Fic recs, September 1st! · 1:05pm Sep 1st, 2021
Happy September, I guess! :B Let's start the month off with five random stories. One was a prequel to something on my audiobook list, so I wanted to get this out quickly. Also, because I'm maybe halfway through the contest edition I'm still working on. D: I might do another plain review blog before I start the audiobooks, we'll see.
I had nothing to report, but I just saw this and, uh, it's really interesting? Someone's making a short film out of A Fleeting Light in the Darkness?
H: 1 R: 1 C: 2 V: 0 N: 1
A Moment's Worth by Thornquill
Genre: Emotional
Twilight was supposed to be ready for this moment, but… she's not. No one ever is.
I said there was another Thornquill story I needed to read, and here it is! And what a story it is. Simply put, it's a meditation on grief and all its myriad accompanying feelings, especially when experienced by someone who's as adept at self-analysis as Twilight Sparkle. She knows how she's feeling, and knows she should or shouldn't be feeling this or that, which only makes her feel more things. It's marvelous. I really can't sum it up any better than by quoting this line from the story itself:
There is not a ‘wrong’ way to experience grief, or treat the wounds it inflicts.
A really strong, important message, rendered by a masterful hand.
Highly Recommended
The Lost Legends of Equestria: The Changeling Queen by Silver Inkwell
Genre: Tragedy
This is the prequel to something I just added to my audiobook list. I will be removing that audiobook now. <.< It's been quite a while since I read something this poorly written. I mean, it's not the worst I've ever seen, but the writing is flat, choppy and extremely repetitive. There's even an author's note in the middle of the text of chapter 2! This is not a long story by any stretch, but I had no interest in continuing to read it. The author needs a lot of help.
DNF: 2/5
Five-Human-Know-Your-Falling-Chess-etc-Verse: NOBODY CARES by Flint Sparks
Genre: Random Comedy
Well, this may be from 2014, but I'm going to blame the few notable typos rather than my lack of experience with a number of the trends referenced here for me bouncing off of this. <.< Totally the author's fault, yup. Which isn't to say this isn't amusing, but it's only that. It's amusing that the author took all these things and mashed them together this way, but the funniest part for me is the title, and the rest is fairly substanceless. I suppose I wasn't going to find a masterpiece here, but I was maybe hoping for something a little less random.
Recommended Only If You Like Meta Humor
Unconventional Paneling by FanOfMostEverything
Genre: Comedy Anthology
Normally, I would review each entry in an anthology of unrelated stories, but in this case, I don't think it's necessary. These run the gamut from Cranky Doodle Donkey having beef with Flash Sentry to Derpy having to stave off her explosives-happy alter ego from another dimension. They aren't all equally funny, but they are all funny, and pleasantly short, so it makes for a fun and easy read. :) Also really fun to see what each was inspired by.
Recommended
Red Little Reality by Whirl Hoof
Genre: SCP Foundation Crossover
Twilight wanted to revolutionize teleportation. Instead, she wound up in a place that shouldn't exist.
I saw this in the wackybox one day and went, "Huh, kinda like SCP-3001." And then it turned out to be exactly like SCP-3001, one of the greatest pieces of sci-fi writing to ever emerge from the SCP Foundation Wiki. c.c You really should read it, because even if you don't know the significance of who Dr. Robert Scranton is, I think the claustrophobic, intensely emotional narrative will still hit home. Also because this is not exactly an accessible crossover! We get a few pages of Twilight wandering darkness before she runs into Dr. Scranton, and then you'd better hope you know what the hell a Hume level is. Sadly, that's where the story sort of lost my interest. It's just an insertional crossover with Twilight helping Scranton reach a happier ending than he does in the original article. This is much better MLP fanfic than SCP. At least it's not another Blinkfic, I guess.
Recommended for SCP Fans Only
So that’s the one Thornquill story I haven’t read yet, and it’s been sitting on the list. The highly recommended does seem entirely appropriate considering who the author is, but there’s something about the highlighted line that really bothers me. Maybe it just sounds worse than it is because it’s taken out of context, but that seems like it’s completely neglecting how there are so many expressions and experiences where grief can be unhealthy or inappropriate.
I definitely still will be giving it a read because I know Thornquill is an excellent writer and I really want to see the actual context for this, but lines like that just always have me a little wary if the author is using them as a message.