100th Post, and lots of things to discuss! · 10:38am Mar 11th, 2023
A lot of things all at once! Well, let me begin saying... I finally reached 100 blog posts, with most of my later blogs being work-related and meaningful which I'm proud about. It's strange to think I've had a mountain of things going on, but outside of that, it's deadly silent. Not much goes on in my own little bubble on here, since I'm not in any circles or discussions actively. Anywho, let's make this blog post a doozy, since there's so much to talk about!
Right now I'm on a day-job mini vacation! It's four, effectively five days off of lounging around. I already wasted my first by sleeping an ungodly amount, but in between I was able to fix up the rest of Pokemon: Knight of Order's chapters into a readable, digestible state. So it should be a better read now. I did it to prepare for its finale which is coming up soon, in where I unveil the many great mysteries that have been presented in the story thus far. With these days off, I'm thinking I might just be able to finish that story by Tuesday hopefully, but I do have several things going in the background besides that, so no promises.
My birthday is coming up tomorrow, the 12 of March. I'll be turning 27. Still young but getting long in the tooth with every year that passes by. My personal life has been quite something, but I'm just glad I turned out okay. I'm making great efforts to be a better, more wholesome, more virtuous person overall. And I think I'm doing a pretty good job at it. So much so, I find I'm disconnecting from people around me. Like real people, not just online circles. I'm more sensitive to mean-spirited things. My empathy has gone through the freakin' roof. And I'm definitely weepier than I used to be. I feel that I'm falling into what my grandpa of 78 years did. Becoming a magnanimous, feeling person. Even if I'm reduced to the emotional, geriatric mess that he has become in recent times, I'm perfectly okay with that. I'll sleep better at night knowing I'm doing good things and inspiring others whenever possible, if at all possible. This is about the moment where I think maybe I should take a page from my own O' Selfless Child. Haha.
Onto lighter topics, my work desk has seen some improvements! Take a look:
A new, powerful PC. The mic which I bought a while back. A much bigger main monitor. A new Logitech MX keyboard which is a dream to type on (and sorely needed). Not part of my desk, but I also finally upgraded my phone to a Fold 4 and it's super convenient and nice. Expecting a nice 100$ wireless mouse too with super silent clicks which is definitely what I wanted. Just trying to lower my noise outputs as much as possible for recording purposes. Coupled with my not too long ago purchased Midi Keyboard to use on my Digital Audio Station, DAW for short, my work desk is now very creator-friendly. It's only missing a good webcam and ring lights (but I'm not a camera person, so you won't ever see that from me). And last but not least, I just got a new 22' inch drawing tablet that can be seen in the picture. It works like a charm and it's absolutely satisfying to use. While I have no experience with art, I've been practicing lately to try and illustrate my own stuff. Or at the very least, draw more accurate references to give my commissioned artists a better clue as to what I have in mind. The tablet makes it super easy for me to lose myself practicing because it's so much fun to mess with the tools available to me in photoshop, and it's hyper convenient to use due to being able to use the two turning wheels to adjust my tools easily, not even to mention the 20 customizable buttons on its side.
Laugh all you want, but just wait. Give me a few years and I'll get better at it. For now, here's this thing I drew myself. I'll be using it to measure my progress in the coming years.
Speaking about art, I'm finally getting commissions in order for A Kindled Change. My favorite and most heartfelt story that spanned this work of love is finally seeing some appreciation after all this time, but not just from a single artist! I've now recruited the help of many talented people to draw for it, and we should see that come sometime in the future. It'll be one big collaboration project, in my usual cheesy way of saying that A Kindled Change was everyone's journey, not just Chrys'. Look forward to that! And I'll be sure to promote each artist as they appear too.
But that's not the only collaboration project I have going on! I've commissioned only a handful of people here on FIM to write an introspective story about what their own writing means to them, as I find the subject of the kind of literary elements that writers consider to be fascinating. I learn a thing or two from every individual who throws in their own thought processes and opinions into the ring, and we can all grow as writers and as people from learning all that there is about the minds behind these works. So if you see any stories that might remind you of my To Those Who Write. To Those Who Read. And To Myself, then know they're likely a result of me urging my fellow writers to look inside of themselves for the poetic beauty that comes from sharing one's very soul in written form.
