Fic recs, July 1st: Who Should You Be Watching? edition! · 10:26pm Jul 1st, 2017
Yes, it's the "big thing" I've been talking about! 45 stories!
Once upon a time, I posted a blog asking all y'all who on this site I should be paying attention to.
You had a lot of suggestions.
I have thus reviewed one story from every author in that blog's comments. Well, almost. I tried to go with every suggestion given, save authors I'm already following, with two big exceptions: Demon Eyes Laharl and Arad, for mostly the same reason. (All stories based off one that's really long. In the case of the former, not a fic I wanted to read. For the latter, Stardust is on my RIS, so I'll get to it eventually.)
Anyway, in case you're not one of the folks who suggested things to me, you're likely to find someone new to keep an eye on here! I sure did! :) Back to paid reviews after this! :V
H: 4 R: 13 C: 18 V: 6 N: 4
"Why Don't You?" by Seventh Heaven
Genre: Friendshipping
Trixie wants to know more about friendship.
I've reviewed Seventh Heaven before, with no particular result; the most recent was in January of this year, with a collab, so that doesn't count. As for this story, I'll admit, the cover art got me hyped for shipping, despite the lack of tag. This is a perfectly slice of life piece that's just Trixie and Twilight talking about stuff. They reach a certain amount of accord by the end, which was nice. Just don't expect anything mind-blowing, or even deep character revelations.
Recommended for Slice of Life Fans
The Lusty Human Butler by getmeouttahere
Reading by Winged T. Spears
Mature: Sex
Genre: Romance Novel Parody
Have a peek inside the upcoming second edition of the bestselling novel!
The reason I've never read any of this author's stories? They're all AiE, and quite a few of them are Sex-tagged. That's a big "do not want" as far as I'm concerned, but this fic's description was so hilarious, I had to give it a shot. Oh my god, am I glad I did. I'll say the second part, written in second person and kind of your standard HiE thing, isn't super-amazing, but the first part? Pitch-perfect modern hypersexualized romance novel through and through. Luna's foreword is hilarious, as is the afterword, and the rest is just hysterical. The best part? There's no Anon, and no human-on-pony action; it's all in the protagonist's mind! So if you can stand the least bit of sexual humor, do yourself a favor and read this, I loved the hell out of it.
Highly Recommended
Applejack and Rainbow Dash Make a Snowpony by UnlicensedBrony
Genre: Shipping
Today is the day Rainbow Dash tells Applejack how she feels!
I haven't read any UnlicensedBrony since Resurgence in 2014, but that was pretty old. Then again, they haven't written anything since two years ago, so have something else that's pretty old, too. And, well, maybe not the best example of someone's writing. It's got a lot of hallmarks of early-fandom shipping; I mean, I've definitely seen the "Rainbow Dash thinking about how sexy AJ is" setup before, and it still baffles me. Also, alleged background Twixie. But it's definitely amusing watching Rainbow just be completely unsuccessful at trying to tell Applejack how she feels, and of course things progress as they are wont, but that makes the reveal even more amusing. Non-shippers will find nothing of note here, but as a lightly funny, lightly sappy Appledash, it delivers.
Recommended for Shippers
How to Hug a Five-Hundred-Foot Tall Dragon by somatic
Sequel to Hellpiercer
Genre: Heartwarming
This time, it's Spike's turn to surprise Twilight.
somatic's big claim to fame is the Hellpiercer 'verse, which I've read two stories from, and am happy to read another! This one, specifically, is the story that gives away the joke in Hellpiercer. Thankfully, it doesn't try to drag that out any more than necessary. This is a little sappy, and rather dumps Twilight and Spike's ancient history on the reader, but gosh darn does it hit you right in the "Twilight/Spike uncategorizable familial relationship" feels. You could probably read this without reading its predecessor, but you should read Hellpiercer anyway, so get on that. And now I'll have to look into this story's sequel sometime!
Recommended
Rainbow's Mind Controlling Guitar by Windlife
Review Removed by Request
Applejack Falls Down a Fucking Flight of Stairs by S A D B O I
Mature: Sex, Gore
Genre: Trollfic
Or maybe she was pushed…
Surprisingly not a hard name to search for. I'd never heard of this guy before, but it's obvious he's a pretty hardcore troll, just by looking at the descriptions and ratings of his stories. This story is apparently based on his tendency to kill off Applejack in all of his other stories. If you enjoy out-of-character humor as much as I do, not to mention Applejack-bashing, you'll get a kick out of this.
Troll Recommended
The Conversion Bureau: Xenolestia vs. Tolkein's New Zealand by Tathem_Relag
Genre: I Don't Know
This is another name new to me, and I can't judge whether or not there is trolling going on here, because TCB fics tend to get way downvoted. Short answer: deffo trolling. Not once while reading this story was I blessed with a single fucking clue as to what was going on in it. I get that it's some kind of Conversion Bureau satire, but why Lord of the Rings?
Not Recommended
The Luna Papers by CoffeeBean
Genre: Drama/Mystery
Cadence is beginning to think that not only does her Aunt Luna not like her, but she's up to something sinister as well…
Looking at their gallery, I find a lot of princess-centric stories, rather a few with batponies, and a bit of princest. This just so happens to be their highest-rated story, and it's not too long, so I gave it a shot. It's not bad! The writing maybe focuses a bit too long on scenery, and it gets a 99% on the Luna Test (just one misplaced 'thee' in the penultimate chapter!) I'd also say the mystery leaves something to be desired; it's very obviously a situation of "there's no way what Cadence thinks is going on is what's really going on". But those are definitely the words of someone who reads for a living. I recommend this entirely on the strength of Cadence and Luna's interactions and bonding. I like how Cadence is written, I like that Luna often speaks in aphorisms; heck, I even like that the batponies speak their own language! Everything, even the eye-rollingly obvious misunderstandings, feels natural to the characters, and that's what's most important.
Recommended
Heirlooms by Rocinante
Genre: Mystery
Rainbow Dash seeks help from Twilight to finish her family tree.
I had a bunch of this guy's stories on my RIL, but I've never read any! What a unique concept this is; I don't think I've ever seen a pony genealogical mystery before! This was, of course, written far before season 7, so current canon does not apply. (I sometimes wonder if Firefly deserved better than frequently being a tragic footnote in the fanmade history of the character she inspired.) Suffice to say, it's immersive and fascinating, and ends on something of a punchline that will totally spoil the story if you know it ahead of time. (I didn't realize at first that the big word was a link; it explains everything if you don't immediately get the meaning, because otherwise this would end with a big question mark!) That ending implies an awful lot, and I rather like it.
