Toying with quite a few ideas... · 2:07am Sep 6th, 2012
Hello again, readers. I've been caught up with heavy schoolwork lately, so the chapter's development has been slowed. I swear that it will come, however. It shall be written through Hell or high water.
However, I've been considering a few edits to the story, the most significant one being... well, possibly making it humanized. Again, I say POSSIBLY. It's just been something I've been considering, chiefly because I'm not sure if I have the skill to write him as a pony.
Weak-ass excuse...
So what do you think? Again, this is just a small idea of mine. But how would you feel if it were edited to become an HiE with Gandalf in human form?
It's all hypothetical. I have no real plans to edit it as of yet.
...Now back to my English homework...
EDIT: AHHHHHH I NEED TO GET MY MIND OFF OF WORK. HERE. THIS IS WHAT INSPIRED ME TO WRITE THE FIC!!!
...(Lesson Zero moment)
I'd say just to keep him as a pony, but if it's that hard for you then changing it would be fine. Either way it's Gandalf in Equestria, a win-win
Do as you will, Im sure that itll turn out well.
I think the prospect of making Gandalf a pony is a nice turn from all the rest of the HiE fics i've read. I say stick to it, good fellow! Here, some support:
I like it as it is, although I wouldn't question you if you gave him the ability to change back to human while in Equestria. I still like the one idea I saw suggesting Gandalf could be Starswirl the bearded.
Personally, I liked the idea of Galdalf as a Pony.
Nothing against HiE stories, it's just that there a a ton of them and i don't feel that there is as much character development available for Gandalf as a human.
But thats just my 2 bits
Ugh, now I feel like a brat. My head is such a jumbled mess right now...
I'd prefer it if you kept him as a pony, but that's just me.
339222 Dude, you actually asked your fans what they thought.
You had ideas about how you could improve your work, but didn't want to ruin what was already there, so you asked other people for their input.
You're already better than 3/4s of the Authors on the site for that fact alone.
scranton.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/rsz/mlfw2539_small.jpg
I'd be happy with either choice... sorry that I'm not being much of a help here.
If you were willing to do a little extra, you could always write two different versions of the next chapter. One where Gandalf is human and one where he's a pony, and see which one people like better.
With Gandalf being turned into a pony upon entering Equestria, that leaves room for exploration and elaboration into the mysteries of magic, while a human Gandalf opens up possibilities for interesting/awkward first encounters with the natives.
339222
Take a break hun, you will just burn yourself out at this rate, and that is never good.
In response to your question, go with what feels right, does it seem right to have him as a Human or as a Pony? I personally feel it seems right to have him as a Pony instead of being a Human in Equestria. Like I said earlier, you should take a break so that you will have you mind be less cluttered and so you can think more clearly. Have a hug and a Twilight -huggles
What, Gandalf isn't Starswirl the Bearded? Dammit.
Other than that, no preference - I trust you as author more than my half-baked thoughts on the matter.
just do what you're comfortable with all will be well
339233 awkward encounters are the most fun
339222
You should take a break... but please.. please do not even consider humanizing it. I'm gonna be honest and say, well humanizing him would just suck the fun and adventure out of it a little. I'm sorry but ive seen the movies and read the books, I know gandalf the human. But as a pony he would be just that more interesting. Open up a new territory, new abilities, attributes, his being! Plleeaaaase don't humanize it. Can you say no to this face. 25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m5xiuwZ0do1qc5ffho1_1280.jpg
339233 Or at least listen to this guy. Logic man, its has power.
339268
Alright, that right there got me. Keep him as a pony.
Please no...
No more HiE.
Stop the madness.
Personally, him being a pony suits this story. Now, I do enjoy HiE, as I have had the utmost pleasure to have found the good fics before the bad ones. Upon seeing the bad ones, I can see why they don't like them. Anyways, you started him out as a pony in Equestria, I see no reason to stop that. Besides, this is Gandalf. Who's to say he didn't pick up a transform/revert to human form the last time he was in Equestria? And as with everyone else, take a break every now and then mate! We still need you for the road ahead, it would be a shame if we broke you now! In all seriousness, I wish you the best of luck in your endeavor. ~With regards, the Current Student of the Second True Magic.
