Year #4 in Review: A Change In The Air?

(Before I begin, please take a moment to pause and remember the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting, which took place three years ago yesterday.)
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Hello, internet! Welcome to Game Th...I mean, Fimfiction!

There are a lot of ways I could describe the past 12 months here in Akersville. I could run the numbers and show how I met every goal I set last December (and then some: Forget 6,000 views, I'm up over 7,300!). I could talk about contests and stories and hiatuses and a hundred other things. In the end, however, the events of this year can be summed up in two statements:

1. I've logged over 400 hours on Splatoon since the game was released in May.
2. I haven't seen an episode of MLP since "The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone."

Let's focus on the positive first. In the first half of the year, I wrote a couple of typical Green Akers stories (Fleximare, She Got Game, SGTR), and they got the typical responses (positive, but small). I then tried writing an experimental AU story (An Angel From Above), but nothing seemed to change. Despite the goals, Year 4 was shaping up to be a lot like Years 1-3, only this time I didn't have Mortal Kombat: Equestria to draw in new readers.

Then Nintendo released a funny little shooter starring kids and squids...and everything changed.

I initially held off writing a Splatoon crossover, since I was knee-deep in AAFA and figured there'd be a ton of other people who would write them. When the inevitable crossover flood turned out to be not-so-inevitable, however, I decided 'Heck, somebody's got write one!" and threw my hat into the ring.

The result has been bigger than I ever imagined. An Inkling Of Friendship took off like a rocketship, crushing everything in its path (especially An Angel From Above) and surpassing even stalwarts like Cassie and Grounded in readership. Not even MKE in its heyday was this popular! In fact, Splatoon is so powerful that both of my Splatoon-themed Mario Maker levels ended up in livestreams!

So was Year 4 a success? Yeah, I think it qualifies. ;)

Unfortunately, this brings us to the flip side of the coin: The more I get sucked in to Splatoon, the more I get pulled away from My Little Pony. In truth, I'd been watching the episodes more out of duty than of interest (gotta keep current with canon, right?), but finally an episode (that will remain nameless) annoyed me so much that I decided "I don't have to put up with this" and for the first time, I switched an episode off halfway through. I went back a few weeks later to see Rainbow and Gilda make up (overall, I liked that one), but haven't gone back to Discovery Family since. I didn't see the background characters get their chance to shine, I didn't see the CMCs get their cutie marks, and I didn't see Starlight receive her comeuppance.

Given that S5 tied up so many loose ends (including some we'd forgotten about, like Moondancer), my personal theory is that Season 6 will be the last season for G4 MLP, and honestly, I'm okay with that. The show staff has wrung just about every last bit of storyline out of the current cast, and they should be commended for their efforts, but nothing lasts forever.

Wait...are you about to tell us you're leaving Fimfiction and the fandom?

Of course not! That's the beauty of crossovers: Even if your interest in the main series starts to wane, you can mix it with something you're more interested in to make it fresh. I definitely plan on seeing AIOF through (which, given my track record, will take until 2018).

I will say, however, that my update schedule will be more chaotic than usual. The last six months have brought some major changes IRL, and the next six will bring even more. Writing time will be harder to find, but rest assured, I will find it. I'm as interested in seeing how the ponies' trip to Inkopolis goes as everybody else!

So what does Year 5 hold in store? Mostly AIOF updates, unless another EQD or convention contest catches my eye. I'd also like to get back to AAFA eventually, although I can't make any guarantees.

In conclusion, Year 4 was an over-the-top success, and I've got y'all to thank for it. Year 5 begins with uncertainty, but I've got a feeling that it'll be exciting!

So keep those dials tuned right here, and remember...

Comments

[Shadow of the Night]

What a wild thing to read in these times. Feels like forever has passed since we did that one thing in our DMs, and since you posted fics.

Hope y'all have been well and to maybe chat with you again someday. My DMs on here are open.