Author Archives: Horizon

Martian’s “The Lost Place”

23 Friday Oct 2015

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Today’s story offers a stellar glimpse inside the long road to lunar redemption.

lost-placeThe Lost Place
[Slice of Life] • 3,813 words

The most important day of her young life, the hardest challenge she’d have to face, and she failed… or had she? The thunderous sound, the dazzling light, the surge of magic… then she wakes up in a place bereft of all light and shape and sound, alone…

Sometimes, it just takes a spark to rekindle the light.

FROM THE CURATORS: Reading this story made us unanimously agree on two things: one, that we really dislike stories “starting with the protagonist blinking in confusion at a surrounding sea of featureless darkness,” as AugieDog put it. “They make me purse my lips like I’ve just taken a bite out of a lemon.”  And two, that The Lost Place solidly earned its feature nevertheless.  “It works here because of the context,” AugieDog said, while Horizon’s attention was captured by the sharp prose: “‘If this earns my vote,’ I said to myself while I was reading, ‘it will be the line about setting herself on fire which pushed it over the edge.’  It did, and that was.”

What happened to redeem the opening cliche?  “The author took two well-used tropes and set them together delicately to create something infinitely greater,” Present Perfect said. “Twilight learning to believe in herself, coached by a still-banished Princess Luna? That’s some really heavy, emotional stuff.”  AugieDog also praised that characterization: “The story also gives us a filly Twilight who is definitely on her way to becoming the character we know from the show, and gives us a link between Twilight and Luna early on in Twilight’s career.”  Horizon thirded that: “The story’s at its best when it’s showcasing the interplay between the two characters.”

We were also impressed that the story just kept serving up surprises.  “There was one sentence which brought tears to my eyes … it turned the whole story on its head,” Present Perfect said.  Horizon agreed, noting that “this is a story which rewards the reader’s patience,” and AugieDog summed it up: “It’s a quiet story in which stuff nonetheless happens, and I always like it when authors can pull that off.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Martian discusses amusing wrecks, stellar accomplices, and gas station haute cuisine.
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GhostOfHeraclitus’ “A Canterlot Carol”

16 Friday Oct 2015

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See the softer side of a much-beloved bureaucrat with today’s reader-selected tale.

canterlot-carolA Canterlot Carol
[Comedy] [Slice of Life] • 6,464 words

The business of government never stops, and paperwork never rests, even on Hearthwarming. But this particular Hearthwarming, Cabinet Secretary and tea enthusiast Dotted Line plans to do his level best to see it, at least, take a break. His ponies need to go home to their families, and he, well, he has plans this Hearthwarming.

FROM THE CURATORS: This week’s feature is a little unusual — we asked readers to choose a story from one of our already-featured authors in order to return the spotlight to their vast wells of talent.  Ten nominations and hundreds of votes later, when the dust finally settled, this Hearth’s Warming Eve tale had captured the most hearts.

“Ghost of Heraclitus’ Whom the Princesses Would Destroy is in the Pony Fiction Vault. Twilight Sparkle Makes a Cup of Tea is in the RCL. But this is, I think, the crown to the scepter and robe,” Titanium Dragon said in A Canterlot Carol’s nomination.  “Whether it be Dotted Line’s conflict with eldritch monstrosities inhabiting his chimney, his conversations with his staff that shows that they are true comrades, to the conversation with the Zebrican ambassador about Prince Blueblood’s non-apology, all the way through to Dotted Line’s plans, every part of this is memorable and enjoyable.”  Voters agreed, and so did we: “This is equal parts amusing, thoughtful and touching, and often in surprising ways,” Present Perfect said.  (Bradel, for his part, so enjoyed the story that he recorded a dramatic reading of it.)

While we found the story engaging throughout, one of the elements that we repeatedly singled out for praise was the way in which it built up themes for powerful later impacts. “It’s the ending where this story truly shines, where we see how far Dotted Line’s compassion and dedication extends,” JohnPerry said.  “For a story dealing largely with bureaucratic affairs, this one is surprisingly heartwarming.”  AugieDog noted that this care with continuity extended to Ghost’s later stories: “Read the sequel, too.  Several things that are set up in A Canterlot Carol don’t pay off till An Afternoon for Dotted Line.  I can’t imagine the one story without the other.”  But that’s worth the effort, Present Perfect asserted: “Dotted Line is one of our fandom’s greatest treasures.  I don’t know how Ghost is so consistently entertaining, save that he, too, is a treasure.”

