PaulAsaran would like to review one of my stories...: reader recs requested. · 1:29pm May 7th, 2023
...as a tenth anniversary sort of thing. But I'm not going to tell him which one he should pick. And running a poll on the full catalog just doesn't make any sense.
So let's do it this way.
Each person who posts in the Comments names and links one story. (One and only one. Don't push your luck. Don't make extra comments just to raise your odds. I see a single alt account and the whips come out.) And after you've named that story, tell Paul two things.
* A single reason why he should read it.
* And another for why he shouldn't.
We'll let this run for a couple of days. And then he'll just pick something from there.
YES THERE ARE RULES.
* Completed stories only. Main 'verse or adjacent.
* No doorstoppers or bricks. Keep the word count for any given story at 25K or less.
* No anthologies as a whole. (If you're picking Sick Little Ponies (And One Dragon), you recommend one of the seven stories within.
* No microfiction. Anything from World's Shortest Crossovers is off the table. Because let's face it: at least one of you was already going directly for Celestia Vs. Vampires. Because the word count is 'three' and you thought that would be funny. Although some people do say it's my tightest writing...
* No Mature ratings. I may not write explicit, but I don't know if the reviewer wants to be pushed into suggestive either.
* Don't recommend Five Hundred Little Murders or The Hypocrisy Of Tolerance. He's already done both.
* It's not a rule, but I recommend taking a look at his blog to get an idea of the review style. Also, just look at his blog.
And with all that in mind -- proceed.
(Well, this should be nature's perfect trainwreck...)
I apologize for not getting this posted yesterday. I was away from the desktop for about eighteen hours. Long, exhausting day. Possible blog to come.
Donuts not of this world.
Reason Why - Estee is regularly highlighted as one of the few authors who creates a well rounded, immersive, and 'real' Pinkie Pie. A creature who isn't just a walking-talking-fourth wall breaking party machine. Yes she's funny, but she cries, she bleeds, she's multi faceted. This fic highlights it. Yes it's absurd, a tad surreal, and the horror whiplashes between farcical and unsettling, but it showcases Pinkie at her best. A clever mare willing to put it all on the line, because when your role is to make people happy you kinda need people around.
Reason Why Not - If you don't like Pinkie, or Estee's particular brand of Pinkie than this may not be for you. She's pretty much the only Mane 6 member on show. It also features a fair amount of trading card game jokes. Estee does a good job of getting the gist across for those not in the know, but it may get tiring for those who don't get the 'vibe' so to speak. The above mentioned farcical nature of the story may also be a problem for those looking for straight horror.
According to 60 Minutes the shortest story ever written
For sale
Baby shoes. Never worn.
Ernest Hemingway, allegedly to win a bet. (A recent segment on AIs.)
You should complain about this.
Pony Go Boom
Reason Why: It's Trixie blowing herself up! It's also a genuinely funny story, with some touching stuff, and a great look at the 'verse Luna and Trixie.
Reason Why Not: This might be a confusing and hard to appreciate, if you aren't already pretty familiar with Estee's Equestria, the surrounding nations, and the general peculiarities of the 'verse. Also, it's Trixie blowing herself up.
As I cannot remember if Paul has reviewed Triptych or Duet then my first call of Mechanical Aptitude is out so I'd instead say
The Bounce Test
I liked the character depictions... a very quick world build combined with slice of life and a bit of drama. You do not have to have the full Triptych experience (I hadn't when I read it) to be able to enjoy it.
Reasons to not... Flash Sentry factor and the edge of Estee's 'verse may grate with some.
Pinkie Pie vs. the Soufflé
Reason Why: A fantastic presentation of a thoughtfully rendered Pinkie Pie, with a strong message, great comedic timing, and minimal required background knowledge for the Continuum.
Reason Why Not: It is one of your earliest stories and may not necessarily represent your current capabilities. Plus, the "one member of the Mane Six visits her friends in turn" execution can be a bit formulaic.
The Bounce Test
Why: Excellent character- and world-building
Why not: Technically a sequel, though I don't think it would confuse most new readers.
