And to Think It All Started With a Necroed Thread · 4:07am Dec 28th, 2016

Rumors may be circulating that a user named JawJoe released a novel, one that isn't pony-related at all. Those rumors are correct.

And from now until New Year's Eve, it's free! Go get yourself a copy.

Why am I mentioning this at all? I helped write it. To be specific, I was the guy who supplied Esperanto translations and vocabulary to the story. Basically a human Esperanto dictionary.

Now you might ask, "How did such a legendary author get someone unknown to work with him? Like you?" Read on to see how that happened.

One day, out of curiosity, I decided to make a Google search:

"esperanto" site:fimfiction.net

What that does, for the uninitiated, is search for the word "esperanto" on Fimfiction, and only on Fimfiction. One of the results was a thread on The Writer's Group. It was JawJoe asking for help, specifically from an Esperantist, for Esperanto terms for an upcoming story. I responded positively-- but neglected to check the date of the first post, and ended up necroing a 43-week-old thread. He replied with (and I quote):

Jesus Christ, do you realise how old this thread is?
...but actually, I could use an Esperanto speaker, albeit for a completely different project. I'll PM you later.

He later sent me a PM telling me of the "completely different project"-- which turned out to be Seven-Point Star. (The original project, if anyone's curious, was actually Queen of Queens-- the names of the Changelings and places in the "Lands of Our Kind" were meant to be in Esperanto, but that's beside the point and far too late.)

He first wanted a name for this massive European-based conglomerate that monopolized magitech. As one would expect, the first try isn't always the best one, as I learned when I suggested naming this conglomerate "Amagikeco" (derived from Amikeco, "Friendship" and Magio, "Magic"). Later we found it more feasible to take the conversation to Skype, so from then on communication was much quicker. There on Skype, we came up with a more suitable name. JawJoe initially aimed for "Sorteko", but I eventually negotiated it to "Sorĉeko" (which if you ask me looks more distinctly Esperanto, and on top of that has a similar pronunciation). Both iterations are derived from sorĉo, "sorcery" and teknologio, "technology" (spelt also, but rarely, teĥnologio).

From then on, I was on a roll. In no particular order:

- Big flying city over the heart of Europe? "Nova Horizonto" (literally "New Horizon") did the trick.
- Magic-based security force that shows no mercy? "Nova Ŝildo" (literally "New Shield") worked.
- Hive-minded security cameras mounted on drones? "Spiokuloj" (from spio, "spy" and okulo, "eye", though JawJoe maintains that it came from kulo, "mosquito") fits nicely.
- Small PDA thing that fits in your ear (since "EarPod" won't work because Apple)? "Sonorelo" (from sono, "sound" and orelo, "ear") was surprisingly good, since it's just a stone's throw away from sonorilo ("bell").
- And maybe a few others that I can't recall at the moment.

In addition, he wanted someone to do French words, phrases, and so forth for the book. Now, maybe you don't realize this, but I have a few "go-to" people in the brony community for translations into other languages. Samey90, for instance, is my Polish go-to. Pedro Hander, for another, is my Portuguese go-to. Amongst my followers, Decebalus is my Romanian go-to, Armosk is my German go-to, HowTea is my Czech go-to, and nioniosbbbb is my Greek go-to. This is just a sampling.

Formerly (and note this), Indeliblink (formerly Cirrus Tail) was my French go-to. However, he pretty much went off the radar when I needed him again for the novel, so when I contacted him again, he didn't respond for the next two months. By then, JawJoe and I got a much quicker response from another Francophone (one in France, no less, so the dialect would be a bit more accurate): System.

For about three months, I acted as a middleman between JawJoe and System: relaying JawJoe's questions to System, telling JawJoe "I'll get back to you," then copypasting System's responses. And I say "three months," because last September JawJoe wanted to get System's Skype to facilitate easier communication. Gee, where have I heard that before?

So now System is my French go-to.

Then in November I, along with other people, got to preread the novel. This was huge. Huge then, huge now; the word count barely wavered between the beta and final versions. But I read it. I read the lot. And you know what?

I loved it.

Frankly put, this is one of the best novels I've ever read! Entertainment-wise, it fails to disappoint-- plenty of remarks from the narrator-protagonist, Raina B. Durand. She's pragmatic, witty, and makes everything clear to the reader, who obviously isn't from the Pan-European Coalition (PEC). Although JawJoe disclaims that it's meant only as a work of entertainment, without the author's opinions instilled into its words, I feel like it's made several points about society, at least in Europe. For instance (spoilers), towards the end, the owner of Sorĉeko, Luca Városi, comments on the royalty of Europe: "If we are to prosper, we cannot leave the world's fate to the simple-minded, whether he wears animal pelt or a suit. Kings and politicians seek only to preserve their own short existence and power. They see not past their nose, they care not for the greater destiny of our kind. . . . Humanity needs a philosopher king -- a queen. A mother. What, do you want them to start their dick-measuring again? To go to war over petty grievance?" If 2016 has a highlight-- this is it!

And to think it all started with a necroed thread.

Good night, and good luck.

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