in mind when writing is this simple belief: Stories about ponies are stories about people. What's that mean? Basically, if you're an author, don't write about ponies. Write about humans who happen to inhabit the shapes of ponies. Write about human needs, wants, fears and complaints. Write about the little things that make humans tick. Write about the relationships humans have. Write about people.
Humans have romantic relationships. It's an aspect of humanity that, to this point, I've under played in most of my stories. After all, when we think about romance novels, we think about trashy prose, terrible plots, manufactured conflicts and shallow characters. Not very inspiring stuff if you're trying to be a good writer.
But intimate relationships are still an essential part of being human, and I wanted to give it a shot. Not just with a story that included romance, but a story about romance.
And sex.
Sex is also an essential part of being human. It's illicit, fetishized and viewed as sinful by many, but it is an absolutely fundamental part of being human. It's also incredibly complicated, up there with differential calculus and the Higgs Boson. Sex is messy, in more ways than one.
If writing about ponies means writing about humans, and relationships and sex are important parts of being human, then at some point I had to write about relationships and sex.
Enter Kits. If you haven't been over to his page, about a month ago he started a contest for the best romance featuring rare ships. Rarity and Dash was one of the options, and it seemed like the option with the most 'story' potential. If you get a chance, stop by at his page and thank him for running the contest. It was the trigger for Salvation.
The contest required the two ponies to go from friendship to love, and for the story to end happily. Kits suggested that it would take at least 5,000 words.
Heh.
I pitched the concept for Salvation to a few of my co-conspirators (who shall remain nameless), and we roughed out a four-chapter, 15-20k story concept. The (very) basic outline survived in the eight-chapter, 46k story that is now published.
It's not done.
I'm happy with the first several chapters, which established the background for each character (Dash's depression and inability to cope with Soarin's death; Rarity's more general issues involving love). I am mostly happy with the middle of the story, which frames the basic conflict. What I did not have time to do was fully develop the growing relationship between Rarity and Dash (originally envisioned to occupy a whole week, rather than three days), and I had no time at all to write the resolution. The final chapter and epilogue are 3.3k and 700 words apiece. That's because they were written in a frenzy the night before the contest ended. I finished the epilogue 30 minutes before the story was due.
All these things deserve to be fixed. When I get back from Afghanistan and have some free time, expect an 'unabridged' version of Salvation with new chapters and a fuller ending. There are some new rules for revising stories, but hopefully Knighty will cut me some slack and I'll be able to finish this right.
I'll close out with some answers to a few questions people kept asking.
Question: Who is Sweetie dating?
Answer: That's a very good question.
Question: How did Soarin die?
Answer: Ceiling crocodiles.
Question: Will there be a sequel?
Answer: Perhaps. I have quite a few other story ideas in the hopper. Also, there's the whole Afghanistan thing. Got a lot going on in my life at the moment, in other words.
Question: Who is best pony?
Answer: Twilight Sparkle, with Rarity running a close second.
Question: I loved Salvation, but now that it's over my life feels dull and empty. What other romance stories should I read?
Answer: Romance Reports, by SleeplessBrony; Within and Without, by Cloudy Skies; Eternal, by Device Heretic. Those should keep you occupied for a while.
Comments ( 34 )
Post Comment
Refresh
Hah! I thought the writing style was familiar (and magnificent!) but I couldn't figure out who it reminded me of. 
Well done! This was an excellent story - great characterization and good, and more importantly meaningful sex scenes. The best, most plausible and touching RariDash story I've seen, I think.
No wonder this story is so incredible. I was impressed that it was being published as the first story on an author's account, but I just figured that meant it was probably someone who had plenty of non-pony writing experience. It didn't even occur to me that it was one of my favorite pony authors publishing under a pseudonym.
Curse those ceiling crocodiles! 
Sorry, Knighty, can't have you dicking around, you're too impoten- important I mean.
Ah. Author of one of my all time favourites, The Quiet Game, as well as... That cringe humour one... That... I dare not speak of its name, lest I have flashbacks to poor Twilight. (Who is, in fact, best pony and is, in fact, followed closely by Rarity.)
