Pre-interview: 160... Let's see, that's... Verbose Mode? Well, the Gods certainly have a wonderful sense of humor.

Hey there, Mode. You know me, I know you and, ironically, I just drew your number in the Let's Make You Known interview poll. I think the Gods have a rather interesting sense of humor.

So, do you have a few moments to let me pick and pry at that brain of yours and see what interesting factoids pop out?

While time zones are going to cause issues... (Checks FiMFiction Goals) HELLS YES I DO!

*ahem*

Yes. Quite. What might I do for y'all? I will do my best to answer as quickly as I can manage.

Meh, time zones hardly bother me. Plus, I am literally up all day and night so... Yeah!

So, lets start this interview off with a 'stock question' to kick us off: a bit of Profile Browsing shows you've been on FiMFiction for a little over two years now. What drew you to this site and the fandom as a whole?

Well, the fandom was first. My very first exposure to Friendship is Magic was from a joke cracked in a Dungeons & Dragons group back in 2010. I was very sceptical, and didn't even let them know I had started watching until "Dragonshy" came out. It slowly escalated from there to me now, where I enthusiastically drag friends into the fandom.

As for FiMFiction... I frequented Equestria Daily a lot, especially in the early days for the Drawfriends. Finally I just opened and read a story at random, Allegrezza by Avensis Astari. I loved it, and started reading more, and writing as well. I had (well, have) about ten half-written and very bad fanfictions of my own before I came up with Shooting for Friendship, which was original and quality enough to publish. I made and account and dropped the story. I was only supposed to be one chapter, can you believe it?

Ye Gods, the things that happen in Dungeons and Dragons.

I've never read Allegrezza, but the title sounds interesting. Consider me hooked! And as for your 'early works' believe me, you aren't the only one. I'm considering trying to revive one of my early attempts, but I'm not too sure if it's salvageable. And no, I couldn't picture Shooting for Friendship as a one-chapter ordeal. I confess, I'm a huge fan of it.

So, as a fellow long-time fan, I have a question I myself ponder from time to time; in Friendship is Magic's long running, Hasbro has made some less-than-wonderful decisions. Mostly, these are unavoidable or are just simple mistakes, but I am curious; what did you think? Clearly, you took the uncertainty of Equestria Girls (I personally enjoyed it...) and rolled with it, but I know many were disquieted about Twilicorn at first. And then, there was Derpy... And that's only naming a few of the little bumps in our long road of our favorite show. How have you felt about some of Hasbro's more... sordid decisions surrounding our pastel ponies?

Thank you, I have actually re-written the first chapter of SFF a bit to make it part of a greater whole, but it's functionally the same. Funnily enough, I have a plan to revive the single most cliché crossover I ever jotted down... just because there is no such thing as a bad idea, only bad execution.

When something comes out that's drama-material, I usually just sit tight and maybe predict what patch they might do. Like Equestria Girls was little more than a pretty sound-and-light show, but not bad. They made Rainbow Rocks better, and Friendship Games was actually pretty great as they learned how to use the characters. Derpy was just that poor Tabitha made a mistake in the recording booth and was a distant memory as of Episode 100... and look at how long it took to get a good Spike episode! All in all, with a little bit of time, weird issues in the show seem to patch themselves, and we usually get something out of it in the long run. The crew at Studio B seem to know what they're doing.

I look forward to seeing it. Cliche isn't bad, if it's done well enough. Fingers crossed!

Seems we share a reaction there. I was a little worried about Derpy for a time, but I didn't let it go to my head. And now? You're right, we usually do get something out of it, with time. I remember the Fandom claiming that Hasbro didn't have their best interests at heart, but that's just not the case, huh?

Perhaps what we, as fans should embrace is the peace and tranquility that comes from knowing that we are noticed by the system at large. We fight and flail, starting all these debates but... What are we accomplishing really? Are we simply spiraling our own morality down the metaphorical whirlpool of self-delusion?

Whoa... No idea what happened there.

New question:
What are your most favorite and least favorite things about your own writings or the writings of others?

