A Hundred Thousand Words (And Other Things!)

So... Yeah, I'm stroking my own ego a little with this one, but I realised earlier that I've published over 100,000 words of pony fiction on this site in the last six months. Considering that this is my first writing venture (like seriously, before Fimfic the closest I had got to creative writing was lyrics) I'm quite pleased with my progress. When I started, I didn't expect things to go this quickly, especially considering the quiet months between March and May (where I posted like two updates).

Still, I got there, and I plan to go further still! Most of all, I'd like to give a big thank you to all who have read something I've written, whether you've enjoyed it, or unequivocally hated it. This writing malarkey is a learning curve for me, and I realise that the level of quality in my work is more upward than consistent. Thing is, I understand a great deal of the theory when it comes to storytelling, but putting that into practice and coming out with a compelling and cohesive narrative is a different thing entirely. I'd like to think that with the practice I've had over the last few months, I'm getting there, and everyone's much appreciated comments on my stories help to reinforce that opinion! So, a second thank you is in order.

Anyone who has been following my work up till now may have noticed that I'm quite fickle and random as a writer. Namely, I have a short attention span. Ideas pop into my head and I have an insatiable urge to write them down, at least, until something newer and fresher comes along, demanding to be brought to life. Now, this isn't to say that I'm planning to abandon any of my ideas or leave them perpetually incomplete or whatever except Rip Offs, References, and Ponies, but it does mean that I often find myself spending more time on one story than another, no matter how I might try to divvy up my time equally.

I wrote another blog back in April which detailed what was going on in my life and my current Fimfic related priorities. Those priorities have changed significantly since then, so I'll be writing a new list now for the benefit of the reader, and discussing some of my current projects.

Order by Destruction: This story is currently my biggest priority. I've put a lot of thought into it, and I'm excited to continue writing it, as well as enjoying reader reactions very much. I feel that if I were to compare elements of this story to earlier projects, I'd barely be able to tell they were made by the same author. Also, I never would have felt comfortable writing a real adventure story when I had just started, so I suppose this could be seen as a testament to my progress. I'm going to try and update this one between one and three times a week, although that's dependent on real life.

Also, this is my first time writing Luna. It's been very fun so far, and occasionally challenging, mainly due to the overarching theme of the story, but I won't say much on that. (Side note: I plan to revise the story's long description at some point, I fear it's scaring off readers with its length.)

Close the Curtains, There's a Breeze: Despite the few downvotes, this is steadily turning into my most viewed story. I enjoy writing this one very much. In fact, between this story, Order by Destruction, and Big Tavi Lil Tavi Cardboard Box, we get the many faces of Rainbow Dash, a character I really love to write. Of course, everyone hates Zephyr Breeze, but that just makes each chapter more fun to put out! The way I see it, Fimfic users should already be predisposed to open-mindedness, and I've witnessed a fair few people enjoying my story, which proves that! Also, when you take the characters away, there is artistic license. I've seen some authors write a horribly OOC Twilight Sparkle, but more people will be inclined to upvote a story with her character tag based on the description and cover art alone, whereas my ZephyrDash fic got like four downvotes within five minutes of being posted. See the trend here?

My update schedule for this one is a little lower than OBD, but I plan to have a new chapter up around once a week, two if I can manage. (Of course, this is liable to increase at any time, creative bursts come to me very suddenly at times.)

Third, commissions: Yes, this takes third priority, and there's a couple of reasons for that. 1) I'm currently unable to get a job, due to having to be available for other obligations at erratic hours. 2) This is more writing experience for me, especially if it takes me out of my comfort zone a little. 3) I, like many people, don't like being piss poor!

One thing I will say however is to watch this, as I'm planning to update my commission information soon. (Likely within the next week or so. Prices for some things will be going up, while some will also be going down, so it may be an idea to get in now!)

Fourth priority is BTLTCB: Now don't get me wrong, I love this story; I love writing it. It was my first, after all, and is currently my longest. "So why are you putting it so far down the list, Art?" There's a couple of reasons, actually.

1) The early chapters need revising. Like I said, I've been writing for about six months now. As such, the quality of my writing has definitely improved in a variety of ways. Through feedback, a helpful review or two, and some general assertions I was able to make (after a fair amount of practice), I can see that the first half of the story could really use editing. Now, in case anyone who has read or is yet to read this story was wondering, this doesn't mean I'm going to revise the story entirely and change scenes around. It means I'll most likely tidy up awkward pieces of writing, restructure some sentences, maybe reduce some exposition, check for grammar, etc. I did have a proofreader going at this, but I didn't reply to one of his PM's for a while (due to me generally being very busy), and I'm not sure if he's still in it. My options here are either to find another proofreader/editor or do it myself, and while it might take longer to happen should I do it myself, I at least know I'll be fixing everything I didn't like to see when I went back to it.

BTLTCB Will update again when I've finished the editing, at which point I promise to put it higher up on my priority list. Also, I'm considering changing the name. (Which meant something to the story when I started writing it, but doesn't so much any more.)

Fifth priority is a couple of oneshot ideas I've had recently. Well, a couple out of many. It's unlikely I'll start any other longfics any time soon, but that's very likely to happen in future, as I'm shelving more intricate ideas for a later date. In the meantime, I may go against the established norm occasionally by posting a oneshot, which will likely help attract new viewers, which in turn helps me/motivates me.

Side priorities that don't fit anywhere between 1 and 5 include:

-Spending time with girlfriend. (Yes, I do have a personal life!)

-Promoting existing stories etc. (This is something I'll do alongside everything else, it's just necessary really.)

-Reading through Appledashery again, and catching up on The Center is Missing's last few chapters. Will probably start breaking it up with shorter stories on occasion too, would be nice to give some feedback again.

-Playstation/steam. I'm hoping to stream online and amass a following at some point in future, any time I get on a game is potentially practice.

-Reading things that aren't pony fics. (Time's Arrow is my current read, The Financier is next, then The Sayings of Confucius.)

-Miscellaneous things that I'd probably bore you with if I wrote them down.

On a side note, I got my weighted total for this year from uni yesterday (for those who don't know, English Language student), result was sixty-seven marks (in other words, three marks off the highest grade classification, a First). I'm quite pleased with this result considering how busy I've been over the last few months, as well as all the pony fiction I've been typing. (Yay.)

And I think that's about everything. If you've got any questions, a comment or a PM works just fine, be they about any of my current stories, my future projects, commissions, proposed ventures, or any other thing, feel free to get in touch!

AAIQU