Bitter / Sweet
Why: it’s a sweet story that showcases Estees bitter (but so tasty) writing style.
Why not: it’s a standalone, not connected to the larger ‘verse.
https://www.fimfiction.net/story/141137/one-tenth-bit
Reason why: This story was my introduction to Estee's 'verse, and remains a favorite of mine
Reason why not: It's a Rarity story set in Canterlot, dealing with the dark side of Law Enforcement and Corporations Too Big To Fail
Blessing
reason to read it: it's told from Celestia's viewpoint, showing her cynical side.
reason not to read it: it's rather sad.
Like a well-oiled machine
Reason to read: Emery Board is so well written as a ponified R. Lee Ermey that you can’t help but read him in the voice of Staff Sgt. Hartman. The individual sessions are comedic gold, as is the description of his swearing at the bearers.
Reason not to read: The story is long on descriptions with not a lot of prose. I tended to skip over some of the descriptions to get to the prose.
While Their Name's Still Spoken
Reason to Read: One of the best ghost stories I've ever read, on and off the site.
Reason Not to Read: It's an experimental piece and working out what's happening is somewhat of a puzzle. It works for me, but I'm not everyone.
(I really hope this one counts as Adjacent to Main-Verse)
I feel obligated to point out that I've also read/reviewed Pony Up A Tree.
Still can't believe we're going through all this just for me to pick a story. But I won't complain! I'll let this run for a few days to give latecomers a chance – say, Wednesday? – and make my pick then.
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I concur.
A duet for land and sky
Reason to review: Estee excels at getting into the hidden depths of characters and what make them who they are, and doing this while still staying - VERY - true to the ponies as depicted in the show. This story gets Applejack like no other story I’ve read on FIMfiction.
Reason not to review: A shipping story, Daf? Seriously?
Trav(ap)ast(r)y
For: It's a very quintessentially Estee story, showcasing the Sisters-as-ponies and the paradoxical way in which, despite all their power and their centuries of life experience, they are still so often thwarted by their psychological hangups and the fundamental stupidity of their little ponies. And it's just birching hilarious.
Against: It depends pretty heavily on a single joke and a single premise, and if you find that premise contrived it's probably going to fall pretty flat.
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Paul, could you please post links to your reviews for Estee's stories? I'd love to read them.
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Can do:
Five Hundred Little Murders — WHYRTY?
The Hypocrisy Of Tolerance — WHYRTY?
Pony Up A Tree — Pretty Good
If you feel like looking for any others, feel free to review my Archive.
Flutterdoomshy
For: It's called Flutterdoomshy.
Against: It's called Flutterdoomshy.
For real, it's a nifty little story about Fluttershy petting up a fight over something with someone who talks even less than she does. Some of the ideas are a little odd to someone like me who hasn't played doom, though
hoofballistic
for: For me at least rarity is best when she is showing her self a thing she almost never does, this is all her being her self. Not rarity the fashionista, the entrepreneur or the debutante but rarity being rarity.
against: With out a basic knowledge of football and the evils of pro sports it can fall a bit flat
Twilight’s Escort Service
Pro: An examination of language, honomyns, and naïveté, with Applejack and Rarity trying to save Twilight from herself.
Con: the innuendo of Twilight’s ad may cringe you into the foetal position.
https://www.fimfiction.net/story/423627/bitter-sweet
This is the Estee story that made me realize that one of the secrets to her writing is that she creates characters who long for things out of all proportion. And people who want things are interesting and relatable, as we all want things we cannot have.
- MLP: FiM
- Slice of Life
There are times when a young mare just really needs the money.'Nuff said...
...just kidding!
This story embodies Twilight in her most adorkable self...she's fully in Student Mode, totally fixated on her goal, while at the same time blissfully unaware of hidden meanings. It makes the reader both laugh and shake their head at her innocence, all the while knowing she'll eventually come to the conclusion we all already know.
Which just makes the story all the more fun!
[Edit] Oh! And did I mention this isn't tagged a Comedy? Which somehow makes it funnier!
