# Pastebin 8oMnKVDT
12:04 PM <~barredowl> alright. shall we start with our first impressions?
12:04 PM <~barredowl> i, for one, very much enjoyed this.
12:04 PM <Greyve> same here.
12:04 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I didn't.
12:05 PM <~barredowl> it was a very well-executed way at getting a very specific dissociative feel
12:05 PM <Greyve> Not very much, but I still enjoyed it.
12:05 PM <BlueJones> I enjoyed this. Certainly very powerful in terms of its themes
12:05 PM <~barredowl> the use of strikethroughs was very interesting
12:06 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I didn't get it or what it was going for at all.
12:06 PM <red3> I feel like this is a very personal thing, as is the case with most of Nat's scips, but there is some value outside of that experience. The opening drags on too long and a few of the more flowery sentences confused me, but there are great instances here where small changes indicate bigger themes. The change of the protagonist's father's pronouns to "He" instead of "he", invoking a religious context was one of my 
12:06 PM <red3> favorites.
12:07 PM <~barredowl> yeah, i can see how it could be potentially inaccessible to certain people
12:07 PM <Greyve> agreement with barredowl here.
12:08 PM <Greyve> Personally I relate to this article quite a bit so I'm definitely biased in terms of enjoyment, but more so it's an interesting ride.
12:08 PM <~barredowl> yeah, i related quite a bit as well
12:08 PM <red3> Calibri_Bold: Which parts confused you?
12:09 PM <@Calibri_Bold> red3: All of it.
12:09 PM <BlueJones> I have had thoughts that share some of the themes here so I can relate a bit to it. Still an enjoyable tale to read
12:09 PM <red3> Could you be more specific?
12:09 PM <@Calibri_Bold> No.
12:10 PM <red3> Do you think it's too flowery? Is it too melodramatic? Too whiny? Too incoherent?
12:10 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I have no context or base for this. The whole thing feels rather isolated and spontaneous to me.
12:11 PM <~barredowl> to me in the context of TTSR (which i don't know how many of you read), this very much has a prologue/prelude feel, but i do think it stands on its own.
12:11 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Basically, it feels meaningless.
12:11 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Apparently, there's just something I didn't get.
12:11 PM <red3> Oh, like it's a vent tale, but nothing in it relates to you so it just feels completely pointless?
12:12 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I guess?
12:12 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I'm also not a big fan of vent tales in general.
12:12 PM <Greyve> Compared to vampyre this one comes off much more as a vent tale imo
12:13 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Yeah.
12:13 PM <~barredowl> idk, i feel like this feels a little more cohesive and story-driven than vampyre?
12:13 PM <~barredowl> and i think as its own thing i appreciated it as a literary piece more than vampyre?
12:13 PM <~barredowl> i'm not sure exactly how to phrase it
12:14 PM <red3> Well, it comes off as less coherent and more emotional. I would say that I like this more than Vampyre because it actually establishes things that are going to be used later on in the story like different characters, relationships, and the protagonist's mental state. Vampyre just felt like that information was given to the reader and then thrown away by the end.
12:14 PM <~barredowl> i liked it more than vampyre, though.
12:14 PM <~barredowl> in agreement with red3
12:14 PM <Greyve> it's certainly more narrative-based, that's for sure
12:15 PM <Greyve> I believe Vampyre has more artistic/conceptual merit, but this one is just fantastic execution and presentation-wise really the superior article
12:15 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I can tell there's a narrative there, but it almost feels like I'm waltzing into the chapter in the middle of a long book.
12:15 PM <~barredowl> hmm yeah, i can see that
12:15 PM <@Calibri_Bold> You guys obviously understand the context much better than I do.
12:16 PM <Greyve> i suppose it's because I see this as a middle chapter of my life already, whereas you may be a complete outsider
12:16 PM <red3> There's also just a lot... more here artistically than Vampyre. While that one felt like the messages and relatability was being hand-picked and delivered to the reader on a silver platter, this feels like you're wading into a river full of shit and you have to pick up the parts to figure out why this is happening. You can still tell where the story is going, but each little thing you pick up on feels personal, and so 
12:16 PM <red3> the reader relates a lot more to it a lot more.
12:17 PM <Greyve> Relatability-wise, certainly this is better. If by artistically you mean in terms of presentation, medium, narrative, or execution, I wholeheartedly agree.
12:20 PM <red3> I believe in all four of those categories, it is better than Vampyre. Its presentation is a lot more gritty and real, the stream-of-consciousness tinged with topics such as silencing your own thoughts and feelings makes it a better medium for the story, there is an actual narrative present, and it feels a lot more genuine than Vampyre, which feels more akin to a company tweeting out something relatable rather than a 
12:20 PM <red3> distraught and disillusioned youth ranting about how much their life sucks.
12:20 PM <~barredowl> yeah, i think that's basically my thoughts on this piece. there is definitely a lot here artistically, and i appreciated and enjoyed pretty much all of it. i think this is a confident upvote from me.
