The Gratitude Attitude: Being Nice is Nice, Who'da Thunk It? · 2:31pm Jul 1st, 2020
Blog Number 81: "Count Your Blessings" Edition
Halfway through the year, and I'm heaving a sigh of relief. I'm not dead, I'm not ill, I've lost no friends or family, I have barely crossed swords with any unpleasant people, I'm sheltered, warm, well-fed, financially decent, and want for nothing to pass the time. I am, frankly, lucky. About time I said thank goodness.
As in, thank the good company I've enjoyed. Here. Personally.
You. Thank You.
Thank you to my friends here. I know we don't talk a lot, between my general silences - whether via PMs, blogs, or any other means - and your real life priorities elsewhere, but rest assured my life's all the richer for your company. I've had hellish days, and it's as good as salvation to be lifted out of them by kind words. A toast to you, especially to you.
Thank you to my commenters and critics. I look for two things in feedback: praise - because it's nice to know you're doing something right - and help - because it's worth remembering I can and do make mistakes, and miss good tricks, and generally still have tons to learn, not least from other people. I get a healthy amount of both doses of goodness, and you providers of such are a pleasure to work with, you really are.
Thank you to my followers, though with no offence to the silent ones - I'm not your master, after all - I must admit I especially want to thank the ones who chip in with some frequency. Loyalty must be earned, and I can't tell you how it feels to think I'm considered worthy of this much support.
Thank you to the people I associate with, even though my reclusive tendencies leave me but a name among many. It really is nice to hang out with such a friendly community. Although I don't always step forward, I do at least like having a browse of any posts that catch my eye. You keep doing what you do. That's all I ask.
Thank you to the people who are just there and being pleasant, passing by or joining in or whatever. If only there were more like you in the world.
Thank you to the show - the people who worked on it, contributed to it, and so on - for giving me so many hours of sweet, delicious entertainment... admittedly once I scooped out the bits I didn't like, but that's quibbles at a time like this. At least you laid out a damn fine buffet table.
And speaking more broadly, thank you to certain oases on this planet where life not only doesn't suck but is actually a little slice of Heaven on Earth. May such oases multiply and become easier to find in the not-too-distant future.
Thus ends the month's starter and a lot of thank yous.
Me Being Nitpicky
Have to admit... it's a bit awkward for me to say all that without couching it in a lot of pragmatic and realistic clauses and subclauses, because I tend not to look kindly upon excessive optimism or positivity.
I'm not against it, mind. Maybe I'm just too wary for my own good, but it seems like it's too tempting a bias to fall into, especially when I don't usually trust high emotion in general. Not that I'm for heavy suppression of emotion either - that's risky and psychologically unhealthy - but in practice I tend a bit more towards cautious pessimism than open optimism.
Well, technically, in most situations, I tend to the adaptable outlook: do what I have to do, look for an advantage, and if I see one, take it. Some things will be unpleasant. Figure out how to tackle, handle, or avoid it. Feeling and expressing negative emotions is a necessary part of life, yes - emotions are there for a reason, after all, even if they can be harmful if mismanaged. Still, after the compass has been knocked askew, it's best if it can eventually realign itself towards something more productive than emotional self-indulgence. It's neither a good thing or a bad thing. It's just... a thing.
Not that I'd judge anyone harshly if they took a different life philosophy, certainly not! Goodness knows there are plenty of approaches and niches in life. It's just listing a lot of "thank yous" isn't something I do as a matter of course. It was nice, but I have to confess it feels a bit strange too.
But... I felt it had to be done at some point. All things considered, I could've had it a lot worse during the last few months - heck, during the last few years, or longer if I really want to get existential - so I figure I should post at least one blog entry like this one.
And a few things have made it clear to me my silence can get excessive, and I'm overdue some kind words to other people, so why not now?
Meanwhile, What's Next for Impossible Numbers?
OK, twitchy pedantry over. Basic report: June was a good month, for writing if nothing else. Nothing much, just a little trifle, like...
...over 50,000 words written!
Ha HA! Boy oh boy, was that an instant grin on my face when I did the sums just now. What a month! 
And I managed to get three fics out, two of which represent major milestones in my writing.
- Queen of Assassins is a personal landmark experiment in other, darker genres, but more importantly it's more evidence I can go back and complete projects that have been languishing in my backlog for a long time.
- Beyond the Herd became my highest rated fic almost overnight, to my bewildered but sincere delight, and represents a step towards writing more stories for the CMC going forward (which I'm honestly surprised I haven't done already, given how much I like those three characters).
For the time being, though, I think I'll dial back the new creations a bit. Focus more on older projects, see if I can make them work for me... and lighten the load, of course! I'd probably be a lot better if I just finished half of the stuff I started.
Anyway, that's two months in a row of major progress and pleasure. May. June. Round two goes to Impossible Numbers!
July's next. Can I get a hat trick? Only one way to find out, sports fans, haha!
Welp, thanked my thanks. Said what I felt needed to be said. That's all for now - though it's a pretty big "all" indeed. Hope things generally improve in July. Fingers crossed!
Till next time, folks! Impossible Numbers, out.
Gratitude for what's going right does a lot of work in getting us through this hell-year. Thank you for offering some great stuff to enjoy.
Thanking someone for saying or writing or doing something nice is just as important (though scarcely as often done!) as calling some asshole out for being an asshole. And in that spirit... Thank you.
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It really does. And you're very welcome, mate, and thank you in turn for your encouragement. The whole thing's a pleasure at its best: giving my work to other people, receiving their thanks and praise and advice and feedback. An arrangement I'm happy to keep going.
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The former should happen more often than the latter. Alas, this is not a perfect world, but it is at least a work in progress.
I'm in danger of running out of thank yous, but... eh, I'll use a loophole: cheers to you, too!
You're a cool dude, dude
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You're welcome.
I hope that I'll be able to read more of your ponyfics soon. And I also hope that my writing will be back on track after three months that consisted of either silence or writing for a project that barely caught any attention and that failed in the end.
And especially after the experience I had to make today, I am all the more eager towards working to make it big as an author.
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Well, I certainly hope you enjoy them, whichever ones of mine you look into!
Last I remember, you were committing to an ambitious research project for background characters for your show? That kind of research is something I've dipped into here and there myself, but in a piecemeal fashion: not as thoroughly or systematically. And of course, like you said last time we talked, we should be mindful of the needs of our work, without rushing the job. That's always a practical lesson to keep in mind.
Good luck with your own projects, Fluttercheer. I hope the hard work pays off splendidly.
Thanks for all the wonderful stories, and for the increasingly rare good vibes
That's a fab monthly word count! Here's hoping you get the hat trick - my fingers are crossed for ya. Beyond the Herd was a really nice read, though I think I like Dream World Record a tad more just thanks to seeing the initial version. Thank you for all the horse words. And hey, another bonus--the hot weather has gone away for a bit! Well, at least round my way it has.
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The last time I had a run this solid was from November 2017 to March 2018 (possibly April 2018 too, though its output was a chunk lower). It'd be good to get a hat trick, but it'd be even better if I could make it a regular thing and even surpass that previous achievement. Ambition beckons...
Have noticed the dying down of heatwaves in my area as well, though the bouts of random rain are little in the way of improvement.
And of course: Thanks for the message!