Characters. My favorite thing about a good story is it makes me love the characters. I loved Bilbo when I read The Hobbit, I love Twi in vanilla MLP, I love Littlepip in Fallout: Equestria, and frankly I fell in love with my versions of Sunset Shimmer and Scootaloo in the thing's I've written. A character is not just a set of traits, but something- no, someone you can believe in. Real characters that I can care about are why I read and watch; and the worst thing an any story that damns it to the depths of the Rage Reviews group is the Three Deadly Words that every writer should fear:

I Don't Care.

Good writing makes people care, and it is my favorite thing when someone can make me care.

That was beautifully profound! And it is one of my own personal mottoes as well. A good character should hold a unique depth, one that makes people wonder and worry about what happens next. I wholeheartedly agree with what you said; I haven't seen your Scoots, but your Sunset is beautifully done.

Deep question time:
If you could offer a newborn child only one piece of advice, what would it be?

That's a stupid question, newborns don't have the concept of language yet!

But the only advice I would really give anyone is "Improve." We're human. We're characterized by incredible persistence in whatever we apply ourselves to and have terrifying potential to do literally anything, but you won't get anywhere if you don't strive to get better. You can improve yourself in your own ways and count yourself among the best humanity has to offer or you can be compliant and become obsolete as the world passes you.

Also save money. Money is useful, you always want to have some spare. But that's a second piece of advice.

Valuable advice, no matter how you look at it. In both counts. In fact, I'm digging around for twenty dollars right now. I know I have it hidden around here somewhere...

Well, after that question, lets go for something a little less complicated, a lot less random and something that's fandom oriented;
Who's your favorite Pony and why?

Princess Celestia. She's... well, Rarity might be closer to who I am, but Celestia is who I want to be, in a spiritual sense. She's wise, calm and has earned the respect she is given. She knows how to have fun without hurting others. She's powerful, and knows how to use it well for the benefit of all, even if it hurts her. She's very nearly ideal, barring some rather poor decisions on the tactical level.

In essence, Princess Celestia is a goal. Besides that I'm a sucker for a white-and-gold aesthetic.

You and me both; when it comes to color schemes, White and Gold is right there next to Black and Violet, for me.

I don't think I've ever heard someone give Celestia as an answer to that before; it's a very refreshing answer. Not to mention, a very good reason for liking her. I never really considered Celestia that way.

Next question is one I'm personally very eager to ask:
Have any fanfictions on this site granted you inspiration or insight that helped you improve your own stories? Or is everything you write untouched by the ideas of others? Excluding editors and the like, of course.

Ha ha, funny one, that! I actually avoid writing anything like a fic I enjoy. Of course, bits of how I write come from what I read in style and the ever-important flow of the story. I'd like to cite my good buddy HapHazard for how it try to inject humor into prose instead of dialogue, and psychicscubadiver for teaching me with "how to snark" and got all my character's sarcasm flowing.

In the matter of content, however, I try very hard to avoid other-than-canon characterizations. I haven't read a fic about Sunset Shimmer since winter 2014 despite great temptation, as my personal Sunset has evolved her own way (I'm actually looking forward to finishing that story so I can read down the "similar stories" list that has been taunting me for a year now). On the other side, when I read something that's objectively bad, I actually get very inspired to see it done better. A bit egotistical, I think, but I put an incredible amount of effort into one-upmanship, and it turns out good stuff. Shooting For Friendship started because of all the cut-and-dried Sunset Shimmer Redemption Fics (TM) after EQG, and I did Breakneck Fantasy because I was so tired of seeing ScootaSuicide stuff clawing for and manipulating people's heartstrings.

Also, shoutout to my editors. Mason, Dinode, Edgy McEdgelord Z and all the rest who translate my shit... I am so sorry... but thanks.

I'm glad to see you took the 'third option' that I myself follow. I may have added them to my favorites, but I've yet to delve into any Vinyl or Octavia stories. I've been so tempted to read University Days, it's killing me.

"How to Snark," huh? I could use that...I'm not the funniest person in the world, so a bit of snarkiness might do my stories some good.

Earlier, you spoke about how watching the show was the hook that got you into the fandom. I'm curious to know; what was your favorite episode up to this point?

I'm actually going to say... Season 5, Episode 18, "Crusaders of the Lost Mark."

One-hundred and nine episodes and five yeas summed up in three words, to three little fillies:

"You earned it."