At first I thought you meant a humanized Equestria. I spent several seconds formulating a string of curses better left unsaid before the rest of the post assuaged my fears.
Personally, I think it would work fine either way. I think making Gandalf human would give him a layer of mystery and intrigue (in the eyes of the ponies) that might not be present if were ponified. At the same time however, that can force many chapters of explanations and translations, and otherwise hinder the forward motion of the story. If you want contact to be a long and complicated affair, then I say make him human. But if you want to keep things a little simpler and move forward with the plot, than leaving him a pony makes that process much easier.
In the end, it's up to you as the writer to decide where you wish to take this. I've listed a few of the ups and downs above, so you can take those into consideration if you want. I'll read it either way.
339314 Reason, who says diplomacy never works. I especially like the idea of the human/pony transforming spell. The main problem I have with him staying human is that if he isn't able to divulge information about Equestria to humans, why would the Princesses want their little ponies knowing about Middle Earth/humans? I think its because all three would know that the fear of the unknown is a powerful thing. Both people and animals (in this case ponies) fear and react badly to the unkown. Either lashing out or running away. People do it all the time, and the ponies stayed clear of Zecora because she had stripes. STRIPES. I don't think a meeting of the two races would exactly end well. The ponies and humans would both be curious and try to travel across to each other. Curiosity killed the cat. Your choice though.
Keep him a pony. While it may be difficult, and a human would still work, the reward of a well done pony-dalf will be of great proportions.
EDIT: Although, classic "human" Gandalf would be awesome in his own way... I'm actually leaning more towards human now.
339440 Of course, Twilight"OP" Sparkle accidentally learns it, tries it, and then freaks the frak out. Of course something goes wrong and she's stuck like that and Gandalf has to teach her how to use magic as a human till it wears off. Hilarity insues.
339570 Its all about the shits and giggles man... tha Lulz.
339608 Indeed. As a human, being the kind of beings we naturally are, Twilight's curiosity score would gain a 2x multiplier, rounded up, and her tenacity level to learn new things would breach 8000, possibly going over 9000. Poor, poor Gandalf. ..
In my opinion, if you are writing a LotR/FiM fic with Gandalf, and it vastly affects the fic whether he is human or pony, you are doing it wrong.
Gandalf is a wizard. He is a nigh immortal ageless borderline demigod. His charisma and aura are enough to bend most encounters to his will, and his power is enough to deal with those he can't. He is a natural at bridging the divide between different races, whether he resembles said race or not.
The only difference between him being a human or pony is the ponies' initial impression of him.
In all honesty, I'm surprised he IS a pony in Equestria and not a draconeqqus. Although a unicorn makes sense if you consider the only winged unicorns are female. And whichever species he is, really should make little difference to his tale. It would be like the difference between visiting the shire or the elves.
I'd say, write the story (or at least outline it) first, as if species really doesn't matter. then once you have a solid foundation, you will see that race doesn't matter and you can make such a trivial decision with more confidence.
My vote is for human. Reason being, it hearkens back to Gandalf's persona in the LotR. He is a mysterious traveler, who seems to carry a different name with every race/region he visits. In this case, he could have a different name that the Royalty of Equestria refer to him as. Additionally, we've seen Gandalf interact with varying creatures throughout the LotR universe (Ents, Eagles, the many races of Middle Earth, etc.) while maintaining his human form. This creates a dichotomy where the reader is visibly aware of Gandalf's physically difference from the the ponies of Equestria, but it will be his personality/character that will stand out all the better for it, transcending what is on the surface. In short, he wouldn't allow his physical difference detract from treating all sentient creatures equally, a fact that would make his character all the more intriguing to the citizens of Equestria. Additionally, maintaining human form does allow for a measure of relate-ability for the reader. And while it may be a personal opinion, I have a hard time seeing Gandalf as a pony. He was sent by the Valar to rally the race of Men, so while he is Maiar and could more than likely assume the form of a pony, remaining human seems to be the better fit for me.