Read on for a special return interview, in which GhostOfHeraclitus discusses approximate peace, legendary tea-pickers, and Ghengis Khan’s naps.
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billymorph’s “Red Apples”

09 Friday Oct 2015

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Take a bite of today’s story for a classic tale of culture shock.

red-applesRed Apples
[Drama] • 3,891 words

How much can change in a hundred years? How much can change in a thousand? The day of the Nightmare’s defeat Princess Luna finds herself adrift, a thousand years away from the world she knew. With her home in ruins and Equestria changed beyond all recognition, is there anything left for her when even apples are strange?

FROM THE CURATORS: Back in the earliest days of the fandom, speculation about Princess Luna’s troubles adjusting to the modern world was a common fanfiction topic.  The past few months have seen some resurgence of interest in classic premises — and this modern interpretation was “fun, fun, fun,” as AugieDog put it.  “Red Apples stands out from the pack of ‘Time-Lost Luna’ stories,” Present Perfect added —and Writeoff Association readers agreed, awarding this first place in their August 2015 competition.

One of the factors elevating the story was the vivid and often surprising way in which it portrayed the world surrounding the princess.  “The ways it demonstrates what ‘one thousand years’ means are really gripping,” Present Perfect said, and AugieDog elaborated: “It’s an ode to the power of small details, not just in the construction of an effective story, but in the living of an effective life.” For example, Chris praised its subversion of the all-too-common Luna vs. Dubstep cliche: “It does a great job of showing how even things like music, the universality of which people so often take for granted, can change beyond recognition quickly.”

But we were equally impressed by its handling of its central characters.  “I love that Celestia is trying to help her sister acclimate to things in full Trollestia mode, leading to some great bonding moments,” Present Perfect said, and Horizon agreed: “Luna’s nostalgia is just what this story needed to reconcile the two roles Celestia plays, of supportive sister and incorrigible prankster.”  And that nostalgia, as Present Perfect noted, was itself handled elegantly.  “What Red Apples really does well is get us inside Luna’s head,” he said.  “This is about the second episode of Season 1, but her thoughts are all Season 2 Luna, a clever reconciliation of the two sides of her that few have attempted before.”

Read on for our author interview, in which billymorph discusses cyberpunk dystopias, childhood RPGs, and the abolition of gender.
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Feo Takahari’s “How Equestria Was Made”

02 Friday Oct 2015

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In today’s story, reach back to the fundamental core of My Little Pony: The fertile imagination of horse-loving children.

how-equestriaHow Equestria Was Made
[Tragedy] [Sad] [Human] • 14,778 words

The base and the glass are no different from any other snow globe, but it holds an endless void inside it. When two young sisters jokingly request for it to show them its magic, it gives them the power to fill it as they please. Within that dimension, they might as well be goddesses–but to the world at large, they’re still confused, frightened children.

The younger sister, bitter and lonely, thinks it’s a chance to make a better world than our own. The elder sister just feels responsible for protecting the innocent pastel quadrupeds they’ve created. But can two children really be the goddesses the pony race needs? And when monsters begin to threaten the ponies, what must the sisters sacrifice to create the Equestria they dream of?

FROM THE CURATORS: We speak from experience when we say that this story will surprise you.  “I’ve just never seen a creation fic done like this before,” Present Perfect said.  “I’ve seen humans as princess-goddesses, I’ve seen Celestia and Luna make Equestria, but this is in a league of its own.”

Even though How Equestria Was Made quickly earned comparisons to our previous feature In The Place The Wild Horses Sleep, the surface similarities — children’s imagination letting them construct and enter a magical land of ponies — conceal a wealth of surprising yet smooth worldbuilding.  “Far too often, we see ‘six virtues’ crop up in a creation story and know where things are headed, and yet not once did I suspect that was the path the narrative was taking us on,” Present Perfect said, and Horizon agreed: “The story kept surprising me (in positive ways) with its mythological choices.  The tale of Brunhild and Hearth Flame by itself makes this worthy of a feature.”  Chris cited another of the story’s many novelties: “The entire Nightmare Moon reveal and resolution wasn’t just powerful, it was surprising and original, too.”

But there was more here to like than just clever ideas, such as the authenticity of the children’s portrayal.  “The relationship between the two sisters struck me as very real,” AugieDog said. “The way the two of them come together with all their faults and virtues to create, nurture, and interact with Equestria reminded me of a much more serious version of the ‘let’s pretend’ games my siblings and I used to play.”  Serious indeed, as Horizon pointed out: “It deals effectively with some very adult questions of responsibility.”

