An Announcement in Three Parts · 7:28pm Oct 22nd, 2022
Hello, readers,
So, as I'm sure most of you noticed, I just posted two chapters to round out the latest case in Rising Nightmares. This case was a lot of work, and took a lot of time and energy to finalize. Word of advice to y'all: don't write about time travel. Just don't. It's not worth the headache.
Looking back, I only recently realized that it's been over five years since I first started writing Ponyville Noire, and nearly ten years since I started writing pony fiction. Five years of writing this series, continually pushing myself to create. It's been a lot of fun and I've gained a lot of good friends out of it, lots of good memories. This has been a source of pride for me, and I cannot thank you all enough for your support.
"Josi, it sounds like you're ending the series here."
Well...I need to make some confessions.
Part 1: A Confession
Not that long ago, I was getting ready to continue writing Ponyville Noire. I had two more cases planned to round out the story. So I opened up the Google Document that has the chapter on it and...
I just couldn't do it. I literally could not. Looking at that document, I was suddenly overwhelmed with a crushing, heart-racing, nauseating, anvil-on-my-chest anxiety that I once associated with my job as a correctional officer. I had to stop and back away.
I had hoped that those feelings would abate or go away in the coming weeks, but they have not. Even today, opening up that document, or even thinking about continuing to write Ponyville Noire gives me that same anxiety. Something that I want to do for fun should not be causing me that level of stress.
I've thought long about the source of this trouble, and I think it comes down to this: I've been writing Ponyville Noire for five years. Continually pushing myself to write at least 500 words every single day. Tweaking every idea to make it as good as possible, throwing out so many plot ideas and characters and arcs and scenes that I wanted to write but just couldn't. Facing the ever-daunting prospect of how I was going to finish this series. Carrying the weight of every mistake and misstep that I had to live with.
I'm tired. More than that, I'm burned out with Ponyville Noire.
I had ideas on how to properly end the series, but at this point, trying to force myself to keep going would be unhealthy and counterproductive. I'd slog to provide low-quality work, going through the motions to make chapters that I would hate writing and hate publishing and that I'm sure you wouldn't like.
I don't want that. I don't want to wind up resenting something I invested so much time, energy, love, and money into. And I don't want to ruin it for you, either.
So, as of now, the series ends here. Hell, we can probably say that it ended with Misty Streets, that would have been as good a place to end it as any. Maybe I'll pick it up again in the future when I'm better, but at this point, I can't give any promises.
If this news is upsetting, I'm sorry. Trust me, I'm not happy to end it here, either. But I have to do what's right for me. And continuing this story is not right for me.
Part 2: What Could Have Been
Because I don't want to leave you wondering how it was supposed to go, I'll give you a "brief" outline for what I had planned.
First, I need to provide a bit of backstory for the villains.
Sombra: centuries ago, Sombra was a mage in the Crystal Empire who married Radiant Heart, a healer. One day, she fell deathly ill with a plague that had no cure. In desperation, Sombra eventually turned to the Old Gods and made them a deal: he would awaken them and restore them to rule the world, and in return, they would cure his wife. They agreed and put Radiant into a deep stasis until he met his end of the bargain. Since then, Sombra had lived and died dozens of times under dozens of names and faces, trying to facilitate cults in the Old Gods' names across the world. At the time of the stories, he was operating under Alba Dorata, a "legitimate" businesspony from the Crystal Empire who rose from the ashes of the Crystal War.
The Plague Doctor: his real name is Nevermore, and he was from a farming village called Dunwhinny. When he was young, a neighbor of his who had always been kind to him was murdered. Nevermore, with the aid of the neighbor's fiancee, created a drug from a hallucinogenic plant that grew in a temple to Nightmare Moon hidden under the town and used it on the killer, literally scaring him to death. Nevermore eventually came into touch with Sombra, who saw use for him as an assassin and interrogator and helped him forge his identity as the Plague Doctor, twisting him to think that establishing a dictatorship under him was the only way to ensure true justice. I wanted to play with the idea that Nevermore was a dark reflection of Phillip: specifically, that he was who Phil would be if he allowed his rage and vengeance to overwhelm his compassion and sense of justice.
