Contest Theme

I've seen people in this group's previous Sunset Shimmer x Villain contests commenting that they were working on a story, or they had a great idea for a story, but they hadn't finished in time.

"Second Chances" is an opportunity for people who didn't finish (or didn't start, ha) a story for any of this group's previous contests to use any of those contest themes. Because of the very first contest when this group was first started, you can ship any MLP/EqG generation 4 villain with Sunset Shimmer for your story. If you want more specific suggestions, you can see this list of some previous contest themes, but feel free to go beyond that list.

(If there's a difference in rules between that contest and this round, this round's rules take precedence.)

No clop or foalcon or human foalcon equivalent, please! We have to look at these stories! Story should be SFW.

Please have fun, and try to be nice!

Story Length

The Easy Way

1000 to 5000 words is ok.

Other Options, For Silly People

Mimimum length: long enough to publish on fimfiction.net. The 'EASY' way to is to write a story at least 1000 words long, and publish it as a story.

(A DIFFERENT way is to write MULTIPLE stories for the contest theme that TOGETHER total at least 1000 words, and publish them as one 'anthology' story. An 'easier' way that counts if your story is 'good enough' is to publish your story of fewer than 1000 words as a blog post, we guess.)

Maximum length is either 5000 words, OR you can go longer if your story holds the judges' interest very well. (A judge who gives up on your story before finishing might rate your story unfavorably.)

Additional Rules

Stories should be first posted/published between today (March 4th, 2022) and 11:59pm on April 8th, 2022. Time zone: United States, Eastern.

We have created a group folder for you to put your stories in BEFORE THE DEADLINE. (You'll have to join the group to add a story to it.)

If this is your first story ever on fimfiction.net and you're having trouble publishing it on this website, please send a link with view password to both Mockingbirb and to Reactception. Email us if you have questions about this.

Please include a link to the contest in your story description.

(If you publish your very short story as a blog post, you'll have to send both judges links to it, and link to your story from a reply to the contest announcement in the group's forum, and link to this contest from your blog post. All that by the contest deadline! It's easier to do a regular story instead. EDIT: When I wrote that, I was mostly trying to make sure your contest entry couldn't possibly get overlooked by the judges, no matter what! I don't think we'll be disqualifying for minor omissions or mistakes in these blog-form entry steps.)

Please don't change your story during the judging, because that could confuse the judges, and it might be cheating?

Any one contestant may enter up to three stories. But if one of an entrant's up to three stories is failing to appeal to us, we might skip to that writer's next entry.

The Prizes, Such As They Are

1st: First place receives multiple prizes.

An extra prize, as described in a section below this one.

The story will be on the page description group description page for 2 weeks, and the winner gets to choose the next Sunset x EG Villain competition (can’t be the same one.) If they want to, they can co-judge for that competition. But if they don’t want to co-judge, they can of course compete again.

2nd: story review of one of their stories (their choice) by Reactception, and an honorable mention on the group description.

3rd: the story submitted will be reviewed by Reactception.

Extra Prize

If you win a first place award, you can choose the following extra prize!

Did you ever wish you could get a custom commission without paying money for it? Mockingbirb or Reactception (whoever thinks they can do it) will write a story at least as long as a a haiku, but probably longer.

Seriously, the last time we did this, we were given a three word prompt of "fluffy SunFlower cuddlefic," and the result was a 2000 word Sunflower cuddlefic that hit the featured box, but it's also possible you might get something shorter than that, such as a mini-story within a multi-story anthology, or a blog post.

Your custom story author reserves the right to ask for a different custom commission theme/topic/prompt if they don't think they can do your request justice. The commission story author will make a reasonable effort to help find something we can agree on.

Additional bonus prizes may be awarded at judges' discretion, depending on total number of entries and how much we like or love your story.

Any Mistakes, Errors, and Changes in Contest Rules

If we've made a terrible mistake in these rules and conditions, we reserve the right to fix them in a reasonable way.

Fixes and clarifications may be in italics, like this.

Looking forward to it

Could you put a list of what the previous contests have been?

7655065

Could you put a list of what the previous contests have been?