Recommended
The Batpony Conundrum by Sleepy Panda
Genre: Light Comedy
The Night Guard's recruitment initiative has grown somewhat desperate of late.
The last time I read Sleepy Panda was in January, a collab with scootaloo96; the time before that was the OC Slamjam. This story I selected more or less at random. "Random" is a good word for it; just look at the tags! The silly premise would actually make for a decent comedy, but this doesn't explore it in any depth, mostly just laying it out. Might be good light reading for batpony fans.
Vaguely Recommended
Equestria Ninja Girls by Wildcard25
Genre: EQG/TMNT Crossover
A prophetic dream leads Twilight and her human friends to seek the help of four walking, talking turtles in New York City.
I have no idea who suggested this author to me, but their output seems to be focused on Equestria Girls stories, especially crossovers with the Ninja Turtles. This sounds amazing. So, despite this story's length, I just had to try it. Unfortunately — and I should stress, I really wanted to like this — I couldn't do it. I had high hopes, given that this is smack-dab in the middle of Wildcard's gallery, publication-wise; I was at least hoping it would fail spectacularly, but most of the ways this story is bad are ways that I've seen other stories be bad. The writing is simplistic and short-sighted, filled with punctuation problems, word usage issues, homophone mixups and hurried pacing that paradoxically takes the story nowhere fast. What's given weight varies wildly: the story does the old "pause to describe a character in detail" thing; we get the full backstory of Splinter and the Turtles — a backstory close enough to what I remember that anyone familiar with the franchise is likely to know it — yet when it comes to the alien invasion that's unique to this version of TMNT, almost nothing of it is revealed. The plot lurches forward via a series of coincidences and just-because's. Twilight and friends meet the Turtles, share backstories, and then stick around to train as ninjas because… I don't know. The characters are all one-note, though that's at least true to how they're written in the EQG movies. I can't say much for the Turtles side because this isn't the TMNT I grew up on. Though, on that note, it honestly doesn't feel too different; I mean, so long as you ignore the fact that April O'Neil and Casey Jones are random teenagers, and April has fucking telepathic powers for some goddamn reason. (Canon!) So, slight butthurt there. :B But like, I remember Mondo Gecko as a C-list character from the original show; I might actually have his toy! And he's just incredibly asinine in this story, which I have to assume is how he really acts in the show, though who knows. Bottom line, I spent seven chapters waiting for something to happen, very little did, and it looked like I was in for quite a lot of the same come chapter eight. (The line that killed me was "That's how ya do ninja cowpolk stlye" [sic].)It's a shame; I mean, a story called Equestria Ninja Girls in Space sounds ripe for amazing shenanigans, and maybe the author's writing has improved, but I don't want to slog through this story to find out. The best I can say is, if Equestria Girls had been a thing I was into in, say, middle school, I would have written this story, and it wouldn't have been any better.
Not Recommended: DNF 7/19
The Wealth of the World by very trustworthy rodent
Genre: Historical
148 ponies set off to found a new land based on pure morality. What they found instead was their doom.
This, on the other hand, was an easy choice: three stories, two on my RIL, read the newest one! All I can say is, wow, great choice! Absolutely nothing to do with ponies, but the writing is superb, a pitch-perfect take on Hawthorne and a marvelous tragedy, to boot. You may be reminded of hated English assignments from the past, but this is eminently worth the read.
Highly Recommended
Welcome to the Wolf Pack by Jin Shu
Genre: AU/Military Action
They seem to write a lot of military-themed stories, from action-packed combat to quiet slice of life about retired soldiers. This story interested me because it's billed as a proof-of-concept for Equestrian Horizons, which I'm pretty sure I pre-read for EQD. I know I've read part of it before, is what I'm saying. The only thing wrong with this story is not everything feels equally ponified. Gatling guns that shoot magical bullets are one thing, but all the electronics and radio systems just seem plopped down over top of the world. The story needs a bit of an editing run, too. But, you know, it's a decent proof-of-concept, and if you like alternate universes or action, this should appeal to you.
Recommended for Action Fans
A Game of Inches by Space Jazz
Genre: EQG Comedic Shipping
Y'know, I could have read The Sunlight Project, which is also on my RIL, but why go for 36k of serious shipping when I can read 1k of probably silly comedy instead? :V Pure silliness, this absolutely is. And I'll be honest, they don't have to be girlfriends to argue about who's taller, but it's infinitely cuter if they are. Plus, this is a good ship, fight me. >:V
Recommended for Laughs
The Noodle Incident by Icenrose
Genre: Comedy
It's time for the Cutie Mark Crusaders to cook dinner, all by themselves!
Oh, I thought that name sounded familiar: Icenrose wrote Two Mares and a Carpet Bag, the 80 Days contest entry that still isn't finished! I of course took something complete instead. :V Oh my god, this is a riot. Watching the CMCs blunder their way through cooking an entire meal, knowing at every turn just how terribly their decision is going to turn out — that is not what the 'clean' setting is for! — is sheer nail-biting genius. And then Discord shows up. Oh god. I get tired of stories where ponies are out-and-out afraid of the CMCs, crying out in terror when they arrive on scene; I'd much rather see stories like this, that explain why everypony reacts that way.
Recommended
Fun Pictures of Ponies by PortalJumper
Genre: OC Fic
Literally the only one of this author's stories that's complete, which is a shame, because two of the others are on my RIL. Oh well. This gets off to a bad start, with a transparent attempt to subvert a weather report opening (without actually subverting it) followed quickly by a hamfisted character description. Honestly, I found the whole thing rather tedious. It follows the usual beats of a story focused on letting us know how great a new character is while remaining painfully slice of life. At least I can see from the A/N why this was written the way it was, and hopefully the person it was written for liked it. For the rest of you, only take a chance if you're really into solidly slice of life fics, or really like reading about OCs.
Vaguely Recommended
Princess Celestia Accidentally Does Cocaine by CategoricalGrant
Genre: Random Comedy
There was a mixup in the royal tea pantry, you see.
This author seems to have two modes: political satire, memes and Pony Does X; snuggles. So we'll go with the story that's at the top of the featured box as I get this list of fics ready to be read. :V I'll admit, I had low expectations going into this, but it's a good bit funnier than you might think. It slots in pretty well with your standard "pony discovers coffee and acts hyper" fic, but I was amused. Maybe because it's Celestia acting hyper. And then Twilight shows up and everything escalates. It does get a little silly, but the point is the narrative is strong, and I had a good time reading it. :D
Recommended
An Orphan's Curiosity by Vertigo-01
Genre: Slice of Life
Scootaloo and Apple Bloom talk about their parents.
