Tag Archives: slice of life

Shrink Laureate’s “Left Behind”

04 Friday Nov 2016

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Loyal RCL readers will find a treat waiting for them in today’s story.

left-behindLeft Behind
[Drama] [Slice of Life] • 4,721 words

Fluttershy has been called away on an adventure. An adventure without Rainbow Dash.

FROM THE CURATORS: This story came to our attention via the Flutterdash group’s third writing contest, where it felt somewhat misplaced — “there isn’t even a [Romance] tag,” as Present Perfect pointed out.  But Left Behind turned our heads with the power of its writing.  “When writing gurus talk about ‘show, don’t tell,’ this is the sort of thing they mean,” AugieDog said.  “We’re presented with a series of scenes, some in the present and some in the past, that add up to create a picture of Dash’s feelings toward Fluttershy.”

Multiple curators remarked on the story’s slow yet compelling build.  “There’s a lot here that’s enjoyable in its very low-key-ness,” Chris said, and AugieDog agreed: “It’s almost aggressively low-key. … The author paints with an admirably light touch, implying things more often than stating them, and we’re pretty much left to decide for ourselves how deep Dash’s feelings run.  And that to me is a real plus in this sort of story.”  Even slice-of-life hater Horizon was won over: “This felt like the literary equivalent of a well-painted landscape,” he said.  “Its biggest strength is in the way it chooses tones and contrasts to create depth.  But all of the characters are also individually great, especially Spike, and their concerns are so real and wide-ranging that this piece is bursting with life.”

While the protagonist was the biggest of those highlights — “this is one of the most solid pieces of Rainbow Dash-centric character writing I’ve ever read; it exemplifies all her best qualities while explaining away the worst,” Present Perfect said — some of the side characters were scene-stealers. “This story introduced me to Zephda shipping, and now I am on that ship really hard,” Present Perfect added.  And ultimately, all of those characters contributed to the emotional power of the piece.  “I especially appreciate the unspoken sense of sacrifice that permeates the mane cast, watching their younger sisters develop into normal lives while their own emotional bonds seem stuck in Harmony’s amber,” Horizon said.  “That lends this whole thing an air of powerful melancholy.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Shrink Laureate discusses cuddly villains, conversational props, and adorably horrible cosmic-ray ships.
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Dafaddah’s “Pas de Deux”

09 Friday Sep 2016

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Today’s story explores the dance of love.

pas-de-deuxPas de Deux
[Drama] [Romance] [Slice of Life] • 3,734 words

Fancy Pants and Fleur Dis Lee were made for each-other: the perpetual playcolt and the sultry supermodel. Now, they’ve been going out for over a month. Has she fallen for this stallion? Is he finally ready to settle down? Can true love blossom in the high-pressure world of Canterlot’s social elite?

FROM THE CURATORS: A “pas de deux” is a dance for two people, and Pas de Deux is not only a study of the dance of intimacy between two ponies but also their social dance as they define themselves against the expectations that confine them.  What first caught our eye is that it’s “a good character study of two good characters,” as AugieDog put it, but this also breathes life into an often poorly explored relationship. “I’ve always found FleurPants shipping to be a weak explanation for why they hang around together, but this story shows their relationship is anything but weak,” Present Perfect said.

The same was true for the story’s portrayal of its protagonists.  Chris was impressed that they were so relatable despite (or perhaps because of) their upper-class background: “Their concerns are familiar,” he said.  “Here, we see a look at pretensions and the need to hide our true selves in the name of social demands, which is about as universal a conflict as there is — but at the same time, Fancy and Fleur’s richness keeps them far enough removed from reality to explore issues more frankly and directly than suspension of disbelief might otherwise allow.”  And AugieDog was impressed by how they became more than the sum of their parts: “In the stories I’ve read about Fleur, she always seems to be struggling against her inclinations … that’s always a powerful story to tell, and when you add Fancy Pants as the outsider on the inside who triggers this desire in her, you get two characters who see their own missing pieces in each other. I’m a sucker for that sort of thing.”

