Retrospective: Snowbound · 6:21pm Dec 19th, 2016
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Sometimes, you just need to have some fun.
As I said in the Alchemy Retrospective, this is one of those ideas that came to me out of nowhere and demanded I write it. I did it in record time too. In fact, the editing process took about ten times as much time as the actual writing process! It was also the first time the newest member of the Wavelengths Editing Team had been there from the beginning, so it was an interesting experience for all involved.
In fact, at one point, there was a one comment for every 10 words. My Editors were picky this time around. 
But the important thing is, we got it done. Just in time for the deadline. It’s now been a week since the end of The Alchemy of Chemistry, but I wrote this long before that. In fact, this story had a single purpose:
To show Sunset and company having some fun. 
Occurring six weeks after the events in The Application of Unified Harmony Magics, Tactics of Snowbound Unicorns is meant to be just a fun, silly romp in a winter wonderland. Yes, there’s some hints of what’s to come in the upcoming Infatuations Arc, but nothing solid. And you should know by now just how good at red herrings I can be. But then again, me pointing out that I’m good at red herrings may itself be a red herring. 
In fact, it’s red herrings for everypony!
]
Now, I actually had another story set around Hearth’s Warming Eve, called On the Brewing of Saddle Arabian Teas, where Sunset is out to find the perfect gift for Princess Celestia for Hearth’s Warming Eve, but chronologically, that’s supposed to happen after A Study in Chaos Theory. And even I’m not entirely sure what’s going to happen in Chaos Theory, so I couldn’t very well put Teas out before that, could I?
But I wanted to do a Christmas story.
Even if I had to cheat and go back on my whole “doing stories chronologically” thing. I think you’ll agree it’s worth it.
Sunset’s going to be going through a lot over the course of the next few years. She’s going to have a lot of ups and downs. She’s going to question herself. She’s going to have some nasty fights. So we might as well take a breath and have a little bit of fun this time, huh?
By the way, this is the first cover where I’ve actually done my own vector art. Now granted, that vector art was a few snowballs and the magical effect around them, but still, that’s something. So I take that as a win. I couldn’t find anything remotely approaching what I wanted, so I did what I do best: made it up as I went along.
Finally, one little itty-bitty comment...
Yes. The Infatuations and Other Lies Arc will indeed have shipping in it.
If you couldn’t figure that out from the title of the Arc, please consult your local dictionary.
You have been warned. But who’s being shipped with who? You’ll have to find out.
Oh? You think you know? Well, do you?
Do you?
You’ll have to wait and see.
*Cough* Red Herrings *Cough*
Anyway! Let’s get down to some dates!
January 1, 2017: Sunlight Sliders Collaboration Project begins! Watch as the best Sunset Shimmer authors in the world—and me—join together for the mother of all SunLight stories! We’ve got a roster of twenty-four authors! This is going to be awesome. So awesome. 
January 2, 2017: Bards of the Badlands goes live! I haven’t yet decided if this story is going to be a multi-week story or done in all one go. It’s 28,000 words, after all. However, you will be getting it. The Wavelengths Editing Team and I will be working over the holidays to make this come out up to snuff.
January 6-7, 2017: The Manehattan Project is live at Pacific PonyCon! You’ll get to see the entire Prologue and opening Slideshow to our game with special guests and much, much more! Remember, there’s still time to sign up and see us in-person!
(Yeesh, I’m having a busy New Year’s.)
Late January 2017: How Not To Use Your Royal Prerogative goes live! This one is 32,000 words so far and that’s just first draft. My word counts tend to fluctuate wildly during editing, so who knows where this will end up. But you’ll finally get to see why Coloratura and Coco Pommel are such good friends with Sunny and the rest! And at long last, we’ll wrap up the Origins Arc!
February 2017: Infatuations and Other Lies Arc begins in earnest with A Study on Chaos Theory!
Well, that's it for this Retrospective. I know this one's a shorter version, but hey, it's my first actual short story set in the Wavelengths Timeline! If you didn't get a chance to see Sunny's Trip to Las Pegasus, go check it out. I amused myself greatly in both the pictures and the text!
I'll see you all in a few weeks for the launch of Bards of the Badlands!
Until then, Merry Christmas and a Happy Hearth's Warming to All!
-Novel Idea & The Wavelengths Editing Team
The one with Sunset holding the cookie in her mouth and has the Santa hat on is by far the cutest one in the whole collection.
With how grim the future sounds (Nightmare Moon is one thing, but the whole alicorn question, as well as eventual Starlight and Princess Twilight catching up with the timeline), nice to see a happy moment. So everything you say is a lie or not a lie? Unless you're lying about lying.
Wonder who Celestia ships. Then again, she already warned them against assuming the harmony magic meant they were soulmates or something, so guess we'll see.
Ah, Sliders, now that's a name I haven't seen for years (doesn't help the show fell apart by the end). Looking forward to that, I always love Sunset and Princess Twilight stories. Even this timeline feels a bit more like Sunset and Sci-Twi (due to Twilight's more introverted nature) than regular Sunlight (not that that's a bad thing, that's just my impression). I'm just splitting hairs, but I just can't help that my favorite pony ship was cemented as Princess Sunlight after Rainbow Rocks (whereas Sunset/Sci-Twi fics seem to be on the rise ever since the RR stinger).