Reading 339630 and 339696, I'm now totally of the opinion that he would stay human. It's Tolkien canon that the Valar put him in a human body, but that didn't stop him from accomplishing what he did with all the other races. I also think his human form would be more endearing, since we know what he did before this trip to Equestria, and we know how his story will 'end,' sailing off from the Grey Havens, all in his human form. Quite frankly, even if you did make him a pony, we still couldn't help ourselves but think of his actor's face. Gandalf is just one of the most famous characters of our generation.
And sweet Uru Illuvatar, now I can't stop thinking of Discord as a rogue ainur or maia (if you don't know what any of those words mean I suggest you study your Tolkien more before proceeding)!
339813
Mmm. And it's not like the ponies aren't familiar with many different sapient species. While the ponies of Ponyville are skittish around things they do not understand (Zecora) they did not really act strangely toward Spike or Gilda. And Canterlot MUST be used to having ambassadors of many races about.
Although, I could see Gandalf, or Celestia/Luna having him disguised as a pony under certain circumstances.
Honestly, if he WAS to be a pony in Equestria, the biggest dilemma I would see is deciding if it should be a voluntary thing or if the nature of Equestria should force the transformation. The latter would give more reason to have him be a pony, but not as good a reason as a plot based one.
While I would not be offended by you making him a human, I honestly think it makes more sense in context to have him as a pony. As I said before, I do not believe he is truly bound to his human form in the same way humans and elves are, so I believe he would be more than capable of changing his form to better blend in with the locals. Besides, ponies do not really behave that differently from humans so the only thing having him in human form would do for the story is cause crowds to panic which I think is less interesting than Twilight meeting her idol because we have seen HiE responses plenty of times, but Twilight meeting Starswirl would be a new one.
Also, that video is great.
I do love some good HiE stories, but I liked Gandalf as a pony in this one. Up to you though.
Gandalf as human makes more sense to me. It's more in character IMO for him not to be affected by some random transformation spell like that... and it spices things up.
339267>>339994 I beg to differ.
If you honestly think that it is beyond your ability to write Gandalf as a pony, then the best option to take is what you feel would be the best for you and your story. If it doesn't mess up the plans you had for the story and you think it would be easier on you and better in the long run if he was human, then probably the best option would be to go back and make him human.
On the other hand, if this messes up the narrative you had planned, then the best thing to do would be to keep him a pony and ask for help if you ever feel things are getting too difficult. There is never any shame in asking for assistance.
I guess this is just a roundabout way of saying "do what YOU feel is best for the job."
Personally, I think it would fit the character better and I personally would like it more if he was human, but remember that this is your story. You need to do what you feel works best.
Also, I must say, I find it befuddling the number of comments that say "No more HiE" or "Making a human ponified is more interesting" or "Humanizing sucks the fun out of it" and things of that nature.
I have to wonder how many stories these people have actually read. News Flash: At least HALF of the Human in Equestria stories that exist have the human turning into a pony in some way. (And yes, even if the human ends up turning into a pony, it's still called an HiE story.) It's not a new concept. It's not somehow more clever or original or interesting or fun. At the same time, nor is it a bad thing in any way. It's a completely average, normal, and regular way to go about doing it. One is not better or more interesting than the other. The only thing that makes one better than the other is if the story is poorly executed.
Funnily enough, a ponified Human in Equestria story is EASIER to mess up than a regular Human in Equestria story. They just tend to mess up in different ways.
What's with all the hate against unaltered humans in Equestria, people? They're both perfectly valid ways to tell a story of this genre... especially when dealing with a crossover.