Site Post » Fic Spotlight #00 · 12:25am Jan 24th, 2014
Fillies and Gentlecolts! Your attentions, please.
Today we are proud to present to you the trial run of a new Fimfiction Initiative:
The Royal Guard
The Royal whosawhatsits? Who are you guys?
Excellent question! The Royal Guard is a group of skilled editors, authors, and prereaders in the fandom who'd like to shine a spotlight on Fimfiction's quality works. Naturally, everyone who likes to read words about colorful cartoon horses is looking for something for some recommendations on what's good to read, and if this trial run goes well, we intend to provide just that.
So you purport to host fictional works of quality, good sirs? Preposterous! How can we trust you?
The Royal Guard is dedicated to keeping standards high, and exceptionally clear. Every PR who decides which fics will and won't be featured has been extensively tested to make sure they know what's what about writing, and all our standards have been outlined in a handy dandy omnibus which we intend to stick to.
We've thought a lot about how to ensure quality in our story selections and how to avoid the ever-present horror of bias. Bias, in particular, is considered a cardinal sin in The Royal Guard, and we've taken a lot of steps to minimize it. Every story that passes all of the way through our queue requires the opinions of multiple PRs, so as to make sure every story gets a fair shake, and anyone suspected of rejecting a story for personal reasons will be subject to plenty of scrutiny.
In short: you can trust us!
But if you don’t, we’re committed to keeping clear and open discourse, and will do our best to address any concerns you might have as they crop up.
Well all right, then! I’m interested. How do I get in on this?
Simple. This post right here is a trial-run, of sorts, to test the waters and see if people are open to the idea. We’ve selected a bunch of fics at random and run them through our approval process to distill for you the fine selection you’ll see below. If you like our moxie, be sure to comment with your support, and we may soon be in position to bring you quality recommendations on a regular basis.
If the trial-run goes well, you’ll also be able to submit stories of your own for us to look at and feature soon, so keep your ear to the ground for more news on that. We’ve also got a few resources holed up in our shiny new FimFic Group, so if you need anything cleared up, feel free to check us out over there.
Cool! Hey, are you guys recruiting?
Absolutely. We won’t pretend that this project is anything other than a massive undertaking, so we want all of the help that we can get. We’ve already got around ten or twelve potentially fully-active members, but should we go all the way with this, we’d love to at least double our numbers.
If you’re interested in applying to become a pre-reader, contact this chap over here through a PM. We’ve got a whole application procedure laid out, and he’ll be happy to lead you through the process. Just make sure to include a short résumé with your message detailing any prominent writing, reviewing, and editing experience you’ve had in the past, and we’ll take care of the rest.
So where can I get these stories, anyway?
Right below! Sorry to keep you waiting—now go forth and read those fics! Let us know what you think of both our selections and the project as a whole in the comments below. We’d love to hear what you think.
STORIES
Dystopian Circus, by Pearple Prose
Equestria is broken. An army is marching on Canterlot, and the city is alive with fire and the sounds of battle.
And when all hope seems lost, a dying Celestia is given one last choice.
Will I like this?: HiE is a funny sort of genre, but this story manages to twist a clichéd conflict into a genuine exploration of Celestia and Discord’s relationship. Give it a read if you’ve got a hankering for tragic endings, heartfelt ponderings, and deals with the devil. —PR Golden Vision
Isolated from her friends and taken prisoner in the middle of a war, Twilight must deal with the very real dangers of being perceived as an enemy as well as the nightmares of her arrival on 'Earth'. Can she overcome her own fears and the fears of her captors? Will the wayward unicorn's assistance be a boon or a curse to the 'humans?' Most importantly, will she ever find her way home?
Will I like this?: This is an XCOM crossover and a first-contact tale woven into a fun little story. If you enjoy realistic characters in a warlike time learning about their cuddly intergalactic neighbors, immerse yourself in Stardust. —PR ChromeMyriad
I'm Not A Firefly, by SirTruffles
Twilight is rudely awakened to find herself floating towards a flying saucer. Clearly, the thing inside deserves a piece of her mind.
Will I like this?: If you like something a little out of the ordinary, there's something strangely beautiful about I'm Not a Firefly. It’s trippy, but also funny, and it has a certain beauty of imagery to it. —PR Lord Sunder
This Platinum Crown, by Capn_Chryssalid
It began with a mare from Ponyville and a time-looping Prince from Canterlot. This most unlikely union now stands at a crossroads: a ruthless changeling invasion; a conspiracy within the highest circles of the Equestrian aristocracy; a half dozen power hungry noblemares looking to become a Princess in all but name. With the prize of Canterlot and its Platinum Crown at stake, it falls to six Elements of Harmony to once again save not just Ponyville, but all of Equestria.
Will I like this?: If you enjoy lengthy, complex plots and tight characterization, you will love "This Platinum Crown." It is a work that manages to take you to the high and lows of action and adventure, and look great while doing it; it is a story that transcends what fanfiction is made of to truly be epic. —PR ToixStory
...
Hm.
I've read a lot of stuff on here...
Think I'll give it go and try out.
~Skeeter The Lurker
Woohoo!
Hey, I edit for that last one! I must say, I support this idea.
can someone give me a rough summary of "Platinum crown"? I've tried to read it, but the beginning was really slow, and I got bored halfway through the 5th chapter.
Step 1: do the opposite of what Equestria daily does
That's it. Congratz, you're a legit awesome group.
Interesting.
Well I'm Princess of Public Relations over at the group, so questions and concerns can be related to me by replying to this comment or PMing me. There is no way I'm going to regret this.