As for reasons not to review it? Only if you're not a fan of Twilight and accidental innuendo.
https://www.fimfiction.net/story/492126/does-discord-fart
Pros: Discord and fart jokes.
Cons: Discord and fart jokes.
Good suggestions - I'll add "Post Negative Comments Only
Reason to: On its own merits, this story takes a solid approach to the consequences an adult might think about when watching the show, but that the show glosses over. Namely: how does a nation which was tyranized in the worst ways handle the sudden government shift from Sombra to Cadance?
plus I adore "The Bounce Test," and it's technically a sequel to this and already been suggested so why not both honestly-Why not: Taking place in the crystal empire means we're dealing with characters that don't have a lot of canon characterization, especially at the time of writing, so there's a lot of gaps to be filled, and that doesn't always go over well.
This was very hard to decide. Iʼve read and loved so many of your stories, Estee, that picking just one seemed impossible. So, in the end, I went with Assigned Paperwork at Birth.
- MLP: FiM
- Comedy
Turns out the bureaucracy has no idea how to deal with Flurry Heart either.Why Paul should read it:
Because it is one of the funniest things I have ever read. Iʼm always a sucker for a fic where the audience knows so much more than the characters, and this one is just too good. The basic premise is this: two idiots, who havenʼt been outside in Heaven-knows-how-long, deal with Flurry Heartʼs birth paperwork. They come to the very sane and logical conclusion that Flurry is a fake alicorn coming from a fake country and a fake mother.
Why Paul should not read it:
We never get to see those poor idiots get their just deserts from Flurry. What happens after the fic is left mostly up to our imaginations, but I, for one, would have loved to see our characters get hit with a heavy dose of reality.
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& I'd say that the fact that it's a stand alone counts in its favor.
- MLP: FiM
- Slice of Life
There are no species restrictions for Wonderbolts tryouts, which means they occasionally see some non-pegasus candidates. Griffons and self-levitating unicorns are typical. But today, they're getting an anthropomorphic duck.Why should you read it? Well it's a rather deep character study disguised as absurdist comedy. It raises a multitude of questions and explains hardly any of them, but one thing it does give us is an interesting look at Rainbow Dash when she isn't letting her enthusiasm outrun her good sense.
Why you shouldn't, well it's completely unconnected to any other Estee story aside from the broadest of strokes, so it kinda hangs there in comparison to some of the others.
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I like this one as well but did feel it could have stood fine alone outside of the 'verse so I didn't suggest it... somewhat like another one I would have suggested, Jury Duty II Jury Harder but your doing so makes me double guess my call. You may have been more right than me.
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Pinkie Pie vs. the Souffle was also the one I'd pick. I'm not sure whether it or One Tenth Bit was what got me into the 'verse, but I'm glad it did.
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It's a great story, but you do need to bear that "25,000 words or fewer" requirement in mind.
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Well, I do not know about Paul, but this thread certainly introduced me to a few Estee gems that I haven't read before. Allow me to also recommend One Tenth-Bit.
Why? It hits close to home. Even though it is set in Equestria, it explores a facet of contemporary American society.
Why not? It hits close to home. If you are looking for something that is purely a pony fic or something lighthearted, this is not the story for you.
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My decision has been made! Which one did I pick? Bah, as if I'd reveal that already. Y'all will just have to wait for the review to come out. Yeah, I'm evil, I know.
However, I have decided to read Triptych. I won't be able to get to it until next year because of how full my Big Story slate is, but I can at least reassure you that _I will_.
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yes, Triptych is definitely the best story to start with, if you're not familiar with Estee's work.
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I thought all stories went on "the review schedule".
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They will, but 99.9999999999% of all people never bother to look at it, so I figure I'd just say nothing and trust people not to bother checking for themselves.
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Oh no!
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Skimmed the list & couldn't find Estee on it. So, My Best Guess = Hopefully Before The Day of Judgement (But Don't Bet On It)
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As part of my "don't want people to know too early" plans, I intentionally kept my choice off the list and set it... elsewhere. But it will have to go on my schedule eventually lest I screw myself over, so yeah. Give it time.