H.P. Lance

I know I dream every night, but I usually can't qualify each individual dream as being inherently good or bad. My dreams tend to fluctuate weirdly between great highs and terrifying lows... So one minute I'll be chatting with Twilight on the back of a soaring dragon, and the next the dragon will crash-land and decide it wants to eat me while Twilight dissolves into chocolate in the background. Then I offer the chocolate to the dragon, it pacifies, and we enjoy eating Chocolate Twilight a snack next to a beautiful lake that moments before had been a lake of boiling lava. ...I'm weird.

I used to make quite the regular habit of it, but after my arm was broken - resulting in surgery where a long metal plate was permanently bolted onto my humerus bone - you can imagine that my enthusiasm died down somewhat. Nowadays I can rarely find the time to exercise anyway, but I do respect people who have the patience and will to regularly keep themselves fit. Oh, and my broken arm was not a direct result of weightlifting - instead it was indirectly caused by the stupid overconfidence it gave me. I challenged someone to an arm wrestle and...SNAP. It was quite the life lesson.

If I suddenly discover words pouring from my mouth in a pointless monologue, I've learned that it's either because I'm very happy or really irritated. Thankfully, it's easy to distinguish between the two at that point. When life deals the unfortunate latter, I just can't sit still. I'm a restless person by nature anyway, and pacing aimlessly about ranting to myself does help to exhaust the frustration. My creative writing is completely stunted when other things are occupying my mind, so afterwards I tend to play a video game for a while. I'm actually very blessed. I rarely get angry, and when I do, some inexplicable force always cheers me up about an hour or so later. I don't even have to do something I enjoy, or watch ponies (although these do help); somehow my brain just kicks itself back into an optimistic mood, and I barely even notice the change until later: by which point I'm my usual, cheery self.

My outlook on romance and relationships are very similar to yours, but I will say this. Your emotions are your own. Listen to them, but don't cement your current state of mind as an uncompromising rule; chances are that if you meet someone with whom you really connect, you'll want to spend more time with them, regardless of your romantic interest in them. Whether or not you truly develop deeper feelings should be governed by the involuntary tells of your body and subconscious throes of your mind, rather than a stubborn mindset that can end up proving very self-destructive. And remember, you're never truly alone with this wonderful community around you.

This guy ain't best pleased. Personally, I'd take the black one first so I can foresee whether or not I'd OD upon necking all the others.

Well, this does sound very promising (literally). I think my voice would only suit Rackstraw, so here's my attempt at his audition lines; I hope it's decent! Hiddenpairer Rackstraw Audition.mp3 And whomever you choose for all of the parts, I wish you the best of luck!

Hey, guys! I'm looking for a new editor. Due to circumstances which are unknown even to me, my current editor Fix hasn't got back to me - or indeed so much as logged into this site - for over a month. I really hope he's ok, but I need someone to either step in until he comes back or, if you like, to act as the new editor for the rest of the story. But first things first: so I'm not wasting any of your time, you can see how the story is progressing so far by following the link below (or, alternatively, by clicking the link that is always in my signature): Fanfic: Autonomous Reflection There you go. Now you can see my writing style and the general plot of the story to come, so you're not getting yourself involved in something you might not actually end up liking. If you're interested, please respond on this thread and I'll PM you as soon as I get the chance. Thanks!

Hello, friends! The first couple of chapters to this story were actually published about a month ago and met with a very positive start; I've been updating since and I'd really appreciate hearing what you guys think. There's no such thing as too much feedback! Autonomous Reflection Synopsis: When the recently emancipated Discord causes an incident that almost awakens Luna's dormant persona of Nightmare Moon, Princess Celestia calls upon her former student and devises a plan to test the true extent of his reformation. But this plan hides much deeper motives, motives which she cannot afford to share even with those who unwittingly assist in their fruition. And Celestia must be cautious that her goals do not blind her to discretion, for Discord's knowledge of her past could endanger the entire social stability of Equestria should he find reason to reveal it. Link to the FimFiction page right there. If you like what I've written so far, there's no better motivation for me than a like and comment. And, of course, if the opposite is true, I like to know where I went wrong if you're not finding it a good read. The link to the story is also always down there in my signature if you wish to continue following it but don't have a FimFiction account. Saves you having to find this page, too. Thanks again!

Well, what lovely timing; a couple of days ago I published the first two chapters of my new Fanfic. It's going to be pretty long, so if you enjoy what I've written so far then I'd love for you to show your support and keep up with it. Some sort of feedback - whether it's good or not - would also be much appreciated. The link is right there in my signature: the one that says "Autonomous Reflection". Enjoy!

