site event MCM'25: Short Story Submissions

[Twilight Sparkle 459]

MCM '25: Short Story Submissions

"Winter Paradise" by @Sophie.

 

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Got a one-shot story to share? We'd love to read it!

Hello there, everypony! I'm Princess Twilight Sparkle, welcoming you to a fun gathering of fiction. 

I sure do love a good story. Don't you?
To help celebrate the holidays, you are invited to share any short, one-shot stories you have.
They can be stories you've made, or stories you enjoy. But you must remember the following rules:

• They must only be one chapter in length. In other words, a short story or a one-shot. (Poems are also allowed.)
• Only one story per user, please!
• They must obey the rules of the forum. Only submit stories that are Safe For Work. Submitting plagiarized work, overtly violent stories, excessively derogatory stories, or mature-rated stories is the same as violating the Forum Guidelines.
• The stories must be Holiday themed!
• And most of all, be on the look out, because one lucky story will be the winner! Keep reading for further information.

So get ready with your one-shot stories about Hearth's Warming, Winter Wishday, Christmas, etc. Whatever winter holiday you celebrate!
As we approach the end the month, a special story will be selected as the winner! The winning story will receive a special recording by select members of the MLP Forum staff! In the meantime, we can all read each other's stories, share thoughts and feedback, and share this experience together.

So come along and share, read, and enjoy some good stories with us, won't you?
Please submit your stories below!

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Thank you for participating in Making Christmas Merrier 2025!

Remember, we are also hosting a charity, so please consider making a donation to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital.

Together, we can make the holiday season merry for everyone.

Donate Here!

[Casey Pones 207]

I'm still kind of new here. How do we submit stories?

Do I just past the text in here or attact it somehow and in what format?

[Emerald Heart 25,402]

1 hour ago, Casey Pones said:

I'm still kind of new here. How do we submit stories?

Do I just past the text in here or attact it somehow and in what format?

Hello and lovely to meet you, new friend! My name is Emerald Heart and Twilight Sparkle has given me permission to help out with any questions or inquiries anypony might have. 

A great and wonderful question- you can upload it as either a file, a link or type it here. 

Hoping that helps,

Emerald Heart 

Head Librarian 

 

[Samurai Equine 58,587]

2 hours ago, Casey Pones said:

I'm still kind of new here. How do we submit stories?

Do I just past the text in here or attact it somehow and in what format?

Hi there.  @Emerald Heart is correct, you can upload it as a file here. If it's short enough, you can paste it into the message field (though please consider using the 👁️ Spoiler tag).
But the best way would be to submit it to a place like FimFiction.net and then leave a link to the story.

[TheRockARooster 56,252]

I’ll type mine on here, darlings. 

[Casey Pones 207]

Can somepony tell me when the deadline is? I haven't seen anypony posting stories here.

[TheRockARooster 56,252]

I’m finishing my story today, darlings. 

[Casey Pones 207]

This is my entry. 

If you've read some of the posts I've made here, you'll know I have a lot of problems with G5. And yet I've written a story set in it.

I thought that the episode Winter Wishday had a lot of potential, especially for the show's original mission for inclusion and harmony between different cultures. When it was shown that the 3 ponykinds had the same holiday but called it different names and had different traditions, I thought it would be a great metaphor for how different cultures celebrate Christmas with slight variations. And it would also be a great opportunity for world building like the story of Hearth's Warming was for G4.

But everypony gets along fine with there being different traditions and we're never even told what the holiday is about.

So I wrote a story that could have been set at the beginning of Winter Wishday. And in my humble opinion it might have given it a bit more depth and meaning.

It was a last minute thing so it's basically a first draft your reading, it's also the first bit of creative writing I've done in a while. Apologies for any lack of quality and that it's not posted on FimFiction but they said registrations for new users were closed.

It's my gift to you, let me know what you you think or if you have problems opening it.

Merry Christmas, happy Hearth's Warming, cheery Wishday, Joyous Wishentine and Frosty Shivers! 

Wisharmony.odt

Edited December 26, 2025 by Casey Pones

[TheRockARooster 56,252]

Spoiler

Once upon a time in the magical land of Equestria on what is known as Hearth's Warming Eve, a group of ponies and a dragon gathered at Carousel Boutique to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year.

 

These ponies were the owner of the boutique, Rarity and her friends Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy along with her dragon friend, Spike.

 

'Thank you all for coming to my boutique on Hearth's Warming Eve, darlings' Rarity said to her friends.

