Trying to decide what to do next · 9:08pm Dec 19th, 2019
Semester's winding down, and I should have time to do some non-academic writing again. So, I'm planning to start expanding on my Splintered Sky universe a bit. But, I'm having a hard time deciding between the two possible projects that I'd like to do, so feedback would be welcome.
1 - Revise and expand on "Phoenix-born rising" - I've gotten some good feedback on the first installment of The Phoenix-born, and think I can improve it a bit by expanding on it, and shoring up some plot elements that I think could be reworked now that I'm not word count constrained.
2 - Write the sister story "Star-singer ascending" - This is the companion piece that will tell the sister story to Sunset's, where I will delve into the metamorphosis of Twilight Sparkle into one of Queen Luna's star-singers, and her adjusting to the new responsibilities and challenges her transform creates for her.
Once I've done both of the above, I'm planning to do a larger piece, titled "The Phoenix-born and The Star-singer" that concerns the meeting of Sunset and Twilight, and the repercussions of said meeting on both of them.
Also, because I want to share, here's the concept art for "The Phoenix-Born and the Star-Singer". 
I'd say expand and revise first. That seems like it would take the least amount of time, and I'd love to read an expanded version.
If you do want to revise the first story, it's best to do it before going further. Doubling back afterwards can be exhausting.
Really enjoyed phoenix-born rising, and would love to see it expanded on.
Phoenix-born rising
I agree with those before. Revise and expand on Phoenix-born rising. It would be for the best. It'll, at least, give you more to work with.
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Okay, thanks everyone for the comments. From the feedback I'm getting, looks like "Phoenix-born rising" will take priority. I would like to get to Twilight's side of things at some point, but I think I can at least add a few chapters to Sunset's story first.
For this sort of thing, should I leave the original chapters up and post the revised ones as new chapters?
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This is always a hard choice.
I'd actually leave the original up, but with them tagged as ORIGINAL (all caps for Royal voice) then have the new versions be... REMASTERED or REMADE ... ... ... or PHOENIX EDITION (get it? Ha-ha, ha, I crack myself up).
i want more phoenix born, but- doing the twilight story first WOULD be a good idea. do origins for both, before a joint story.
Hmmmm.... Twilight could do without the glasses.
I'd expand on Phoenix-born first, but leave the original up.
I also think Twilight could do without the glasses in the concept art.
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Thanks for the feedback. I'm curious as to why the glasses don't work for you. I ask because changing it isn't easy, as I do all of my art with pencils, pen and paper, not digitally.
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A couple of reasons for me.
First off, glasses just make me default to thinking of Human Twilight, who acted quite a bit differently from the Mane Twilight. She was basically her worlds GlimGlam.
Second, they just look really weird imo.
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Makes sense. Thing is, she is based on Sci-Twi more than Magi-Twi, mostly because I associate the former with Sunset more than I do the latter. Though, I do agree that the way the glasses came out do look kinda odd.
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Well the reason why don’t like them is one I see Twilight as less of a nerd and more of a heroine given that I don’t watch the EG films so whilst I like sci-twi I like her pony self more because whilst said pony is a nerd herself her achievements don’t paint her in that sort of light.
Number two is that the glasses just don’t fit with her outfit, if anything her ascension should remove the need for glasses altogether.
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Thank you for the clarification. I do agree that the glasses clash a little with the outfit, but didn't notice it until after I'd inked the drawing. It's one of the dangers of working with a non-digital medium: once you've inked something, you can't really change it.
Regarding the whole nerd vs. heroine thing, I think Sci-Twi's proven that her nerdiness doesn't detract from her ability as a heroine. Sure, Sci-Twi is more lancer to Sunset's heroine in EG, but she's still been plenty heroic. And, getting a little into who Twilight is in Splintered Sky, she's more scholar and mage than straight up adventurer.
As for the ascension fixing her eyesight, I think that is wholly dependent on the mechanics of the ascension, or in her case, metamorphosis. If the metamorphosis is a "completely rework your very being into a perfected state" type, then, yes, it would correct her eyes. But, if it's a "take you as you are and add some features" type, it wouldn't. In the Splintered Sky universe, both types of ascension (phoenix-born and star-singer) are the latter.
So, is Twi like a pixie or it's the angle that make her look small?
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The former. She's what's called a star-singer, which shrink to about 1/4-1/5 of their mortal size when they ascend.
Here’s a thought will there be any battles like large scale medieval ones or...?
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Unlikely, primarily because the nature of the setting doesn't really lend itself to large scale military conflict. If you want to get an idea for the sort of setup and inspiration that gave rise to The Pheonix-born and the Star-singer, it was inspired by The Sea Prince and The Fire Child.
Aha, I see you changed your mind on the form Twilight would end up with in Luna's kingdom. Personally I think this idea has a lot more room to play with than the old one, look forward to seeing how you implement it once you've got Sunset's story established.