An Open Letter

For almost seven years, I've wanted to write a particular fanfiction. I've gravitated to similar stories, but they all have their own shortcomings. Even the classics and the most technically adept have their flaws in one specific department---which motivates me all the more.

But if I'm going to write this, I want to get it right. And since I consider this my magnum opus, my legacy as an author on this site, this point is especially paramount. Consequently, I'm putting out this open letter to five people in particular---five people whose opinions I can trust and rely on the most.

Shinzakura: we met back in 2015, riffing off of that one story. You know the one. So on a whim, I asked you to preread the first canto of The Blue Rose, and since then, you've endeavored to make sure I put my best foot forward, poëtically speaking. (Well, about as well as a seventeen-year-old me could do.) Years later, I asked you to do the same, this time with the Fallen-Song---and even with a few schedule-related hiccups, you continued to deliver the same valuable feedback as you did back in 2015-16.

I'm calling upon your guidance once again.

To be sure, this is not poëtry---not anymore. No longer will you have to focus on my meter, my rhyme, my structure. Now? It's all about narrative, and more, about language. You'll know what I mean soon enough.

Ghuntz: we met relatively recently on Discord, when I pitched a few ideas for my Hassenfeld Pony Anthology. To say your feedback was vital is a drastic understatement---they literally would not have been the same stories without you.

I'm calling upon you as well.

When I speak of here, you may have seen bits and pieces of my work floating around the Discord server, but not necessarily the CyTube. All the same, I hope to see you onboard with this project.

Admiral Biscuit: we met almost six years ago, by my reckoning, when I needed a bit of guidance in participating in your Fimfic Authors Are In Your Bed collabfic. Some time later we met again, that time over a particular plot element in your Onto the Pony Planet.

I'm calling upon you, even though it's been so long.

I realize your expertise lies in auto mechanics, not linguistics, but if nothing else, consider this me fulfilling a very old debt. I'm the one who dropped the ball this time around.

Purple Smart: we met offsite, on Equestria Daily. What we've done there I've largely forgotten, but certainly not our friendship---especially when we reconnected recently over Discord. You've not been involved anywhere in my literary career, but what you have done in another field has proven invaluable, so here's your invitation.

I'm calling upon you, seemingly for the first time.

Our fields may be related, even if not quite the same, but you should appreciate what level of detail will go into this work. (Besides, I hardly know anyone else who speak Swiss German.)

Sunnypack: last, but absolutely not the least. You were the first person I ever interacted with on this site, all the way back in 2014. You've preread many of my smaller works---hell, we even collaborated together once! In turn I did a few of your own. I'm sure I'd be a worse-off writer without you, and I still remember you fondly, even after you apparently abruptly left the fanfic writing scene---words don't do my thoughts justice, so I'll stop rambling and get to the point.

I'm calling upon you, mate.

You'll likely find this story looking faintly familiar, as it's been crafted from the remains of a certain ill-fated voyage. Its trademark barrier is present here as well, but has been heavily overhauled and I'm proud to say is a much superior conception. Seriously. You're gonna love it.

If you're reading this and saw your name here, please PM me here or on Discord ASAP for more information. Otherwise, feel free to ignore this, but know that something epic this way comes. I'll have an update for you at some point later---but for now, you can enjoy the Fallen-Song, and of course, happy holidays! Here's hoping 2021 looks better than this trashfire of a year.

Good night, and good luck.