Last February, I read a story from this author called And It Rained All Night, which was okay, mostly marred by a poor reveal at the end. This story was another easy choice, though: open gallery, see RIL marked, select. This is a nice story! It's very simple, just one orphan talking to another except, spoilers, Scootaloo's not really an orphan. She's got at least a little tragedy in her backstory, which I approve of, but mostly this is about what having parents means. I mean, on one hand, it's very similar to a lot of other fics about family, but I don't know, something about this just hit the right chord with me, and I think it will for anyone else.
Recommended
Earth Ponies Are Overpowered by Maran
Genre: Headcanon Dump
An exploration of Twilight's earth pony side leads to dramatic changes nopony could have expected.
I almost feel like this one should get a vs. post; I'm pretty sure it was a big deal when it came out, and those 1112k views attest to that. <.< Oh well. What a weird story this is, though. It starts out as kind of your run-of-the-mill headcanon dump about earth pony magic, a topic that I've always been interested in, and that this story does well, for all that it's an exercise in connecting tiny details from disparate episodes. I do mean "dump", though; there's a lot of exposition, and while the majority is dialogue, it does tend to stop the narrative cold. From there, it turns into what I described as "the Change in Three Parts of immortality angst". Seriously, a large portion of this story is the characters asking each other if they want to live longer. And then it ends with what happens to Applejack, which… You can sort of see it coming, it's not like it isn't foreshadowed, and it's really interesting, particularly in what she says and does before it happens, it's just a weird place to end up given where this story starts. But really, none of this is bad, just strange. If you can handle a little infodumping, and especially if you like these kinds of magical headcanon fics, this is definitely worth a look.
Recommended for Fans of Earth Pony Magic
The Donutier by Hap
Genre: Comedy
If there's one thing Twilight Sprinkle is tired of, it's Twilight Sparkle.
I've read some of Hap's work, and it's all been for contests; the last one was from those Disney Princess fics written for short skirts last year. This one made a big splash when it came out, and I've been interested in it, so now's a good time. :) What a great story it is! Funny despite the lack of comedy tag, with a snarky protagonist who's amusing while remaining sympathetic. I mean, you have to feel for her, given what's been foisted off on her, through no fault of her own. The second character — the self-styled Redblood Wingmane or something :V — is a perfect foil for her, very much the Trixie to Twilight's Twilight, while still being enough of her own character to count. Their story progresses rather quickly, and while I don't think this would have overstayed a larger word count, never did I feel I was missing out on anything, either. Truthfully, this is just a simple story about the power of friendship, a perfect message for ponyfic, but it feels so much more important in the moment. If you haven't read it already, make sure you do.
Highly Recommended
Human Is Equestria by Goldenwing
Genre: What
Fluttershy tells Twilight about a weird dream she had.
Four stories, three are incomplete are cancelled, don't bother reading the one I'm actually interested in! So, uh, the title tells you everything you need to know about this, and I still don't know what to make of it. It's one part surreal horror, one part SCP Foundation, which I guess makes it another part regular horror, then. Maybe I should change the genre tag to Horror. What?
Vaguely Recommended
Call It What It Is by SaintChoc
Mature: Sex
Genre: Group Sex
It's time for Twilight to get together with all five of her friends for a night of sex!
I've so far read Raven and A Family Holiday, both of which were excellent. Strangely, a large portion of their output is the "Friendship Orgy" continuity; not what I expected, but it's where we start. This is… a very different kind of story, and, I have to say, didn't do anything for me. I don't take it as a knock against the story itself, just a symptom of me poking my nose in where it doesn't need to go. The subplot about Rainbow never having been to one of these get-togethers alongside Fluttershy is pretty decent, but this is basically just a solid 9,000 words of ponies having sex, and the parts with Applejack especially were just weird.
Recommended If You're Into That
Nature's Course by Arbutus
Mature: Sex
Genre: Humanized AppleDash
Applejack just invited Rainbow Dash over to make a pie.
This person hasn't been seen for two years, so this is the newest story I can muster. It has been a long time since I read legit non-EQG humanized ponies, and the lack of characters in the cover art made it hard to visualize. That's neither here nor there, though. What is here is a whole lot of setup: fully half the story, and while a lot of it is interesting — Rainbow palling around with Granny Smith, for one — I found myself anxious for anything to happen. When it does, it's worth the wait, the juxtaposition of a sudden dramatic expression with lots of slice of life stunning, but still. Once you get through the fluff, this reminds me of Mistakes Were Made: that sad, post-relationship frame over memories of a happier time. The writing is pretty darned good, as well, emotional and impressionistic in all the right ways. There's no real reason this had to the be about humans, but the characterization is great. It's the kind of romance that really makes you wish the characters could work things out better (and that the author was still around). And don't worry about the mature tag, it's hardly explicit; definitely worth turning your filters off for if you're at all into the ship.
Recommended
An Open Door by SkycatcherEQ
Genre: EQG Drama
Aria and Sonata may have fallen in with the girls who stole their songs, but Adagio will not be broken so easily.
It's really easy to choose one story to read out of an author's gallery when all they've written is sequels to that story. :B And now I have that song from Frozen stuck in my head. Anyway, hope you're up for 17k of characters sitting around, talking about their feelings! This is an altogether unexciting piece, especially since what feels like the emotional climax comes at the end of chapter 2, but the emotions expressed throughout feel natural. There's something to be gained by reading this, and I'm at least interested in seeing where this continuity goes. If you're interested in seeing the Dazzlings reformed, you will definitely get that from this. Me, I really want a story now about the Dazzlings being Old West saloon singers. :V Just think about it: Wild West version of "Under Our Spell"! Better than "Love Is an Open Door" anyway oh goddammit
Recommended for Dazzlings Fans
Vinyl Scratch Is in a Tree and Refuses to Come Down by Doccular42
Reading by Scribbler, Jacob M. Keene and Cloud9
Genre: Friendshipping
She just really wants Octavia to look at the moon. And Octavia really wants her keys.
Newest story, on my RIL, ready to go. I don't see any particular theme to what this person writes, so I don't feel too bad going for something that sounds a little goofier than the rest. "Goofy" covers, ah, maybe half of it. The rest is surprisingly heartfelt. Gosh, it's just a really unexpected piece, all told, and it's definitely worth the read.
Recommended
Grab the Brush by the dobermans
Genre: EQG Randomness
Sunset and Trixie are called to the Principal's office.