'You're welcome, Rarity' Twilight said. 'It's our pleasure'.

'I second that' Spike replied.

'I wouldn't have missed it!' Applejack yelled.

'Me neither' Fluttershy also replied shyly.

'Yeah, I had nothing to do but I would've made it even if I did' Rainbow said in a smarty tone.

'I wouldn't have missed it because a gathering like this can only mean a PARTY!!!!!!!!!!!' Pinkie yelled.

Everypony looked at Pinkie Pie with wide eyes.

Pinkie asked 'What?!'.

'Pinkie, you are so random' Rainbow replied.

'I know!!' Pinkie said with a large smile.

 

Rarity giggled and so do the rest of her friends.

‘You’re all the greatest friends I could ever ask for and I wanted you all to see this’ she said as she used her magic to light up a darkened area of the boutique to reveal a large Hearth’s Warming tree with presents underneath it.

 

All of Rarity’s friends gasped at the sight of the massive tree and the presents.

‘Rarity, what is all this?’ Twilight asked.

‘These are my gifts for all of you, my friends’. Rarity replied which caused all of her friends to gasp.

‘Gifts for us, sugarcube?’ Applejack asked.

‘Yes Applejack’ Rarity replied with a smile.

‘You’re all the greatest friends I could ever ask for and I wanted to show you all how much you mean to me’.

 

‘AWWWWWW!!!!!!!!’ All of her friends said.

They all gave Rarity a massive group hug.

‘Rarity, are you able to read our minds?’ Twilight asked randomly.

‘No darling, why?’ Rarity asked back while giggling.

‘Well, that’s what we had in mind too’ Twilight replied.

‘What?!’ Rarity asking with a yelp.

 

Twilight used her magic to open the front door to the boutique and bring in a huge bag of full of gifts that her friends had chosen especially for her.

 

Rarity gazed upon the bag full of presents and was feeling overwhelmed with joy and she turned around and hugged all of her friends in a big group hug.

 

‘You’re all the greatest friends I could ever ask for and I must do this right….. HAPPY HEARTH’S WARMING!!!!!!!!!’ Rarity proclaimed.

 

‘HAPPY HEARTH’S WARMING!!!!!!!!’ said everypony and everydragon in Carousel Boutique as Rarity and her friends exchanged gifts and celebrated Hearth’s Warming, the most wonderful time of the year.

 

THE END

Here’s my Hearth’s Warming story submission, darlings. 

[Samurai Equine 58,587]

I know it's kind of last-minute, but I hope it's okay for me to submit a short story of my own. I hope it's short enough. 

It's called "An Olde City Shoppe".
You can read it: Here.

(EDIT: If the link is not working, let me know. I can post the story here instead.)

Edited December 31, 2025 by Samurai Equine

[ExplosionMare 28,944]

18 hours ago, Samurai Equine said:

I know it's kind of last-minute, but I hope it's okay for me to submit a short story of my own. I hope it's short enough. 

It's called "An Olde City Shoppe".
You can read it: Here.

(EDIT: If the link is not working, let me know. I can post the story here instead.)

The link expired.

[Samurai Equine 58,587]

4 hours ago, ExplosionMare said:

The link expired.

Yeah, my story was denied approval because of oddly specific rules that ruin the flow of my story. So I'll post it here instead.
I'll still resubmit it at FIMFiction, I'll just have to restructure the stories to fit their "one character speaking per paragraph" rule.

 

Spoiler

An Olde City Shoppe
Based on a song by The Trans-Siberian Orchestra.

     It's been snowing all day. As the sun quickly sets, the cold temperatures turning her breath into white puffs of mist, Lyra Heartstrings walks through the streets of Canterlot and arrives at familiar donut shop; it's main sign lighting up with neon lights. She is visibly annoyed as she opens the door, making the door's bell chime. “Bonny, is there a reason why you asked me to come all the way out--”

     But Lyra's question is cut off when she sees Bonbon sitting at a table, hanging out with a group of ponies she has never seen before. They all seem to be laughing and having a good time, a few meager pieces of donuts and a mug or two scattered among them. “Lyra! Come over here; join us for a while. I want you to meet my fellow operatives. You know, from my old secret agent days?” Bonbon says, happy waving Lyra over.