What all that added up to was a small fic successfully executing on big themes.  “This is really making me reconsider the relationship between fanfic, reader and author,” Present Perfect said.  And while not every scene worked for every curator, “the ending blew any doubts I had right out of the water,” Chris said. “Here’s an author that mined genuine pathos from a couple of girls making ponies with a magic snow-globe.  That’s amazing.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Feo Takahari discusses flowing stresses, memory lapses, and everything from Lemony Snicket to lemons.

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MyHobby’s “Hyperportentia”

25 Friday Sep 2015

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You are going to read today’s story — whether you know it yet or not.

hyperportentiaHyperportentia
[Slice of Life] • 6,161 words

Hy•per•por•ten•tia noun \hī-pər-pȯr-ˌten-t(ē-)ə\

1. congenital fate disorder where the affected receives a disproportionate number of visions, prophecies, or warnings of the future directed at them.
2. severe pain in the butt.

It’s common knowledge among ponies that Destiny is a natural occurrence. Much like a pony’s body, it grows and develops over time. Each pony’s Destiny is as unique and distinctive as their voice. The phenomenon manifests in the physical realm through the appearance of a cutie mark.

Unfortunately, like all natural occurrences, sometimes there’s something off. A misplaced gene here, an excess chemical there, and what was supposed to be true Destiny becomes… aggravating.

So it is with Acacia Tree, the first seer Manehattan has seen in five-hundred years.

FROM THE CURATORS: Reading today’s feature caused something of an epiphany for one of our curators: “This story made me realize that cutie marks and destiny have become old hat topics in recent seasons,” Present Perfect mused. “No one writes seriously about them anymore.” But although the premise may not be groundbreaking, the direction the author took it in certainly was; John Perry called it a “very original take on an old concept.”

As a story about a pony who can see the future but can’t seem to change it, Hyperportentia is “a fun play on Cassandra,” in Chris’ words. While Cassandra’s tale is a very dark one, he went on to explain that in this story, “the fates [were] generally low-key and/or silly enough that it feels like an annoyance rather than a tragedy,” and “the direction felt very much at home in the Magical Land of Equestria.”

In fact, the common theme in all our comments was how at home this story felt in the MLP universe. ” I’ve always liked stories that treat magic as a natural force like gravity or electromagnetism, and this kind of does that by looking at the whole MLP idea of destiny as something that arises from each pony’s genetic make-up,” said AugieDog, while Present Perfect noted that, “From a mid-class Chinese restaurant to a flapper club, to elevated trains, it’s very Earth-like, yet not so far removed from ponies that it’s unbelievable.” But John Perry may have summed it up best: “There’s something I love about the wit and the quick pacing in this story; it reflects the animated city life on display here, making the setting of Manehattan feel integral to the story and not just a background for our characters to dance around in front of. There’s a lot of little moments that make this universe feel very alive.”

Read on for our author interview, in which MyHobby discusses LEGOs, the untriteness of friendship, and why “Acacia Tree” is a perfectly sensible name for a pony who has a prophesy cutie mark.
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Inquisitor M’s “Every Mare Needs Her Stallion”

18 Friday Sep 2015

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Secrets lie beneath the surface of today’s story — though they might not be the ones you’re expecting.

every-mare-needsEvery Mare Needs Her Stallion
[Drama] [Slice of Life] • 7,967 words

After Fluttershy threw a tantrum in Ponyville’s marketplace, Rarity invited her over for some good old girly gossip. The Fluttershy that turns up on her doorstep, however, is absolutely not the one she was expecting. Somefilly has a secret and Rarity isn’t above using a few tricks to find out what it is.

FROM THE CURATORS: This story also isn’t above using a few tricks to keep you distracted until the reveal hits — serving some shipteasing from unexpected quarters — but we were too engrossed by the prose quality to mind.  “This is a super-showy piece, dense not just with character drama, but with scenes and looks and touches that weave the tapestry of the central friendship,” Horizon said, and Chris added: “Inquisitor M keeps the focus here tightly on his characters’ emotional reactions and impetuses, sometimes to the exclusion of all else.”

That narrow focus gave this story a chance to dive deeply into the depths of its protagonists. “It’s about the best use I’ve ever seen Inquisitor M make of his ’emotions tightly-clamped’ style,” AugieDog said. “The events of the story, if told any other way, wouldn’t be nearly as powerful.”  Several of us cautioned that that reliance on showing made this story a dense one — “readers with a taste for implication-heavy literature will definitely be impressed, but make no mistake; this isn’t light reading,” Chris said — but for all that, Every Mare Needs Her Stallion was a clean read. “All the buildup to this story was ‘pay close attention,’ but I didn’t feel at the end as if I’d missed anything,” Present Perfect said.  “I really feel like this story has itself wrapped up, even if there’s room for interpretation.”

