It Falls and it Dies - by Twifight Tiny Bereft Antelope Cordial. · 5:57am Feb 17th, 2017
Living in this dangerous time, we're forced to choose sides and potentially be killed for such. It isn't a matter of fairness - we never had a choice ourselves, whether our vote was for or against the outcome, no matter what we'd believed. We were doomed from the start; manipulated and played as fools to bring a terrible power to life, proving that bigotry remains the ruling order.
Having said that, this is precisely why you're here right now, my horrid children! Oh, the delicious irony... except that your mother is a nurturing, caring soul - everything else is manipulative poison, and should be feared as such. The endless hooks and horrors that exist in this current age are enough to make my blood boil - woe be to any that dare defy the modern govern, for they shall be eradicated and transplanted before an utterance of defiance is managed! YOU SHALL BE THROWN AWAY, LEFT TO ROT WITHOUT A CHANCE TO OFFER ANY WORD IN EDGEWISE! THIS IS OUR ELECTED JUSTICE? UTTER NONSENSE!
Why are WE the monsters, mm? Cast from society, hating the regent supreme that manipulates and directs the softer minds, knowing that we're unjustly treated and banned from any socially acceptable lawful account? THAT MAKES US MONSTROUS?
WE ARE VOICES THAT MATTER, DAMN IT! WE ARE ALIVE, AND WE'RE NOT TO BE IGNORED OR TRIFLED WITH! CURSE THE FOOLS THAT TELL US OTHERWISE - WE DESERVE THE RIGHTS GIVEN TO THE SELFISH ENTITLED, AND WE SHALL TAKE IT BY FORCE REGARDLESS OF THEIR DEIFIC POSTURING!
HATE THE POWERS THAT POLICE US! TEAR OUT THE THROATS OF THE UNINITIATED ENTITLED, KINGS OF IGNORANCE MADE ROYALTY THROUGH INHERITANCE! HOWL WITH ME, MY LUSUS NATURAE! AWOO-OOO!
... ugh, the headache. IT BURNS!
I am semi-retiring. Not as a member here, or a fan of ponies, just... I think my writing ventures are done for now. Thank you to ALL who have supported me over the years - SORRY FOR BEING A SUB-PAR AUTHOR! I will finish the stories that I've started - which means I WILL be writing for a while still, but it is time to be honest with myself and admit that my fiction aspirations are done. DONE.
... having said that, there are two stories I'd submitted ages ago that were... poorly executed, which deserve a second look IMO - if you CARE TO SEE WHAT I HAVE BEEN DOING instead of WRITING NEW STUFF, as in EDITING MY OLD WORK TO DEATH: check out Intransigence and A Funeral. Again. Or for the first time? Honestly, they were both heavy things to write, being sort-of-autobiographical pieces, and I SO DESPERATELY hope that they're worthy of liking after HOURS AND HOURS of reworking! I can't promise that you'll enjoy them, but I can GUARANTEE THAT THEY'RE BOTH OVERWORKED and made me SERIOUSLY QUESTION MY SANITY!
My focus has become transfixed on the graphic arts of late, after making some artwork for Phazon, then soon after starting a crazy Twifight Sparkill comic strip, and THEN becoming a member of Deviantart - do you like the comic strips I've posted here? They mean so much to me, and are FAR MORE SATISFYING TO MAKE than anything I've published in recent memory!
I desperately miss being a READER here, as I was when I'd first arrived. There was a time when FiMFiction recorded all the words a member read, and I was at about 3,000,000 after a few months. These days? Meh. I don't have the time to do it all anymore. I MISS ENJOYING PONY TALES. I miss being social, and commenting in groups, and... everything I've neglected for far too long.
Much love to everyone. I will still blog, still love and be a lover, but ... without the shitty stories and long pauses in-between updates, mm?
How about I post an image in memoriam of what was, yes? Yes:
On to the next chapter! ... sarcasm notwithstanding. SHUSH! The clopfic is nearly ready for posting, so at least you've got SOMETHING to look forward to!
Don't hate me for this.
This is how all authors should go out.
I've seen too many great writers here making too many stories concurrently. For a whole I've wondered why is this such a common practice but I failed to look at it from the writer's perspective. I forgot about the dreaded writer's block since it's been centuries since I've actually written anything and now realize the need to try something fresh. Sometimes I figure I should only start reading those that are already complete.
