Yo reddit, I'm M.A. Larson, writer on My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. AMA!

Where can I get aftermarket parts for my Hyundai tiburon?

Here you are: https://www.carid.com/hyundai-performance-parts/

If you could put wings on every single character would you do it?

No! I would take all the wings away. Especially Rainbow Dash

If you sign my fanfic at Bronycon, does that make it canon?

I believe those are the rules, yes

Did you ever think the show would be as big as it has become? Would you have changed anything about what you wrote had you known?

I never could have predicted it. And I think that's one of the reasons the show worked so well. No one expected much from it, so we really had the freedom to just be loose with the characters and entertain ourselves. And then it became this big thing and blew my mind. Continues to do so. I still get chills when I meet people at conventions and hear their stories and have them quote my own lines to me and stuff. I wouldn't change anything, really. I do believe that sometimes when things get worked and re-worked they can lose some of their charm. So flaws that are there, I'm okay with them.

Hi Larson,

I was just curious what your feelings were towards not getting to write Season 8 Episode 11 Molt Down, the episode where Spikes grows his wings. Do you only give out pony/princess wings?

Fun fact, they asked me to write that episode, but it didn't work out.

Hello, Mr Larson! Just wanted to say that as a massive Rarity fan, I really appreciated the last line in the picture you posted to Twitter!

As for my question, if you could have voiced any character in My Little Pony, who would you have chosen?

Ooooooo, fun one. I think I'd be best at someone like Silver Spoon, or some fancy shmancy pony. I do a mean Jeremy Irons.

Why is Rarity your favorite pony?

It's a cheat, but she's the most fun to write for. I also love characters with clear flaws -- she's arrogant and pompous -- but she's also one of the kindest and most generous with her friends. She's popular, but also a champion of the underdog. And writing her scenes with Sweetie Belle in Ponyville Confidential was one of my favorite moments in the show.

Hey there! What was your work regarding the 100th episode, Slice of Life?

I wrote the whole damn thing. That one took more work than any other episode because it was so crammed with characters and moments and references, and the swirling "storylines" (in quotes because the story doesn't really matter in that ep) had to all come together in the wedding. So, yeah, that one was a ton of work. But also probably the most rewarding.

What are your thoughts on the MLP Movie (the 2017 one, not the 80's one) ?

It was good. The look took awhile to get used to since I'm so used to how the show looks. But some of the new characters were really fun and it was a blast to see the girls on the big screen.

​

Plus I love Kristin Chenoweth

Pineapple on pizza. Yay or neigh?

NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER

​

(unless it also has peanut butter)

Are you pleased with direction the show has been going?
Was it true that you tried to pursue a full-time lead writing job for the show, but Hasbro denied you?

Haven't been keeping up with it, to be honest.

No, it was always the plan that Meghan would come back for the end of season five. The half season I did story edit was really difficult for several reasons, so I think they didn't ask me to story edit later seasons because they knew how much I didn't enjoy that.

What is your favorite episode of MLP? (Episodes written by you count)

Best Night Ever!!!

​

My fave of mine is Return of Harmony

Hello, Mr. Larson! I love the show and I’m so grateful for you and the wonderful staff for helping to build this fantastical world full of so many lovable characters. Thank y’all so much for all the smiles and tears over the years! I have three questions, if that’s okay.

1. Which finale is your favorite?

2. Which character’s development have you most enjoyed?

3. If you suddenly gained Discord’s powers, what would be the first thing you’d do?

Thanks for your kind words!

1) Best Night Ever is my favorite episode of the whole series, so I'd have to say that one

2) Celestia's

3) Exactly what he does. I would troll Twilight SO HARD

Hey Larson!

You and Scott Sonneborn both received writing credits for the season 5 opener "The Cutie Map". Just how much of the writing for that opener was you and how much of it was Sonneborn's work?

It was a combination of Meghan, Scott, and me. I wrote the script based on work they had done.

How do I get my wings?

SING!

Was there ever a reason why we never got any further examination or exploration of the Zebras? I always felt that Zecora and the zebras in general weren't given the screentime or attention they aught to have received. Most people just assume it's because Zecora (and by extension, all zebras) speaks in rhyme which is hard to write for, but that explanation just feels unsatisfactory to me I guess.