The format of recommendation is good, the omnibus is decent, the genres are mixed and (almost) non-biased (two fics labeled with Dark and Human, but I'd push that aside), and a chance for authors to get more views and spread, and even the fics combine popular and not as popular authors and stories.
It seems like a good idea and worthy of starting up so long as you keep the same sense of what you have here.
Interesting . . . definitely more worthwhile than Equestria Daily.
1751218
And Dark is not necessarily a bad thing; people don't give well-written Dark-rated stories enough credit.
Which is why I said I'd push it aside.
I'm a helper, I do the help thing.
1751167
I vouch for Skeeter.
Anyone with three or more E's in their username's gotta be serious.
But no, seriously.
media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m2cm7zgezR1r8zpke.gif
On a side note, if someone really wanted to, they could take over EqD's jobs.
EqD is a blog, Fimfic has a blogging capability. They link youtube videos, we can link youtube videos.
We can post images, though as of now no NSFW. Fanfics are already everywhere, and someone can be in charge of reviews and highlights too. The main thing EqD has this doesn't are the folders and an archive/search function for their stuff.
1751226
On account of my being everywhere and reading everything?
Only issue I have is grammar. I are fool at.
~Skeeter The Lurker
1751226
Also...
5 'e's. I have five 'e's in my name.
Cool...!
~Skeeter The Lurker
Interesting. It would be helpful--well, for my own devious purposes--if you had a Royal Guard account, like the Seattle's Angels account, which listed as a favorite each of the stories admitted. I want there to be a standard interface to the different recommendation groups that will retrieve their recommendations, and I already know how to pull down a user's favorites.
I like this idea a lot. It gives more people a chance.
1751241
Not sure if the favorites are in there yet, but here's the account.
Decent Idea, and what looks like good set of fics to start with. TPC is one I am deeply familiar with and would recommend to anyone, and Stardust recently sucked me in and through and two weeks later I've played more XCOM then I ever expected. I didn't even own the game before reading that crossover!
I'll have to give Firefly a try.
Favoritism inbound, make a site post when you guys are done patting yourselves on the back.
You have my support, handsome and/or beautiful people. I hope I will be able to make some sort of Frankenfic good enough for the eyes of the general public one day, but I'm glad something like this is happening at all.
There's a lot of absolutely sublime stories on this site that get barely any attention, while there's plenty of overrate ones that leave a bad taste in your mouth after you read the first chapter.
That's where recommendation lists come in, and this seems like its going to be a very competent fic recommendation group. Will definitely keep an eye on it.
Neat idea, and neat selection of stories. I hope I get chosen by the guard someday =)
So, this is like the fimfiction version of EqD? No thanks.
Dis has pleased the sponge.
1751309
Well, I've stopped reading pony fanfiction altogether since I don't have any "knowledge" about what makes writing good, since I tend to view most pony fic as pretentious. EqD and Seattle's Angels are the root cause of that for me.
gifrific.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Leonardo-DiCaprio-Django-Unchained-You-Had-my-Curiosity.gif
Heck, I might even apply, if time and perceived future work schedule stabilize.
Yay! Can't wait! None of these fics personally appealed to me, but I can't wait to see more!
I should probably hurry up and get my application finished so I can be a cool-ass Royal Guard and shit...
You had me at "...avoid the ever-present horror of bias."
We ... will be watching...
static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20121109184155/xcom/images/a/af/XCOM-EU_The_Council.jpg
And Stardust absolutely deserves its place on this list.
I'm still waiting on the Flutterbat, Suri Polomare, Fleetfoot and Coco Pommel character tags.
I approve of this idea. This will probably be a great way to discover some fresh new stuff.
This is a great idea. It's much too difficult to find good stories among a lot of the sludge that's allowed on this site.
This was an unexpected surprise. I think this will seriously help out the Fimfiction community become stronger and grow.
I wish that I had the time available to apply to this project. this looks so awesome.
As soon as I saw Fimfiction got its own EQD. I did this.
i.imgur.com/ZfO3v.gif
1751423 The immediate second you guys start to heavily bias stories, the immediate second everyone starts to hate you just as much. Just cause there's a genre you don't like doesn't mean it isn't good.
Sure you guys might not do this now. But there's a real good chance of it happening in the future. EQD used to be good. A lot of people forget that.
1751438
The possibility of failure is no reason not to try.
1751184
So, http://www.canterlotsfinest.com/?
I think the problem with this system is that there's such an overwhelming majority of flat out awful content on this website that not only are the gems really quite hard to find, but in comparison to the majority, even a mediocre story comes off as amazing.
1751440 Not saying "don't try". I'm just giving a warning.
1751443 True.
1751448
Thank you sincerely for the warning. I hope to hear from you when you think we start to get out of line.
If it helps, I will personally whip any PR who smells funny.
As well as any PR who exhibits bias.
1751453 I'll make sure to scream until someone finally decides to shut me up.
I have to say I"m having a hard time taking this idea seriously when two of the stories are human based. This seems a lot like EQD's problem too much focus on human, dark, adventure and crossover tags.
1751455
It's true, I didn't believe him...why didn't I believe him?!
So, uh, are you guys actually doing reviews of these or anything? Because otherwise this is just another featured box with less clop.
1751449
I'm just tired of people (in general) criticizing pony fanfiction like its a final college thesis. Not everyone on this site can understand (or enjoy) the deep, psychological, character-studies that groups like SA seem to salivate over. Then again, I'm just an amateur idiot writer with little to no mental capacity for being smart whatsoever.