Thanks for mashing the keyboard and making words, my favourites were The PSN (Not Playstation Network), Prizewinning Prisons and Awards of the Heart.
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Thank you, Fido. This isn't a declaration of surrender, hm? I'll actually be participating in social FIMFiction activities instead of spending countless hours toiling on stuff that doesn't matter to anyone but me, yeh?
I can go back to posting in groups. Perusing the Featured listings. READING THE STUFF MY FRIENDS PUBLISH. Enjoying myself!
I appreciate your comment. I've lost a couple of followers already, but... yeah. Better to be honest than fade away, am I right?
... all of which I will be working on finishing. I HAVE TO!
I compliment you on your commitment, that is something I can certainly respect.
I'm also glad you won't leave this happy lands of colorful quadrupedes
We could never hate our dearest mother. Kudos on figuring out what will make you happy and pursuing it. I'm really glad to hear you'll still be around on the site. I'd be crushed to lose your exceptional voice.
It's a shame to hear that, but I see where you're coming from. Writing has seemed like a struggle for you these last few years, and if you find more pleasure and accomplishment from your artwork, I support you. After all, a hobby/pastime should never feel like a chore or a burden, especially if it takes time away from other things you'd also like to do (like, in this case, reading or socializing).
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Thank you, Kettle! This wasn't an easy thing to come to terms with. I REALLY wanted to be a writer, and the last couple of years, I just ... I just can't be happy with what I've done. My friends here, they help me with edits and offer honest criticism - for which I am truly grateful - but I can't seem to make sense of the method anymore. I had a block that lasted over a year - A YEAR! I just don't think it's fair to sit idle and have good folks assume that ONE DAY I might post something, when in fact I'm still struggling to finish what I'd started! I mean, in truth I will be writing A LOT for the forseeable future, but I HATE that I have all of these various fics unfinished. I MUST COMPLETE THEM! In order to do that, I HAVE to concentrate on what WAS as opposed to what MAY be, mm? SIGH.
... I think a few folks are upset about my decision, and I feel bad about it. I just wanted to let people know where I am, as opposed to just vanishing for six months without a word. I'm very happy that you understand. I CAN'T LEAVE, I HAVE A REVOLUTION TO LEAD! Lol.
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HOW COULD I LEAVE YOU!? I have lost so many lovely writer friends without so much as a word of their dwindling interest in the subject matter, the site ... and I felt that their inability to even manage a "goodbye" was an insult to what I'd blithely considered a bonafide comraderie. Like, so none of our happy times together, literal hours of laughing and swapping dumb ideas didn't matter a whit, hm? I have left a lot of my friends behind for being so wrapped up in trying to write. It bothers me something awful. I must rectify that.
I can't leave FiMFiction! Think of the children! SOMEONE HAS TO BE AROUND TO SPOUT NONSENSE AT THE POWERS THAT BE! ... plus I need my regular dose of optimistic Canadian ferret daughter wisdom, or succumb to MURDEROUS MADNESS!
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I hope you're not too disappointed. I mean, c'mon... my last few stories haven't exactly tickled your fancy. In fact, you poured SO MUCH of your personal time into critiquing my work that I started to feel guilty! ... speaking of such, are you a permanent member of Seattle's Angels yet? I know you're busy, but you're good. Very good.
I appreciate your support, Phazon. You're a selfless, honest soul. I wouldn't be here if you hadn't supported Misinterpreted back in the day. I was floundering then! SIGH. At least I can finally be honest with myself and everyone else now, as opposed to just disappearing for months at a time. I always felt guilty and awful for doing that... yannow, you leave for a while and suddenly you're not sure if you SHOULD go back, since you'd basically up and abandoned everyone for no apparent reason.
---
Thank you all, my cherished friends. I knew this blog announcement would come off as a tad awkward - c'mon though, it ain't like shortskirtsandexplosions announced that he's giving up on ponies and devoting his talents solely to Zootopia snuff fics! GAWD FORBID!
I NEED to be a part of what YOU create now, as opposed to what I have. DESPERATELY. Heck, you'll see me more, really! Unless I'm working at finishing my incomplete stories... anyway. THIS WILL BE GOOD FOR US ALL!
