Hackity hack and other thoughts · 7:22pm Sep 2nd, 2016
Yes, I have the man flu. My loving wife has been kind enough to not mock me excessively and heed my pleas for hot soup. It's also given me about 24 hours to just sit at my computer and go over and over Chapter 6 of The Bridle Path. You know, the more I write the more I am in awe of what seems the unconscious skill of so many of the writers here. Their stories are profound, they make you think and even better, they flow. One sentence seemingly effortless blending into the next.
Creating that glorious mind picture that every writer wants their readers to have.
And miserable scrub like myself. I agonize over word choices. Where to put commas. If I've properly followed the rules of grammar. Technically speaking, Chapter 6 has been ready to go since yesterday. But every time I open the file to look at it I can't help but change a word here or a phrase there. Now, this isn't a pity party. I have skill in storytelling. You can't be a popular Dungeon Master for 35 years or a bard in the SCA (www.sca.org) without been able to tell a tale with at least some skill. But as I'm learning, there is an ocean of difference between telling a story and writing a story.
I'm confident that I will gain that skill in writing. It's just going to take time. And writing. Lots and lots of writing. 
Other notes,
I know that a lot of my readers are from the Mind Control fetish section and last night I ran across an absolute gem of a tale from that genre. A Deeper Change is a great story. What's better is that it flows logically from canon.
Also, I've long been familiar with the epic video Once Upon a Time in Canterlot. What I didn't know is that there is a sequel. Guardian will never let you look the same at Derpy again. Kanashiipanda chooses utterly perfect soundtracks for both videos and while his animation may not be sophisticated it is oh, so smooth.
Anyway, Chapter 6 of The Bridle Path will be up later today. After awhile double checking becomes procrastination. There comes a time when the arrow must be shot or returned to the quiver entirely.
Thanks for the suggestion of "A deeper change", I'm always looking for good MC-stories and I will definitively check that one out.
I don't know how much you're into MC yourself, but if you are interested I would recommend checking out a story called "Twilight, Revised". It's the best mind-control story I've ever had the pleasure of reading, entirely clop-free but it gives a really great insight in a controlled characters' psyche. I think your own story could also profit from reading this one.
Remember that all those great authors had like a thousand terrible attempts before they were good. Just like every artist has a thousand terrible drawings in them to get past. Not that your writing is terrible at all! Bridle Path had me hooked from the very start.
I kind of put it in the same category as A Deeper Change, honestly (and not just because of the themes); a story you can't help but love, even though just seeing the title in the sidebar makes you flinch because the writing makes you too empathetic.