That was enhanced by the excellent framing of the story, which multiple curators praised. “Setting the scene with Fancy and Fleur before zooming out to resolve it was a good strategy,” Present Perfect said, and Horizon agreed: “Marriage counselors say there are three people in a marriage — the first partner, the second partner, and the two of them together.  This explicitly is structured to show how the relationship benefits all three of those, and it’s much stronger for the decision.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Dafaddah discusses Kirin mothers, vulnerable moments, and the pushing of ships.
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Posh’s “Teach Me Goodness”

26 Friday Aug 2016

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The quality of today’s story is both moving and instructive.

teach-me-goodness“Teach Me Goodness”
[Slice of Life] • 13,579 words

On the last day of school before summer vacation, Cheerilee informs her students that she’s going to pursue her doctorate in Fillydelphia, and won’t be returning as their teacher in the fall. Her friends and students alike spend her last night in Ponyville bidding farewell and showing their appreciation for her, each in their own unique way.

But one student, in particular, has a hard time coping.

FROM THE CURATORS: While we recently featured another story about Diamond Tiara connecting with an unexpected mentor, we found ourselves unable to ignore this Writeoff Association gold medalist — and the way it took its premise in a very different direction, focusing on the emotional journeys of Tiara and her teacher.  “This was just a satisfying read full of wistfulness and heart,” Horizon said.  “Cheerilee’s inner conflict is earnest and moving, Diamond Tiara is equally well painted, and the side characters steal the show with their appearances.”  Present Perfect cited one of those as a highlight of the story.  “There is a perfect moment in this, when Rarity gives Cheerilee her parting gift,” he said.  “I say ‘perfect’ because the way the events and Cheerilee’s emotions are described perfectly mirrored my own. The revelation of the gift brought tears to my eyes, and then I had to laugh along with Cheerilee at Rarity’s remark. That’s powerful.”

Along with its solid range of characters, we were impressed by the story’s emotional balance.  “The whole thing is just tear-jerkingly sad, but … I love the humor,” Present Perfect said.  “There’s not much, and it’s very incidental and almost entirely thanks to the CMCs, but it helps keep this from being dour while not overshadowing the serious emotions at play.”  And the story seamlessly demonstrated some rare skills, AugieDog said: “I’m normally a huge perspective ogre, grouchily grousing when authors try to shift between characters during the course of a single story because so many authors fail in that attempt.  But the shift here from Cheerilee to Diamond Tiara is handled in exactly the right way, letting them illuminate each other and bringing out the overall theme.”

“Teach Me Goodness” is also “an example of a really well-done revision,” AugieDog said.  “The original version [which is included as a bonus chapter] is good, but the longer version digs into the material that was only hinted at in the first draft and expands on it to enrich the whole piece.”  Not only was that instructive reading, Horizon said, but it illustrated some daring choices in the editing process: “What impresses me most is that the revision moves the climax, upending the pacing of the entire story — and yet works as well, if not better.  It’s rare to see that pulled off.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Posh discusses mothershuckling, author-eating jackals, and menthol-starved cynics.
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Shachza’s “Insecurities”

19 Friday Aug 2016

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Today’s story will reward you for stepping out of your comfort zone.

insecuritiesInsecurities
[Slice of Life] • 12,105 words

Fleur Lumineuse, daughter of Fancy Pants and Fleur de Lis, has made a mistake.  A serious one.  She never intended so much harm but, even with her eyes now open, can she make amends?

Sometimes, what a pony really needs, is somepony else to reach out to them.

FROM THE CURATORS: While one of the great truisms of fanfiction is that no idea is irredeemable, there are some premises which are very, very difficult to sell.  So when a story admits in its author’s note to being “blatant self-insertion and gratuitous wish fulfillment,” and yet turns our heads anyhow, that should be a sign that the author is doing something very, very right.