Not that I know of. Could have been a pretty amazing little avenue to have gone down, storywise. Doing something like that is tough on production (all those zebras would have to be designed, along with a whole new land), but they've done stuff like that before with yaks and whatnot. So I don't really have an answer. Maybe it's one of those things that better left to the imagination of the fans?

Hey Larson, thanks for your fantastic contributions to the show, your style of humor was always right up my alley.

How much influence did Faust have on Season 2? I know she worked on a good deal of its episodes before departing the show, but I've long wondered how big a part she played in the latter part of the season, as she seemingly left while the season was still being worked on. You wrote It's About Time and Ponyville Confidential, two episodes that aired pretty late on in the season (and they're both hilarious btw), so I guess a good question would be whether her fingerprints were on those episodes, or if at that point of the season she didn't have as much direct involvement anymore.

Season 2 was one of my favorite cartoon seasons ever, so I'm just asking out of curiosity of some of its inner workings.

It's interesting, everyone always says she had nothing to do with season two, but it's just wrong. I didn't even know she was leaving the show until deep into Ponyville Confidential. She was in all the story meetings for my episodes in season two, and she gave notes all the way through. So from a writing perspective, she was every bit as involved as season one. That being said, from the production side things might have been different, but from my perspective she was still very much involved.

Hello Larson. You've always been a great MLP writer. Loved Slice of Life.

I know you never worked on the Equestria Girls part of the franchise. But if you did, which ideas would you have come up with and what changes would you have made if you wrote an episode, film or short?

Hard to say since I've never seen EQG and don't really know the universe at all

What's your favourite part in slice of life?

I'm a huge fan of how that episode came out. I love the wedding part the best, where the fireworks start to go off. With such an insane episode, to have it end with such heart, I love it. And Peter New's delivery of "It takes love to make them ignite!" is an absolute joy.

Hello Larson. Since late 2015 I've dedicated much of my life to building the largest archive of My Little Pony content in the world. I personally started out because creators were deleting content when they abandoned the fandom. This kinda upset me as the very stuff that got me into the fandom were being deleted. I've archived upwards of 3,000,000 fan works including images, videos, fiction, designs and other misc things.

This leads me to ask - of every fan work out there that you've seen, what would you say is your personal favorite? If you haven't seen much at all that's totally understandable.

I can't wait to say hello at Bronycon!

This is an incredible undertaking and I'm glad you're doing it. What a shame if it all vanished.

I've seen so much fanwork I couldn't possibly choose. It all still blows my mind. The sheer creativity of the fandom is jaw-dropping.

And yes please say hi at BronyCon!

What is your favorite background pony?

Do you have an OC?

My OC is a batpony called Sharpie Fume

​

My favorite background pony... hmm... tough one. I like the classics, so I'd say Derpy. She's just so endearing.

lol I have no idea how to add an image but it's me you guys

Hi Mitch how are you?

Great. Yourself?

Will I become an Alicorn in future?

How's your singing voice?

What day at Bronycon is your actual birthday?

August 3, which I think is Saturday?

How did you feel when you first found out about the brony fandom?

EDIT: And I would like to thank you for your amazing, feathery contributions to the show, and I do not know what we as a fandom would do without you! :)

I couldn't believe it. Like, actually couldn't believe it. We were in a story meeting in the crappy, windowless back room at Hasbro and Lauren showed me a video of these Russian teenage boys at some sort of day camp or something. The camera is moving around, people are speaking in Russian, then the cameraman comes to these two guys with guitars and they start playing "Winter Wrap Up." I must have had my jaw hanging open. I really didn't understand it. Some day I'll find this video and post it...

Hey Larson, great work you did on the series we all know and love. I have a few questions:

1. What advice do you have for those yearning to write their own little universes and work like where does one start and how should they approach it?

2. What was one moment in the series that had the most impact on you, emotionally or otherwise?

3. In the episode "The Cutie Map - Part 2", when Double Diamond threw the staff of sameness at the cutie mark bins, I saw that the staff resembles the Lance of Longinus from End of Evangelion quite a bit. Coincidence or nah?