Scarlet: I never really got into this (or really set anything into stone), but Scarlet had a similar upbringing to Daring: neglected and abandoned by her parents, she turned to others for love and companionship. Unfortunately, she linked up with a cult under one of Sombra's masks. When she grew, she worked with Sombra while he was the dictator of the Empire as his Royal Spymistress, and after his fall, she started setting up networks of spies and agents to bring Sombra back. Scarlet was intended to be a dark reflection of Daring Do: who Daring would be if her loyalty to the Family overruled her conscience and sense of right and wrong.
Anyway, here's what would have happened in the next two cases:
The next case would have had the Detective Duo, along with Strider, General Fire, and Rainbow Dash, heading to Dunwhinny to find the source of the Plague Doctor's fear toxin. They track the source to a temple to Nightmare Moon hidden beneath an abandoned abbey, guarded by Family members. In the battle, Daring is captured by the Plague Doctor, who interrogates her by threatening Rainbow Dash before shooting Rainbow. Thankfully, it turns out to just be a hallucination, and Daring saves Rainbow on the way out. Simultaneously, Phillip would have confronted Nevermore, whose identity he had managed to deduce. Nevermore doses Phil with a particularly strong dose of fear toxin, where his past failures all come back to haunt him, blaming him for every death and mistake he made and saying that none of it would have happened if he'd been more ruthless. His spirit nearly broken, Phil is almost about to join the Plague Doctor when a vision of Trace Evidence stops him, reminding him of all the good things he's done and that vengeance isn't the same thing as justice. The heroes escape with a sample of the fear toxin for making an antidote.
In the finale, the heroes would have headed into the Everfree Forest to find Thicket, which turns out to be an abandoned zebra city. Through messages left behind, the heroes learn the full story: during the war against the Ahuizotls, the Pillars had managed to slay all of the beasts save one, who had become immortal through a dark ritual. When they finally cornered him in Thicket, Stygian, who had made a bargain with the Ngluwi, petrified the last Ahuizotl in stone. The Pillars sealed Thicket off and hid it from the world until they could find a way to permanently kill the Ahuizotl. Unfortunately, Sombra and his clique have already found Thicket and started awakening the Ahuizotl. While the heroes succeed in stopping the ritual and chasing Sombra off, the magic breaks the seals keeping the Ahuizotl asleep, meaning that it will eventually wake up. In the aftermath, Phillip finds out that Dorata is Sombra in disguise. The latter attempts to brainwash Phillip into serving him, but fails and is chased off.
That's where Rising Nightmares would have ended. In the fifth and final story, I had a few ideas that unfortunately I cannot form into solid ideas:
- The heroes allying with Zecora, who would have turned out to be Xixphy's sister
- Encountering the orphan girl Luster Dawn that the Family was using for a lackey. Phil and Daring would have wound up adopting her as their daughter.
- Caballeron trying to kill Radiant Heart to usurp Sombra as the Old Gods' servant. The heroes would have saved her and cured her using the Plague Jar from Caballeron's museum, but with the deal broken, Sombra would have been cast out and his powers given to Caballeron.
In the climactic finale, the heroes would have figured out the secret to the Ahuizotl's immortality: he had used a ritual that removed his heart from his body. The heroes would recover the heart and take it to Uluru, where the Ahuizotl, Sombra, Caballeron, and the other villains would be killed or taken into custody. And that's where the series would have ended.
Big and flashy, I know. I think that's part of the reason why I burned out. It just got too big and too much for me to handle.
Part 3: So What Now?
I don't want to give up writing, which is why I feel I need to stop before I burn myself out completely. I do have a few ideas for stories that don't involve Phillip Finder and co: I've always wanted to do a story on the Pillars so that's probably next on the agenda. I can't make any promises as to when I'll come out with anything: I need to take this slow for the moment as I try to sort this out. When I do come out with something, I hope that you enjoy it!
