Hey! It looks like you're new here. You might want to check out the introduction.

#15178 · 7
· · >>007Ben >>Fenton
Saw Cold in Gardez's plug for this. Not sure if I'm up to it, but if you never try, how will you know. Right?
#15489 · 7
· on Monsters · >>GaPJaxie
This wasn't even one of the stories on my set list, but after spotting >>GaPJaxie(An author I've read and respected for years now) give such a cold, two line reaction and instant rejection of this story, I just had to see what it could possibly be about, to garner such a reaction.

Having read it, I guess I can sort of understand the knee-jerkiness of the reaction. But I can't say that I agree with it. Not even a few months ago I had given a heated rebuttal to something of a similar reaction a fan had left on a story I was reading. Not the same kind of situation as here, simply similar in that the angry comenter was upset for what I thought of as a silly reason was all. Instead of judging a work of writing on its merits or style, they chose instead to get angry about the direction the narrative took. It didn't agree with their head canon you see. And so, they became vary rude about it.

Now I'm not saying that this is anything like the same thing here, it's just that it seemed similar to me. Instead of looking at the work as a piece of writing about a super heavy and uncomfortable subject, like pedophilia. GaP Jaxie, you seem to have looked at the idea the story set up (icky as it is) and judged the work on how you felt about that subject, instead of the skill of it as a work. If you find you can't judge this without letting those feelings cloud your opinion, perhaps you should take >>horizon's advice and simple abstain from voting on it.

And now I am going to go hide myself and hope you won't think too much less of me for disagreeing with you on a matter that you seem to feel so strongly on. As I said before, I really am a huge fan.
#15677 · 5
· on Should I Stay or Should I Go. · >>regidar >>ToXikyogHurt
>>Zaid Val'Roa
>>Winston
>>regidar
>>ToXikyogHurt
>>CoffeeMinion
>>Trick_Question
First of all, I want to thank you all for your honest and straightforward reviews of my story. I can't tell you how much it means to me that I can actually write on a site like this, and have my work seen by writers who will give it a good look over and tell me what is lacking.

After each review, I'd take what was said, and with that in mind, I'd reread my story again, trying to see it from the perspective of that person, or at least trying to see it in a new light. Doing this let me really see my writing with new eyes.

Although I submitted the prompt for this round, I didn't really have anything specific in mind for it. Other than that it was a quote I liked, and I'm a fan of post apocalyptic stories. When it got picked, I saw it as a sign that I should take the dive, and actually submit a story.

I ended up procrastinating till almost the last hour to start working on it.

I've been told that the best way to write is to make an outline of what I want to happen, and then flesh out that idea. This led me to simply stare at my screen for over an hour with nothing to show for it. So I did the only thing that has ever worked for me. I just started writing, and let it take me where it would.

Other than the vague concept of Twilight thinking about jumping off a cliff, I started with no idea how this was going to play out, or even what the tone of the story was going to be. Shoot, I didn't even know if she was going to jump or not.

>>Zaid Val'Roa
Self reflection is something I like in a story as well. Although looking back at it, doing almost the whole story in that manner was perhaps a miscalculation on my part.

And as for horses doing horse things. I always saw them as being more like cats, and small enough to sit on laps.

>>Winston
Yeah, my grammar is atrocious. Commas confuse me. Semicolons make me wonder, and I've been told that in general, talk like Yoda I do. I have a lot of work to go in that regards.

As for having something more unique for Celestia to talk to Twilight about as far as death. I wanted to avoid putting anything here that wasn't fact. I wanted to make it clear that she wasn't telling her an opinion or belief. But a fact. The universe is vast. Energy can't be destroyed. These are things that are irrefutable.

I guess this story just ended up not being about the questions of life and death, as much as it is about Twiligh's need to know. Something that I feel I didn't set up well was the depth of that need. I fell into that old trap of knowing what motivated a character, thus forgetting to explain that to my reader.

>>regidar
This feel of Twilight being uninterested is a failing on my part. I wanted to try writing her here as a form of high functioning sociopath. I wanted to make a version of her that looked at the world, and didn't quit gel with the emotions of those around her. I just forgot to tell any of this to the readers. So her reactions to the things going on have this unexplained sense of detachment from her. Again, a failing on my part to properly represent her character.

