Oh Boy! It's Meme Dream Scene Time! · 5:23pm Dec 13th, 2020
Howdy folks! First and foremost, as always, Adorable Applejack:
Deck the halls with boughs of appuls
Now then, Senpai PresentPerfect just posted a blog answering some writing questions in the style of those interview lists. And since I love the sound of my own voice even in print, I figured why the hell not?!
1. Tell us about your current project(s) – what’s it about, how’s progress, what do you love most about it?
Aside form my Jinglemas story, the project I have done the most work on is a Sad/Dark story detailing the Origin of Thestrals. I've finished the first chapter of three, and I really hope to get back to it. What I really dig about it is that while it'll be rated T, it is probably the most fucked up thing I've written. Like, this is the story that people will read, then look up at me and go, "Jesus Christ, dude..."
2. Tell us about what you’re most looking forward to writing – in your current project, or a future project
The really big project I have is what I sort of consider my Magnum Opus. Title is Dystopia: A Call Beyond. It's sort of inspired by The Sweetie Chronicles, in which characters from three of my favorite stories must journey through a dark, conquered Equestria to restore hope and topple the oppressive regime. There's a bit more to it than that, but spoilers and all. I already have permission from the original authors, and I've written about 17K worth of outline, and rough drafts of the first five chapters. However, this is me we're talking about, which means I wrote a bunch of it and haven't touched it in months.
3. What is that one scene that you’ve always wanted to write but can’t be arsed to write all of the set-up and context it would need? (consider this permission to write it and/or share it anyway)
Literally too many to name, bruv.
4. Share a sentence or paragraph from your writing that you’re really proud of (explain why, if you like)
Thinking on it, probably this bit from Chapter Fifteen of Under A Luminous Sky, when Bentgrass tells Rainbow Dash to step away from the Mac Beast as it struggles to get free:
"Not a chance, Milky!" She spun around to face the creature. "You hear that, Mac?! I’m not giving up on you! You know why?” She stomped her hoof. “Because I'm marrying you, Macintosh Apple. Whether you want to or not, dammit I'm putting a ring on you!"
I just think this is the best I've done trying to capture Dash's personality.
5. What character that you’re writing do you most identify with?
To the surprise of literally no one, Spike. The sarcastic, put upon little brother who vacillates between deadpan snark and oddly keen insight while also being pretty dang immature at times. Twins, basically.
6. What character do you have the most fun writing?
Probably Rainbow Dash, which is likely because I don't really write her as seen in canon. I use canon as a base, but throw in a dash (huehuehuehueuhe) of other people's version of her. Primarily of the Easting variety.
7. What do you think are the characteristics of your personal writing style? Would others agree?
I've been told I'm best at dialogue and action scenes, and I guess I agree. My big problem is everything in between the dialogue. Whenever I see a long stretch of very short paragraphs, I panic that I'm not writing well.
8. Is what you like to write the same as what you like to read?
Kind of? I mean, my biggest story is a Dark tag, but I generally hate Dark stories, especially Tragedy. If I want to see good people suffer and the bad guys win, I'll turn on the news. I'm much more interested in fun adventure type stories, like T.P.K., or fluffy romance, a la Surrogate Dashie.
9. Are you more of a drabble or a longfic kind of writer? Pantser or plotter? Do you wish you were the other?
All my ideas tend to be long and drawn out stories, while the things I end up writing tend to be short. I'm a longfic writer trapped in a Drabbler's body. Transauthor?
10. How would you describe your writing process?
1. Come up with a great idea.
2. Figure out all the dialogue.
3. Repeat is in my head and/or act it out for months/years.
4. Write a good portion of it.
5. Let marinate for 6-7 years.
6. Finish it in two days.
7. Profit!
11. What do you envy in other writers?
To quote PP, "The ability to finish things. :B"
12. Do you want your writing to be famous?
In the fandom, yes. Shit, part of the reason I got into writing at all was for attention and praise. But in the real world, no. I'm a journalist. Even if I do my absolute best to keep it straight down the line, I'm gonna piss someone off for being too liberal/conservative, or not being conservative/liberal enough. These people would then seek to discredit me, and let's be real, they probably wouldn't have to look too much further than here. My name is attached to some... less than wholesome fics.
13. Do you share your writing online? (Drop a link!) Do you have projects you’ve kept just for yourself?
I will quote PP quoting Posh here:
...I mean...
*gestures*
14. At what point in writing do you come up with a title?
Random. Luminous Sky began with the title, but Memories Returned didn't have a title until the day I published it.
15. Which is harder: titles or summaries (or tags)?
Synopses are the bane of my existence.