The core of that, as Horizon put it, was the stark self-awareness on display.  “This is like no other ‘wish fulfillment’ fic I’ve ever seen,” he added.  “It draws boundaries in a way that both respects the female counterpart and reinforces her characterization.”  Present Perfect, meanwhile, was most impressed by how that self-awareness came through in the protagonist.  “Front and center is Hyperic Cable: shy, awkward, socially phobic, possibly autistic,” he said.  “It’s the kind of character portrayal that can only come from personal experience, and the fact that he isn’t the viewpoint character undercuts a lot of the wish-fulfillment angle.”  Chris felt similarly: “The self-insertiness comes through really clearly.  But on the other hand, he’s still a character who’s easy to empathize with.  I felt most of the story feeling really bad for this guy, which is exactly what I was supposed to be doing.”

But while the “nuanced, flawed characters” (as Present Perfect put it) turned our heads, this was exemplary in areas beyond its self-awareness.  “This is an excellent look into anxiety and irrational fears with equally excellent writing,” Present Perfect said, while Soge appreciated that there was an equally solid B-plot: “What really struck me was how Fleur learns to not be such a horrible pony.  She is … an incredibly selfish narcissist, profoundly bigoted, and almost comical in her lack of empathy — and yet she grows a lot during the fic, eventually even trying to see things from his perspective.”  Ultimately, Horizon said, this story became more than the sum of its parts: “The characters here are — through personal experience, good writing, or a combination of the two — both earnestly authentic, and that transforms this into something far beyond its roots.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Shachza discusses dinosaur toys, friendship ironies, and pancakes vs. ponies.
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Daedalus Aegle’s “Discourse on Fillies”

01 Friday Jul 2016

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Today’s story lays bare two characters united by redemption — with a side of tea.

discourse-on-filliesDiscourse on Fillies
[Drama] [Slice of Life] • 15,532 words

Diamond Tiara always knew that someday she’d be invited to dine with the Princess at the Royal Palace. She didn’t think it would happen like this.

But she’s going to sit there and be polite and smile and not be bothered by all the ways this is all wrong. Because that’s what good fillies do, and Diamond Tiara is a good filly now.

Right?

FROM THE CURATORS: This is one of those stories that was turning heads well before it reached our reading queue.  “Having seen no fewer than ten journals in a row signal boosting and praising this story, I knew it was only a matter of time before it ended up here,” Present Perfect noted, as AugieDog pointed out its heavily upvoted suggestion in our story recommendation thread.  And while not all of us appreciated the story equally, we found a story whose ideas were big enough to justify the acclaim.  “The author needs some special sort of commendation for giving us the idea of The Princess by Macavallo, then for making it be the book Diamond Tiara has based her entire life upon, then for making Machiavelli work in an Equestrian context,” AugieDog said.

However, what really turned our heads was the exemplary work on the story’s two main characters.  “This really excels at framing a child’s concerns about the world, but the big thing right is the interplay between Diamond Tiara and Luna, of the tribulations shared by the rich and actual royalty, and of how the scope of their differences varies exponentially,” Present Perfect said.  AugieDog agreed: “The way the author handles these two characters is what’s making me nominate it.”  Even the story’s critics found that powerful.  “I bounced off this story,” Soge said, “but the parallels between Tiara and Luna are interesting, and her view of the world, particularly her comparisons between the rich and the nobles in the context of MLP’s world, are nothing short of fascinating.”

Also held up for acclaim were the story’s heartfelt moments.  “This was angling for my upvote as early as the ‘Feelings are like muscles’ speech, and the little profundities just kept on coming,” Horizon said.  “The dig about uselessness and Luna’s response to it and the very adult handling of DT’s outburst (on both sides) was just amazing.  ‘Trying always counts’ was so on-point I think I accidentally stabbed myself with it.”  That was a consequence of the beautiful framing of the premise, Present Perfect argued: “Two characters in a state of reformation — ‘state’, because reform isn’t something you achieve and then go do something else after — trying to help one another? Brilliant, and a fantastic use of everything we learned in Crusaders of the Lost Mark.”  It all added up, as Horizon said, to a winner: “In between picking the right characters for the discussion, using them faithfully, and teaching me something about Earth history, this succeeds on multiple levels.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Daedalus Aegle discusses radiant inventors, muddy Machiavellis, and the missing directions of Norway.

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PhycoKrusk’s “Anypony for Doomsday?”