I've already talked about it, but it's worth saying again. I'll be focusing on Pokemon: Knight of Order's finale before I go back to make more of A Kindled End. Both End's next chapter, and Knight of Order's finale will be quite something! It'll take some real mental processing power to do them justice, but I hope to pull it off regardless. Wish me luck.
After those two stories end, I might take a few months for myself to just relax and not think about writing after that. I've been exclusively writing and or doing writing-related work for months on end now! The only time I stopped was when I got sick and watched a lot of Bluey (best show ever, can't change my mind). I'll probably still be working on my audio recordings if the opportunity presents itself and practicing drawing with my new tablet, but I'm definitely slamming the breaks on writing itself, so prepare for a lingering silence from me. Maybe I'll make myself more present in the community, but I dunno. Maybe I'll just go back to playing video games since I haven't touched them in ages.
Last thing I wanted to discuss was... hmm. I guess myself? It is my 100th blog post and a decade-long milestone, so maybe speaking about me for this one is appropriate?
I'll start by saying...
Hi! My name is Lauro, and I joined here back in 2011 shortly after Friendship is Magic's debut, right when the show itself was becoming viral.
I have always been an animation and story-telling fan, which made me inherently interested in Friendship is Magic's clean aesthetic, vibrant colors, and expressive animations along with its interesting world-building and even its more serious storylines (like Discord, Queen Chrysalis, etc) that sparked a lot of open-ended questions whose answers were given to me by the wonderful world of fanfiction. Aside from that, you can also view all the wonderful videos that lit my initial interests for the show here.
So if you've read any of my work, you'll know a wholesome, colorful show about kindness and friendship is exactly what I'd be interested on. It was a no-brainer. Though eventually I fell out of love with the whole pony scene and left everything pending for 8 years.
Can I tell you a secret? I haven't gone back to watch the show past its second season. I came back mostly just to finish what I began all that time ago, and to make truly wholesome and profound art.
Still, I have gone back to see a few things of My Little Pony in general to follow up on some of my friends, like watching Equestria Girls to understand GJ90's work better and the like. But I haven't really spared much of a thought for the show in a hot decade, and so next time you read any of my stories, I want you to imagine that I'm STILL banking on the limited knowledge afforded to me by two seasons of the show and not much more outside of skimming the wiki on occasion. I don't even know how Twilight became a Princess, haha. But it goes to show the kind of creative avenues the show has that writers can use to bank off of. That's why writing fanfiction for it has always been great.
Hmm, but let's see... Maybe you're interested in the kind of person I am outside of the show?
I've played many games throughout my life, with some of my favorites being Pokemon, Monster Hunter, Paper Mario, and a little-known game called Fantasy Life. I'm getting quite old now and I've been on the internet for a very long time, so I have a very weathered and historied past with all sorts of games. Hell, I've played the Closed Betas and Alphas of many of the popular games in today's weather, like League of Legends, Warframe, Fortnite (in it's very early alpha state) and many others that have come and gone. RIP Firefall, it has a special place in my heart. When I'm passionate about something, I go creatively all-in. I've even modded games myself, creating all sorts of things from small texture replacements to entire classes with unique skill FX and mechanics for games like Divinity: The Original Sin 2, Fallout New Vegas and 4, Skyrim, Starbound, Monster Hunter World, MH: Rise, and many roguelikes (as that's one of my favorite genres) like Binding of Isaac, Enter the Gungeon, and Risk of Rain. The games I love to play every now and again to unwind is... Bullets Per Minute, A Hat In Time, No Man's Sky, and looter shooters like Borderlands.
My favorite genre of music is Synthwave. Synths in general just hit my brain differently, and I absolutely love the fantastic beats and snares that most of them have. But it's not to say I listen to synthwave exclusively, since anyone can get tired of any one thing. Everything in moderation! So I listen to a universal selection of genres, from classical to jazz. From metal to rap. If you give me a random genre, I can probably pick something from my playlist that comes close. Here's a playlist if you're interested in what I like to listen to! Maybe you'll find something cool in there for yourself, or maybe not. I am a weirdo, I think. But if you just want specific bands, Super Beaver and Bump of Chicken are great ones I really love. For western bands, Woodkid, The Technicolors, and Bo Burnham are my most notable, universal favorites with many great songs. I really love Mashup songs too! Listen to this and tell me it's not super awesome, I dare you!