Pff. That's not a red herring.
i711.photobucket.com/albums/ww111/brendala/Scooby/Bicycle%20Built%20For%20Boo%20screenshots/013.jpg
THIS is a Red Herring.
Ship ALL the eggheads!
I vote SunLight, or else OT3. (We do get to vote, right? It seems obvious to me that we should vote to decide who falls in love with who.)
Maybe it's the season that's making me contemplate Hearthswarming and inter-tribal dynamics, but it seems to me that the extended CSGU/RCA group could use a pegasus or two.
The problem is that I can't think of any canon character that would easily fit into this group given the altered timeline; Dash and Flutters would probably be in Cloudsdale...
Which leaves either trying to shoe-horn in one of the Wonderbolts, or an OC, neither of which strikes me as an optimal solution.
Or perhaps Muffins could find her way into the periphery of the story as an acquaintance of Cheerilee's...
4346273 All Sunnys are cute! And don't you forget it!
(Anyway, the cutest is obviously the one with the little hat with her peeking over the side)
4346511 This statement is a lie.
Yes, Sliders. I like to pretend that everything shortly before John Rhys-Davis left the show never happened. (And after skimming what actually happened behind the scenes to the show, a lot of stuff makes more sense now).
I've always imagined this Twilight as a bit of a combination of Twilight and Fluttershy, which is essentially what we get with Sci-Twi.
As for ships, well... I have my preferences, but as long as Sunny is with a Twi, I'm usually happy.
4346654
4346928 I have no objection to this comment.
4347516 Oh yeah. Definitely. It's all democratic. It's not like I've had Sparks written since shortly after Cloudsdale or anything...
4347548 This has indeed occurred to me. What happens as a result may be... unexpected.
4347612
boy a bit crabby today huh? I know that all sunny pics are cute I am just saying that one single pic of her in the santa hat with the cookie in her mouth is by far the best. Now I am sure that there are others out there and until I see them I will maintain that as my answer.
4347617 i.imgbox.com/thiud7Uv.gif
By Celestia, well played.
orig03.deviantart.net/2ad9/f/2016/039/8/5/shimmer__by_sion_ara-d9qz1m9.png
(Cuter)
4347636 Still not as cute yes it is a sunny pic but not as cute as the one with her in a santa hat holding a cookie in her mouth
I'm posting this here because I am quoting bits of the story and don't want to ruin it for people reading the comments of the actual story.
YUUUUUSSS.
The lines were gold. All of them. Some of them I saw coming, most of them I didn't. But this:
This was amazing. [Stereotypical line that someone in literature or film has famously said in the current situation, or something that almost fits] --> [Someone says some variation of "That makes absolutely no sense coming from you in this situation"] --> [Witty retort justifying previous statement followed by swift and merciless destruction in whatever game you are playing] This is probably my favorite kind of banter.
The funniest thing about this is that "Snowball wars do!" is something that one might yell back as the first thing that pops into one's head in response to the "Real life..." but if you think about it, it is actually perfectly true. The reason your snowball impacted another player really doesn't matter at all. You can always expect immediate retribution.
This also reminded me of the snowball fight in Seeking Power. Almost as glorious as that one.
As for the shipping... Why not
bothSunLighOn? Sunlion? SuOonLight? MooSuLight? These don't mesh well. OT3 Eggheads? 3ggheads? *unsatisfied hum*imagining your Mane7 strategy session:
Alright guys, we have to be prepared. We have to come up with something brilliant to have even a chance at claiming victory!
Exactly, Sunset! What we need to do is analyze everything we know about the princess! Find where she is strong, and where she is weak!
I don't feel comfortable with this. You two sound like you are going to war--
It's not a war, Sparkle, it's a coup! *hoof slam* And quit being a wet blanket. We'll have plenty of them when we are done. *Mutters* Especially if the princess refuses to use that drying spell again
*Re-Mane-ing members are quietly watching the show while sipping hot chocolate
Yeah, Twilight! She started this, and we are going to do our best and try our hardest not to be the ones that get buried up to our horns--*slightly offended cough from the back of the room*--manes! buried up to our manes in several tons of snow!
...Your confidence is inspiring, Moon Dancer.
4358448 I know this is two weeks late, but I utterly adored your comment. I just read it again and again.
I still grin like an idiot reading this.
4384562
Well, good!
I love the plot of all those epic stories the best, but between every grand adventure there are just a bunch of diverse characters (most of the time friends or something close) spending time with each other. And since these are stories, 80% of the time shown can be entertaining comedy, 15% of the time can be referring to the actual plot, 4% foreshadowing, and 1% is always for puns.
Also comedic banter is one of the few things I actually trust myself to write. Especially with established characters, at least one of whom is highly intelligent. With pretty much everything I write, I look back at it and say to myself, "That's terrible." The nice thing is, I mean it in a good way when I am looking over a banter moment.