Explanations are in order · 3:11am Aug 19th, 2012
Hi, Everypony.
No, I'm not dead. Yes, I am still working on "The Dark Side", but it may take some more time.
This whole summer has been unproductive, but it wasn't from lack of trying.
I currently am in the fifth or so rewrite for this Chapter-third (or is it fourth now? That one Rainbow Dash scene technically took as long as a chapter to write. Well, its part of Part Two now, in either case.) and the Umpteenth time I've rewritten ANY PART of chapter 16, period.
I've worked out how I want the next chapter to go.
I've worked out more or less how I want the rest of the story to go.
I've even worked out how I want the conclusion to a particular SotC-crossover side story long-term fans have been waiting to see the end of to go.
I HAD a blueprint for this whole chapter 16 period, but I had to scrap it due to it not fitting certain newer ideas, as well as my intention to simply improve the chapters
I've since rewritten this part a few times, but something either doesn't fit, or the story just flows better.
A big reason why I was able to provide weekly updates when I first started writing this story was because I knew where I wanted it to go, and I mapped out how I wanted all the confrontations between Dash, Pinkie, and their shadows were supposed to go. I knew how I wanted to wind all this down for the finale (well...the end of the story is actually a ways off, perhaps with more twists and turns and...complications...than people suspected), but then something bad happened, and that's where we are today.
I call it "the BIG rewrite", and its like an evil, evil, parasite queen embedded in what used to be the coherence in what otherwise should've been a pretty unremarkable chapter, and it gives birth to thousands more rewrites and they all are trying to multiply and TAKE OVER THE WORLD!
I considered releasing a document that included all of my false starts over ALL three parts of Chapter 16 (which DID include some neat stuff and well over 10,000 words of content..) ....But I don't think I could even dress out this collection of broken story lines into something worth reading for entertainment purposes. (Archeological purposes, perhaps?)
I've actually been waiting all year to start focusing on the "Pinkie of the Colossus" finale, and I thought about releasing that to tide you over, but it just didn't feel right to spend time writing on anything but the really hard thing.
But do not despair. For I am writing even just a little bit everyday, and I think I'm done with changing things to the story. I think this will work out.
The only thing I can add to this is that my plans for Chapter 17 and the rest of the story (while my thoughts have strayed to those chapters and ADDED things to my blueprint for the story there, oh my god, I am so excited for the rest of this story if I can just get over this hill), have stayed mostly the same. Chapter 16 is just a pain in the flank to write, and there's one or two loose ends I want to tie up now, here, and have them resolved before I reveal the next big plot point.
See you all soon.
I can't wait for the Pinkie of the Colossus finale. :D
296617 Me neither....of course, I might plan to release Chapter 17 (remember, I'm stuck on 16 now) before continuing that story.
However, I already have a HUGE 10,000+ word chunk of chapter 17 written (it was originally supposed to be part of 16, before I moved it, don't ask.) So I do kind of suspect that I'll release 16-3 and 17 in quick succession. ...one I'm done with 16, that is.
I am super stoked and I cannot wait for more Dark Side! Woo-hoo!