When I hear "the dobermans", I think White Out, but I've also read their "improved Cupcakes" story Life Is a Party, from the More Most Dangerous Game. Most of their stories are tagged Dark and/or Gore, and this one's the former. And it's also… pfft, uh, geez, I don't even. There's just something off about it, all the way through, for all that I was amused by Trixie's horse-related taunting. Then you get to the main event, as it were, and it's… brushing. Hair. And then the whole scene just starts breaking down as everyone acts goddamn strange. And then you get to the video that inspired it all, and everything somehow makes even less sense. This is just really weird.
Recommended for the Experience
Doesn't That Feel Better? by WritingSpirit
Genre: Angst
Tired of the nightmares, Sunset has only recourse: leave.
Ooh! I know of WritingSpirit because they wrote a fic called Mamihlapinatapai, saving me the trouble of doing the same. :D (Oh gee, the same can be said for writing a story based on "Yellow"! :O) That one's a little long for my purposes here, but I'll likely read it sooner than later! This one's just the first completed fic in their gallery that wasn't 100k+ long. <.< It didn't really do anything for me. I spent a lot of time questioning Sunset's motivation (I mean, running away from home won't get rid of nightmares c.c), then worrying she was going to kill herself, then just sort of being done with the whole thing. The ending turns out better than expected, though it almost all seems like much ado about nothing. The writing can use some work, too, with a number of usage issues ("It would be a short journey, with little obstacles and even lesser turns") and some other editing mistakes. In all, not my favorite, might be worth it if you're into low-stakes character pieces.
Vaguely Recommended
The Legend of the Scorpion Queen by cursedchords
Genre: Fairy Tale
A scorpion vows revenge on the King who took her from her home.
Sometimes, a person has a gallery full of stories that just sound fucking fascinating, so you go with the most recent one. And if this is any indication of the author's ability, consider me sold. This is a story of love, vengeance and betrayal, at once classic and unique. There's an effortlessness with which the narrative is presented, and the whole thing really does feel like an actual in-universe story that ponies would tell. I just really enjoy reading stuff like this, and hopefully, you will, too.
Highly Recommended
The Most Beautiful Song by OnionPie
Genre: Tragedy
Twilight Sparkle trudges through the desert on a last-ditch mission to buy peace, her dead brother by her side.
If there's one thing I know about OnionPie, it's that adorable sad Pinkie avatar. :V Lots of their stories on my RIL, though! This is a very dark fic that sets up a scenario that might be hard to swallow for some. If you can get past that, I think you'll find a strong dark fic about revenge with a few surprising moments. I really love the image of Twilight being haunted by her dead brother, his hallucination putting voice to all the guilt she feels about what's befallen Equestria. The ending is pretty intense. If you enjoy putting the pieces together as you read, and don't mind stories about bad things happening to ponies, this is darned satisfying.
Recommended
The Assembled Letters of Twilight Sparkle, Protégé of Emperor Discord by Caligari87
Genre: AU
Twilight Sparkle is sent by the Emperor to figure out what this "Friendship" thing is.
This is an older story, but a prequel to at least one other in the gallery, on my RIL, and highly rated. I have to admit, for all that this puts a lot of thought into a universe where Discord won — from how naturally at odds with Chaos the normally organized Twilight Sparkle is, to the "statues" of the "Day-Mare and Night-Mare" in the old castle in the forest — I found the presentation somewhat dry. Partially, that's by design; Twilight is just a student of Chaos, after all, and her attempts to be 'random' in her letters come off as ridiculous, because she's bad at it. The letters themselves are otherwise pretty good, though there's a lot of reliance on crossed-out words for the journal interludes. Maybe it's just that, despite all the changes, this follows a pretty standard show pilot plot, with Twilight learning about each of the Elements of Harmony in turn, whether she knows it or not. There just aren't that many surprises, is what I'm trying to say, and it seems like the author realized that about halfway through, if the A/N is anything to go by. Plus, it ends on a cliffhanger. The whole thing is just setup for Twilight Sparkle, Bringer of Chaos. But you know what? I want to read that story, now. And that's the best thing I can say about this one.
Recommended for AU Fans
Of Winter and Wine by Cyneryk
Genre: Family Drama
Cheerilee's warm winter night is interrupted by an unwanted visitor: her drunk sister.
Still around, but not very active, so anything will be old. This one was on my RIL. And it's not bad, but it could be better. There's a solid third of the story used to set up just how much Cheerilee likes being warm; it makes the contrast with what happens when Berry shows up have that much more impact, but it's also a third of the darn story! Also, there are some usage issues, like "rasps" instead of "raps", and a couple instances of "the teacher". The story at its core, of two siblings trying to reconnect, is pretty heartfelt, though, and I could buy Berry Punch as Cheerilee's sister. I've complained before about stories that didn't use fanon Berry to look at alcoholism; this one hits closer to what I wanted from those.
Recommended for Slice of Life Fans
Forged in Tartarus by The Ponytrician
Genre: Slice of Life?
Deep in Tartarus, Lord Tirek receives an offer of friendship from an unexpected visitor.
I read The Truth About Myths and Legends back in 2014 and enjoyed it enough to add the rest of the Ponytrician's stories to my RIL, so this is one I'm looking forward to. If you can help it, don't look at the character tags on this one (harder, now that they're up at the top); it makes the reveal so much sweeter. Other than that, though, this doesn't have a lot going for it. I enjoyed the verbal sparring, and the reason why the friendship is being offered is interesting, but this ends up feeling like chapter one of no-more-left, and it was fairly unsatisfying in that regard. There are just too many questions about possible betrayals to leave hanging. I have to admit, I'm a little disappointed.
Recommended as Light Reading
Yaks Are Jerks by Avox
Genre: Episode Followup
I read four of Avox's stories in 2015, two of which I liked, and two I didn't, so this promises to be interesting. Funnily enough, this being written right after Party Pooped, it still holds up after we got a second yak-isode. I mean, look at that title: I coulda told you that! But yeah, this is mostly just riffing on how ridiculous the yaks are, courtesy of a Celestia who's smashed off her ass. If you find that amusing, as I do, you will likely find this story the same.
Recommended for Fans of Drunk Humor
Of Flies and Spiders by wYvern
Genre: Changeling Fic
Glitter isn't like other changelings: she feeds off negative emotions.
wYvern hasn't written anything in so long that I'm credited for Writeoff feedback in the description of this story. c.c I kind of remember it, and I have to say, it's a little cheesy, but in the running with some of the better entries of the OC Slamjam. There's some romance, and it ends on a needlessly dark note, but it ain't bad.
Recommended If You Like OC Fics
Closing Time by MalWinters
Genre: OC Fic
Roma really hasn't had the best day.