Very few authors are so easily capable of making such a severe genre change and making the transition so smoothly. This was... I'm glad you're giving the fic the ending deserves.
I do love how another author put it: Rarity is different to the other Mane 6. All the other characters are positive archetypes given character and personality by their flaws. Rarity, however, is the exact opposite: A negative archetype, vain, fickle, judgmental, given character and personality by her many virtues. It makes her unique among the cast, and one of the most entertaining characters in existence, let alone the show.
Image: http://denver.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/rsz/mlfw6124_small.jpgYou nailed her perfectly in this for this very reason: You wrote her as intended, a bad pony, a slut, a liar, pompous... But you somehow, despite all that, made it impossible to not be sympathetic to her.
That, my friend (Well, you are now!), is not only perfectly nailing the characterization but it is also perfectly establishing the story itself and giving a realistic outlook.
It would be a lie to say I can't wait for the next ending. I can, in fact, wait incredibly patiently for it.
Celestia knows, it's worth waiting for.
Kudos.
I had some issues with some of the characterization in your story.
As I commented on earlier- I really enjoyed this story, but I didn't like all aspects of it, and I think I can trace it to my philosophy on pony writing.
It is a very different thought from what presented here- I write about horses, and not humans.
By that I mean, I try to incorporate as much canon and lore, as well as characterization from the show as my untrained mind can muster.
Like how some of their traits aren't very human. How almost the entirety of Ponyville was terrified of Zecora? A very typical horse thing.
WIth things like that I also go to lengths to avoid bringing in human aspects that I don't think fit's that characterization.
And that's one of my most extreme pet peeves against alcohol and parties. Like even with a bleak story as this, I would rather try to incorporate parties as seen in the show. It would make it... different. That does not mean to avoid all non-child-friendly things, but to try to do it in a different spirit, perhaps.
If you go too much against how the world of the show is presented, it becomes too detached.
Everything depends on what you are writing, of course, but in this case- it would have been so cool if it was this bleak, but still felt as if it was IN Equestria.
Either way- This was a very enjoyable story, despite my complaints it really did hit the spot.
And congratulations on your success!
Of course. Whilst trying to combine the traits that I love from the show, and avoiding the traits that seem not to fit.
And to me, some human traits or situations fall into OOC category, as if I'm suddenly watching a 90s indie movie instead of a story about Equestria.
Not to say it's all pink and happy, of course.
Well shit.
I put off reading this story because clop isn't really my thing, but the writing was fantastic and I wanted to give it a shot. And I am so glad I did.
I particularly liked your depiction of Twilight's relationship and the slow reveal of Rainbow's loss. How many writers would have stuck it in the first few paragraphs, I wonder? As always, your writing shows restraint and flows beautifully, like few authors' does. You can imagine, then, how I facepalmed when I realized this was CiG's work — of course I loved it.
And I'll love the unabridged version even more, I think.
Thank you, and damn you.
Thank you for writing this story.
Damn you for ending it.
Thank you for introducing me to Pony Fiction (seriously, this was the first story I ever read on the subject).
At the same time, damn you for introducing me to Pony Fiction (this is because now I'm a bit.... obsessed... 
)
You've done a great job. Love this story.
Overall, thank you, and damn you.
I was lead to this story by a ... good friend. Now that we're unable to speak for quite some time, I thought I should search this up and have a read. First of all, I must compliment you on your writing style. As a writer myself, I can find it difficult to form a relationship with the reader when I'm not writing in 1st person. You managed to form a direct link from pony to reader without even doing this, so congratulations. Second, you have inspired me to get working on my novel again. It's about 60k at the moment and although it's not a fanfic and the genre differs slightly to this, reading 'Salvation' has given me the clip around the ears I needed to get working again. Why hadn't I been writing lately? I don't know, but I know now that if your story exists, mine can too. Third and finally, you've brought my closer to that special somepony I referred to in the first line of this text wall. I thank you for that. Though there is no way of knowing what'll happen in the future for myself and that somepony, you've connected me to them whilst reading this.
You sir deserve a brohoof.
*place hoof here*
Cancel
Send