My favorite movies oft come from animated films. Western animation like most Dreamworks films and especially Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, Kung Fu Panda 2, and Megamind. And even other forms of animated films like Japanese anime. A Silent Voice, Your Name, Most if not all Studio Ghibli Films, The Garden of Words, The Boy and The Beast, Sword of The Stranger, and many more! I do also have a lot of normal movies I like, but I can't think of any off the noggin so I'll skip it for now.
My favorite artists are all the ones I've commissioned in the past, and all of the ones I'll be commissioning in the future! And many more whose work has stuck with me. But I'll be stuck here all day if I rattle them all off!
My favorite books are the How To Train Your Dragon 12 book series by Cressida Cowell as read by David Tenant, Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey, and The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett.
I have tons of favorite manga and anime, and I've talked about a few of them in my blogs before so I'll skip on that!
Okay. It's about time I end this post. I want to conclude my thoughts by saying how much I truly appreciate anyone who cares deeply enough about my work to be interested in it and subsequently in me and what I'm up to in life. As written in my To Those Who Write, the few readers who give my work that love and attention are the wind beneath my sail to keep this train going along this sometimes lonely, sometimes cruel highway called life.
Hopefully, I didn't disappoint you too badly by revealing how little I know about the show! Haha.
I shall start by wishing you a Happy Birthday! *realizes I'm posting this after midnight where I am* Err? Happy slightly belated Birthday!
A wonderful creed to live by.
More artwork of Chrys? Yes, please!
Looking forward to this too -- hearing other writers discuss their own process and stories is always fascinating.
Good luck!
May I suggest Netflix's Hilda?
Assuming you haven't seen that already, but even if you have, Bluey is absolutely equally deserving of praise. So is Infinity Train, despite HBO Max thinking otherwise...
It's okay; when I first got into the show, I only really checked out the season premiers, finales, and maybe two extra episodes. Only seasons I've seen in full are S7-8 since that's the time I got into the show, and S1 which I've rewatched recently with some friends.
I think I've heard of this in passing, and apparently it's getting a sequel? It worth checking out?
YES! Fellow Synthwave fan!
Might I recommend John G. Music? I found them through their Infinity Train remixes which are absolutely incredible!
And then of course, we have some great Synthwave playlists such as:
And of course Summoning Salt's own background music collection:
Classical and Jazz are two styles I feel like I should enjoy more, but I'm just not nearly as passionate for them as I am synthwave or even just video game music in general. I think I just haven't come across songs belonging to those styles that really catch my attention. Unless you count some of Persona 5's soundtracks; "No More What Ifs" is great.
We all are.
And we thank you for putting so much time and passion into your works!
Hope you had a great birthday, and are continuing to enjoy your recent mini-vacation! 
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Actually Summer, you are on my small list for writer commissions! I've only withheld as long as I have due to your Writing of the Bonds of Love. I felt it would've been a little redundant and overkill to have you write what you were already writing. But you know what? I was thinking of counting your Writing of as an honorary entry to this collaboration project and skip the story commission. So expect to hear from me soon when I'm able to repay you for the lovely experience that was both Bonds of Love and the writing of.
Also, we are definitely riding the same wavelength! Evident by me clicking on those synthwave recommendations and being 75% through two of them because of youtube playback remembering where I left off. Definitely listening to John G and Summoning Salt now that I can trust your tastes. Not that they were in question to begin with, since you posted A Hat in Time's Clock Towers Beneath the Sea in your Writing of Intro.
Depending on the game, I can give you a good rundown of how to create mods for it. Sometimes it's as easy as using a list of community tools and scripts to create your own assets/make the changes you want to see. Sometimes it's the harder, but still easy reverse engineering of other people's mods. Sometimes it's as super simple as just dropping an extra song to an already existing mod, or maybe replacing them with the ones inside. Then you get into the real hard ones. Writing your own lua scripts, memory editing, and making changes retroactively to the game engine itself. Some games like Divinity: The Original Sin 2 have their own separate Engines that allow you to easily make changes/mods and test them inside their developer tools. And some games you just gotta brute force with sheer willpower since they never intended to have people mod it.
And thank you for the well wishes, Summer. I ended up repeating tradition this year too, which is to be horribly ill with a strong flu. That makes 5 years now and counting! So I'm bedridden for the foreseeable future.
But hey, it gives me time to sit down and watch Hilda.
... and maybe the rest of MLP.
It's n-n-n super awesome! So awesome that I'll like your above comment!