4. For "Return of Harmony", what was it like working with the legendary John de Lancie for that episode?

1) Really hard question. I guess I'd say that you shouldn't get bogged down too much in the lore or the minutiae of the world, at least not in the beginning. Think of an overarching world and something hooky, something that will make a reader or viewer say "Ooh, that sounds cool!" A lot of times the research and minutiae seem so important to a creator, and sometimes it really is, but it's so important to keep the average viewer in mind and serve them up something that makes them say, "That sounds cool! I want to see more!"

2) Great question. I guess I'd say the ending of Cutie Mark Chronicles. It was sort of cheesy message, "we're all looking up at the same rainbow," but after I wrote it, it kind of struck me how true it was. These ponies all came from different backgrounds and walks of life, and we all know them as one unit of six, but it was cool to see them individually before that and see how they were connected before they even met. I love that one.

3) Total coincidence on my end. I can't speak for the art team, who may well have been fans.

4) It was awesome, though I didn't actually get to work with him. But I watched every minute of his Star Trek work and had his voice deeply embedded in my head while I was working. So I'm grateful to him loaning me his voice for awhile in my brain, and then it blew my mind when he actually did the role. None of us planned on him playing Discord, but then he did!

If Fluttershy makes a noise, and no one's around to hear it, is it still adorable?

I think we all know the answer to that one

What's your favorite part of being apart of the series?

The world was such an extraordinary place to work in. Equestria is magical, the characters are so beautifully designed, and the freedom to incorporate humor and heart into what was largely a toy commercial was so unexpected and wonderful.

​

The fandom, though, is something I couldn't possibly have prepared for. To travel the country, the world, and meet people who have turned a show about friendship into real-life friendships is astonishing. Still, after 9 years and who-knows-how-many conventions, it still gives me chills.

New question. What do you hope for MLP Generation 5 to be like? (I know you won't be working on it. I just want your opinion)

I just hope it goes back to basics. The simplicity of FiM was one of its greatest strengths. We got to play around with the characters and really get to know them while the fans were creating this entire universe out of the background ponies. That was such a magical thing to experience from the writing side of things. I think it would be a shame if it was too dependent on lore or rules. Just let the characters run things.

Okay I'm just curious. Why do you sign everything?!

It's an addiction

What's your ideal sandwich?

Anything with peanut butter. That's my desert island food. I would eat a sandwich with peanut butter, hold the bread

Heya Larson! You've developed a character / personality online around the community. Have you ever felt that people who meet you at the cons think they know before they've ever even met you? And was there a moment early on during the fandom's life-cycle where this first happened that you can remember?

Hahaha yeah, that's true. It does often feel like people know me before we've even met, but I love that. I like that I can walk around a con and be surrounded by people who I can just walk up and chat with or write on or photobomb. I'm quite an introverted person in real life, but something about going to cons and people recognizing me brings out my extroverted side.

It was strange being at my very first con, Midwestria, and hearing people mutter my name to their friends as I went by. It felt like I was pretending to be famous or something.

But I love this fandom so much, and going to cons is a genuine joy that I never take for granted.

If you sign a piece of food and I eat it, do I gain your powers?

Yes. Sharpie powers work best when digested.

What exactly is going on in that scene in "The Return of Harmony" where Discord brainwashes Fluttershy, compared to what he did to AJ, Rarity, and Pinkie? Is it that Fluttershy was too pure to be corrupted in this fashion, that Discord wasn't perceptive enough to realize her true vulnerabilities, that Fluttershy's failing was that she was too much of a doormat to resist, or something else?

I LOVE THAT MOMENT! You're right with the first part. He's never met someone this pure and he can't do the mind games he really wants to do, so he just gets frustrated and snaps his fingers.

Is there any episode that you did not write, but wish you could have written?

Wish my version of "Rarity Investigates" would have seen the light of day. I did a reading of it at Bronycon last year and it made me laugh. There's a courtroom scene that I still think has some of my funniest stuff in it.

Yo Larson, been a super big fan of the show for nine years now, it's literally my favorite show of all time, in no small part thanks to writers like yourself.

I've attended so many Pony Staff Q&As over the years, so I feel like just about every question I've had about Pony has been answered. But there is one thing I've wondered; Do you feel like there's any common misconceptions from laypeoples you'd like to clear up, whether it's about writing TV shows/novels generally, writing for MLP specifically, or even something unique to yourself?

Thanks very much, appreciate that.