Once again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your support and love. Despite the sudden stop, this has been a great experience and I don't regret it overall. I'm sorry it had to come to this, but I will leave Ponyville Noire up for you to enjoy. And who knows, maybe I'll come back to it someday.
Goodbye for now,
Josiah
Thank you, I shall proceed to ignore this in my future endeavors.
Okay, putting aside the jokes. I can't say that I'm surprised by this news, I've known it was coming for a while now. And it's understandable. Five years is a long time, and I absolutely don't blame you for getting finally tuckered out doing it. No one can blame you for getting to the point where you need to just step away and let it rest
and if they do then they need to seriously reevaluate just how badly they want their fiction fix.I hope you can at least take comfort in this: you did well. Five years and three-and-a-half great stories. There are people in this world who can't even manage that. And no matter what doubts or in-hindsight self criticisms you may have, Ponyville Noire has been great to read through and through, from the writing to the world building to the characters. I'll certainly miss it, but I'm more than satisfied by what you've created with it.
As a reader, that's all I can ask for. As a fledgling writer, that's everything I aspire to be.
Thank you for all the work and creativity you've put into this. I look forward to what else you create down the road. ;)
Noooooooo
Too bad you are ending your story like that, it would had been really to really see what happened in the end.
I do hope that you are doing well though. Anxiety & stress aren't really good for your mental health.
I would like to see what you do have planned for the future!
5693898
Phil and Do kick evil's butt.
Think we know 'em well enough to know that's the inevitable outcome. xD
We understand Josi. And you know what, it's okay to take a break from it, I say make new stuff, we'd all love to see what else you've got rollin' in your brain. But taking a break is an absolute; do take that break so you don't become burned out like you are now. And as Jade said, five years is AWESOME. You did great.
Whatever you decide to do, we will be here to listen and read
I guess all I can say is thank you for giving us this amazing series. I have followed the series for a while and I know I never commented much, but I enjoyed every chapter. I thoroughly enjoyed every adventure, the characters, and world you created. :)
I look forward to what you create next.
I'm going to miss your stories about Philip Finder and co (even though I can never find the time to read them due to motivation or college work), but don't stress yourself out, and taking a break from writing the story is a good idea since our minds are indeed a powerful force to be reckoned with, but can we blame our brains for us to be so creative with everything that's around us? Five years is definitely a long time to continue on a project and keep it going, so a break is a good thing for your health.
I second Jade here. I know I'm not caught up all the way, but you did great, Josiah. I could only hope to write as much you have in the time you've done it in. I look forward to finishing Ponyville Noire, and hopefully, finishing my own project.
This has been one hell of a ride and one that I am sorry to see end. But you have to do what's best for you. For now, know that this series will always hold a special place in my heart and that I offer nothing but the best wishes on all your future endeavors!
tips hat
It was a wild, wild ride.
It's fine if you want to step away. Five years is a long time to stay in a world, and I can sympathize wanting to move on from that world.
As a reader, I have no hesitation in saying that it's been a fun time. I have enjoyed it thoroughly.
But now, it's time for the curtain to close.
Good night, and thanks for the roller coaster ride.
Sincerely, S. L.
I understand your plight. Having just finished writing nearly 50000 words for the November writing challenge, I can understand the toll writing so much can have on a person. I also have an unfinished story that I still haven't been able to get back into all these years later. I began writing in the Pokemon fandom, and while I finished the first story and had plans for at least two more full stories after a short interlude, I just never got around to writing it. I started my Pony stories shortly after, but I know the feeling of just being unable to continue with something for at least a time as you just know it won't be up to the standard you want it to be.
Regardless of where you go from here, I do hope you continue writing and creating wonderful worlds for us to explore. Just follow your heart and that creative spark you have, and I know you'll create something wonderful as always.
What if someone else picked up the stories?
5704443
I wouldn't be opposed to someone that I knew and trusted picking up the series again, as long as they were willing to treat my characters with respect.
Do you have anyone in mind?