16. Tried anything new with your writing lately? (style, POV, genre, fandom?)
I did write the first chapter of a Zootopia fanfic, but as per usual, it's a long form fic and I don't really have all the details hashed out. I have also written two l00d stories in the past few months under an alt, and no, I will not tell you the name. I ain't trying to fly my Freak Flag quite that high.
17. Do you think readers perceive your work - or you - differently to you? What do you think would surprise your readers about your writing or your motivations?
With me, what you see is what you get. A goofy sum'bitch who flips between giddy zeal and near manic self-loathing at the drop of a hat. Yee.
18. Do any of your stories have alternative versions? (plotlines that you abandoned, AUs of your own work, different characterisations?) Tell us about them.
Nope.
19. Is there something you always find yourself repeating in your writing? (favourite verb, something you describe ‘too often’, trope you can’t get enough of?)
A very good friend screams at me to delete the phrases "began to" and "started to" from my vocabulary every single time he reads my stuff.
20. Tell us the meta about your writing that you really want to ramble to people about (symbolism you’ve included, character or relationship development that you love, hidden references, callbacks or clues for future scenes?)
One bit that I am really proud of is when Spike knocked over the book stack in Memories Returned. I'm pretty sure I got across that Twilight made the stack, but what I couldn't find a way to organically work in was that stacking those books was the last thing Twilight did before the events of Return of Harmony that led to her death. Like, she stacked the books, then looked out the window and saw cotton candy clouds. So to Spike, this was his only lifeline. As long as that stack existed, somewhere deep in his mind he could pretend she was still around. That stack represented his last piece of denial, it was Twilight... and in a fit of rage he knocked it over. He failed to save Twilight during the incident, and now he destroyed the last remnants he had of her. Really proud of it... but I also felt like an irredeemable asshole writing it.
Also in Surrogate Dashie, there was supposed to be a running joke where Mac would talk or try to talk, and Dash would say, "Shaddup!" Kind of like Donny in The Big Lebowski, or... uh, some routine from Monty Python I can't recall right now. However, when John Perry tore my story to shreds, he mentioned how dumb it was, and I changed it because I had no spine back then. Nowadays I would have told him to eat a big ol' bag of dicks.
21. What other medium do you think your story would work well as? (film, webcomic, animated series?)
Comic most likely, though if I had infinite munies, I would commission a 3d animator to bring to life a fight scene from that Dystopia story that is choreographed to the song Night Witches by Sabaton.
22. Do you reread your old works? How do you feel about them?
Probably too much, and usually late at night after a few drinks. With Luminous Sky, all I can see are the stitches where I had to edit and shift stuff around to make sense. However, I have also decided that Finding Your Place is the story I'm most proud of.
23. What’s the story idea you’ve had in your head for the longest?
A story I titled If Eternity Should Fail, which if I;m being fully honest, began its life as a sort of rebuttal to the story Mortal by Benman, addressing certain angles I didn't like about it and arguing a few of the points it made. Par for the course, the entire story is planned and finished in my head, but getting it onto the screen is the issue.
24. Would you say your writing has changed over time?
Kind of? It's gotten harder to get myself to write, and as I stated earlier, I feel that most things I write are crap and basic simply because "the paragraphs are too small."
25. What part of writing is the most fun?
Ending with another quote from PP:
The planning. :B To a fault.
These never fail to be interesting. Always cool hearing what's in your writing mindset.
For use of the T-word, I see. >:B
I'm already doing that! >:V
5414808
Um... huh?
5414819
you know what you've done :V
Or you don't and trolling you becomes easy :v
..... CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! Bring it on you glorious bastard! I eagerly await. Seriously, I've seen some fucked up shit in my time. So we shall see just how deep down the rabbit hole you is.
5414928
Uh, no, I don't. Did I do something to piss you off? I'm sorry if I did.
Damn, now I really have to get on doing this.
5415031
Oh. :B I guess you don't know that I dislike using the word "thestral" for batponies, and tend to exaggerate this dislike into frothing rage.
Did not mean to frighten, am sorry. :C
5415210
Pfft. Fair enough. I honestly don't know where I first saw it. It's from Harry Potter, right? My thing is I just dislike the term "bat ponies," as it seems a bit childish, even compared to just "earth ponies." The only other term I've heard for them is Sarosians, but that's pretty much just Skirts, so... f'naa and all that, I guess.
5415251
Yeah, 'thestral' is a complete fabrication of Rowling's, so it doesn't belong in the same level of reference as actual mythical creatures like unicorns and pegasi. At least in my opinion.
If you don't like 'bat pony', how about 'night pony'? That one's mine, but I've yet to find the wherewithal to write the story I've always wanted to about them. :B
5415262
Oh, oh! We could be edgy and call them negasi!!!
5415269
I wanna say I've seen that.
guarantee it was bad XD