I know the contests listed below count, but this list might be incomplete. I've just sent Reactception a PM asking for any more contests or rounds that should be listed.

Taco girl/Sonata Dusk x Sunset Shimmer competition starts today

Abacus Cinch x Sunset Shimmer Contest (September 1, 2021 to September 29, 2021.)

Sunset Shimmer x Sunset Shimmer Contest (October 1, 2021 to October 28, 2021.)

Sunset Shimmer x Adagio Dazzle Contest (November 3rd 2021 to November 29th 2021)

Sunset Shimmer x Trixie Lulamoon (January 2nd 2022 to January 30th 2022)

7655065

And in the contest when this group first started was for any MLP/EqG generation 4 villain x Sunset Shimmer.

That's a lot of possibilities!

7655430
YAYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

excited for this!

7654971
Rules are a little unclear - are entrants limited to only one submission? (Anthology option is multiple stories but only one submission)

ETA: I ask not because I realistically expect to have several, but there are at least three stories mulling and they are not omniship-compatible.

7657659
The rules have now been clarified, to follow what the group has done before:

A contestant may enter up to three stories. But if one of an entrant's up to three stories is failing to appeal to us, we might skip to that writer's next entry.

Three distinct ideas, eight attempted outlines, nothing actually working. I'm quite frustrated with myself.

7666933
Relatable

7654971 Is it okay to submit an over-5k word fic with specific chapters carved out as "the contest entry"? I'm working on a Sunset/Trixie story that was originally going to be two chapters, but now I want to add a third chapter in the middle that's mostly a conversation between Sunset and the other Main 7 (about Trixie, but not featuring her). However, that would definitely take the story as a whole past 5k words, so I was wondering if I could exclude that chapter from "official" consideration if need be.

7668178
We are pretty chill here so I’d say yes as long as you add this at the end of the chapter name until the end of the competition (not part of the entry)

7668178
A lot of yeses! One option is already in the contest rules:

Maximum length is either 5000 words, OR you can go longer if your story holds the judges' interest very well. (A judge who gives up on your story before finishing might rate your story unfavorably.)

The suggestion you make to 'exclude that chapter from "official" consideration' is also an option, as Reactception agrees.

You cannot prevent me from possibly also reading your middle chapter, either.

7654971
Ok. Um. I have actual stories. They're submitted to the site and I'll link them in less than twelve hours (could be after I finish writing this, depending on the auto-approval queue).

But in the process of hammering those out, they were actually part of a battery of other scenelets I threw together until I realize 1. the other two stories stand lone and fit the minimum wordcount for publication, and 2. these other scenelets are absolutely bonkers and would result in some insane mood whiplash if part of the same anthology (not that this stops my other anthologies, but they serve a different purpose and publication schedule).

In the spirit of not wasting effort and having no clue what you people get your kicks from, I present not for this event but for the record the gonzo, laser-guided karma flashfiction in four parts:

Chrysalis [random; sex]

Chrysalis cooed with satisfaction (it actually sounded like a cross between rattling bamboo and nails drawn across a chalkboard) as Sunset rubbed her forehoof all around in Chrysalis's favorite hole (it was the one lower down in her neck). Both their horns were aglow, allowing for the sensations from one to ping-pong back across between them over and over until eventually it seemed as though there weren't two beings after all (they liked lying to themselves about that).

"One of these days," Chrysalis said, as she pleasurably crushed a mindless drone with her hind legs, "I wonder if you'll develop apertures of your own, and you'll be able to experience this sensation first-hoof."

Sunset had noticed that over the past months her mane and fur were definitely changing, but she hadn't yet ruled out that coming from the diet of corrupted magic. Since the complete takeover and internment of all ponykind, some compromises had to be made for survival and companionship. She'd tried un-podding a few ponies in secret, and it hadn't gone over well.

Sunset swapped legs (the one was starting to cramp), and used the distraction to change topics to this one. "Are you sure this is everything you wanted, Cyrissi?"

