• Member Since 11th Apr, 2013
  • offline last seen Dec 12th, 2023

Icy Shake


There is a time to tell stories, and there is a time to live them.

More Blog Posts30

  • 241 weeks
    BC2019 Top 16 Review: The Railway Ponies: Highball

    This is a review I did for "Luminaries," a now-defunct project I was invited to contribute to: getting a number of reviewers together to each write an in-depth essay on one of their favorite stories, each covering one by a different author. I jumped on The Descendant's The Railway Ponies: Highball as fast as I could, and as far as I know was one of only a few people (along with

    Read More

    9 comments · 413 views
  • 242 weeks
    From Pratt St. to Pratt St. and Back Again: A Bronycon Report

    My Bronycon experience this year started out rough: following a weeklong push to get a presentation together for work and consequently not doing much travel prep ahead of time, I was up until after 3AM Tuesday the 30th, with a disappointing amount of time spent on something that ended up never mattering at all—getting together a couple Magic decks that I’d be OK with losing in

    Read More

    8 comments · 291 views
  • 243 weeks
    Bronycon 2019

    In the airport, will take off in an hour. Looking forward to another con, hope to catch up with people from last time, meet some new ones. And pick up some books. Probably too many books.

    Also looking for suggestions of either things to do solo in Baltimore, especially Wednesday and Sunday nights, or info on open-invite/public/whatever con/pony people related events to check out if possible.

    1 comments · 256 views
  • 334 weeks
    Happy Halloween, Ponyfolks!

    Have fun, stay safe, party responsibly!

    Read More

    7 comments · 432 views
Oct
11th
2015

That it's bait is obvious, but the trap is worth it · 1:59pm Oct 11th, 2015

"How to Lose Weight in 4 Easy Steps" isn't pony, but man if I don't think it, at under 1900 words, is worth your time. I don't actually know if it's fiction or not, and I don't think it matters, because was easily the best thing I've read so far this weekend.



What does matter is its excellent narrative and characterization, primarily of its protagonist, but also in a lesser way of his protagonist's friends, love interest, and even his ex, all nameless. The supporting characters necessarily aren't the deepest, given the length and focus of "4 Easy Steps," but what is there feels entirely organic and supports both the mental state of the main character and the actions he takes. It builds a story of overcoming heartbreak and reinventing a life, plus a romance, almost entirely from snippets of time at the gym, thinking about food, or related getting-in-shape flashes. The repeated use of puddles of sweat as both an accomplishment and a specter was a nice thread throughout, and the contrast set up between how the protagonist and another character interpreted the view of Los Angeles at night was a high point.

Added to all of that, is what strikes me as an implicit denouncement of clickbait and the lazy thinking at least one type preys on, the search for an easy way to reach goals without actually putting in the work you know is going to be required. And the structure actually enhances the story by (at least if you were coming from a blind link, expecting something close to what it said on the tin, like I was—in the end, I gave in and clicked the bait because I trusted the linker's judgement) putting you in a frame of mind that just isn't prepared for the punch that's coming instead of inane health fluff you've probably seen countless times before. That's how you embed an argument in a story, and have it work to its advantage. And despite its short span, I could readily see some readers forgetting that they're only on the third item in the list, which makes for a hell of a humorous decompression at the end.

Comments ( 0 )
Login or register to comment