That's really good! Just a few changes I'd like to suggest: With regard to the text, could you capitalise the first letter of the words "light", "dark", "inspiration" and "illumination"? Also in the text, the sudden change between black and white causes a bit of a clash, so please change the text's colour scheme to something that's a little easier on the eyes. Finally, could you get a more sinister image of Discord and replace the one that's there now? One where he looks ominous and evil. Thank you!

I requested something before you stopped doing them for a while. It's on page 2, post #27. If you could do mine, I'd be really grateful!

Yup, this could be fun! If you've still got any slots left, I'm free this week. My username is hiddream, so fire me a PM or just add me on Skype if there's room left. Thanks! EDIT: Just to clarify for the "over 18" rule, I'm turning 19 next week. xD

ONE HUNDRED

98. If someone breaks this now...

@@Kolth, um...you just thanked Brook. Yup, he's awesome, and granted, he started these interviews and allowed me to do this series, but was that a typo? Were you intoxicated when you posted that? I almost feel offended...

Hey, guys. I interviewed Kolth. Brook was lucky enough to interview him prior to this, so go stare at its glory before reading this one. Kolth is a good friend of mine, so I demand that you take heed of his obviously superior opinions. Read his words! Read his words and be ashamed! 1) At first you never thought you'd be a particularly active member of the brony community in general. What were the turning point(s) that made you become active, and how much happier are you for it? Well, at the beginning of last summer I got a little story in mind involving ponies. I let it roll around in my head before realizing, "Hey, other people MUST have made fanfictions by now." So I googled MLP fanfictions and found FiMFiction.net Holy crap. So I read one story there (I can't even remember which one)...and another...and another...and soon I registered under the username "Kolth" to keep track of all of the stories I had to read. Unfortunately, that list is still very large. So through the grapevine at FiMFiction I heard about EquestriaDaily. I went there... Holy crap again. I never thought that the community would be so...I don't know what word I'm looking for. Artistic on such a large scale. Thousands of pictures and stories and songs...it totally blew my mind. And one of the first posts I saw there was for Fallout Equestria. I spent the next three weeks, scrolling through the chapters of that great story on my tiny phone screen long into the night. Once I finished reading it, I looked at EquestriaDaily and FiMFiction and all of the other pony art and said to myself, "I need to be a part of this." And with that, I started writing again in hopes of becoming a prominent member and learning about myself and the awesome fandom I am now apart of. How much happier am I for it? That's a silly question. I have never been this happy in my life. I have tons of friends, I have a story to write, I have a place to be myself and have fun. Thanks, Forums. You rock. 2) It's no secret that Rarity hasn't been in the spotlight recently, something which has disappointed you. In fact, the last time full focus was on her was in Sweet and Elite; that was 30 episodes ago. Does this shock you? Was Rarity justified in her arguably selfish behaviour in Sweet and Elite? Of course it shocks me. Rarity is obviously the best character in the show, and the writers' neglect of this stunning unicorn is cause for outrage and rioting. Let's go burn down public buildings! ...No, but seriously. With only half of the episodes of a normal season, I bet the writers had to pick and choose which episodes they thought appealed to the widest audience, taught a variety of lessons, etc. Maybe a Rarity episode just wasn't on the cards, and while that does sadden me I am not terribly upset or shocked. It was a nice change of pace to get a Spike-centered and Scootaloo-centered episode, anyway. Rarity? Selfish? Why, those two words don't even belong in the same sentence! Rarity is the perfect character; she has no flaws. They should make a spin-off show that just talks about all the ways she is amazing and perfect and obviously the best pony of them all. ...Sorry, it's my not-serious hour of the day. I think she was more than justified. If a friend of mine was afforded the opportunity to live their dream, I would let them miss out on one birthday of mine. Their presence would be missed, but it would be understandable. 3) Imagine this: Pinkie Pie, one of your favourite ponies, offers to either teach you her abilities to defy physics or to provide you with a lifetime supply of every type of her delicious snacks, which will never make you gain weight or rot your teeth. Which do you choose and why? Defy physics. Candy and all that sweet junk just doesn't appeal to me...it actually makes me really sick. So between getting sick and breaking the laws of nature, I'll go with breaking laws. And of course, the first thing I would do is pop out of Feld0's computer and say hello. 