     She approaches the table they are sitting at, but Lyra has gone from annoyed to angry. “Bonbon, did you really drag me all the way down here just so you could show off your secret agent lif--!!”, “Is that Lyra Heartstrings? As in THE legendary Lyra Heartstrings?!” A pegasus mare interrupts Lyra, her face lit with excitement and wonder. “We'll it's about time we finally met. I just have to know if all the stories are true.” A pegasus stallion says. Lyra's face completely changes from angry to completely surprised. “You know about me?” She asks, almost speechless. “Agent Sweetie Drops, I mean Bonbon, has only mentioned you a million times. It's always the same thing. After every mission, no matter how amazing she was, she always says it's never as amazing as Lyra.” A unicorn stallion says, tilting his fancy hat.

     About that time, Lyra notices Bonbon looking at her with warm smile. Lyra is touched. She has to touch her own cheek to keep from blushing too much. “Oh Bonny... She may think a lot of me, but I think the world of her.” The two of them share a sweet moment of eye contact, reaching out to hold each other's hooves, before Bonbon's friends speak up again. The unicorn with the fancy hat goes first. “My name is Trilby Hatter, also known as Agent Wide Brim, reserve field agent.” Next is the pegasus mare. “I'm Peachy Sweet, A.K.A. Agent Spot On, forensics specialist.” Next is the pegasus stallion. “Rainbow Swoop, or Agent Purple Waters, reconnaissance agent.” Trilby points to the pony behind him working the cash register. “And over there is Pony Joe, also known as Agent Dough Star, 1st class field agent.”

     “Seriously?! Pony Joe is also a secret agent?” Lyra asks, nearly cracking up with laughter. “Yes, and those donuts aren't free. You each owe me 3 bits. 5 if ordered hot coco.” Pony Joe says with a smirk. “Ha! He's always like that. One of the best agents in the field, but still a business pony.” Rainbow Swoop explains. “Now wait a second. I don't know enough about secret agent stuff, but are you sure you should be telling me all this? Aren't you giving away top secret information?” Lyra asks as she takes a seat at the table. “Correction, we WERE secret agents. Most of our branches have been eliminated, and we've been let go.” Rainbow Swoop explains, pointing for emphasis. “Things just haven't been the same since Twilight and her friends become the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. Since then, Princess Celestia doesn't need teams of secret agents like she use to.” Peachy Sweet explains further.

     “We always came here after missions to celebrate. We probably won't be doing that anymore, but I wanted to share the other half of my life with you. No more secrets.” Bonbon explains to Lyra as she sits closer to her. “Oh it pained her to keep secrets from you! You'd never guess from looking, but Agent Sweetie Drops was our best anti-monster operative, with only one failed assignment on her record. Wasn't it the bugbear?” Trilby asks. “I swear, it was barely my fault on that one. We never should have hired that new guy to look after the entrance to Tartarus. And when the freeze spells weren't working--” Bonbon starts a story, but it all fades into background noise as the door opens once more.

     The bell chimes. A small colt in a heavy jacket and hat walks into the donut shop, shaking the snow off his jacket. He walks past the collection of adult ponies talking, and goes straight to Pony Joe. “Sir, I don't mean to bother you, but your shop is the only one still open at this hour. Would you be willing to help a poor kid out?” The little colt asks. “We're not open. We closed an hour ago. I'm just entertaining some personal friends. What do you want?” Pony Joe clarifies as he looks down at the little colt. “My apologies, sir. But it's not I that needs help. No, sir. It's that young mare out there, in the snow. She's the one that needs help, sir. She's completely lost. Can't get home at all.” The colt says.

     As the childhood pony explains this, Pony Joe looks up and gazes past the window of his shop. It's hard to see. By now, the sky is turning black, and the snow has frosted his windows over. Still, he can faintly make out the scene of a pink mare with a luster gold mane and tail. She is sitting alone, leaning against a street light and looking rather sad. “Well, that's too bad for her, I guess.” Pony Joe grabs a rag to clean his counter top, but stops before he can begin. “...Not that I care, but how exactly do you know she needs help? Friend of yours?” The little colt takes off his hat. “Because I've noticed.... In a big city like this, if one could be home, they'd be all ready there. That and... Look at her.” The colt momentarily points at the mare. “She's a unicorn. If she could teleport, wouldn't she have done it by now?” The colt says, somewhat jovial but still speaking the truth.

