Three Featured Fics!? Three!? · 11:29pm Dec 5th, 2020
Blog Number 119: "WTF?" Edition
I don't know what to say. I got three fics in the Featured Box. Simultaneously.
I, um...
Look, I can explain. This wasn't planned. When I wrote these things, they were just a set of casual, easy works I thought might be nice fluff pieces to share. I thought maybe one would get featured at best, and not for long. I didn't predict all three would.
I think I'm going to annoy a few people by hogging so much space, if I haven't already, but honestly, I was not expecting this. Like, at all!
See, what happened was this:
Late in November, when I was aiming to finish my 100,000-word target, these three fics were among the results. They were basically writing exercises to help me loosen up a bit.
As well as already having some ambitious, committed projects ongoing, I intended to take it easy with some smaller, humbler fics where I could cut myself some slack and relax my standards. For one thing, I'd long wanted to mix up the Cutie Mark Crusaders with their big sisters in atypical combinations, but I'd thus far resisted because I wanted to do so in some big, ambitious project; deliberately letting myself write smaller ones was a way of releasing some self-inflicted pressure there.
Since they were thematically related, I got the bright idea of just releasing them close to each other: boom, boom, boom. One Tuesday, one Wednesday, one Thursday. My prediction was that, like many of my fics this year, they'd get a respectable turnout, maybe one of them would hover briefly at the bottom of the Featured Box, and then sink like a stone.
So when December 1st came and I released the Sweetie Belle one, I noticed it reaching the Featured Box (confounding my expectations a little, as I thought Scootaloo was more likely to prove the popular one) and thought to myself: That's nice, I got in for a bit. Let it die down, then I'll post the second one.
To my surprise, it was still there the next day. Pretty high, too.
So I delayed the Scootaloo one for another day. Sweetie Belle's still there. Decided I was going to be impatient and just threw Scootaloo's out there, figuring Sweetie Belle's would drop as Scootaloo's would rise. In fact, I wasn't sure if two fics by the same author could do it. I wasn't sure, but I thought there'd be some system in place. Instead, they both secured respectable slots.
The decision to delay Apple Bloom's for another two days was more based on tidiness than any genuine strategy. Yet here we are, and as a result, I have three fics in the Featured Box now (well, two if you toggle the Mature filter off for a second).
Goodness knows I love it when I get Featured, even if I can see the argument that the Featured Box isn't by itself proof of anything other than popularity. Still, it's a delightful surprise whenever I can get in, because I've been writing for years, and yet I can't predict any better what'll grab people's attention and what'll pass them by.
On the other hand... is it greedy that I've gotten three spots on it? That's three spots denied to other people. I dunno. I get the impression I shouldn't try a stunt like this again. It seems unfair.
Yet I can't pretend I'm not pleased. It's amazing! It's a fantastic turnout, and a fantastic result. It's a rare treat for me to see something last once it gets in there, and I like to think more people are enjoying my work as a result.
But again, three seems excessive. These aren't passion projects or ambitious fics that I regard as personal masterpieces. Collectively, they were just a bit of fun. Not everything I publish is published for the same reason. So part of me feels it's imbalanced for them all to get this much attention, especially when they could be getting in the way of something else.
In the end, I simply don't know what to think. I don't have any precedent to draw upon, and two strongly conflicting reactions to it. What do you think?
Impossible Numbers, out.
Heh. Well, if nothing else, congratulations on the achievement, I suppose?
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My point is: Half of me feels like I did something great and should be proud of this, and half of me feels I've been really unfair and should never do it again. I'm not sure which half is stronger or should be stronger.
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Sorry, I meant to say: Thank you. It's an astonishing achievement, however I think about it (for good or ill). Kind of you to say so.
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It's fine, no worries here. I get that it'd be a big surprise to have three stories achieve this kind of popularity all at once. I just wanted to say, regardless, that it's an achievement all the same. No skin off my nose
Be happy and proud of your accomplishments, Numbers. You did a great job writing these stories. You didn't receive anything you didn't earn and you aren't deniging anyone of anything. You do good! Enjoy it!
They like you, they really like you. :)
Congratulations!
You’ve done nothing wrong by putting out three related fics around the same time!
And whether or not they represent the fullest expression of your long-term artistic goals, it sounds like they were born of a relative calmness and “looseness” of mind (if you take my meaning), which is sounds a lot like the much-desired flow state. It’s amazing what one can do in that state, where intuition meets action with minimal friction. It’s not a huge shock to imagine you’d write some good stuff like that!
There’s also something to be said for a well-established author garnering a bit of recognition for their work. There will always be more stories to tell, more projects to tackle, et cetera. Accolades may come and go, or take different shapes at different times. But I hope you can find an enjoyment of this moment now for what it is. After all, most people don’t release enough quality fics fast enough to have a prayer of matching this.
Congrats with this!
Niiice!
I think you should enjoy it, be pleased, and keep on writing.
My, what an impossible number
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Congratulations on a job well done
! I see no harm in your writing three stories that each garnered enough attention to land in the featured box.
If somebody was successfully doing this over and over it might be questionable, but the critical word there is successfully. In this tiny blip of time it’s clear you’re not trying to game the system in some way, you just wrote and published three popular stories in short order, which is awesome!
Congrats on that!
It's helps the stories felt like something from the show rather then a bunch of AU and adult titles you normally see on the site feed.
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In that case - while I'm still not sure I should try something like this again - I suppose for a one-off move, it's a harmless experiment. I certainly don't want to "game the system": I should earn my audience's interest fairly, after all. Lots of people have told me they enjoyed the stories very much, and at the end of the day, that's what my efforts were all about (I generally try to write show-tone stories, so it's nice to see people appreciate the results on the same level too).
So thank you all for the feedback, and thank you very much for the encouragement.