"I have all the power in the world. I could turn the moon to dust if I wanted…" Her horn flared and a beam shot up through the hive. "And put it back together again…" Another flare of magic. "Or, almost back together? I'll worry about that later. I'd say I have everything I wanted."

"What about me? Am I want you wanted?"

"I admit, at first I simply wanted to cocoon you along with all the ponies you betrayed. Loneliness got better of us, I think. I don't regret you and I becoming involved. It would be nice if we could manage to make you immortal, too. Yes, just like that…" She trailed off with more distracted cooing (chittering, chalkboard, &c.).

After a few minutes of that, Sunset pulled free and let Chrysalis collect herself before demanding, "Is it my turn yet?"

"Oh, yes, my delicious pony, I should think so. Who would you like me to be this time? Oh, that's good… I can feel your anger…"

"Surprise me. But make them big. And able to take a pummeling."

Gilda [random; romance(?)]

"Hey, remember that time I ran down the entire hallway, slamming everyone's lockers closed, just to get yours?"

"Remember that time ripped the cover off your calculus textbook?"

"Like when I stole your towel and clothes from the locker room."

"Huh, should've been obvious then, you think?"

"Lame."

"Not like I'm any better. I pantsed you like five times, right? In one day."

"I got you back with milk in your locker."

"I painted your locker."

"I cut your jacket."

"I cut your hair."

"I cut your tires."

"I set those tires on fire on your homeroom desk."

"You even put the fire-prevention sand under it! You're such a lame nerd!"

"I will remind you I am a brilliant, sexy, alien lame nerd!"

"You're my brilliant, sexy, lame nerd!"

Ladies.

"Oh. Yes, ma'am?"

"Yeah?"

The nurse says to put ice on the swelling, change the bandages at least twice daily, and put on your gym clothes so you can go home. Next time, you will not hold your escapades on school grounds, except that there had best not be a next time. Celestia won't say it, but I will: I shudder to think that we're letting you two graduate with everyone else in just a few days. Please don't make us regret it. Or get the police involved again.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Heh. Lame. Erm, yes, ma'am."

Smooze [romance(?); sad(?)]

Sunset howled at Princess Celestia, distraught tears streaking down her face.

"You can't do this to him! We're perfect images of one another, we were made for one another! You don't know what it's like! To be used, to be cast aside, to be so alone! So alone and desperate! All he wanted was to exist, to be himself! He didn't do anything wrong! If he did, than I did just as much! Please, don't do this to him! It's not fair! Whatever you do to him, you'll have to do to me also, because I'll never leave his side! Smoozie is my everything, and nothing you do will keep us apart!"

The Kitchen Sink [random]

The piscine forms Aria Blaze and Sonata Dusk were ecstatically drinking blood back into Sunset Shimmer's sump of a {arm|cannon} while Discord hung inside-down making a mug of cerise curry. Flim and Flam were busy marketing pedicures to Sunset's {feet|rear hooves} as Fizzlepop Berrytwist zealously set of firewaterworks in the {ocean|sky|aether} overhead for Sunset's enjoyment. The Storm King was doing a song-and-dance routine with all his many {minions|witches|familiars} up on the mainstage. Nightmare Moon had been lured away when Sunset had complained loudly and pleadingly that Tirek had broken up with Sunset and that only "Nimmy" could exact the necessary revenge. Cozy Glow was hard at work collecting butterfly wings for an homage to DiscorSetazzle – her original plan was changeling wings, but blessed Sunset had ruled that right out or no snuggles for Cozy.

In the midst of this, just scarcely perceived by the luxuriating Sunset Shimmer, a runic portal tore reality asunder in a very particular place and with a lyrical pop Starlight Glimmer slipped into existence. She took a moment to observe the debauchery around (and threatening beside) her before screaming with disgust: "What? Again?"

7668673
Thankfully this ended up being a non-issue.

I just want to thank everyone who entered, and mention that Reactception and I have already started reading the stories and thinking about them.

Having to be so judgmental is more work than I thought it would be! I will still try to do my best.

7673377
No one is more surprised than I that I would be that pony, but it has been fully three weeks since the end of the event. I understand real life being a thing, but this is a bit embarrassing. What's up?