A Change of Plans

In my Review and Preview 2023/2024 I got carried away to the following statement:

The third and final chapter of Skeleton Crew is currently in the making, and I have a short (and this time I do mean short) ponygirl story up my sleeve to bridge the gap. After that I will concentrate on Ponygirl Vet.

Good plan. Doesn’t work, though. Given not only the overall length of the final chapter of Skeleton Crew, but also its complexity in terms of tone, atmosphere and technical details, I have to switch it with at least one part of Ponygirl Vet to free up some time.

Review and Preview 2023/2024

Dear Readers of weird stuff on the internet,

I hope that this, my latest Review and Preview, finds you well. If I wanted to sum up 2023, this would be the result: 26066

That is the combined word count of all literary texts I have published on this site this year, distributed as follows:

• One part of Ponygirl Vet: 1,319
• Four doses of Pony Boot Camp, including Part LX for the story’s 10^th anniversary: 14,456
• Two chapters of Skeleton Crew: 10,291

That number makes for a decent novella, but I wished it would have been spread more evenly. Keen eyes may spot that there is no new chapter of Æquinoctium, nor a concluded short story.

Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (XI)

It comes to little surprise that the final part of Skeleton Crew will take some time, and I honestly see January of next year as the soonest possible release date. One cannot rush art (so why rush rubbish then?). To fill the void, let’s do some more tinkering with PBC, as Alterations X was of course a chapter in disguise.

10th Anniversary of Pony Boot Camp — “It was either this, or…”

Yep, 10 years sounds about right. Although for Seventeen it would feel more like 26 days. 7^th November, to be precise, as I cunningly use a chart with dates, key events and so on to keep track of what’s going down at the DACC.

Right now everybody’s favourite ponygirl is still stuck in Part LX, not that this is a bad thing. Much effort I put into this, the so far latest chapter to celebrate the 10^th anniversary of Pony Boot Camp. In passing it also cracked the 160,000 words barrier, which may serve as an answer as to why it took me a decade to get our anti-heroine to where she is now. My initial layout predicted about 20,000 words, and featured next to none of the intricate character relationships which now carry the narration (together with the occasional fetish overload, that is). Had I known what I was getting myself into, I would have probably opt out and done something else with my leisure time. Breeding ponies, for example.

Sneak Peek: Skeleton Crew — Chapter Two

It is now a given that every story of mine comes by default in an extended version. So word count has of course exploded on me with the second chapter of Skeleton Crew. I see early next week as a realistic posting date. And to make the wait just a bit harder for everybody, here’s a little preview of what to expect:

Reuß would load upon him the sin of lie if he would claim that the woman’s attitude wasn’t intriguing him. He turned his face towards the bulkhead, but not without fetching the satchel that had been placed on her cape and clearly belonged to her. From behind the rustling of her shirt reached him.

10th Anniversary – to be continued

My very dear and very few readers,

Last Sunday the first chapter of Skeleton Crew appeared out of nowhere, because if there’s anything this site needs, it is yet another pending multi-part story. This one, however, marks a special occasion. Ten years ago on that publishing date I had posted my first piece of work on WordPress. Back then it had been the initial chapter of the ill-fated House of Cthulhu, a story I have discontinued, but despite its faults never fully abandoned. Much thought went since then into the question of how I would celebrate my tenth anniversary here. A ponygirl story? After all, this fetish takes up an important part in my body of work. Perhaps another slow-burner like The Writer, punching way above its weight?

Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (IX)

Looking over the latest part of PBC, I arrived at the conclusion that Seventeen’s third jaunt with her new bestie Hipser Beard deserves more than just a passing mentioning. The episode does not justify an own chapter, which also would have to take the form of a flashback scene. Therefore…

Part LVII

[…]

has a part added:

[see below and also in the already revised chapter itself]

Review and Preview 2022/2023

It’s not looking good, guys, it does not look good…

As some of you might already have realised, the year is about to end, which calls for another highly informative review/preview routine. And especially with the output on my multi-part stories I am not happy:

• Two new parts of Pony Boot Camp (gotta pump those numbers up!)
• Zero new parts of Æquinoctium (I don’t even know what to say.)

The tragedy here lies within the fact that at least three more parts of PBC are drafted out, and that for many moons I am 1,600 words deep into Chapter IX of Æquinoctium. I can only point at time as the limiting factor.

Review and Preview 2021/2022

2021 is (almost) dead – long live 2022! I have a great feeling about the upcoming year, although many state that it can’t possibly get better than the closing one. In any case it’s time again for the inevitable review/preview dance.

2021 – What’s the damage?

• Four new parts of Pony Boot Camp

I received quite a positive feedback on pushing the escape story arc in PBC. Totally unexpected with my writing style, the word count went through the roof again, therefore Seventeen’s search for greener pastures is definitively something to be carried over into the next year. As for isolated stories, we are looking at:

Reference That!

Recently I find myself pondering over the topic of references to popular culture in stories; namely how much is just enough, and how to stay well below the saturation line. Catalyst for my rumination is a much-hyped Korean TV show currently on its peak of popularity (you think I am talking about Squid Game, don’t you? Of course I am talking about bloody Squid Game!).  So what may be the pros and cons of integrating said show and, by deduction, any pop-cultural phenomenon? Let’s take a walk.