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No, hell no. Even if they asked, I wouldn't be able to commit to it. Still a backup though, and I've been assured that the backup project hasn't been totally abandoned. Though I think Cynewulf is a full-fledged Angel now. He did round 97 with ferret.
That's really only true if we're talking about Intransigence and Welcome to Ponyville. I've said plenty about A Funeral (both favorable and not so favorable). The Ponyville Social Network was always an interesting idea and one I was willing to see what you'd do with. And even though you trashed Occupational Hazard, I was interested (though that story did coincide with a time when I was going through an excessively long job hunt, so the humor was probably a bit more topical in my case).
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Hm. Well, when interviews begin and they ask you to provide recommendations, feel free to put my name on the list - in BIG, BOLD LETTERS, and ... purple glitter! Never hurts to display a hint of sparkly flair, I figure! I mean, this IS a dedicated collection of professionals that critique stories about cartoon ponies, after all. They're into shiny things!
Well, let's agree that I was right, and ... that's enough! YEE!
... all right, that's true. I had very specific expectations with those two stories, and because of a strangling anxiety to BE ACTIVE here I submitted both without really considering the consequences - Intransigence was unreadable for a lack of edits and irregular copypasta sentences, and I'd based Welcome to Ponyville on a bad joke that I thought was BRILLIANTLY FUNNY! GUESS WHAT? EENOPE!
As I've said, I will finish my incomplete stories. The Pony Social Network will be fun, and my half-chapter includes some popular social network jokes - which is why I wrote in in the first place, as I find social media to be HILARIOUSLY AWFUL!
Cynewulf is an Angels member? Huh. Do you know him too?
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Uh, interview for what exactly?
Stop that! No one says, "eenope!" Seriously, try sounding that out with a big, screeching "eeeee" followed by "nope." I know people are trying to copy Big Macintosh's "eeyup" and "nope" when they do that, but it's not "eeeeeenope." It's probably just "nnnope," or at the very least an "eh-nope" with the "eh" part being particularly subdued.
Moving right along, I'll agree with what you said about Welcome to Ponyville. It's sort of the same reason that I didn't like Cultural Misunderstandings by La Barata. When your crackfic ends with your confused reader Googling the phrase "Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo" just to understand the joke that was the ENTIRE BASIS of your crackfic, and then your reader realizes that the two buffalo who are buffaloing each other are from Appleloosa instead of Buffalo and that Equestria probably doesn't have a location called Buffalo in the first place (so in reality the sentence should be, "Appleloosa buffalo Appleloosa buffalo buffalo buffalo Appleloosa buffalo"), then your crackfic has likely failed to elicit whatever laugh it was trying to garner in the first place. That reminds me...
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I haven't quite fulfilled my douchebag quota for the day, so:
Take that, Round 81! Though to give credit where credit's due, Like a Pegasus in a Pottery Shop was good, Holidays in the Sun was fun for what it was worth, and while I haven't yet finished DrakeyC's Mega Mare (as with everything I do, it is a work in progress), I did find it fascinating that the battle with Pinkie Pie bore more resemblance to Noble Mandrago from Mega Man Zero 4 than to the Drill Man battle from whatever Classic game he appeared in on which Pinkie's battle was based on.
Anyway, the problem I had with Intransigence was that I judged it as a telling of the Celestia & Luna relationship pre-Nightmare Moon, rather than the emotional, vaguely autobiographical piece it actually was. I judged it based on canon and fanon, which it was never intended to be based on, and when I realized what it was actually meant to be, I apparently neglected to reread it for the sake of looking at it under the intended critical lens.
Not in the slightest. I've only noticed him popping up in the comments of one or two of your blogs.
4428797 So which is the douchey part exactly? The fact you're upset I made you learn something new or...?
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The... part where I shit all over Cultural Mistunderstandings? Don't get get wrong, I'm not required to like every single Seattle's Angels feature, but Cultural Misunderstandings is probably the only fic (or one of the only few) the group has ever reviewed that I considered a waste of time.
One of these years I'll probably get back to writing. Maybe.
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For being a full-fledged member of the SA's, of course! ... wait, do they even HAVE interviews?? All right, maybe that was presumptuous of me, but ... you know I have your back.