Another writer who hasn't written anything in years, despite being active; this is their most recent entry. It's about the tomato seller from Putting Your Hoof Down; quite the unexpected blast from the past! Anyway, it's one of those stories where a scene from the show is played up for sympathy against the initially offending party. Also, where a party of OCs is assembled out of background ponies in the first few paragraphs. There are small things that annoyed me about this, though, like the extended joke about Crafty Crate's accent. Mostly, it's just the situation. Oh, you shouldn't have cheated Roma out of a bit! Her business is failing! Child Services is going to take her foal! Woe is she! I like the way this plays out, the way the unforeseen slight is made well, but setting it up was kind of overdone. At least it's heartwarming and cute.
Vaguely Recommended
Don't Knock It Till You Try It by Maphysto
Genre: Friendshipping
An argument leads Rainbow Dash and Rarity to trying things they never thought they would.
I read the excellent In Which Twilight Sparkle Tries to Eat a Sandwich three years ago; his other stories are incomplete and on my RIL, so the choice was easy! The one thing I realized early on is that this is Rarity and Applejack's daring contest from Look Before You Sleep, writ large, with RD instead of AJ. If Rarity plays sports with Rainbow for an afternoon, Rainbow will go to the spa to get her mane styled. This does mean that a large portion of this story is just sports action, which I can't say I found particularly riveting. Though, funnily enough, given that they both end up finding some appreciation for the other's choice of recreation, this serves as a prequel to that ridiculous scene of Rainbow Dash at the spa in Applejack's Day Off. There's just a little too much in the way of detail here, though I can't argue with the results. You don't see solid friendshipping like this often.
Recommended
Daily by LimeAttack
Genre: Character Piece
Wake up. Eat breakfast. Trot to work. Eat a sunflower sandwich for lunch. Trot home. Take a shower. Sleep. Routine.
Author hasn't been around in a year, and hasn't written anything since 2013, which is a shame, because I read Growth way back in that same year, and it was great. :C This is a pretty interesting little piece about the power of routine and what it can mean to someone with OCD. That said, it's also way low-key, and I expect many readers may even find it boring. But it does a good job in setting up our protagonist's routine so that the ways in which he breaks from it on this particular day are significant. That said, I got the feeling I was missing something at the end, though I could just be overthinking things. Still, a solid piece, just not for everyone.
Recommended If You're Interested in Exploring Neuroses
Under the Light of a Shooting Star by NorrisThePony
Genre: Sister Bonding
Shooting stars don't mean the same thing to everypony.
I am well familiar with NorrisThePony: his name is more or less synonymous with "world-building". (Though it should be synonymous with "Twilestia" apparently) He's written stuff like the I-reviewed-it-and-then-it-kept-going Synthetic Bottled Sunlight, and Cyclosa, which I've heard some talk about recently. I picked this story, despite its age, because it's short and, more importantly, not Twilestia. D: Gotta say, I love the idea of Celestia being excited about the night sky. Plus, this gives Luna some very interesting things to do with her time. Pedants will likely rail at the depiction of shooting stars, but you know what? This is a story about two horses that use magic to move the sun and moon in the sky. It fits with the setting, is what I'm saying.
Recommended
The Angel of the Sun by BlackRoseRaven
Genre: Dark Character Piece
Sol Seraph is supposed to be a predator. She doesn't understand where these feelings are coming from.
Judging by their output, this is another author who does a lot of world-building, not to mention stories that are really long. D: One is over a million words! This one's about twice as long as their shortest story (yes, I literally ordered the gallery by word count), but it sounded cool. I will also note that it's really old (five-digit story number), so hopefully the author has sorted out things like how to punctuate dialogue, see the very first sentence. :| I really had to wonder about the characters in this story. I mean, Sol Seraph is a very intense... Okay, she's an edgelord, and the narrative is very focused on making sure we know She Is a Hardcore Motherfucker. Meanwhile, her husband seems to be an idiot, like he had no idea what he was getting into when he married her and continues to ignore the fact that she's not a normal pony in the slightest. And then there's the world-building, which is dumped on us all at once, and pretty damned grimdark. Yes, the Order seems focused on hunting monsters, but it still hardly fits the world it's set in. (Shades of Upheaval...) That said, it does a good job exploring the feelings of a pony who some might call a monster herself, though it's very blunt and forward about all of this. And I do like how it mixes home life with fightin' time, as these sorts of characters tend to be introduced solely by the latter. I suspect this isn't a good introduction to this author's work, and I'll try reading something else by them… When I have the time. <.<
Vaguely Recommended
Cusp of Dawn by OrphiusOlyandra
Genre: Dark AU
Ten years after destroying part of Canterlot, Twilight Sparkle is still a wanted mare.
Another writer with a lot of long stories heavy on the world-building. (I suspect these suggestions all came from the same person…) This one could honestly stand to be a little longer; the pacing is rather fast, and it ends on something of a cliffhanger. Boy, does it pack in the fascinating AU world-building, though. I like pretty much everything about it. I mean, yeah, Twilight's foalhood magic surge destroying a city block instead of getting her into the School for Gifted Unicorns is pretty grimdark, but as a basis for what's presented here, I like it. All the characters feel true to their canon selves, as well, which is pretty impressive. I think this will be worth a look for anyone.
Recommended
Warming Winter Chill by The Lord Inquisitor
Mature: Sex
Genre: Humanized Clop
Rarity and Applejack try something new.
More world-builders! I had two choices with this one, and I picked "might not understand it" over "too fucking long". (That other one's on my RIL though, because it sounds amazing.) So, the sex in this story is fine and all, but I was more interested in what they were talking about beforehand, which I guess says something about my priorities. <.< But seriously, for all that Rarity being gay being an issue isn't exactly something I want to read about, her getting into a gossip battle with Golden Harvest is. This needs a little editing, still (not sure if the whitespace errors are related to the recent changes in Fimfiction or not), but if you want to read about two ladies getting it on, this should satisfy! Suffice to say, I'll be looking for the stories it's related to. :B
Recommended If You Like Clop
The Kindness of Strangers by Wheller
Genre: Sad Luna/OC Fic/Adventure
Wheller's main claim to fame is The Parliament of Dreams, which I'd like to read, but I'd also like to get this thing done, thank you. Most of their other completed stories are both very long and very old. I ended up picking the oldest one because pretty much everything else seems to be a sequel to it somehow. At least it was on my RIL! Anyway, it's really, really old (first 400 stories on the site!), and really, really bad. Like, "the source of every bad fanfic cliche" bad. I expect it is not a good example of what Wheller is capable of. All I can say is, authors, don't write a 20-story continuity and then insist people read them in order; it's a good way for people to not read 19 of your stories. At least I read (or more, skimmed) this long enough to get to the scene where Twilight goes on Walkabout and hallucinates that she mercy-killed Derpy! I'll have to try something else of Wheller's later, while regretting that some of the later stories in this continuity that looked good, like Family, I'm not going to get to.