12:20 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I should clarify that I think this represents my issues with vent pieces in general.
12:21 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Again, I have no context for this.
12:21 PM <@Calibri_Bold> It relies purely on some kind of knowledge on what the vent is about.
12:22 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Now, Nat is expressing something here which a lot of people clearly find relatable, which is fine.
12:22 PM <red3> So, would you then say that you dislike 3999 because of that? The feelings that it tries to evoke are a lot more universal, but it still relies on the reader being in the know.
12:23 PM <@Calibri_Bold> But I simply can't find myself enjoying the piece because I don't have any context.
12:23 PM <@Calibri_Bold> red3: I enjoy 3999, but I feel like it's for different reasons than the author intended.
12:23 PM <@Calibri_Bold> SCP-3999
12:23 PM <@Secretary_Helen> Calibri_Bold: SCP-3999: I Am At The Center of Everything That Happens To Me (Rating: +1768. Written 3 years ago By: LordStonefish) - http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-3999
12:23 PM <red3> Could you elaborate?
12:24 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I also do find 3999 to be much more relatable for me.
12:24 PM <@Calibri_Bold> red3: It's like-
12:24 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Hm.
12:24 PM <Greyve> 3999 is at least somewhat relatable to any author imo
12:24 PM <@Calibri_Bold> ^
12:25 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I think there's also a certain charm to 3999.
12:25 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Like I said earlier, there's a very controlled chaos to it.
12:26 PM <Greyve> I'm guessing part of that is that it's an SCP.
12:27 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Yeah.
12:27 PM <Greyve> That gives the first reading a bit more shock value or impact or whatever you call it
12:27 PM <Greyve> And alos a bit more backbone to work with
12:27 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Mhm.
12:28 PM <red3> Well, there's that and there's the fact that 3999 has a concrete explanation for why it's a vent piece. These two tales don't have any justifications for being vent pieces other than that they move the story forward. I'm also a bit unsure on where you stand on execution versus relatability. Like, how much does relatabiliy matter in a vent tale for you to like it versus just pure execution of the tale?
12:29 PM <@Calibri_Bold> I mean, execution also plays a huge factor.
12:29 PM <@Calibri_Bold> And I think that may be another reason I like 3999 a lot more than I like this.
12:30 PM <@Calibri_Bold> 3999 stands far better as an actual article. You can still get it without entirely /getting it/, if you catch my drift.
12:30 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Whereas Nat's tale relies a lot more on understanding and relatability.
12:30 PM <Greyve> 3999 is one of my favorite works of writing, honestly
12:31 PM <red3> But doesn't that take it out the realm of vent articles then? The purpose of vent articles is that it only fits into a niche category of readers who have experienced those sorts of feelings.
12:31 PM <Greyve> even if I wouldn't call it one of my favorite skips
12:32 PM MalyceGraves → MalycePhones
12:32 PM — ~barredowl nods
12:32 PM <@Calibri_Bold> red3: I feel like that's a generalization of vent articles. Vent articles are meant to vent your frustrations and feelings and whatnot. That doesn't mean there isn't room to expand beyond that and make it more accessible.
12:32 PM <~barredowl> sorry i'm not participating much :/
12:32 PM <Greyve> barredowl: is okay, you've already done so much for us <3
12:33 PM — Greyve hug
12:33 PM <SharpEmbrace> orientation is done now, so i'm here
12:33 PM <~barredowl> yeah, just... y'all are having a very involved conversation and i don't know where to slot myself into
12:33 PM <SharpEmbrace> what did i miss
12:33 PM <~barredowl> welcome back sharp
12:33 PM <~barredowl> you missed us discussing both of our tales
12:33 PM <Greyve> ._.
12:33 PM <red3> Calibri_Bold: But aren't those two topics contradictory? If you want to purely show your frustrations about something, then that makes it inherently inaccessible to people who don't share those feelings. If you make it more accessible, then it's inherently going to be like pure to what you're actually feeling.
12:33 PM <red3> *less pure
12:34 PM <@Calibri_Bold> red3: I mean, I haven't really written a vent piece, so I can't actually say.
12:34 PM <@Calibri_Bold> But 3999 and Nat's tale both appear to be vent pieces.
12:34 PM <@Calibri_Bold> And the simple fact is, I liked 3999 a lot more.
12:35 PM <@Calibri_Bold> And at the end of the day, that's just how it is.
12:35 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Maybe there really isn't a concrete explanation.
12:35 PM <@Calibri_Bold> Maybe I just happened to enjoy one more than the other.
12:37 PM — Greyve nod
12:37 PM <red3> I guess so. How about we move onto our final thoughts?
12:37 PM <Greyve> It's certainly good in my opinion.
12:38 PM <~barredowl> well, i'm done with my final thoughts, really. i think i summarized em above