Good Clean Fun - Bonus Ending and Commentary! · 3:59am Jan 5th, 2012
Once again, I'd like to thank everyone for making Good Clean Fun into my most popular and successful story so far. It was a pleasure to write about silly bathtime fun between "you" and Sweetie Belle, and I hope it was as much of a pleasure for all of you to read it.
As my way of saying "thank you" to everyone who read and enjoyed my fic, I have thrown together a little extra scene for this cute little story. Don't worry - When I say "Extra Scene", I don't mean like that experimental hot and heavy scene like I did for "A Well-Deserved Break." This one's still safe enough for even the show's actual target audience to read, and while it may not exactly be what the people asking for a sequel are expecting, I still think it fits pretty well with the story. Without further ado, here you go:
Bonus Ending: The Next Day
BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!*
Just like with my last story, I also have some extra tidbits to share with this story. Enjoy some special commentary straight from the author!
-First things first: The inspiration for this story came to me out of nowhere just about. I can't exactly remember if it hit me before or after I finished up work for "A Well-Deserved Break," but I remember that the idea of sharing a bath with a filly friend had not quite been done before in pony fiction, and thus would make for a unique and really cute story. Of course, I also had concerns about the idea, as the concept for it is very similar to "A Well-Deserved Break" in which you have an intimate moment with a love interest while neck-high in warm water. Eventually, I decided that as long as the pretense was different enough, it could lead to a fic with a different feel and progression all of its own.
-On the other hand, the choice for which filly to write about was a no-brainer for me. In addition to being the most adorable of the three Crusaders, Sweetie Belle is also the character I feel is not represented in the fandom as well as she should be. It seems that most depictions of her in fanon have her as an airhead who only exists to have a blond moment every now and then. I wanted to portray her in a different light, where she's a bit naive but is still very much a kind-hearted and well-meaning filly (in other words, how she was shown in "Sisterhooves Social"). Also, "Sweetiepoo" is the dumbest meme to ever exist in bronydom. Sorry, had to get that off my chest.
-I had a bit of a tough time figuring out a good way to get both "you" and Sweetie dirty at the same time. At first, I had something along the lines of her offering you a ride home from school on Scootaloo's wagon, and said wagon overturning into a mud puddle, but that proved to be a bit too difficult to put together. I ended up deciding that the best option would be for the "you" character to be taken by complete surprise, and thus the mudball idea was chosen.
-Pipsqueak was only in this fic solely because I like him. It's my story, I can do these things if I want to. :P
-Likewise, Rarity was originally only in the story so I'd have an excuse to talk about her having a wet mane like in the end of "Sisterhooves Social". As it turned out, she also ended up with plenty more plot-related reasons to be included, such as providing an excuse to force the two foals to take a bath together, providing more opportunities for gags, and simply by virtue of being Sweetie's sister. Also, she's a pretty fun and easy character to write in my opinion. All I have to do is imagine how she would sound or react in a situation, and she pretty much writes herself.
-The one line you hear from Rarity's soap opera is actually a line I lifted from It Never Hurts To Ask, a short sensual fic by Strider of Xir. It's one of my favorite lines to come from the Sensual Fiction General, and I just couldn't resist throwing it in.
-The biggest trouble I had with this fic is figuring out what I wanted to happen once "you" and Sweetie were alone in the tub. There was at least a dozen ways that scene could have played out, and none of them stood out enough in my mind. The only thing I had down for sure was Sweetie confessing her feelings and then performing the splash fight fake-out. Eventually, I just forced myself to start writing and hope I liked it enough to keep going. I think it worked out in the end, but it's something I hopefully won't have to deal with again anytime soon.
-Speaking of references, I may or may not have thrown in a nod to a fic I currently have in the works somewhere in the story. I'm gonna be honest, it's pretty easy to find if it is in there, but I'll leave you to speculate as to what it could mean. It's more fun that way. ;)
-UPDATE: Something else I remembered recently: One key detail that ended up not making it into the final story. At the end of the story, I initially planned on Sweetie giving you a quick kiss on the cheek just before you left the Boutique. I ended up not going through with it because I felt that it would've been better to leave them strictly as "friends" for the time being. Whether or not I change that with any future installments that may or may not happen remains to be determined...
And that's it from me for 2011. Once the new year has rung in, I will begin work on my next fic. I'm hoping to have it done before I have to go back to college, but we'll see how things go. Until then, see you all in the big '12!
*Always wanted to say that
Interesting insight into your writing process.