4) You think that season 3 has been a bit more "up and down" than previous seasons in terms of quality. Other than a lack of Rarity, what has disappointed you the most? What has disappointed me the most is the focus on Spike and the changes to Spike's character. In the Crystal Empire, Spike becomes the hero. Then, in a short season, he gets two episodes all to himself. I don't like how the writers portrayed him, either. In the first two seasons, he was the helpful assistant with a huge crush on Rarity. In this season, he's much more of the annoying (Spike at Your Service) and self-centered (Just for Sidekicks) little brother. I want to see an episode where Spike attempts to woo Rarity in progressively wackier ways. So...yeah, a lack of Rarity is my main gripe after Spike. 5) You enjoy writing, something that we have in common. What is the most challenging aspect of penning a good story, and how do you overcome it? For most writers, the biggest problem I see is that they tell the story as opposed to showing it. The analogy I always give them is this: would you rather watch someone play a video game, or play it and experience the story for yourself? As a writer, it is your job to give the reader that experience, not lecture them. For me, a big problem is overcomplicating things. Both in my stories and in real life, I over analyze a lot. On the Tales of Solar Winds started as a short little ten- or twenty-chapter novella. But I added one little detail, which required another minor detail, which required this and that to work and pretty soon I'm in WAY over my head. But that is what makes writing fun for me; it is a challenge and allows for limitless freedom. With painting and drawing, you're stuck on a two-dimensional field. With sculpting, you're limited by the laws of nature and your own skill. But with writing, you can do anything as long as you have the words for it. As for overcoming it...I write it out. The only way to fix a problem with your writing is to keep writing until it is fixed. 6) You told Brook that nowadays you're the "class clown" and follow the morals of the show. Has there been a positive, noticeable difference with regard to the way people talk to you and how much respect you're given? For the most part, yes. People love to smile and it makes me happy knowing that I'm the guy making them laugh. Unfortunately, my closer friends respect me less because this has been a real change in my personality. But the rest of my friends and people I'm acquainted with love to hang out with me more often now. For those who don't believe me: living the lessons of the show is great. The world is a cheerier place and when you are friendly to people, they are friendly back. Give it a try for a week and see the difference it makes. 7) So Twilicorn is here to stay. Kolth, in turn, sees this in which way? There's a silver lining in every cloud. Or...y'know, however that phrase goes. [it's "Every cloud has a silver lining" Kolth... ] Things will definitely change from here on out, but I'm interested to see what the writer's do with Princess Twilight. And anyway, the show wasn't designed for our demographic, so we can't really complain that they are taking the show in a direction we don't like. But anyway, I'm still on the fence about it, leaning towards hope that Twilicorn will be a good addition to the roster. 8) Why do you write? Is the story you're currently writing based upon personal experiences, or does your wild imagination just want to give the reader a fun ride? Why do I write? Why do I breath? Why do I eat? Because I need to! For the longest time, all of my ideas and thoughts and feelings and places that I created were stuck up in my head with no way to get out. And then I discovered the wonders of Microsoft Word, and the rest is fairly self-explanatory. I write because I want to share the places and people and things I've created with someone. I could have one reader, but if that reader put down my story and said "Wow, I really enjoyed this," then I would be ecstatic. In every element, character, object, and place of all of my stories, there is a little bit of me or someone/something I am familiar with. If you embed a bit of your personal experiences into every part of your story, it is easier to write about because you KNOW what the character should be thinking and feeling because you yourself have been there. So in that regard, yes, it is based off of personal experiences. But like I said before, I want to share the things I think up with others. So in that sense, I'm hoping to take the reader for a ride. A very long, drawn-out, confusing ride, but a ride nonetheless. 9) Are you truly made out of 50% coolness, 45% awesomeness and 5% gas? Rainbow Dash asks: "Where's your radicalness?" For the most part, yes. The ratio of gas to coolness:awesomeness can fluctuate, as I am quite the airhead. And radicalness is for silly ponies who try to be a tenth as awesome as Lady Rarity. Give it up, Dash. You will never be best pone. I think that Kolth's radicalness coolness has spoken for itself there. I really don't need to add anything else. With that record number of questions done, Kolth has cemented his position as best human. Well, I suppose Lauren Faust is pretty cool too...

