The One That Maybe Should Get Away · 1:20am Apr 6th, 2020
Some writing ideas don't pan out for reasons varied and numerous. For me, the common ones involve a lack of time and engagement in other projects. But sometimes… well, let me walk you though an opening scene and you’ll get the idea:
Spike and Twilight are settled in for a quiet night of reading (comic books and obscure equestrian history, naturally) when Twilight decides to head to bed early; she’s feeling sick to her stomach and blames the leftovers she ate for dinner.
There’s a loud knocking on the front door, and Spike comes face to face with a face-mask wearing, no-nonsense Nurse Redheart who muscles her way past him and gives Twilight (who at this point is delerious) some medicine and orders her to get some rest.
Nurse Redheart explains that a fast-acting disease is sweeping through Ponyville, and deputizes Spike into helping her distributing medicine to all its residents before its too late. He’s immune to the disease since he’s a dragon, and she’s a religious hoof-washer with a Hippocratic Oath to live up to.
A small tour of Ponyville would then commence, Spike following Redheart to home after home, learning surprising things about some of its residents, some medical care basics, and why his companion is closer to a drill sergeant than the warm and loving caregiver he expected.
I came up with this concept years ago, figuring I could always dust it off and delve back into classic Ponyville, never suspecting I'd find the entire world stuck at home to slow the spread of a real plague. Writing and posting this story now or in the future feels crass, sensationalist, and insensitive.
Or is it? That's just my first reaction. What do you think? Write or pass?
Please sound off below and stay safe, wherever you are.
Make it clear on the story page that you had the idea years before the current outbreak and you should be fine.
I think if you put a disclaimer in the description and include a link to this blog, it’ll be more than enough for peace of mind about this. It’s clearly not a joke fic or anything disrespectful and looks fluffy enough at points to be good cheering up material.
I can't see people being that upset over it, explanation or not. My only concern would be that people are a bit sick of the subject and come here to escape from it, and that's going to be a problem whether you thought of the idea now or years ago.
Just don't have everypony die at the end.
i like it sounds good abd can be a funway to show basic first aid
Even if you came up with the idea just now, isn't it natural to use art to work through or mix and match things that hit you in real life? I don't think writing about an epidemic in times of an epidemic is insensitive or sensationalist. It is only insensitive if you trivialize the problem (e.g. "and if all the ponies had stayed home, this would have been over in a week, but Pinkie Pie decided to throw a party and everypony died."), and sensationalist only if you were to put an epidemic in when it is something that is not central to your story, and clearly just there to make it more attention-grabbing in the contemporary public eye (e.g. "Pinkie Pie and RBD are in quarantine together *wink wink*").
Oh, definitely write this! You can explain the idea was from some time ago, but it would an interesting dynamic with Spike and Nurse Redheart.
If you have an idea you like, I say go for it. Though I would also say just don't let anyone actually die. Come close to it, maybe, but if you're concerned about people getting upset, I would just lead us to the happy ending.
No, not that kind of happy ending.
And yeah, it probably wouldn't hurt to mention that you thought of the idea a while ago, but do people not use real life as basis for stories anyway?
Good, just make the foreign doctors Hippos