A Short (5,000 Word) History of One Man’s Pony Ramblings, or: I Just Got Linked Here, What the Heck am I Looking At?

Don’t worry, we’ll start with a tl;dr.

I didn’t want “I’m quitting the blog, so long!” to be the top post on here for all eternity, and I really had been meaning to clean up the links at the top of the page. So, now I’m doing both. Here’s a post that explains what I’ve been up to for the last six and a half years, talks a little about the experience from my end, and otherwise tries to put a neat and tidy bow on the sprawling, messy, but incredibly rewarding experience of reviewing over 1000 FiM fanfics. If you’re ready for the marginally deep dive (or if you just want a fairly quick and concise answer to the second half of this post’s title), head down below the break one last time with me.

A Long-Delayed Admission

Let's not bury the lede: One Man's Pony Ramblings is closing its doors.

If you want or need to know more, I've got further information below the break.  But the big news is that I won't be resuming this blog.  It's been an amazing six and a half years; thank you all for making it such a fun and educational experience.

First Sentences in (Fan)Fiction the 26th

Following up on the 25th installments "look at an author's oldest and most recent ponyfic" theme, here's a continuation with a few more high-output long-timers!  Head down below the break to see how the first sentence they ever inflicted on put before the ponyfic public compares to their latest works.

Mini-Reviews Round 216

It's been brought to my attention that this blog's subheader ("Updating M-W-F, whether Chris has anything interesting to say or not") has not been, strictly speaking, all that accurate for the last couple of months.  That notwithstanding, I'm going to keep it for now; I've been rolling with that line for over six years, and even if it's currently more aspirational than factual, it's still traditional, y'know?  Hopefully, I'll be able to make it more consistently true statement in the future.

But for today, at least, it's theoretically, historically, and literally true!  Click down below the break for some reviews.

First Sentences in (Fan)Fiction the 25th

As I sometimes do, I thought I'd switch things up with the first sentences section a bit: today, I'll be looking at some talented/prolific authors in the fandom (both aspects are important, for reasons that will quickly become clear) and compare the first sentence of their earliest published work with the first sentence of their most recently published one.  It's often easy to see noticeable improvement with fanfic authors from early to later works; now let's see if that holds up when one judges a fic by just its first few words!  And since the learning experience is what we're hoping to see in action here, I'll try to pick still-active authors who've been around a while.  Now, head below for some comparisons.

Fandom Classics Part 240: Letters From a Secret Admirer

To read the story, click the image or follow this link.

As I've settled into the start of a new season of Ink Master and, as is standard practice when watching a competition reality show, picked my favorite, I was struck by the realization that my favorites are disproportionately male.  Like, at least 80% of the time, I pick a guy to root for in these situations.  Which makes me wonder: how concerned should I be that this represents a subtle, ingrained bit of sexism on my part?  To be fair, I frequently end up picking whoever has the best beard, which is going to skew my numbers, but on the other hand, maybe that's an ingrained bit of sexism coming through in and of itself.  And even if it was sexist, what would be the appropriate response?  Making a conscious effort to chose half guys and half girls to root for isn't not-sexist, any more than picking all-guys or all-girls is.

I take some solace in knowing that I apparently have nothing better to do than fret over whether I'm biased against rooting for women who go on reality shows.  Anyway, check out my review of Subsolar Drift's Letters From a Secret Admirer, below.

Mini-Reviews Round 215

If you don't follow politics closely, then maybe you've missed some of the kerfluffle about Trump, various porn stars, and hush money.  I'm not going to rehash it here, because I have no interest in making this blog political.  So why bring it up at all?  Because one of the porn stars in question goes by the screenname "Jenna Talia."  I'd like to move that this is the best porn star name (female category), and add that it has made me giggle at least four times since I first learned this fact.

On the subject of mild cleverness, let's do some fanfic reviews!  Check mine out, below.

Fandom Classics Part 239: Dead/Light

To read the story, click the image or follow this link.

Thank goodness for the snow day yesterday; it gave me a chance to get this review out.  One Man's Pony Ramblings: adored by brony literary snobs and, apparently, weather gods.

So with all praise to Ullr, head below the break to read my review of Lord Destrustor's Dead/Light.

Fandom Classics Part 238: The White Mare

To read the story, click the image or follow this link.

I got a pleasant surprise yesterday morning: a group called The Writer Awards selected OMPR as one of their top fanfiction blog/websites!  If you're interested in seeing their list, you can get an early peak at it here; it's got some delightfully esoteric stuff on it (did you know there was a Bon Jovi fanfic directory?  I didn't!).  In any event, thank you to whoever nominated me; a little positive attention goes a long way when it comes to lightening one's mood.

Will I now pay those warm fuzzies forward, or will I deem Warren Hutch's The White Mare unworthy of laud?  Head down below the break to find out!

Mini-Reviews Round 214

Happy New Year!  In what is surely an auspicious start to the year, I'm kicking it off with... a missed post and another mini-review set.  Hey, at least I got some reading/reviewing done.  Under the circumstances, I'm feeling pretty good about that.  And hey: it's tradition to immediately faceplant on your resolutions, no?  So if anything, I'm overachieving.

Mini-reviews, below.