Re: My first story - I guess I also blog now, apparently · 4:19pm Feb 7th, 2022
Okay, so, this is going to be very informal, so I'm just going to be somewhat frank: I'm kinda overwhelmed.
Still, I feel I'm obligated to write this post to get my thoughts out, this will obviously be about my story: Sunset Shimmer & The Temporal Rift. But it's kinda more than just that too so this might get a bit long winded. (Especially since there are things I feel the need to address/comment on).
Firstly I'd like to say that story isn't the first fictional one I have written, but it is only my second. I decided prior to new years to make an attempt at writing fiction, and in this case fanfiction since I have ideas in my head for those sort of stories all the time. So I brainstormed a short one-shot, with the potential for a singular one-shot follow up, potentially. That story is called "The Garden on the Sun" and features Celestia as the lead. Now, as you might have noticed, that's not the first story I uploaded here to fimfiction, but that was the plan. I never got around to my second pass editing it, but that will probably happen at some point. (So if you're curious about that one, don't worry, it will likely hit the site at some point in the future when I can be arsed).
Why am I bringing this up then? Well, it was basically meant to be a story for me to test the waters with. I have never written a fictional story before (outside of school assignments from my childhood) so I wasn't all that confident in my skill. I have taken up other artistic crafts before and generally there is one through-line: Before you're good, you'll be shit. I don't remember where I read it, but it's usually estimated that you have to practice a craft for ~1k hours or so before you become good at it. That might sound a bit extreme but I think there is some merit to it, at least from my experience. It can take a really long time to get good at something.
So, a simple one-shot seemed like a great idea! A way to test the waters both for how I take to writing, but also how a story of my concoction would be received. Said story obviously still need to be edited, but I was procrastinating some other matters and felt like writing a while back so I ended up producing the first chapter of Sunset Shimmer & The Temporal Rift. I figured it wouldn't be a big deal if I posted this one first, sure, it's only one chapter but that would be fine, right? I was still hesitant to be honest, mostly because in my mind this is a really long story. Sure, the plan was always, and still is, to divide up each act as their own separate stories. But I know how hobby projects go, they live and survive based on how long the author holds interest, and because I'm new to writing I'm not sure if it's something I will stick with yet (though I am enjoying it so that is reassuring). But hey, I'm a new author that no one has heard about, it's my first work so it's definitively not all that well written nor put together. So surely it will just go under the radar and maybe over time build up a small following at most, right? ehehehe
Now, if you have been keeping track, that's not what happened, not in the slightest. And to me? That's terrifying. It's still sitting there on the front page feature box this many days later and I'm drowning in notifications of people adding it to their bookshelves or adding positive comments to the story. I know people would advice to just ignore it all, but that's really hard. A lot of readers now have expectations of the work based on a singular chapter, one which not even I know if it is a good indication of the direction or feel of the story (I'm new at this, after all). (It turned out way more comedic at times, in my opinion at least, than I had anticipated, I didn't think I could write humour in the slightest).
So in short: I'm kinda overwhelmed, stressed, and terrified of all the attention this has gotten. I'm sure there are those that would revel in it all and might be envious, but this is sorta the situation I wanted to avoid in some sense.
(In fact, I have been too overwhelmed to reply to the DMs I have been getting about potential pre-readers/editors/etc. I know I should, leaving people hanging is rude, especially since I asked for this help, but I can't face it yet).
Then, there is the other elephant in the room, the one that is blindingly obvious to most. I thought it might come up at some point down the line when I started writing this, but certainly not so soon. If you have been around on this site for a while and you're into stories featuring Sunset Shimmer, then my story shares a very distinct similarity in regards to plot hook with another story on the site. I'm of course talking about Sunset Reset, and if you happen to not have heard of it before? Well, the first part in that series is complete if you want to read it.
I do want to make it distinctly clear right from the outset that my story is not and was never meant to be that story "done good", or what have you. I don't really set out to try and write fixfics or the like of other authors works (it could be consider quite rude, after all). But the similarities from just the outset are, shall we say, quite large. Featuring very similar cast (although with different characterization I think...) in a somewhat similar scenario. There have been plenty of comments highlighting this fact as well as the readers own thoughts on the work.
If it wasn't clear I have obviously read Sunset Reset, I followed that story when it first came out some six years ago. I'm a sucker for time travel stories in all shapes and flavours, and I find Sunset one of the more interesting characters in MLP:FiM for fanfiction to expand upon. She has an interesting background and past, and there are so many directions you could take her character or spin a story with her. It's one of those character that the show canon created, but seemingly left most of the potential on the table with. None-the-less, I feel that comparing my story with Sunset Reset is a disservice to both of them. Obviously no one can know what is going on in my head, or where I plan to take my story, but there is a reason there isn't a romance tag on it. I can't speak for later acts, since things might change, but this first act certainly won't contain any (unless unintentionally due to my lack of skill in writing).
