Error Correction · 10:43pm Jul 14th, 2014
SOMEHOW, an entire section of chapter two of Adrift Off Fiddler's Green was lost. Maybe I didn't save, maybe there was a glitch, maybe I am derp.
I have rewritten it.
So you don't have to go searching for it, I will present the section here. The scene takes place just after Frontpage has been interviewing Crimson in the hot, sweaty plantation house, and just before we see them riding the carriage across the plains towards the institute. The passage is between those events.
Here it is:
Crimson tried to decide whether to pack the long woolen scarf into her traveling saddlebags. The institute was on the mountain, and it was cold there, but it was located below the snow line. It wouldn't likely be that cold. Unless it was winter, of course. Crimson suddenly realized she had no idea what season it was for everypony else. After a moment, she stuffed the scarf in.
"MOOOMM! I don't wan you to GOOOO!" Clover was pouting. It took everything Clover had to stand firm and not nuzzle and hold her daughter. Sometimes it was difficult being a good mother.
"It will only be for a few days, maybe a week. That's my four legs and two of yours long." Crimson watched her youngest carefully try to count legs. She couldn't help but smile.
"Mother, who will take care of us while you are away?" Jinx spoke in measured tones, but Crimson knew from long experience what the filly must be feeling inside.
Crimson considered the toque with the fuzzy ball on top. Was that going too far? "Aunt Peony and uncle Tumble will. They have business in Airs, and they've missed you two. They love you a lot, you know."
"Unca Tumble smells funny." Clover wrinkled her nose until her muzzle formed a mask of distaste.
"That's because he's a diamond dog, sweetie. That's just how it is." Crimson shrugged with her ears and stuffed the soft hat into her saddlebags, next to the scarf.
"Why did aunt Peony marry a diamond dog?" Jinx looked around the room as if trying to memorize it. As if the room were leaving with her mother.
"Because she loves uncle Tumble very, very much." Crimson searched through her closet for a raincoat. It might rain a lot, if it was spring and not winter out there.
"Do I hafta marry a diamond dog?" Clover's ears were low.
"Only if you want to. Do you have a dog in mind?" Crimson chose her blue raincoat. It was thin, and would pack easily. She liked it because it was long, and completely covered her hindquarters and tail.
"EWWWWWW!!!!" Clover began stomping around the room.
Crimson turned from her packing and sat down on her flanks. She raised her forelegs, and pulled her fillies to her. "No, not 'Eww', not ever! Aunt Peony and uncle Tumble love each other, and that is the most important thing in all the world. It's the only important thing. I want you two to remember that always." Crimson kissed her children on their polls, and raised herself to her hooves.
"Do you think aunt Peony likes the way that uncle Tumble smells?" Jinx, ever the analytical one.
"Yes, I expect she does. Love is magic that way. Like friendship is magic. Love is magic too." Crimson smiled. "Love has a way of making everything wonderful." Candies! Crimson ruffled through her drawers, sniffing out her tin of rose petal candies. Perfect for traveling.
"Unca Tumble still stinks." Clover giggled. "Stinky!"
Crimson bent her head down, closer to her fillies. "I don't want you saying that in front of aunt and uncle. Especially in front of uncle Tumble. It's not nice. Understand?"
"I sorry." Clover's expression demonstrated she truly felt so.
"I know better, mother." Jinx was almost indignant. She took her position as older sister very seriously. She took everything very seriously.
"You are my good and precious fillies, and I love you. And so does uncle Tumble and aunt Peony, so be good around them and try to show them you love them too."
"I will be love to unca Tumble an' Peony, and I will be good!" Clover set her jaw as if she were preparing to adventure forth against impossible odds.
Crimson stared at her saddlebags. The raincoat had to go. What season was it out there? How could a pony possibly prepare for everything? She reconsidered the old, barely used scarf. The candies stay. The candies definitely stay.
I am sorry for the error, please forgive me. I think it is taking some time for me to get completely back into writing.
Sigh.
That's why I use GDocs for my writing. I trust it more than I trust myself to remember to save on a regular basis.
it's okay.
this section is good too. thanks!
Chapter 2?
*Looks at story page*
Whoops!
I never even saw that one.
There's a known bug on FimFic that can swallow up whole sections of your chapters. I don't know what causes it, but I've had it happen several times. Fortunately, I write in gDocs, so it's an easy matter to fix. However, since this bug does exist, I cannot recommend writing solely on Fimfiction. (Also, heaven help you if someone cracks into your account and deletes your stories if you don't have a backup! I've seen it happen to someone before!) I strongly, strongly recommend using gDocs or some other word processor.
The gremlins also ate my update notification, so thanks for the heads-up!
Sorry to hear!
If you're using GDocs: I've noticed with several authors I've edited for that GDocs doesn't import very nicely into FimFic when you have notes in the document. It always seems to repeat some things, and delete others things at random.
However, I've transferred probably 100,000 words or so down from GDcos to FimFic - with no comments in any of the docs - and have not had a single issue.
Something to consider, anyway.
This was really cute. I liked seeing the Dog butler make a comeback, and seeing the way nurture still has a role in fostering pony decency.
Hey, no problem! And besides, we're just happy to see you writing again!
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nuuu, do not write in Fimfic. I think Chat does, which is just asking for trouble... even Knighty says it's a bad idea. I write in gdocs because fimfic has an importer, unfortunately gdocs is a bit squirrely and keep changing their API, so failing using the gdocs importer, it's best to write in markup in a text editor, of all things, or one of the story-writing programs around, and let fimfic convert the markup into html.
It's a wonderful addition, I'm sorry you had to write it again, but thanks for taking the time to do it.
Awwwwwww
true love! 
2286892
I don't know mark-up or those other things. Google docs messes everything up, even if I copy and paste by hand. I actually really like the interface on Fimfiction for writing, it's one of the best writing interfaces I have ever used in my life. It's super simple, easy to understand, and very pleasant.
I wish other programs would take the 'simple is nice' approach. Everything seems to grow more needlessly complex over time. Even my drawing programs. I use older ones, before feature-itis sets in.
If Fimfiction was stable and reliable, I would consider it the best way to write I have ever come across.
2287211
The markup is just the little things you tell the preprocessor to do things like italics, underline, bold and so on. HTML is Hyper Text Markup Language. Fimfic uses bbcode (a mostly-standardized bulletin board markup language) which is safer by far than allowing actual html through.
In other words, you know markup, and in slightly longer, the best way to write stories for fimfic if that's where you're going to display them, is in a plain old text editor where you write out the [markup][/markup] code blocks yourself. It's not so obvious at a glance, but a lot nicer since no automated fuckery happens where you can't see it.
Pony and Diamond Dog love and paying off your other story!
My heart is full and my smile is wide
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There is more to come, too.
There is really nothing to forgive. Please don't be so hard on yourself. It can't be healthy.