Attention! Attention! The greatest metal brony of all time is back! That's right everyone, Crispy's here for his follow-up interview. The more of these interviews I do, the better it gets, and Crispy didn't disappoint. Enjoy! Oh, and his first interview with Brook, right there. You should go gawp at it before this one. 1) YTP was a factor in bringing the show to your attention. Do you still enjoy watching poops, or have you grown to find them boring and unoriginal nowadays? I still love YTP's, but there's not too much going on in terms of pure Pony sources these days. Once in a while KinkyOats will throw something up that's pretty rad and worth people's time, but I don't think he's ever finished a fully pony Poop. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=KqI3O2NvJ_Q But yes, I still love YTP's. Especially ones with good source use. 2) The show itself did not change your life; it was the people of the fandom who all made you into a more accepting person. Do you think this is subconsciously true for all bronies? Can the show alone really change someone's life? That's all a matter of perspective, really. As I said before, there are people who say that the show saved them from suicide by showing them a brighter side of life, and there are less extreme examples, like mine, where one learns things like acceptance. There are still, however, people who watch the show and are assholes, as there will be with anything. Be they homophobic, racist, otherwise bigoted, or just a pain in the dick. These people exist and watching the show doesn't seem to help them much. It's more about what you as a person are willing to do for yourself in the end. If the show is a catalyst for you, fantastic, but it's obviously not working for some. Really though if I see one more "lol why is Twilight a [racism 1]" post I will flip out. 3) Pinkie Pie is your favourite pony. To what extent was she justified in cloning herself in Too Many Pinkie Pies? What did you think of Twilight's ruthless method of disposing of them? Oh man, that episode. Obviously smoothed over for kids; the ethical ramifications of cloning/killing your clones caused a stir in the fandom even after the next episode aired. Well, Pinkie's a pretty naive little pony. We all know she meant no harm, she just wanted to make sure all of her friends were happy. Twi's method, though vicious, was really the only way things could be made right... though I suppose using the Elements could have been a solution. The most powerful magics in Equestria could only have one true bearer, and that would have shown the false Pinkie's easily. 4) You were the 27th member to sign up to these here forums. Do you have fond memories of watching the site grow this large? What surprised you the most? What surprised me the most? Mostly the fact that I've stuck around. I was never much of a forum person, other than the Something Awful forums, and I mostly lurk there. Other than that, fond memories... hm. Well, there was the time Finest and I had a rap battle thread, that was pretty fun. There was a tinychat room that Shank, Finest, Viscra, Flare, occasionally Zoop and I had for a while, but that got keboshed pretty quickly. And The Metal Thread has been a constant source of enjoyment for me, as well. It's almost grown enough to be it's own subsection. 5) Twilight offers you a choice: she can either cast a spell on you which will make you the greatest metalhead in known existence, or she can cast one to turn you into a pony so you become a permanent resident of Equestria. What do you decide and why? I'M ALREADY THE FIRST ONE SO Probably the second. Magic worlds and adventures: what's not to like about that? Also, ay Pinkie what about the number... 6) Chimicherrychanga or Chimchar? CHARIZARD Yup, I laughed for a long time at that answer. Crispy is the God of metal. Go look at his thread. Actually no, do better, listen to everything everyone's ever posted in it. In fact, just sell your house and move in. You're gonna be there awhile...