>>ToXikyogHurt
I think setting the scene is a vary important part of the story, it sets the mood for the whole work to come. That and I do love me some scenery-porn.

I love the irony of the fact that it seemed like her tryst was a form of setup for the child at the end, when in fact it was the other way around. Nearing the end, I really didn't want Twilight to jump, so I looked back at that part, and thought what better to ground Twi in reality, and pull her back from her existential crisis, than that.

The point of the scene with the lover was to show an example of how Twilight could do silly things in her need to find things out. I didn't even think of using for this. Which is why it would feel sloppy in that regards.

I have a lot of shortcomings as a writer, but the one that bugs me the most is my inability to write in the proper perspective. In the scene where Twilight looks back to the time her grandmother died, what I wanted to do was set up the genesis of this question. I was not sure if I could shift the story into a flashback without breaking the perspective. So I did it as her actively thinking back, a mistake in retrospect.

And yes, as a fan of mlp, I can understand your frustration with me explaining who Twilight Sparkle is, and how she thinks. I just don't want to fall into the fan fiction trap of working with characters the readers would already know inside and out. What I was trying to do was write a story that a non fan could read and not get lost in. The only question my non mlp fan asked was "who is Pinkie Pie?"

>>CoffeeMinion
Thanks for the praise on that last scene. I think how a story is ended is paramount to the execution of it as a whole. It was for me, the easiest to write. Or, at least came the easiest, with no need for second guessing or rewriting.

I tried to do as much showing as I could in a story existing solely in the mind of the character. Anything that had to do with her emotions, or how she reacted to the idea of certain things, I tried to do through subtle hints in her movement, and the scenery around here. In retrospect, perhaps a little too subtle.

>>Trick_Question
A true point about Twilight not realy seeming to be the type to kill herself out of curiosity. I was going to try and portray her in the the light of being somebody that can get hung up on an idea and not let it go. She would get overly obsessed over it, not being able to let go of it. As I said previously, I simply forgot to.

As I was writing this story, it was telling me what kind of story it wanted to be. Wow, that sounds really corny, but is true nonetheless.

After finishing it, I found that it was a story about how people can get lost in the big things, the great questions in life. When in truth, in the day-to-day of our lives, it doesn't really matter. When compared to the love of her child, and the responsibility of taking care of her, all the knowledge in the world can't even compair. Hopfuly one day, I can do justice to that idea.
#15678 · 5
· on Let Me Know · >>Zaid Val'Roa
I can't believe I got a piece of art done for my story, and such a good one to boot. Now I feel almost obligated to fix the problems in this story, and then post it on fimfiction. If for no other reason than to show off this artwork, if you'd be willing to loan it to me.
#15839 · 5
· · >>Trick_Question
Well. I at least read and voted on all the stories on my slate, even if I didn't get in a review on all of them.

Are you happy writeoff.me? Are you!? I spent ever spare moment over the last two weeks pouring my heart into to you, writing for you. Reading for you. reviewing for you! And now I'm 30 chapters behind in my East-horse and Dashing-Apples!! How dare you! You take my heart and leave be bereft, I am want for more, but left empty instead, well enough I say! No more of my life will you have, back to FimFiction where I can be safe in the works of others. Adieu, farewell and goodbye...

Call me.
#15261 · 4
· · >>horizon
Just finished. Wasn't sure I could get anything done. Only worked on it tonight, and it sorta wrote itself as I worked. Hope it's up to snuff.
#15679 · 4
· on Calm of the Void
This work really captures the feel of the story. Having Twilight be seen as so small, standing on the edge of the precipice. It hits all the right keys. Thank you for making such art.
#15841 · 4
· on Let Me Know · >>Zaid Val'Roa
Well. Even though my story bombed, at least it inspired the art that won. That's a victory right there =(^.^)=

Now I'm gonna go and sleep this off, Adieu.
#15200 · 3
·
Oh... Wow, didn't expect my prompt to win... Now I wish I had come up with a story to go with it.
#15271 · 3
·
I told myself I'd get a good nights sleep, and worry about all this in the morning. But screw that noise. This is the first thing I've really done that wasn't part of a group tribute fic to a man who loves Disney princess way too much.

I couldn't sleep right now if I took half a bottle of pills.