Note from the Author
~A Note from the Author~
When I started writing this story I had no real writing experience, aside from the assignments I had to complete while I was still attending school, but what I did have was an unusual craving to contribute to the pony fandom in someway. I was going through some tough times, which don’t need to be mentioned in detail here, when I first saw the show and fell in love with the messages it was trying to teach. Between the relatable characters that Lauren Faust and the rest of the staff had created and the community that had grown around this strange new world, I had found something that helped lift me up out of my darkness. It was a few months later that I began to feel the need to contribute.
The problem was that my art is mediocre at best, I don’t posses a talent for playing any instruments, I have no equipment to make other forms of music, I have literally no financial wealth to donate or support other artists in the fandom and no way of even attempting to animate anything. What I did have was a passion for My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, an exorbitant amount of time on my hands and an old computer with Microsoft Word 2003. That was the beginning of The Crystal War Trilogy, which you have most likely just finished the first book of.
I’ve always been fairly eloquent when I want to be, but translating that into the written word proved to be quite the undertaking indeed, as you can probably tell by the first few chapters of this novel. I must say that it was quite the learning experience for me and I like to think that I have grown quite a bit as an author in these past seven months or so. Regardless of the fact that my work may not garner the attention of multitudes of fans like many of the other more well known stories, I just want to say that I greatly appreciate every one of you who saw fit to give this book a chance, despite the raw nature of my writing. Although I would have continued on with the trilogy anyway, it was seeing that a few others actually seemed to like the story I was developing that I began striving to hone my skills, so I must thank you for that as well.
Just by reading this novel you have gained a better understanding of me than most of my family and friends will ever have, except for a couple of people who now live a good distance away, so it is with this in mind that I write this paragraph. I would love to hear what you have to say about the story, be it good or bad. I would love it if you shared this book with other people who you think might get even some small joy out of it. I don’t care about gaining recognition, but I love to see feedback. Please feel free to leave any comments or questions you may have and I will answer each one of them, because I work from home and find myself on the computer more often than not.
… anyway, I seem to be rambling, so I suppose this is where I will say goodbye for now, though I hope it is only temporary. I have had a wonderful time writing this story and I hope each of you have had just as much fun reading it. Oh, and The Crystal War Book II: Heart of an Empire should have its first chapter posted in early April, so be sure to check back for that if you feel like continuing with me on this journey and again, thank you for reading.
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2246129
Glad you thought so, even going back while I was editing the chapter, that line made me laugh again.
2252173
Well, thanks for the compliment. I'm not sure why nobody else comments, since that's the only thing I really care about anyway, but I suppose they just don't have much to say. I'm not really sure if it's good or bad.
I'm sorry, but why does this have so few views? The writing style is gripping and the story itself is grand. Seriously, why the lack of attention?
2355792
I wish I knew.
Haha, thanks for the confidence booster.
2355808 No problem, the story is looking pretty good so far.
2386553
Yeah, I tried to make her likable at first, but whenever my pen touches paper, she just comes out a bit bitchy, lol..
2386123
You may be on to something, but I don't plan on tackling that in this trilogy, though I've thought about writing another story dealing with Luna's corruption, as well as one for Discord's war. We'll just have to see though..
2532930
Glad you're enjoying the story so far.
Well, welcome back.
2546244
I tried my best.
I'm glad you thought so. It's certainly interesting trying to find the right balance between internal conflict that a character experiences without going completely repetitive angst.
2551242
Haha, yeah.. sometimes you just have to drop the unexpected on people.
This story has been reviewed by The Equestrian Critics Society.
Story Title: The Crystal War Book 1: A Spark to Light the Dark.
Author: NatureSpark.
Reviewed by: MrAlbum321.
Summary: When someone starts reading this piece, the pace is slow, facts and details are thrown about, the run-on sentences and awkwardly formatted dialogue make one cringe, misspelled/misplaced words will urge one to face-palm, and the characters are interesting in concept but not yet proven beyond their initial impression. As one reads the story, the pace is luxurious, facts and details are naturally woven into the narrative, sentences are no longer run-on, the dialogue is mostly okay, there are fewer misspelled/misplaced words, and the characters have grown from their start into engrossing, complex individuals that are immensely entertaining to read about. Reading this story feels like starting a mining business by hand, by yourself. There's gold at the end of that shaft; you just have to dig for it.
Full review.
Score: 6.5/10
Reviewer Recommendations: The earlier chapters could use some serious proofreading and cleaning up. In fact, a dedicated proofreader or two would greatly benefit the story as a whole. There is only so much that an author can do to clean up their creations, after all. Yes, it is busy work and no writer likes to slog through their text to find errors, but if it isn't done at some point, then it does take away from the story.
2783839
Thank you so much for reading my story and especially for the review. I'm glad to see that my later chapters did improve and it isn't just me who thinks so. If I cannot find people to help fix the earlier chapters than I will most likely do so on my own, once I've finished the trilogy. It means so much that you would take the time (and I imagine it took quite a bit) to read and critique my work.
2784012
You're welcome, and yes it was quite the challenge! It took me almost 3 days of solid reading before I was finished, and then I had to write the review and get it finalized! I appreciate your thanks, and would like to thank you in turn for letting TECS review your story!
On a personal note, I will say that, at least for me, when it comes to revising my own text for an unfinished story I'm working on, I absolutely need a second or third pair of eyes just to catch errors that I would otherwise miss. It is frustruating, because I know what the errors are, but for some reason I kept missing them over and over again when I would go back and attempt to self-edit.
It's a really weird phenomenon, and I would like for you to be wary of it as well. Hence why I suggested a proofreader/editor. They are guaranteed to catch problems that you might otherwise miss, even if it's as simple as a misspelled word or as complex as a plot hole that completely undermines the story, just as a general example that isn't connected with your story in any way, shape or form.
If you're worried about other folks trying to hijack your original creative vision, then I would recommend gently and respectfully asserting your authority over that vision. In short, they are free to suggest a different plot point or a change in character development, but you are the writer, and you have the final say in the matter. Showing respect for their efforts and taking the time to listen to their suggestions does help keep things civil as well, along with apologizing when things get a little heated. After all, their suggestions might actually be useful, and it takes patience and careful, rational thought to judge the good suggestions from the bad ones....
Sheesh, I must be tired tonight; it's almost 12:30 AM here in Alaska, and I'm already rambling
Make of my bleary-eyed thoughts however you will 
Good luck with the trilogy! And good luck on the edits!
Sincerely,
Mr. Album
3137383 In the words of the great and powerful Big Mac, eeyup.
3137388
Well I could always use an editor for future chapters of 'Heart of an Empire'.. if you would be interested. Of course it will be a little bit before I have time to write regularly again.
3137406 That's fine with me.
3137410
Well I will let you know when I have the next chapter ready then.
Awesome.