Not Recommended: DNF 5/8
And I Asked Why by Integral Archer
Genre: Philosophical
Rainbow doesn't know how she'll sleep again, after the accident.
I'm supposed to be reading Subjunctive for reasons, but it's too long for my purposes here. <.< I went with the shortest one. It's 21k. Goddamn. First things, the voicing does not sound at all like Rainbow Dash, but the subject matter? Absolutely. This is a meditation on the nature of altruism, and how hard it is for a pony like Dash to be selfless. She sees a coworker (at the Weather Factory, so canon is dubious) killed in an industrial accident, and more than being haunted by that image, she's haunted by what she says afterward, how she makes the situation entirely about herself. And a lesser author would have stopped there; instead, this continues on with Rainbow's day and how memory of the event and her own self-doubts color her interactions with her friends. There's some Mare-Do-Well angst as well, likely what inspired the piece. Now, the weird thing is, I can't figure out if this is Randian or anti-Randian. I mean, first of all, I have more or less tried to know as little about Ayn Rand and her cult as possible, but I got the direct reference to her, which is what make me think this was anti. But then, I'm reading the comments, because the ending has got me thinking the purpose was otherwise, and there are some other details early in the story that suggest it's distinctly pro. (Or maybe the fact that Rainbow Dash is out of character is a not-so-subtle hint that the author doesn't believe this philosophy one bit and thinks that people who do are mindless puppets or something) So what I'm gonna say is, do yourself a favor and read this; I'm not good at philosophy, and I don't think anyone's come away from the story without an opinion on it.
Recommended
The Dashing Rogue by Tatsurou
Genre: Cute
It's time for Buttercup's first Nightmare Night in Ponyville!
I thought this name sounded familiar! If there's a crossover in the featured box, there's a good chance Tatsurou's name is attached to it. He's the author of Dressed to Steal, Three More Things, The Moon in the Dark... God, I recognize ALL of these as featurebox darlings. c.c Impressive. But are they any good? I couldn't tell you, because they're all too fucking long, so have something old and short instead. It's a tad more 'silly' than it is 'funny', but watching a filly go through more or less what Pipsqueak did during Luna Eclipsed, being 'saved' by him a number of times, was super-cute. That said, it's got far too many Princess Bride references for my tastes and everyone knows Pipsqueak ships best with Dinky So, a little YMMV, but if you like cute foals doing cute things, this is likely worth it.
Recommended If You Like Cute Stuff
Gling-Gló by Shinzakura
Genre: Random Comedy
Equestria was overdue for shenanigans, anyway.
This author's big thing is Seven Days in Sunny June and infinite sequels and sidestories thereto. I just picked this one because it has a cool name. Turns out, that "cool name" will actually give away the punchline if you look it up, and… that punchline is really stupid. >.< Overall, this felt like it was trying too hard, and I really wish I hadn't read it. What a way to end.
Not Recommended
Donutier getting a Highly Recommended?
...Yeah, Carapace was right. Bye.
4589211
4589211
Aren't we a salty sailor?
Ayyy, you liked that thing I edited!
Open Door by SkycatcherEquestria
Alright, a few here look worth checking out. The Twilight Sprinkle one, though... I gave that a try back when it was new. You must be seeing something in it that I didn't.
4589282
I thought it was fun!
To be fair, all of my Twilestia is strictly platonic.
Thanks for the review, sir.
And I Asked Why is probably pro-Rand if you had to choose one or the other, but that's still very wrong. Everything about that story, right down to the prose, is clearly influenced by Rand, but avoids actually riding the Objectivist crazy train. It's far, far better than it has any right to be.
Thanks for the review! Always an honor.
4589317
Is it? >:V
4589319
That was honestly an impressive feat. You're welcome!
That's fair.
I kind of wish there was a headcanon tag for stories, or maybe a world-building one.
Good lord, man. How much do you read in a day?
Lots of good stuff here. 1/4 of the listing was stuff I wasn't interested in, 1/4 is stuff I've read and not upvoted, 1/4 is stuff I've upvoted (or for And I Asked Why, favorited), and the rest are now a dozen tabs over there ^. A lot is stuff from the featurebox I passed over.
I highly recommend Rocinate and Hap. I also had the experience of reading one of BlackRoseRaven's "shorter" stories, and being very intrigued. Still have to find time to dive into his main canon.
The only other newly active author you haven't reviewed is Mitch H, who is now one of a half dozen people I drop everything to read updates from.
Heh, quite pleased I even got vaguely recommended.
I debated taking that story down, but decided to leave it because it wasn't that awful.
Much thanks for the review! Was definitely not expecting it.
If you did, you would have a better idea than I do.
Because I was drunk and I like LotR. I thought the description made my mental condition at the time of writing it pretty clear?
But hey, no such thing as bad publicity. Thanks for giving it a look, even if you didn't like it.
4589360
I think I read about 15 of these today. Being sick is good for something. :B But yeah, I read a lot when I have a mind to.
4589436
Hap made an immediate impression on me. I'll take a look at Mitch as well. :)
4589473
Yeah, I just... I can at least understand why it came out that way, I suppose.
Anything of yours that you would suggest reading instead? I did kind of pick that at random.
4589321
Yeah, while I enjoy it in the romantic sense, most of my stories don't stray much further than very good friends with a slight mother/daughter dynamic. I guess it's still 'love', but in a more convoluted, definetely-not-romantic way.
Also:
At the risk of sounding egocentric and nosy, what talk would this be?
HOLY SHIT, THANK YOU. I'm so glad you enjoyed that little fic of mine. I didn't really think much of it when I was writing it, but it's turned out to be such a huge success!
Again, thank you!
4589587
Hmm...
If there's anything I've written that might be at least semi-worth reading, it would have to be Realms of the Heavens. If someone recommended that you look into me, personally, and not that particular TCB story, Realms is probably what they know me from. That, or my politics.
If you decide to look at it, though, I'll warn you about a few things beforehand. One, it's a really long story. Longer than most novels. Two, it isn't even close to finished yet. And three, a lot of the earlier chapters are really badly edited. I keep telling myself I'll go back to them once the whole story is completed, but I had hoped to have it done by this past Christmas when I first told myself that, and at this point, God knows when I'll actually finish it.