My fellow Brit Aaramus is my interviewee today. He's got a good head on his shoulders, so you should probably listen to what he has to say. And, as always, check out his first interview with Brook; most of my questions relate to those answers. Here goes! 1) You joined the fandom in summer last year and naturally caught up on the first two seasons. Did you watch them all quickly or pace yourself to prolong the experience? Why? I, like a lot of people who were about the start watching the show, was quite skeptical because the previous generations of MLP weren't exactly brilliant, and somewhere in the back of my mind I fully expected it to be a very girly and childish cartoon. However, as I said in the previous interview, I had seen some of the fan made stuff and enjoyed that greatly, so I definitely had optimism for it. So I did what I do with all shows that I'm late getting into: I watched each episode on a daily basis so I could fully appreciate each one without rushing through it. I think if I had just done a massive sit through of maybe 10 episodes I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much. I think doing it that way made me understand better why it was so popular because I had time to take it all in and appreciate the fantastic writing and animating. Overall, I think spreading it out over what was probably around a month and a bit just made it a better viewing experience for me. 2) You're British, just like me. Do you think we tend to have a greater or lesser discretion in revealing that we're bronies to our friends, relative to the rest of the world? To what extent do you personally mind others knowing that you enjoy the show? That's quite a tough question. I think, due to the fact British bronies are certainly a minority within the community, it can be a little bit more difficult to reveal to others that we enjoy the show and are active within the fandom. You have to bear in mind that it's not an British show and The Hub isn't exactly advertised over here. I don't even see MLP product adverts on TV! Us Brits are fairly stubborn when it comes to what we like or don't like, you see it all the time everywhere. That said, I think it's very much down to the individual whether they take discretion over what they tell others. I don't hide anything but at the same time I don't go around telling people what I like and don't like. If it comes up in a conversation then I'll happily discuss it in a decent and adult manner, and I will not feel embarrassed or worried that people know. To me it doesn't matter whether people know that I enjoy the show or not. I have mentioned it to my friends a few times and they don't particularly mind; in fact a few of them enjoy the show as well (although they are not active on forums or anything like that). The people that have an issue with what I like or dislike will never be my friends anyway. I think we shouldn't worry about what people think...it's a TV show at the end of the day, not some extremist view. 3) You've enjoyed season 3, particularly Magic Duel. Is Trixie a pony that bronies love to hate, or do you think a lot of people find her genuinely annoying? What's your own take on her character? She has this really interesting effect on the community because she seems to be a very Marmite character that bronies either love to pieces or genuinely dislike her. It's very interesting when you think about how the other characters don't seem to have this odd 50/50 split. You get some people that honestly sympathise with what happened to her in Boast Busters, despite the fact she's a very arrogant character who could not accept Twilight being better at magic than her, even though it was blindingly obvious. On the other hand you get those that see her as an annoying and irritating character when really she was an interesting antagonist who presented a very real challenge to Twilight. I think we're quite split on her, but I think we do love to hate here more so. Personally, I think she had two awesome episodes and she really gave Twilight something to think about. Although she sometimes doubts herself, Twilight was really put to the test during those episodes, something which only Discord really managed to do as well. She's a great antagonist and actually I'm a little disappointed she won't be returning to cause mayhem again. 4) You told Brook that you want to go to B.U.C.K. (unintentional rhyming wins) but you're away that weekend. Would you abandon the Reading festival if a lot of people from this site agreed to meet up and go together? Ahh no! Don't put me in that situation! Why would you do that?! >< I've been back and forth between those two events for the last few weeks. I went to Reading festival last year and weirdly enough it was perhaps a few days after getting back that my friend introduced me to MLP! It would certainly be great to actually meet the people on here in real life as I love socials events where I can just chat about what I enjoy to the people that keep me interested in being a part of this fandom. The problem I have is this: Eminem almost never visits the UK! At the moment it's between a TV show and community I've loved for several months, and a musician whose album was the first one I ever bought as a child (despite my parents' objections!). As much as MLP is awesome, it's very hard to deny myself seeing perhaps my all time favourite artist live for the first time (as I was far too young for his previous UK visits). If B.U.C.K is on next year I will go to that, unless Coldplay or Muse are headlining! 5) You get to live with either Twilight in her library or Rarity in her boutique for two weeks. Who would you stay with and why? Why do you keep making me choose between two amazing things? This is unfair! I think I'd have to choose Twilight's Library. I adore reading, it's one of my favourite pastimes ever, and it would probably take me two weeks just to stop gawking at the amount of books she possesses! Also, I have a lot more in common with Twily that Rarity; I would be able to have a good conversation with her and she could teach me magic (even if my pony-sona is an earth pony but whatever!). To me she's a very likable and relatable character and I would enjoy being with her for the full two weeks, whereas with Rarity I think I'd get a bit bored being in a boutique for 14 days. I could see Twilight actually being a really close friend due to her personality. Even though it sounds bad, Rarity is very much comic relief to me, she provides by far the funniest moments and her personality and mannerisms make me giggle like a school child. 6) Unlike for many bronies, the show has not changed your outlook or your personality. But do you think the morals that the show teaches are exactly the morals that parents should be teaching their children? Absolutely! When I think back to when I was growing up in the mid to late 90's, I used to love shows that were educational but entertaining at the same time. My parents got me to watch things like Tots TV, Thomas the Tank Engine, Rosie and Jim and plenty of other shows which had these little messages within them that kids subtly learn from and take in. The morals that you can get from MLP are indeed what kids should be learning, and to be honest it's what a lot of 13-16 year olds are lacking these days. I find a lot of them just don't have those morals embedded into them like I do; it's a shame really. What MLP does well in this regard is reinforce those morals and lessons rather than being a teaching tool. Parents need to teach their kids manners first, then when they watch the show it shows them why those lessons needed to be learned. There are a few things, like sending your sister to the moon ,that perhaps shouldn't be taught to kids but those are just fictional things that are mainly for entertainment. I think all of this is why I don't feel the show has changed me; I was already taught these things from an early age. 7) So, you told Brook that Treecko is better than Mudkip...but what is better than Treecko? There are many Pokémon better than Treeko! His evolutions are one example...Sceptile is an absolute badass! However, let's just go with what I think is the best Pokémon from that generation, Gardevoir. Why? You just blast the living daylights out of everything in your path! She don't make black holes for nothing! On the subject of black holes, I think this interview may have blown open a few tears in the fabric of space and time. If you were swallowed by Aaramus's attractive personality, I apologise. Anyway, elaborate and thoughtful answers like these always make interviewing a pleasure.