24 Friday Jun 2016

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Anypony for a comedy about Twilight Sparkle causing the apocalypse?  Today’s story delivers.

anypony-for-doomsdayAnypony for Doomsday?
[Comedy] [Slice of Life] • 11,613 words

“All unicorns build doomsday devices!” Those five words were words that Twilight Sparkle never expected to hear next to each other and in that specific order in a sentence.

King Sombra has returned, and upon discovering that Twilight Sparkle has not even considered building a doomsday device, has given her an ultimatum: Either she builds a device that has the sole purpose of destroying the world, or he starts defacing her books.

The clock is ticking: Will Twilight be able to get in touch with her inner mad science and save her imperiled reading material? More importantly, is she really destined to bring about the end of the world? Are unicorns really nothing more than a cosmic reset button, poised to bring a halt to all existence at a moment’s notice even in the face of past evidence suggesting that they’re not very good at it? Will Twilight succeed where all others have presumably failed? Does she even want to?

Join in as we follow the journey to answer the question on minds the world over: “Anypony for Doomsday?”

FROM THE CURATORS: If there’s anything rarer around here than all of us agreeing, it’s all of us agreeing on comedy — and yet this story scored a unanimous approval for exactly that reason.  “I was laughing from just the description,” Soge said, while AugieDog called the story “just plain full of chocolate-sprinkled giggles.”  Present Perfect upped the ante: “I cannot remember the last time I read a story so serious about being silly.  It’s gleefully goofy, wonderfully wacky, and quite a larf indeed.”

But if this fic is serious about its comedy, it’s a special sort of seriousness that toes up to the line of the Random tag.  “This is a purely ridiculous story, one that’s perfectly willing to destroy its own internal consistency, to casually toss aside its very premise, or to unapologetically break the fourth wall,” Chris said.  “But if there’s one thing a cracky fic must absolutely be, it’s consistently funny, and there is precisely zero dead space to be found here.”  Present Perfect seconded that: “This wastes no words not being funny. The running gags (doorbell!) are funny, the sudden status quo changes are funny, the premise is funny, everything’s funny.”  And AugieDog drew comparisons to the classics.  “This made me think of Mark Twain’s line about the weather in New England: ‘In the spring I have counted one hundred and thirty-six different kinds of weather inside of four-and-twenty hours,'” he said.  “There were so many chuckles per column inch in this story that when I hit something that didn’t work for me, I knew that I just had to keep going to find something that did.”

It wasn’t just the joke density that impressed us, but how many of them landed.  “This fic is golden,” Soge said, “with many different and clever running jokes that always seem to work, like the constant weather openings, the naming conventions, and the editing mistakes.”  Horizon specifically called those out as well: “The jokes about editing mistakes are an example of the comic touch that makes this story exemplary.  The first time I saw one, I disliked it as a cheap fourth-wall cop-out — but it kept pushing on with the gag, and owned it so thoroughly and so creatively it broke through into something hilarious.”

Read on for our author interview, in which PhycoKrusk discusses exciting underwear, deserving joy, and lion/eagle errors.

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Ceffyl Dwr’s “True Bowmance”

17 Friday Jun 2016

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There’s plenty to enjoy about today’s story — but if you suddenly and mysteriously fall in love with its tale, it’s time to run away screaming.

true-bowmanceTrue Bowmance
[Comedy] [Drama] [Slice of Life] • 10,049 words

Coming from a proud family celebrated for their ability at helping ponies fall in love, Archer wants nothing more than to be able to carry on the Cupid tradition.  What helps is that her mother is one of the most successful Cupids to ever walk Equestria.

What helps less is that Archer is possibly the worst.

But that’s not going to stop her from trying.

FROM THE CURATORS: For a story whose main character so consistently fails to touch hearts, this certainly grabbed ours.  Soge, for example, praised the story’s emotional impact and construction: “This is a straight-up adorable, really heartwarming fic, and one I really enjoyed reading.  All the ponies are characterized very well, and are very believable in their actions, without that affecting negatively either the plot or the comedic timing.”  That humor, too, drew its own share of praise.  “The comedy in this story is consistent and engaging, a nice blend of puns, callbacks, and narrative observational humor,” Chris said, and AugieDog agreed: “This is just so appealingly goofy.”