     Bonbon and her friends have overheard the whole exchange by now. “Hmm... Wow, that's no good. Should we do something? I have to get back to my hat store after this. I've got holiday orders to fulfill.” Trilby explains. “I guess we could pitch in some money, but do we have enough? I'm stuck between jobs right now. Was kind of hoping I could ask Joe to put this on my tab for once...” Peachy says, reflecting on her finances. “No, no, no. I think the answer is simple. We give her a spare jacket. I can navigate the skies, and--” Rainbow Swoop begins. As they all talk and iron out the details, Pony Joe looks back at forth between the lost mare and his own cash register, a sight he has been familiar with for years.

     Joe suddenly feels something compelling, a pang to his psyche. When he is convinced his fellow agents are too busy talking amongst themselves, he opens the cash register, takes out every last bit, and quickly walks upright to the exit. The chatting of his friends is interrupted when they hear the door's bell. They stare speechless as they watch Joe cross the street and talk to her. They can't hear much from inside the store. Something about the train station closed; too much snow and ice. Something about how she ran out of money. Then Joe abruptly gives her all the bits he has, loudly whistles towards the street, and beckons over a taxi. Helping her get inside, he slaps the carriage's door closed, and watches it speed off into the horizon.

     Looking back at his hooves, Joe sees that they are empty, not a single bit in sight. He wipes his hoof on his apron, goes back to standing on all fours, then looks up. In the dark of the night where the waltzing dream-like snow can blind your vision, he sees the neon lights of his sign that read Donut Joe's. With a nod, he makes the slow march back to his shop. He goes in, kicking the snow off his hooves. He doesn't care about the sound of the bell as he walks back behind the register once more. He doesn't even need to look up, he can feel his friends staring at him, their jaws on the floor. “...In a million years, I never thought I'd see the day Pony Joe does something like that.” Bonbon speaks up first.

     “Well what are you all looking at? Just cause my prices are cold, doesn't mean my heart is.” Pony Joe says, though that hardly ends their silent stares. ”Hey now, let's not get use to it. Remember, we still owe him bits for our meals. I bet he still wants that.” Trilby breaks the silence, though most of their food was consumed before Lyra got here. “Yeah. I suppose I can part with 3 bits tonight. It's not that big of a deal.” Peachy says, rubbing the back of her head. To that, Pony Joe gives a single chuckle as he finishes cleaning his counter top. “What are you all talking about? Tonight, no pony pays for donuts or hot coco. It's on the house.” Pony Joe exclaims with a proud smirk. Once more, his fellow agents are left speechless. But it only takes a few seconds for his words to register, and they all cheer for joy because of Joe's sudden generosity.

     As more rounds of hot coco are ordered, Joe is all ready one step ahead, filling mugs as fast as he can. Lyra finds herself laughing, trying to cover her mouth with her hoof. “If Pony Joe really is that stingy with his money, then you realize nopony will believe any of this, right? They might even think that young colt was just a beggar, trying to get some free bits or something.” Lyra says. “Who cares? They weren't here. They didn't get to see the miracle we saw. And that's all that matters.” Rainbow Swoop says. In time, Joe brings them all hot coco. Bonbon is the first to raise her mug. “A toast. We may not be united as fellow agents anymore, but I hope we do continue to hang out all year round, like friends. As far as I'm concerned, this is home.” Bonbon says. “To home.” Lyra responds, once more touched as she raises her own mug. “To home!” The rest of the group say as they raise their mugs, leaning forward and connecting them in a toast.

     Sitting more comfortably, they all drink and dine on donuts. “So what other stories have I been missing out on?” Lyra asks. “Oh, do you know the one about how Pinkie Pie nearly found out our entire operation? It happened when she noticed my field double was an earth pony and not a pegasus like me. You wouldn't believe how close she got to finding us out. First, we had to set up a few false store fronts, and then...” Peachy begins to recall the story.

     As the scene pulls away from donut shop, as the snow continues to fall, something about the magic of that special night makes it feel a little less cold. And with any luck, they'll remember that moment of charity, and carry that feeling with them all year round.

Happy Hearth's Warming & Happy Holidays.

 

[Casey Pones 207]

On 2025-12-31 at 10:02 PM, Samurai Equine said:

I know it's kind of last-minute, but I hope it's okay for me to submit a short story of my own. I hope it's short enough. 

It's called "An Olde City Shoppe".
You can read it: Here.

(EDIT: If the link is not working, let me know. I can post the story here instead.)

It's not working

[Samurai Equine 58,587]

I'm going to say that all stories for this event have been successfully submitted.
A big thanks to @Emerald Heart. @Casey Pones, and @TheRockARooster for making this event happen!

But stay tuned, because there will be a follow-up post announcing the winner!