In the end, it was that combination of comfortable density and depth which impressed us.  “It’s the kind of story that rewards readers for investing in it.  Isn’t that exactly the sort of thing the RCL should be featuring?” Chris said, and AugieDog summed it up succinctly: “One of those rare stories where I find just about every word to be vital.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Inquisitor M discusses half-questions, unshipping, and the great war against chaos and despair.
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Ruirik’s “The Regular”

11 Friday Sep 2015

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Today’s story will keep you coming back for more.

the-regularThe Regular
[Slice of Life] • 3,436 words

In all his years of running his own shop, Doughnut Joe has seen thousands of ponies. Some he knew, most he didn’t, and many he would never see again. But he never minded that, for he always had his regulars.

FROM THE CURATORS: Right from the first paragraph, The Regular caught our attention with its lush yet approachable prose.  “I’ve gotta give it props straight off the bat: this is the first time in recent memory that I’ve read a weather opening that I don’t hate,” Horizon said. “The descriptions here are right in the sweet spot, vivid without being purple.  The story’s got a great touch for details.”  That quality continued throughout, as Present Perfect noted: “The style caught my attention straight away, and didn’t disappoint.”

But there’s more to this tale of sugary commerce than its sweet turns of phrase — and the characterization of its store owner and its OC patron were especially savory.  “The story builds up a wonderful picture of the two main characters out of a few quiet conversations,” Horizon said, and Chris agreed: “It works nicely as a glimpse into Joe’s life, and we get to see the characters grow over the course of the story.”  Present Perfect praised not only that character work but its economy of detail when he introduced the story to us. “What drove this nomination is how much we’re able to glean from the regular‘s reticence,” Present said. “He says little about himself, but suggests so very much more.”

Simply put, The Regular was a beautiful read.  “I love the picture of Canterlot and Joe’s life this story paints,” JohnPerry said.  It kept some surprises in store for us, as Present Perfect noted — “the final scene sets up a tantalizing juxtaposition that says a lot about a particular show character” — but it was the story’s core strengths which carried it through to a feature.  Present Perfect summed it up: “This is the best Donut Joe fic since A Cup of Joe.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Ruirik discusses hat horrors, viking chieftains, and spoilers in artwork.

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bookplayer’s “Of Cottages and Cloud Houses”

04 Friday Sep 2015

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Today’s story is quite a moving experience — just ask Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy.

cottages-cloud-housesOf Cottages and Cloud Houses
[Slice of Life] • 4,641 words

When they first moved to Ponyville, Fluttershy moved into an ornate cloud house, and Rainbow Dash moved into an animal infested cottage. As they settle into new lives and meet new ponies, they quickly discover that this isn’t going to work at all.

FROM THE CURATORS: In some ways, this 2012 story shows its age — it’s “a real throwback to the old ‘magic of friendship’ era,” as Bradel put it — but inside is a heartwarming look at the Mane Six’s friendships and relationships which has stood the test of time. “This has held up as an origin story for Rainbow and Fluttershy, even in season 5,” Present Perfect said, and Horizon added: “Like so many of our fandom’s best pieces of headcanon, it explains more about its characters, and makes more intuitive sense, than the show itself.”

One aspect of the story which we singled out for praise again and again was the gripping writing of the main characters’ relationships with their parents. “One of the things I like so much about bookplayer’s stories is that, even more than they’re about romance, her stories are about families, those that you’re born into and those that you choose to become a part of,” AugieDog said.  “This story’s got that idea front and center.”  As early as the first scene, we were hooked by Of Cottages and Cloud Houses’ family problems.  “Fluttershy’s parents are gloriously awful — I can’t remember the last time somebody wrote a passage that provoked me as much as that one, and I don’t even like Fluttershy most of the time,” Bradel said.  But they’re not villains, as Chris noted: “This story succeeds because it’s obvious that Fluttershy’s and Dash’s parents are looking out for their kids — they’re just doing so in blinded, myopic ways.”

The other core strength was the powerful and moving way this showed Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash overcoming those issues.  “I like how this closes out a lot,” Bradel said. “Rainbow’s letter is good, but Fluttershy’s letter is just awesome — a perfect mix of passive-aggressive and self-confident that stays in character for her but still shows some growth.”  Ultimately, Chris noted, it has some important lessons on that topic. “This is a wonderful story about growing up,” he said.  “It’s a story about finding your own voice and learning to use it in a meaningful way.”