On top of that, True Bowmance was stuffed with sharp ideas that fired up our imaginations.  “It never ceases to amaze me, the stories we can come up for for incidental characters,” Present Perfect said.  “Who comes up with ‘matchmaking earth pony magic’ for someone like Archer?  This is an excellent work of original, on-tone world-building.”  Chris was equally impressed with that for similar reasons: “On that note, isn’t ‘hereditary matchmakers’ just a perfectly Equestrian job?  I mean, it edges creepily up on suggesting that free will is an illusion, but stays firmly on the heartwarming side of that line.”

The cherry on top of this tale’s sundae of matchmaking failures, however, was the exemplary character work.  “Pinkie works wonderfully as both comic relief and moral support,” Present Perfect noted, while Soge enjoyed the main character’s portrayal: “It does the whole ‘oblivious youngster’ thing, a la early-seasons Cutie Mark Crusaders, very well.”  That led to a comment from AugieDog that sent shivers down all of our spines: “The only thing that would’ve made this better would’ve been the Cutie Mark Crusaders trying to help Archer out, but I find myself thinking the town might not have survived that particular meeting.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Ceffyl Dwr discusses kelpie brothers, Bonfleur, and genealogical invasions.
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Regidar’s “The Inadequacy”

03 Friday Jun 2016

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Prepare for today’s story to drag you through the doubts of impending parenthood.

the-inadequacyThe Inadequacy
[Drama] [Slice of Life] • 6,038 words

Princess Cadance is nearly ready to deliver Princess Flurry Heart into the world, and Shining should be the happiest stallion in the world. After all, he’s about to become a father — what stallion wouldn’t rejoice at this fact?

And yet … something’s eating away at him. Keeping him up nights. Driving him to speak with anypony that’ll listen. An anxiety. A fear. A doubt.

An inadequacy.

FROM THE CURATORS: When the Season 6 opener introduced us to Cadance and Shining Armor’s foal, it was inevitable that we would see a rush of stories examining their parenthood — but this one stood out for how squarely it hit the nail on the head.  “This is a fantastic, believable look into Shining Armor’s character and things he should rightfully feel doubtful about,” Present Perfect said.  Horizon also praised the way the story handled its characters: “It takes a lot for a story about the joys of parenting to burst through my shell, but the honesty and maturity on display here from everyone won me over.”  And AugieDog was similarly won over by that core maturity: “I’m a big fan of stories where characters come to realize that they’re in over their heads, then go out and find help to deal with the problem,” he said.  “And the situation here is both nicely specific to Shining Armor and nicely general to the experience of fatherhood.”

Augie wasn’t the only one who appreciated the way the story was structured around that search for perspective.  “Shining’s continued denial gives the supporting cast a chance to really shine — the scene with Night Light was particularly impressive — and winds up to a powerful ending that reinforces the story’s major themes,” Horizon said.  That ending, too, impressed multiple curators.  “I’m very pleased that he doesn’t magically get over his troubles by the end,” Present Perfect said.  “I love that he doesn’t even know who to talk to — starting off with that random private, then slowly going for better and better choices. Of course, the scene with Cadance ended up being the best, as it should be.”  And Chris agreed on both counts:  “There was a structure to what Shining Armor learned that made it feel like it needed to happen. … And the lack of a total, instantaneous, and-then-everything-was-perfect-style resolution is a big point in this fic’s favor.”

But ultimately, it was the core authenticity here that made this such an exemplary read — and such a powerful one.  “Shiny feels pleasantly human,” Chris said, and Horizon added: “The way that it explores his emotions just feels important.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Regidar discusses cave goblins, osmosis snippets, and the misreading of Dungeons & Dragons.
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Dubs Rewatcher’s “Something Like Laughter”

28 Saturday May 2016

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Though there’s little to laugh about in it, today’s story is quite something.

something-like-laughterSomething Like Laughter
[Dark] [Drama] [Slice of Life] • 4,027 words

It’s been six months since Tirek was defeated, but Trixie still has nightmares. Nightmares of being pinned down, of the magic being ripped from her bones, of being thrown around like a worthless doll. It’s been six months since Trixie has had a full night’s sleep, and all she wants is peace.

