What Should I Do With the Next Few Parts? · 9:59pm Dec 16th, 2015
* DISCLAIMER: Please realize that the material contained below does not mean that the author has no ending in mind for Act II. She merely can't figure out which order to put it in.
I always like to get audience participation involved in my stories as much as possible, and I strive to find a balance between giving the readers what they want and being able to go along with my own material. With that out of the way, I have a particular problem: Act II will be finishing in a few parts (the last part of this post will contain a projected timeline of how I'm trying to get the releases to go), but there are a few ways I could take it.
The main issue with the story right now is that there are two major revelations about to go down, and while both will make it into the story, the order they occur in can be switched out really easily. They both take place at approximately the same time (with one only needing a "one week ago..." style flashback should I choose to write about it last of the two), and each have their own part dedicated to them. I am currently working on both parts simultaneously because, quite frankly, I have no idea which one would be better suited for the next release. That's where you guys come in. After all, you guys certainly know better than I do what aspects of my story that you're looking forward to hearing about the most and which ones you can or can't wait another month to see.
To demonstrate, let's call the possible new releases "Part A" and "Part B." Part A is a side story and hence will be shorter (~4000 words) and is based on an event occurring "behind the scenes" with two supporting characters. Part B takes place within the larger scope of the story, is standard-length (~8000-9000 words), and will continue the plot straight where we left off last time. Part B contains Scene's love confession, Rarity's chat with Coco, and some final preparations before opening night (which will be insane). Part A focuses on the intrigue surrounding certain aspects of the play, including more hints being dropped on who Pink Lady is and what exactly she wants. So you could say that Part B is heavier on romance and friendships and Part A is heavier on mystery and suspense. Right now I'm already leaning towards releasing Part B first since one of my main followers has been wanting the Scene confession for a long time, but if you guys decide Part A's more your thing, then I'll do that. Please know that both parts will release and that this is only a matter of which order to put them in.
Also, I have plans for Act II to end in about February (assuming I don't have a massive rush of productivity over winter break, in which case it could be a tad earlier) and for Act III to begin in March to celebrate this series' 2nd anniversary. As much fun as Act II is to work on, I can't wait for the more laid-back family bonding of Act I to come back with this new story arc. There'll be a lot more emphasis on new characters and looking at relationships between existing ones. So basically, here's how it'll go:
late December: Part A/Part B
January: Part B/Part A
February: 2-part opening night miniarc (which will end Act II)
Opening night miniarc will probably be churned out extra quickly because the first part of it will be a massive cliffhanger/plot twist. It's a game-changer, and most likely the #1 thing I have wanted to write for this series since I first started with it. It will be called either "The Chessmaster's Checkmate" or "The Show Must Go On" (more generic title, I know). Like MLP two-parters, both parts will likely share the same name with the beginning part of it referred to as "Verse One" and the ending as "Verse Two."