Yes! I constantly see people talk about "the writers" on MLP, but that's not really a thing. A lot of shows do have writers rooms where they really do work as a collective on the stories, but MLP was always very separate. In fact, most of the writers on MLP I met through conventions! So when people like or don't like things "the writers" are doing, it really doesn't work that way. I had zero influence on Griffon the Brush Off or Hurricane Fluttershy or any episode I didn't write, and vice versa. Thank you for asking this, that's always bothered me how wrong people were about this.

​

Oh, one other thing I could add. Be very careful about things you read on the internet. I've seen people claim things with great authority that are just flat-out wrong. I saw someone say something happened at a meeting I was at. So yeah, people tend to misconstrue things or just straight up make stuff up. Take it with a grain of salt.

So are we starting now?

YES

What was/is your favorite thing to autograph?

My favorite thing I've signed is an on-duty cop. She popped into the autograph room, I asked if I could sign her, and she marched across the room and said "Sure!"

Favorite moment at a bronycon, since it's the last one?

More openly, favorite moment at a con in general?

Favorite moment at a con in general was probably watching "Slice of Life" with a packed house at MLP-MSP. There was standing room only and you couldn't even hear some of the jokes because of laughter and applause. Maybe the most rewarding moment of my career.

Favorite BronyCon moment... gosh, there are SO MANY. I love BronyCon so much because I can just walk around and talk to people. I love photobombing random people, giving hugs, chatting. I love it all. A specific one? This is super vain but when I came into the building a few years ago with John de Lancie and GM Berrow, everyone waiting in line started chanting my name. I was sort of embarrassed at first, but then I was like, "Don't these guys recognize De Lancie?" they did, and they chanted for me anyway. Not gonna lie, that was pretty cool.

Opinions on Male Alicorns?

Can you assure us there won't be one at the end of Season 9?

I can assure you of nothing!

Hello Mr. Larson. I'm a big fan of your work. I have 2 questions.

1. What My Little Pony episode that you wrote are you most personally proud of?

2. What drew you to work on DC Superhero Girls?

1) Slice of Life. It came together really well and I think it accomplished what it was meant to accomplish, which is just be a really entertaining 22 minutes of TV. As a bonus, it has a genuinely heartfelt ending. Plus it was by far the most work I ever did on the show, so I'd say that one.

2) Lauren Faust. She asked and I said yes, because she's Lauren Faust.

If you were to write the series finale (regardless if you know what's going on in the show right now), what would you make it about?

I did write the season finale. It was called Magical Mystery Cure. And then they decided to continue on. In my original script, Twilight earned her wings and flew across Equestria with Rainbow Dash visiting characters we'd met along the way. Then she has a super heartfelt moment with her friends, then the book closes, just like it opened in the pilot.

​

As for doing it now, I have to confess that I haven't been keeping up on what they've been doing the last few seasons, so I'd probably be the wrong one to do it. But it would definitely involve Winona being the one true ruler of Equestria.

Do you know about how employees at Google troll each other with MLP memes?

I know nothing about that. Tell me more....

Hey Larson, all I can really say is thanks for the great memories made from MLP - enjoyed a lot of the moments, made great friends with the fandom, etc.

Will you be at the final BronyCon next month in Baltimore? Also, as a real question, were there instances of alternate endings to the episodes you wrote for?

(also can you add wings to this post, thx)

I will absolutely be at BronyCon next month! I agree with everything you said, it has been an incredible experience for me as well, something I never expected, and an unbelievably good time.

​

As for alternate endings, I'd say Fame & Misfortune is the one that springs to mind. I wanted to end that on a much more uplifting, heartfelt, MLP kind of way, but I was overruled.

​

Your post has to sing a few songs before I'd consider wings

Did you voice act in any of the episodes?

Nope, I'm not Canadian enough.

Will you ever post your original script for fame and misfortune?

There is no original script. There's about a one-page proposal for what I wanted to do, but that got rejected so I wrote what they wanted.

Thank you guys so much for this, what a great time! So sorry that I have to run, maybe I can come back to some of the ones I missed later. And I'll see you all at BronyCon 2019 in a few weeks, right?

Do you know the way to get to Equestria?

Through the Everfree Forest!

Would you ever come back to the franchise in the future if hasbro came a knocking?

​

and is there any luck of getting the film adaption of your book series off the ground?

Depends what they're offering...