Thanks for reviewing The Assembled Letters of Twilight Sparkle! It was randomly written very off-the-cuff (about half of it in the form of reddit comments), but the sequel I put a lot more effort into. It's my first successful foray into novel-length writing and while I'll admit it's not perfect, I'm still pretty proud of it. Hope you enjoy!
Wow, this must've been a lot of work! Thanks for doing what you do, present perfect!
The Wealth of the World and The Legend of the Scorpian Queen were both great, and I remembered decent parts just from the titles.
I gave Subjunctive a shot a few years ago, or whenever it started coming out. That one started promising, but then seemed to drift away from the parts that attracted me to it in the first place, and may have wound up with a pace slower than I was willing to work with.
Under the Light of a Shooting Star was a nice story, and some interesting headcanon taking advantage of the differences in our worlds. Everything between the two sisters was very sweet. Norris needs to learn to differentiate between "it's" and "its," though. :\
With Heirlooms, I hit an early snag in that it seems really strange for a headliner Wonderbolt, who would seem to be a public employee, to live almost entirely off the records. Seems like there should be something in the files there, even if it's not accurate. After moving along, it did draw me in, and the tension building at the end was strong. And the answer was great, for all that Rainbow and Twilight never get it. Gotta respect doing all that for a pun. :D The story could use some editing for capitalization and homophone issues, but otherwise the writing is strong.
The Most Beautiful Song: (It may have hurt this that I've been thinking about Velvet Remedy a bit the last few days. But I'm pretty sure I'd feel this way regardless.)
This was a story with great writing, imagery, a strong action scene and interesting depiction of sorcery and nice history...
All ruined because the story itself is bad. Now, you know I'm fine with stories in which bad things happen to ponies. That's not the problem here. The problem is that bad things happen to ponies because Twilight and Celestia are incredibly stupid for no reason even brought up (unless you want to count the bare assertion "a princess must never hurt ponies"*) in the story. Add that to the fact that it's blatantly counterfactual to characterization and world building on the topic we'd seen by the end of Season Two from Celestia and Cadence, and I'm left with wondering why this is happening.
The ending bits from Shining might push this into the realm of tragedy insofar as Twilight murdered everyone instead of taking non-war crime measures earlier. But that's pretty weak tea because the story never sold the pacifism in the first place. All the rest... bad things happening because people are stupid and make decisions that are ex ante obviously stupid isn't tragedy.
One thing that stood out is this:
And here's the problem: it's about a lot more than just her. That her hallucination is focused on just her right there, that she's responding about how she doesn't care about that, is wrong. They'll kill you. And they'll keep killing. And killing. And killing. But you can stop them, is a different proposition, and one that's a bit more relevant.
Also there's the issue of the logistics. How did the southerners kill Cadence? Wrong side of the country. Twilight was presented as looking for their capital, which if it was always meant to be nomadic should have had that brought up way earlier. Given that they are nomadic, and apparently (mostly?) there, why the urgency to surrender? What was the surrender plan, if they can't talk to each other? Why didn't they go better supplied? Pegasi exist. Nothing whatsoever was done to indicate why Equestria was so apparently helpless; e.g., the attackers aren't shown to be massively more powerful/capable than typical earth ponies, unicorns, or pegasi in Equestria. Etc.
This might work better as original fiction where it's not burdened by the fact that it's built off of seriously bending, maybe outright breaking, multiple major characters without any support for why that's happening. But even then, I'd kind of expect more work to be put into why the princesses specifically are hard- (idiot-) pacifists--but that doesn't apply to anyone else in the country. That is the linchpin of the entire story, and it's given a (repeated) bare assertion with no exploration or justification whatsoever.
This was really frustrating to me, because there were many, many great elements, assembled well, and then put onto a foundation that couldn't support them. ;_; But yeah, this positively screamed bad story by good author to me, and I'll be keeping an eye out for things by OnionPie in the future.
*Is this a satire of the comics arcs in which this assertion was made in order to make sure that there would be a plot? I could kind of respect that. But it didn't really feel like this was satire.
The Donutier was wonderful!
It was sweet, and cute, and the two really played off of each other well. It wasn't long before I was thinking Twilight/Trixie myself. Celestia was well realized, hitting a nice, playful show note (though I do disagree that Twilight's problem isn't Celestia's fault), which fit nicely in a show tone-ish story. Looking at some of the comments, it seems I'm far from the only one who thought Sprinkle and Copper seem like they're on a best friends trajectory. So great, and better for coming right after "Song".
Also, donut puns! :D
Okay, trollrec time! :V
"Grab the Brush"
"Bake sale proceeds?" XD
...
I don't know what that was. But it was amazing.
Also, the video had me thinking of The Boondocks. :-)
Rainbow's Mind Controlling Guitar
Kinda weak. Just lacking that troll gold, you know. Though I did appreciate the several paragraph stretch of pretty good writing and editing thrown in towards the beginning. That was a nice touch.
The Jesus picture in the comments made it all worthwhile, though.
AJ, Stairs:
Well, I do love me some AJ-bashing.
Strong start, burst out laughing with "Scootaloo" X'D
High quality trollfic there. Wasn't expecting the prophet Mohammed to show up there near the end. SADBOI knows how to keep you on your toes.
Also, that adventure tag. :V
"And I asked why"
For a long time with this one, I was wondering why it was Rainbow Dash, and why it was ponies. I got there in the end. I'm not sure if it's pro- or anti-Rand, but there are some suggestions it may be anti-straw-both. (Two big cases would be 1) anti-straw?-Randian with the early dig about the government bureaucracy micromanaging the supervisor's affairs--because of course that never happens in the private sector, and 2) anti-straw-anti-Randian with Rarity's shock at the idea of self-improvement etc.--she's the most self-conscious model of that sort of thing outside of Rainbow herself, and it's done with reference to Mare Do Well, something widely regarded as awful from the moment it came out (notwithstanding some good Rainbow character building), and exaggerating the girls' stance from there.) Everything is unsettlingly unnatural, from the unexplained fact Rainbow is now working at the factory, to the narration style and diction (style emulation/parody of Rand?), to the metaphors and symbolism used (koi scattering is a pretty un-Rainbow visual, for instance). By the time Pinkie lampshaded it, I'd long figured that the forcing of narration and dialog (mostly Rainbow, sometimes the others, especially when making judgments) into patterns not only foreign to the speaker/thinker but almost to any person was some kind of comment on the content. On the whole, very good if not exactly enjoyable, and I wish I'd read it earlier when I was fresher.
And sexy time...
Call It What It Is:
Twilight, Rarity and Applejack started to cringe. Pinkie didn't stop when she thought she was onto something.