But Trixie is fine. Trixie doesn’t need Twilight. She doesn’t need her family. She doesn’t need anyone. Trixie loves being alone.

So why can’t she stop crying?

FROM THE CURATORS: This is “not just a story about Trixie dealing with having had her magic stripped from her by Tirek,” as Present Perfect put it, but one that takes a broader look at her troubled character.  And “it works very well,” as Soge put it, “in showing how Trixie is trapped in her cycle of depression and trauma.”  Present Perfect added: “I’ve never seen a more topical, in-universe way to approach the tired old ‘sad Trixie story’ trope. I definitely felt this one, and what makes it work is the layering of emotional states.”

It certainly hit us hard on that level.  “This just plain pulls out all the stops, taking the character up to the breaking point and right on through,” AugieDog said.  “The language, the pacing, the structure: it all comes together in a portrait of a pony literally and figuratively thrown against a wall and trying desperately to bounce back.”  Chris said that the strong prose was a major contributing factor to that: “Dubs has a knack for vivid descriptions, and uses the immediacy of present tense to good effect.  I always appreciate it when an author’s choice of perspective dovetails so nicely with the story’s design, rather than feeling arbitrary.”  Present Perfect also praised the writing: “I liked the way it’s never quite clear how far inside her head we are. Things like the cut-off sentences are very effective in keeping the reader off balance, which only helps drive home how chaotic her mindset is.”  And while the story’s prose choices were its most notable feature, it was well constructed on a much broader level.  “There’s plenty to like,” Soge said.  “The stream of consciousness writing, that clever shift at the end, how it seamlessly transits between reality and the dream in chapter 1, and Trixie’s characterization as a whole.”

Given all that, it might be surprising to learn that this was written and published long before Trixie’s recent reappearance — and even more so to read it with that context in mind.  “We often talk about stories that have been invalidated by canon, but here’s a rare case where post-publication episodes actually enhance the story,” Chris said.  “With Starlight Glimmer now clearly established as Twilight’s live-in student, Trixie’s feelings of inadequacy and resentment here take on new depth.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Dubs Rewatcher discusses sunlight allegiances, musical superpowers, and the life-changing effects of fandom.
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Aragon’s “A Million Little Lights”

13 Friday May 2016

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Today’s story lets a novel interpretation of Princess Celestia shine.

million-little-lightsA Million Little Lights
[Drama] [Slice of Life] • 2,176 words

Tonight, Celestia will talk to Shining Armor. With just one conversation, she needs to save Equestria.

FROM THE CURATORS: The core of this story, which earned rare unanimous curator approval, is “Celestia trying by sheer force of will to stop ponies — including herself — from believing in her divinity,” as AugieDog put it.  And both the vision and the execution of that idea were exemplary.  “This is a really singular ‘goddess Celestia’ story,” Present Perfect said. “It’s clear the Celestia in this story could solve the world’s problems in a heartbeat, or the problems of single ponies, but if she does, they won’t learn anything. Assuming she doesn’t make things worse somehow, as her sorrowful monologue at the end suggests.”

But while this shines as an idea story — “The idea of walking the tightrope between being a living symbol and being the object of zealotry is explored concisely, but compellingly,” Chris said — its depth as a character piece won our equal acclaim.  “Celestia’s a remarkable combination of alien and all-too-comprehensible,” Horizon said, and AugieDog found her extremely sympathetic: “Her inner struggle is so nicely rendered — very calm, very quiet, very Celestia, but very heartfelt.”

That sympathetic portrayal made this story both a moving experience and an easy choice for a feature.  “Celestia repeating her phrase like a mantra drives home just how easy it is for even a creature who can all but see the future to become trapped into a world — and a role — they can’t abide,” Chris said.  And its economy of storytelling was the cherry on top of the narrative sundae.  “This is a fantastic little one-two punch of a story … it really is remarkable how vivid a picture this paints given its length,” Horizon said. “Not a word feels wasted here.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Aragon discusses finger guns, nightmare retardant, and boys named Texas.

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