I know~! That episode made me actually cry! The only other MLP related thing to do that was Lullaby for a Princess! That episode was the epitome of character growth; the actual achieving of ones dreams. Many people overlook this vital and downright beautiful step in a character's growth.

Next on my invisible list is a throwback to several messages ago;
Who is your favorite character to write? I believe I know the answer, but the important question is why and what was your favorite moment with them?

Well... yeah, it's pretty obvious. Sunset Shimmer is my lead. Why is actually a bit of headcanon. I don't think Sunset Shimmer has, across any of the movies or ancillary media, changed her goals.

Sunset Shimmer has a theme. It's not redemption. Sunset's theme is Power. The sun cutie mark. Red and gold colors. Her drive, personality and backstory. She wants and is defined by the pursuit of power. Her defeat was just her being shown that she had chosen the weaker path, and she desperately jumped ship to join Team Friendship Lasers. She just wants the Power of Friendship, and is willing to change who she is to get it... and she's starting to like who she is becoming.

She's still a bundle of fire inside, but now it put to forging great things instead of burning bridges. She understands villains better than anyone because she never really stopped being one, she just enjoys being on the good side. She's snarky, a little bit haughty, has difficulty being genuine with herself, and terrified of weakness.

Sunset is a success story happening. She's becoming more powerful than she ever imagined, and not only that she's learning how to use it. I love that.

I noticed that about your Sunset. She has those moments where she shows her inner villain and lets her inner baddie creeps out for the good of the group, and I love it. I wouldn't go so far as to label her an anti-hero (Not yet at least), but I adore her personality. I can't wait to read more of her story.

Now, lets get to know Verbose a little;
Please use five words to describe yourself and then tell us why you picked those.

Hmm... gamer, artist, marksman, scholar and Airman.

I love games that immerse me and give me a challenge, and play the bejeezus out of a variety of tactical shooters, sims, horror and indie games, so that's easy. I am probably a better artist than a writer (even though one could call writing a form of art) and use commissions to pay for my whiskey so there's some degree of professionalism there. I'm a crack shot with my .45 Springfield Operator and my pa's custom .357 Colt Python, earned a Marksmanship badge for M16/M4 and M9, and generally love getting out to a range and putting tiny holes in sheets of paper at long distances (I don't hunt, it seems unfair and unnecessary with modern animal husbandry). I am greatly interested in almost any intellectual pursuit, but especially history, the fine arts and engineering, and think space and astrophysics are cool as they get. I'm trying to get myself involved in Historical European Martial Arts as well, looks like good exercise.

And I'm a capital-A Airman in the United States Air Force, active duty as a Contract Specialist 6C051, which means I fly a desk and buy things. The "Chair Force" needs to get them chairs somewhere, and I make sure they're nice comfy ones! HUAAAH! Jokes aside, I wanted to support the heroes that risk themselves for my country's and our allies' safety. What better way to support than to put on the uniform and stand beside them?

They also feed me. This is a bonus.

Wow, that was a more profitable question than I expected! Loads of interesting factoids.

In closing, since you've already said a ton about your fic, we won't do the usual 'sponsor a story in one sentence' thing. Hm... I got it! Options.
I'm going to offer three questions; you pick one and answer it as you see fit.

1. What is your favorite quote to define who you are? You can quote yourself.

2. If you could change one aspect of the world around you, what would it be and why?

3. If you had to pick one person on this website, besides yourself, to sponsor, who would it be and why?

Oh, enough about me. Shoutout to HapHazard, give him some love. All the homo, ya drunk Scottish git!

He's cool. A good writer, a great friend and kinda a drinking buddy. Go read his shit, all of it.

Well, you can't go wrong with that.
Is there anything you'd like to add?

Uuh.... Read my stuff, and check out Rage Reviews on the first Monday of every month for my F*** THIS PROMPT writing contest if you think you're 'ard enough! It's a brutal contest for great prizes! You can check out previous contests and all of the entries on my userpage.

Thanks for having me, this was a fun experience!

And thank you for dealing with my insanity. This has been really fun; I learned a lot about you. I look forward to reading your stories and keeping up with your characters as they grow.

Until next time, this is Inkheart, signing off.

-Inkheart

5308403
My pleasure!

-Inkheart