Aaaannd that's seeming like some S4 Pinkie right there...
For whatever reason (probably the length), wrongly thought this was the one with the conversation you were interested in at the start. I did like that subplot, but yeah, AJ was weird and perhaps it's just the orgy thing, but I could have used a greater degree of continuity. Also the thing Pinkie pushed for after the end was kinda gross, though I guess it's odd that I find it more so than similar earlier. But ya know, nice enough on the whole.
Warming Winter Chill
This is starting out seeming a bit overwritten, and it stood out to me that it wasn't until the fifth paragraph that a pronoun was used for Applejack in a sentence without the word "Applejack" in it. And it continues after. That's really bothering me for some reason... <.<
Likewise, the conversation at the start was the best part. And this may have stumbled on a way to do Rarijack that doesn't instantly repel me or just cause me to lose interest: focus on external issues (and maybe sex) rather than their relationship as such, romantic chemistry, or personal compatibility! :V
The Lusty Human Butler
Oh, that forward is hilarious. It reminds me in a way of the author's notes in "My Immortal," but literate.
The low-key comedy throughout is fine, but the peaks with the misunderstanding and the last line of the second chapter are delightful.
4589590
Talk that it was good and worth reading! That's all I remember, anyway. :B
4589630
Star Wars? Sure, why not! :V And don't worry, I've read longer.
4589660
I could tell Letters was very much "assembled on the fly". A stronger sequel is precisely what I'm looking for, because it sounds like you figured things out by then. :)
4589754
Much as I liked Warming Winter Chill, I had to snort at AJ's first line of internal dialogue. She's like "Must be one of those days again", and I could only think she was reacting to that first purple paragraph. XD
Also, I think the true genius of Lusty Human Butler is that the in-universe author is "Mistress Notfluutershai". Like, I don't care if you think humans are a thing, or that ponies have sex; if Fluttershy was going to write and publish something that she didn't want connected to her, that would be the name she used, and it would work, and both of these assertions are true because ponies are not very bright. XD
Published, if I may correct. But you're right, I've been very inactive. Doesn't mean it doesn't make me happy to see someone have some nice things to say about my writing, so thank you.
I'd like to object to your use of the word needless here, as I think that's unfair criticism. Saying something like that about a tragedy is like saying a comedy is needlessly funny. If you're trying to say that the ending does not fit the rest of the story in tone or does not follow coherently from the other events in the story, that's something else, but in that case I'd like to ask you to be more specific.
4589868
Guh, it's hard to get used to the fact that half the genre tags are the same color.
It is pretty dark, though I suppose there's something almost uplifting about taking one's life into one's hands that way. Maybe?
Anyway, you should publish more stuff. :V
4589882
I think TD said something along the lines that "love can bloom in the weirdest/most adverse circumstances" was uplifting about Of Flies and Spiders, but I can't find the quotation. I do have my own thoughts about the theme/message of the story, but I don't want to state them publicly lest someone who hasn't read the story reads these comments. A story should speak for itself IMO.
Thank you, and yes, I will; I got something from one of the latest writeoffs sitting in my Gdocs that still needs some polishing, but I already promised horizon I'd publish it, so that's definitely gonna happen, like... soonish.
Jesus fuck, what's wrong with you? Don't read any of my fics, each one is an overblown melodrama that takes ponies way too seriously.
I'm glad I wrote them, since they helped me learn from my mistakes. Though I keep them up on the site for posterity, the thought of people reading them and thinking critically about them is quite a source of embarrassment for me.
Anyway, thanks for the review. Feel free to read Subjunctive at some point, and write some scathing creed on it, but I won't know if I'll be able to bring myself to read it, since everything terrible you have to say about it will probably be completely right. Were I to read it, I'd likely be nodding my head at every sentence, thinking "yup, yup, it's trash for precisely that reason."
I won't comment on this, but I'd like you to observe that the story mentions neither a name nor a title of any real life person, philosophy, or work of art; so the fact that you think it refers to some real life person, philosophy, or work of art says more about your feelings than it does mine.
Lmao. I think I have only two stories that actually finished at 100k, one being Mamihlapinatapai and the other being my first ever story on this site. Have like five other stories that would pass that mark but aren't even close to finishing. That's what happens when you're erratic as I am.
That's pretty much what it is
You'd probably have more fun with PATH than this one.
Also, think I mentioned this already, but thanks for the review once again!
4589860
Scootaloo96 please
4589925
Oh, but of course. :V
Taking ponies too seriously is my jam4589984
What in the everloving hell is the last word of that title? @_@
4590106
You are not the bow-chicka-wow-wow version. :B
Boy, that was... that was a real, uh, unexpected thing to see in my notifications—You putting that in your 'Reviewed' list. Oh, did I double-take.
Oh, well. It was the first long-form writing I'd done in several years, and it got me into the swing of things enough to do, say, Raven, and just this weekend I'm starting my actual, not-pony novel. Got a good few pages already!
Nothing I'd ever thrust upon people, but it opened my own personal doors. Sometimes the journey has some fuckin' weird steps, but I'm still on mine, and I'm super-excited about where it's heading these days.
I had little to no idea what to expect, walking into The Donutier, but I think it had my upvote after the very first sentence. Good stuff.
Of Flies and Spiders is one of my favorite from my writeoff days of yore… and I can't go into detail without spoiling it all :P
So, THE Present Perfect reviewed one of my stories!?
...Does this mean I'm pone famous now?
4590364
'Halls'
It's supposed to look more normal, but when I stumbled upon that symbol, it was too tempting to resist.
4590649
Ooh, good luck with that! :D
4590742
Sure! :B Really, it just means that someone out there thinks you're worth reading, which I'd say is better. :)
4590826
I just see a bunch of s's. ._.
4590865
Yeah, seems like the mirror image would be better for the l's. I've even seen people use the integral symbol "∫" in place of the long s "ſ" in regular-ish writing. Especially since the integral actually looks more like the long s's I've seen in old print, inscriptions, and stuff like that.
4591002
It gives me great joy to find old scripts that use the long s and read them as f's. :B
4590364
4591102
Doesn't everyone do that?
Just got to "Of Flies and Spiders," and I think I liked it better than you. In particular, I'm not sure I read the ending as unnecessarily dark. It's not only paying off the allergy plot, but is what ties the whole thing together as a tragedy, contrasting the moment of happiness that kills her and surely hurts the person she's come to care about with her healthy lifetime of not feeling much of anything, just getting by and watching reruns of Pony-"The Fresh Prince of Bel Air" or infomercials.