The State of the Novel Address · 8:40am Feb 4th, 2017
As of Feb 3 before midnight, I've published 39,742 words to Sunset Shimmer Goes to Hell. The Pages document source is now at 67,000 words. I project I have about 5,000 more words to write to complete the novel, but who knows? Exciting characters demand to tell their stories, and I've a feeling a couple of the mane six may make cameo appearances.
The White Stockings character has proven surprisingly interesting. I had expected his story to be rather short and bland, a bridge between the chapters detailing how Sunset Shimmer reacted to Twilight Sparkles explosion onto the Canterlot scene and the ending chapters of her dealing with consequences of her decisions that led to her ultimate falling out with Celestia and her running away through the mirror. I thought that maybe White Stockings would require 5-8000 words max. Well, friendship is magic. He's proving a good platform for transformation through socialization (I'm referring to you Twilight Sparkle). When you read this week's installment, Like a Timberwolf, you'll see he has far to go—and he will go the distance.
Tartarus—basically how MLP pony culture deals with essentially capital criminals—turned out to be very strange and interesting. What is a MLP pony idea of hell? A world without a death penalty or punishments or prisons is a difficult reality to conceptualize for a human... but then I'm a science fiction writer. Creating a story about aliens in an alien land is my specialty. It worked out better than I hoped and I hope you'll agree.
I've been working on the story since late August 2016. I think I'll be done before the end of February 2017. This means roughly eight more chapters after today's chapter. Plus, there's a sequel in the form of a short story which qualifies as a second epilogue, completed and waiting for me to click Publish. I've worked out all the novel's plot issues and am currently writing the connecting chapter between the first part of the story and the ending chapters that I wrote previously. At the point that I've penned the last word, I will publish more regularly and possible twice a week.
Have no fear. The story will be published in it's entirety.