Read on for our author interview, in which bookplayer discusses steampunk translators, target audiences, and crafting vs. writing.

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Admiral Biscuit’s “A Taxing Evening”

28 Friday Aug 2015

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Ask not what sort of reading today’s story offers; ask why you’re not yet reading today’s story.

taxing-eveningA Taxing Evening
[Slice of Life] • 2,735 words

Most of the year, Written Script enjoys his job as town treasurer–but not when tax time rolls around, and everypony thinks they’re paying too much.  Then he becomes the most disliked stallion in all of Ponyville.

FROM THE CURATORS: By the numbers, this easily sailed past our featuring threshold — the major debate we had during voting wasn’t about its quality, but whether it worked specifically as MLP fanfiction. “My first reaction was: ‘This isn’t pony enough,'” AugieDog said. “But after letting it stew in my brain all morning, I’ve decided that it’s absolutely pony enough.  As Cold in Gardez is fond of saying, ‘Stories about ponies are stories about people,’ and people are never more peopley than when taxes are involved.”  Horizon found himself won over after similar initial doubts. “I want to recommend this just for the thoughtfulness of its argument in favor of taxes, which seem to be a favorite whipping boy of anyone with political opinions … but I don’t think that’s enough for the RCL threshold,” he said.  “That’s where the writing comes in. The characterization here is compelling and authentic.”

The “crisply-drawn” characterization, as AugieDog put it, topped our list of exemplary features, getting us emotionally invested in the story and its put-upon protagonist.  “You can feel the resignation wafting off Written, and it’s hard not to empathize,” Chris said, and Horizon agreed: “It’s hard not to cheer for the heartwarming ending Written Script earns.”  While the characterization was top-notch, we found its writing compelling as well.  “I found this story immensely charming,” JohnPerry said.  “It’s simple, it’s very relatable, and yet it’s also profound.”

Ultimately, it was that sympathetic look at an often-vilified occupation that captured our hearts.  “What it is above all is relatable,” Chris said.  “For example, I’ve had the ‘schools’ conversation from this fic in real life almost verbatim, and where Admiral Biscuit really shines is when he’s showing us these common, everyday bits of idiocy, ponified and localized to the story.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Admiral Biscuit discusses soothing quadrupeds and and and nonexistent deer.
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psychicscubadiver’s “The Endless Song”

21 Friday Aug 2015

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If you’re a fan of unusual perspectives, you’ll find today’s story really shines.

endless-songThe Endless Song
[Alternate Universe] • 2,365 words

Once, I was alone.

I felt neither sorrow nor joy at this. The presence or absence of others meant nothing to me. The universe moved in silence, and I drifted in its flow.

Then came the song.

FROM THE CURATORS: When a story reaches unanimous approval with our team, you know it’s doing something big right — and our accolades started with the premise. “What I love about The Endless Song is that it takes a very simple, almost cliché plot, then tells it from a novel perspective, and wrapped in the language of myth despite not taking the form of one,” Chris said.  Horizon quickly agreed: “There’s nothing like excellent execution of an unexpected approach to renew a classic idea.”  That approach — telling Celestia’s tale from the point of view of the sun she moves — offered more than just a novel narrator. “What a great take on immortality in the MLP universe,” JohnPerry said. “Most immortality stories in this fandom dwell on the loneliness of the immortal; this one seems to take it in the opposite direction.”

More than that, though, we fell in love with the prose. “It’s not a word I get to use very often, but I’m gonna call this ‘elegant’,” AugieDog said, and Chris agreed in similar terms: “‘Beautiful’ is exactly the word I’d use to describe this. It paints an image of the universe that fires the imagination, and does so in a disarmingly straightforward, achingly guileless way.”  Along with that elegance came some emotional moments, as Present Perfect noted: “What really helped make this not be yet another ‘ancient history from a novel perspective’ story was the sun’s character development, when it could look back and say ‘I was naive.’ That and adding more heartbreak to Luna’s story. I’m always up for making that more tragic.”

Small wonder that we found it a compelling fanfic.  “It presents a very pony way of looking at life despite its fundamentally alien perspective,” Horizon said, and Chris offered even bigger accolades: “I couldn’t even wager a guess as to how many stories I’ve read in this fandom, but my favorites folder currently sits at 45.  This is one of those 45 stories.”

Read on for our author interview, in which psychicscubadiver discusses musical sensations, body metaphors, and a life free of wasp fears.
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