In many ways, the initial plot hook I went with was secondary to the tale I wanted to tell. That might sound paradoxical, but the way I build up stories and ideas in my head means that they are ever changing (till I put them to page and write em, I suppose). In fact, I have had ideas on how to do this tale, or rather a very similar variant, using a different plot hook.
This is also why people who compare the two works brings dread to me. I know people can't know what my story will be yet, but suddenly comparisons can't be helped but be drawn; Despite how unhelpful they will be. If anyone were to come to my story because the former disappointed them, then there is no guarantee I can deliver on what they would have wanted out of that one. In fact, I'm fairly convinced my story won't and can't do that.
Truth be told, I'm not even sure if I should be writing this (blog post), I don't want to disappoint people. Being frank about matters like these aren't always great, but I kinda felt like I had to write these thoughts down. But let's just say that the reason I didn't tag this blog post to my story is simply because I'd rather people not see this post if they don't want to. It's more for my own sake than others, kinda weird in a way.
Anyway, if someone wanted a more positive update on the story, chapter 2 is getting along well, no idea when it will be finished but I'd say the chapter draft is halfway done.
Something ironic though? I was debating between two story ideas when I was choosing what to write. This one, obviously, and another one featuring a few OCs as well as ponies that studied Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, though barely featuring Twilight at all. Maybe I should have chosen to go with that one instead? Certainly would have had less of a chance to blow up I'd think. Oh well, this is the path I choose, so it's the one we now walk.
I'll give you different advice. Smile at the crowds; don't ignore them.
I'm pretty sure this'll be taken the wrong way, but perhaps the story isn't that fantastical. Purely hypothetical, but there's not too many stories in this specific type yet, so I think anything even half decent would get some attention. Also people like them bacon horses far as I know; I too like them bacon horses. Not too fond of bacon walking french fry however, but it comes with the territory, so I must weather it. I think it's pretty good though, but I have been known to read some pretty broken ESL fics at times so take that as you will.
You could just write the entire fiction first, and just post after the fact. I'm not sure how long it would take to write a whole fic, but I would guess that given a few months or years, the extreme number of eyeballs would go away a bit. Even if it does not, it would get rid all the stress at once. This would also alleviate the self doubt of writing what you wish to write, for it is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission so to speak.
Good luck.
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No, I actually agree with this. I really don't think my story is that good, but I also realize that I would be the worst person to judge it myself.
It's less so the prospect of my work being good or bad that bothers me, and more just being overwhelmed that people have expectations in general. Because it's precisely because I don't think my work is that great that I believe I will and my story will fall short of those.
It's all a complicated mess, really. I mostly needed to vent because it was causing stress.
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To be frank, the construction is in the top 20%, so a solid composition. I've read ^1% of all fics on the site, though I do have bias.
My point about calling it "not fantastical" is that most people will settle very happily for decent and making something people think is "great" will only happen if you write what you want to. "Design by committee" is a curse phrase in writing
. I will also point out that your chapter that you wrote the way you wanted to is why people like it so much. I'm not particularly good at expressing "don't sweat it" since I'm a terrible writer, but I hope that makes some sense.
Well I hope you feel better about it. Also I enjoyed the blog title joke'
Edit Also this https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/978773/write-to-please-yourself
Hm. I'm honestly not sure how to respond to this, but I'll offer this: This is a fanfic site. We are all well-used to fics we're interested in cutting off suddenly and never being picked up again. It sounds like you aren't planning to go that route, at least not immediately, and that's good to hear. But it is still an out. You could start another fic and drop this, just stop posting chapters, or vanish entirely and it wouldn't be out of the norm. Or, as Tartarus mentioned, you could disappear for a while then drop the whole fic at once. That's happened before, I'm almost sure of it.
Besides that, informal is kind of the norm. We're collectively here to have fun, right? I know I'm only echoing what everyone else said, but if you're enjoying what you're writing, that's all that matters. If anyone else likes it, that's a bonus. People will compare it to similar things, you've gotten enough attention that it's inevitable. But if their expectations are so different from your own as to cause them to dislike the story simply because of the direction it goes, then perhaps they should go and write their own version.
Enjoy your story! Accept critique. Try not to let the Internet get to ya. That's all we can do. Besides, you're posting free entertainment, what right do we have to complain?
My advice to dealing with the attention, remember that its your story and your creativity going into it. You are writing this for yourself, nobody else. If other people enjoy it? More the power to them! I myself absolutely adore your first chapter already! But its your choice whether to continue it, when to continue it, and how to continue it. Nobody is going to tell you how to write your story and nobody should tell you WHEN to write your story.
And if that doesn't help, then maybe just take a step back from Fimfiction, get your bearings (and ignore the constant praise/criticism) and then come back whenever your ready. Being overwhelmed is no fun! And writing should be fun!
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I do plan on continuing writing the story, mind. I was just really overwhelmed at the time of this blog post.
Chapter 2 actually had it's draft finished a good few weeks ago, I have just been having a hard time editing it.