​

Yes, stay tuned on that front. Things are happening...

Why does it take you two days to answer your brother's texts?

👀

What was your inspiration for Basil in Pennyroyal Academy?

Gosh, great question. When I was writing him I always had Freddie Highmore in my mind for the voice and look. I guess I just really liked the idea of a boy being forced into it, feeling humiliated and wanting nothing more than to be sent home, then really falling in love with it, with the friends and the values of being a princess. I love the idea of a guy who is in what would be a traditionally humiliating experience, and he just gets on with it, does his best, and doesn't let it get the best of him. And is, in fact, very good at it.

Quick question for you: what would you say is your favorite classic slasher film?

I want to guess...Scream?

Halloween is the 🐐

(But Scream is great too)

You ever considered having Tirek’s front hooves being used as a second pair of arms?

I've never written that guy, but if I do I will make this happen!

Which episode or episodes did you not write that you wish you had been part of?

First of all, I never would have brought Discord back. But if he did have to come back, I would have liked to have written his follow-up episode.

Who is your favorite pony from G1 and from G3?

😬I don't know them at all

Should I buy your book in 2 weeks?

YES. And every day between now and then.

Do you think tv animation generally is going in a positive direction and we can expect more hit shows with similar strengths to MLP over the next few years?

Unpopular opinion, especially for such a twitter fiend as me, but I don't necessarily thing the social media component of animation is a good thing. I love that fandoms can spring up and create whole universes, as happened with MLP, but I think there's a real danger of creators becoming too influenced by the fans. And of fans becoming accustomed to loud voices having an effect on shows. I think the best case scenario is to make the shows you want to make and then have a disciplined social media presence where you don't let that stuff affect the show. Fan interaction has to be a one-way street that should not leach back into the production. That's where I think things can go wrong.

Favorite color?

Black

Do you have any thoughts or opinions to share about Fallout: Equestria?

Sorry, I don't really know much about it

Were there any particular MLP episodes or scenes that you didn't like how they turned out, and wish you could go back and have another crack at them?

Fame & Misfortune 🙄

Can you sign me at Bronycon?

YES

Also, I ship Rainbow Dash and Rarity hard. If I give you a 20, can you make something happen in the show?

Yeah, $20 should cover it

I'm a huge fan of your episodes, your writing always stood out to me and I consider Return of Harmony the best episode(s) of the series with It's About Time as my personal favorite. I remember seeing the pre-season 5 animatic for The Cutie Map and thinking "Wait a second, is M.A. Larson back??"

As for my question, Amending Fences is by far one of your most popular episodes, but I always thought the ending didn't seem to match up with the rest of the episode. Was there some earlier draft where Twilight was actually wrong about causing Moondancer's seclusion by not attending her party? I fully expected the twist conclusion to be that Twilight only assumed she was the cause when nothing in the episode actually suggested she was, and she'd learn a lesson in humility and listening to others before trying to solve their problems.

Thanks for your kind words, much appreciated.

No, that ending was always the ending. To me, the concept was that Twilight really was a bad friend before Celestia tasked her with going to Ponyville. So I always thought that, yeah, she didn't treat Moondancer very well and had to make amends to her in this episode. What I like about it is that it is so thematic to the entire series -- if Twilight wasn't a bad friend, she wouldn't need to learn about friendship. So to me it always made sense that she really did mess up in the old days and now she's learned enough to see that and try to make it right.

Hello Larson!

Was Trixie planned to be some kind of villain before you writed Magic Duel??

No, I don't think she was intended to be anything more than she was in her first appearance. She became such a fan favorite that I think Meghan wanted to find a way to bring her back. So we came up with this idea that someone who made her whole career on her reputation wanting revenge on the ponies who showed her up as a way to bring her back. Then she just became obsessed with her power. I'm thankful because it let me write the line, "The Great and Powerful Trixie doesn't trust wheels!"

Hey Mr Larson.

I was wondering, do you feel it's been difficult to move on from MLP and work on other projects?

I don't know that I've moved on necessarily. I don't work on the show anymore, but when I get to talk to someone about Sonic Rainboom or Luna Eclipsed or any of the episodes I worked on, it's just pure joy and fun to me. I don't feel sad about not working on it, or sick of talking about old episodes. I genuinely love the show and talking about the episodes I wrote.