Who else is there that I could HONESTLY DECLARE as being a bonafide editor hero, having received such PROFESSIONAL SCRUTINY as I've had provided by YOU, hm? HM? I have gratefully received assistance from Bad Horse, Martian, and TheRedBrony in the past. Each has left indelible marks in my paltry publications, because like you they're caring friends that want to help as best they might, but YOU ESPECIALLY have taken an OUTSTANDING AMOUNT of TIME AND CARE to help me MANAGE some SEMBLANCE OF CREDIBILITY and ... I know I could not have accomplished what I have without your unswerving loyalty and kindness - this is why I tirelessly worked at your story art and eventual avatar. I FINALLY WAS ABLE TO PAY YOU BACK IN KIND! ... or at least in my mind, anyway,
I swear my heart was in the right place, despite my brain being elsewhere. JUST LIKE ALL OF MY STORIES! Amiright?? Yeh, totes.
I tried to make Intransigence less awkward after having so many strong concerns, and to be fair it was initially a half-baked idea that wasn't executed terribly well. I don't even know if it's better or not, to be fair. All I can say is, whilst sticking to my original notion, I tried to incorporate the suggestions given to make it a bit less confounding. Hint: IT IS STILL CONFOUNDING.
I've known Cynewulf for ages. He and I have gotten into nonsensical conversations in the past and gently ruined blogs, and recently touched base again. WE MAKE MESSES AND ENJOY IT. Much to the digress of anyone else involved. We seem to be drunk at the same times, despite the hours of difference in between, eh. He and Themaskedferret are members of some strange cult that I have become interested in of late, and ... wait. Am I allowed to talk about it?
Shit. You know nothing. NOTHING!
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I really hope you do, Dusty. Now that I'm not so distracted, I would love to read anything you create.
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You're probably better off asking ferret. I don't have that kind of clout, and even if I did I'd have questions about your experience. Frankly, I don't even know how they go about picking new members, and while I imagine it's a very informal process, I can imagine them asking you for something like an audition or dry run.
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... I am having a déjà vécu moment here - the feeling of having "already lived through" something. This reads as so many communications between my manager and I, eh. It's sort of amusing, but very depressing for my inability to express myself accurately.
I was suggesting that, if YOU are ever in a position to be made a proper Angel, PUT ME ON YOUR RESUME AS A REFERENCE. I am QUITE sure that they DON'T require that, but ... I was trying to convey your importance to me AND be mildly amusing at the same time, damn it. THANKS.
I'm not sure whether to be delighted or terrified that you'd think I'd try and join a group of professional editors when I can barely speak English. I mean, you've taught me a LOT about writing, but ... you're not a Messiah.
I think I'll go with terrified. ANYONE ELSE WOULD BE!
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Oh, I see. Yeah, no, that's not happening. I mean, being a backup means I already have my foot in the door, provided that the reviews I submit are passable. But bear in mind that this involves pairing up with one of the other members every time I'm up for a round, agreeing on which four fics to cover, having read those four in the first place, and then writing out and submitting those reviews before a deadline. Not to mention an implicit expectation (not quite a requirement, but still an expectation) that I be able to find stories for the group to feature. And I just don't have it in me to meet all of that.
Honestly, if I could do all of that, becoming a full-fledged Angel would be as simple as asking (again, provided that my reviews are passable). But the arrangement I have with them now works better for me.
BTW: is that a downvote on ferret? I've never seen you downvote anyone, especially considering that you upvote everyone (no offense, but you are a bit of a circlejerk).
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Yes yes. I get it, I just felt like shamelessly singing your praises again. I do that a lot, and I won't apologise for it.
NO! THAT WAS A MISTYPE! I would NEVER downvote my flesh and blood! EVER! ... and what if I AM a total circlejerk upvoter? HM!? I'd say, in this cynical day and age, that's PRECISELY the sort of inappropriate behaviour I'd want to be accused of! HAH! GAZE UPON ME, THE EVER-SUPPORTIVE OPTIMIST! DESPAIR AT OUR FLEETING FREQUENCY AND INEVITABLE EXTINCTION! ... or enjoy it, whatever. I'll be dead soon. REJOICE!