Sometimes it's hard to work on other things just because I knew MLP so well, but that's the nature of having written so many FiM episode.

Would you rather fight 100 duck-sized ponies, or 1 pony-sized duck?

This was asked at my very first MLP Q&A!

1. For DC Superhero Girls, which of the 6 heroines do you feel best reflects who you are as a person?

2. For Littlest Pet Shop, if you could write one more episode focusing on a character dynamic you haven't worked with, which one would you choose?

3. I assume this was intentional.

https://mobile.twitter.com/Pixel_Grip94/status/1115459597299412993?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1115459597299412993&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fs9e.github.io%2Fiframe%2Ftwitter.min.html%231115459597299412993

1) Weirdly, I'd say I'm somewhere between Kara Danvers and Karen Beecher.

2) The Biskitt twins and Russell forced to work together. That would be such a fun episode.

3) Hell yes it was.

Got any tips for aspiring writers?

FINISH. This is the hardest thing for a writer. Whatever you're working on, you've got to finish it. Don't let it linger, don't let it be "something you're working on." You are so much more likely to sell whatever you're working on if it's a finished product.

Also, learn to take notes. Lots of people put so much of themselves into whatever they're doing that they get defensive at any critiques. Even if you don't agree with the critiques, you've got to be able to hear them and investigate if there's any validity to it.

Can you sign my guitar at bronycon?

Check and make sure I haven't already

What’s a crazy concept for a story you’d wish to write but can’t for some reason or other? A simple logline would do, I love your settings and would love to see what other wacky things you’d be able to come up with.

Always wanted to do an episode where Flam is elected Mayor of Fillydelphia and as his first act he outlaws cider. So Applejack has to become a bootlegger to bring cider into town under his nose. But it was deemed "too adult."

How did you get to write on the show? How’d you get into this career path?

It's a long story that people ask quite often. I'm going to make a post about it that I'll link to.

Why is “The Big Lebowski” far and away the best Coen brothers film?

BLOCKED

You ever written an episode on a hangover or lack of sleep/any drugs? If so is there anything that made it into the show that is a result of that?

Not telling

Not sure if someone asked this already, but who is your favourite character?

Rarity of the mane six

Celestia of the princesses

Winona of the pets

And Stephen Magnet as overall favorite

Quick question:

Are you bringing a case of sharpie's to the final BronyCon. If so what's the estimated count of shapries?

I only need one 😎

Hi ! I'm a huge fan :D

Random question about the production itself: how is it to work in such a system ? Is the global "lead" of an episode decided before you even start to write it (for consistency?) Do your texts get revised a lot (are you asked a lot to change stuff) ? Were you given some no-go ?

Best of luck in your next projects <3

Can't speak to how things have been run the last few seasons, but in the early days Lauren and Rob (story editor) would come up with the premise for an episode, which is only a sentence or two. For example, the only thing we had to work with for Discord on "Return of Harmony" was that he was "the mythical spirit of chaos." No description, no personality, nothing. So then we go to the story meeting where we flesh all that stuff out. After that, we had a lot of freedom to develop the character voices and humor and world, as long as we kept it all reasonably within Lauren's vision.

​

Things seemed to get a LOT more note-heavy as the series went on, but I digress...

Now that the series is drawing to an end, was there a story idea that didn't make it into gen 4 that you wish had and what was it about?

Lots. I always wanted to do a day in the life of Celestia. A really low-stakes episode where we see behind the crown.....

Hi Larson! Thank you so much for helping make the show what it is today. Mlp would not be the same without your input.

What advice can you give to someone about to go to their first mlp convention?

Don't stress about anything! Pony cons are places of pure joy where everyone is your friend, everyone has the same interests as you, and you can just relax and be yourself. And come and say hi to me so I can sign you!

One of the things that always struck me about some of the earlier-season writing is that the antagonists often had understandable, even sometimes sympathetic underlying cause to their choices. Even if their actions put them in the realm of villainy, we as viewers could connect with wanting to prove something after being struck down, or feeling lonely and slighted. To me, it was one of the more driving elements of the show. Was this something that was deliberately done - spoken about at the planning meetings, discussed between staff? Or just an unconscious theme shared between writers?

I've also heard some discussion about how much effort went into making the ponies' actions "horsey" to fit in with the setting. Were you ever conscious of this being a thing, or was that more on the animation side?

We were definitely supposed to keep in mind how horselike the ponies are. It was always on the mind.

​

Yeah, I think in the early years we weren't so much into the "pure evil" sort of antagonist. It just wasn't that kind of show. In my opinion (so take it for what it's worth), it can flatten things out if there's a pure evil antagonist because it turns the good guys into pure good or pure righteousness or whatever. Sometimes that works really well, but in an episodic show where you've got 22 mins to explore a character, the more nuanced villains work a lot better.

Were you hoping to at least be able to write one more episode before the end of the series?

Would have been nice, but it didn't work out. I also love Amending Fences so I'm happy to go out with that one.

What's your favorite bird?

Off the top of my head, big fan of the toucan

I've seen quite a few comments IRL and online about you and your sharpie-based signing addiction. How did that start?

It started in a charity auction at MLP-MSP. I was auctioning off a galley of my first book and I said that as long as bids were coming in, I would walk around and sign random stuff. That's where I signed my first baby. And then it just sort of took off from there.

Who is Best Pony?

RARITY

Or possibly Celestia

I have a question, but that's not the main thing of this post.

Since it's required: Given the opportunity, would you work on/write for the next Generation of MLP?

But like I said, that's not the crux of this post (which will be gigantic).

Mitch I mostly just want to say thank you.

MLP:FiM, and a lot of the people that it drew in, have quite literally saved my life. Twice.

I tried to kill myself in 2012, but I chickened out right at the last second. My friends knew something was up but I never really opened up to them. But a couple thought that a certain show might be right up my alley and I could certainly use some cheering up. They started me off with Season 2 because they (uncharitably imo) billed the pilot as "very meh." And I was hooked from Return of Harmony.

It was just such a.. not "kids show for girls" kind of thing, and John de Lancie freaking owned Discord. Like, the kind of meshing of actor and character on the level of RDJ and Iron Man owned. I'm sure writing for Q himself had to be a blast.

And I just devoured Season 2, and then Season 1 and... it was like the world had color again (I'm not pandering, you're pandering). I had something I could be unrestrainedly joyful about again, and it was enough to get the ball rolling. It sustained me through two long years of therapy.

But things got bad again a few years later. I lost all my grandparents and a young man who was like a little brother to me all in the span of 3 years. I had used myself up trying to hold my family together during that time. Eventually I had to build myself back up again. But everything was wrong. I had near constant anxiety for 2 years. I was getting to that place again.

When you are afraid to the point it almost feels like you're having a heart attack almost all of the time, eventually it starts to feel like there's only one way out.

I do a little fanfic writing and I think that was kind of my therapy, and it was all that kept me going for a long time. But I keep coming back to this show and how it makes me feel, and how the girls make me feel, and how I feel for them. And while I can't say it was the show, or FiMFic, or any one character that did it, there were a whole ton of factors, they definitely helped me with the realization that literally washed away my anxiety in one fell swoop.

I'm trans.

I don't just identify with Twilight because we're both giant book-nerds who desperately love their friends. I don't just identify with Rarity because I want to be perfect at my job and be generous with my friends. And on and on. But it really was Twilight that did it. Specifically early Twilight. Who is seriously so much like me it's actually terrifying sometimes (particularly the "books are my only friends" phase).

And I'm not being hyperbolic when I say I don't think I could have broken out of my decades long repression without these characters, without this show, and while it was a whole host of people (obviously) your hand in it was very important (think about Twilight in Luna Eclipsed).

I'm going to be corny, and I'm going to be pandering, and I don't care:

Thank you Mitch. I'm not there yet, but I hope one day to get my wings, thanks to people like you.

I'm going to read this carefully when I'm finished with the AMA because I can tell it deserves that, and I'm frantically trying to get through as many of these as I can right now. But thank you for writing it, and I will give it the attention it deserves in a few minutes. ❤️

What's your favorite superpower?

Either one that you wish you had, or one that you love seeing in fiction?

I'm pretty new to the whole superhero thing, so I've really enjoyed getting to know some of the more obscure powers. One of favorites is Kite Man. What did this guy go through in his childhood to become so obsessed with kites??

Of the episodes remaining in the series, which is your favorite?

Don't know anything about any of them, sorry

What's your drink of choice?

Gin