EDITED BY: DrummerMax64

Afterword

After over 170,000 words, countless hours of planning, many moments of doubt and typing, The Fall has finally come to a close after three whole years, and I don't think I could be happier with the end result.

When I was little, I hated writing. I hated reading. My parents couldn't pay me enough to do either of the two without so much as a breakdown, fighting, or begging for me to do anything else, especially when it came to school. It was only when I got into highschool that I found stories I could get behind, most of which have become their own movies. The very first was the Guardians of Ga'hool series by Lasky. Then years later, Ender's Game by Card. The Hunger Games series by Collins. The Sword Art Online light novels by Reki Kawahara. Even the Iliad and the Odyssey by Homer. I could go on with more literature, but there's also a point for the mentions. Each and every one of them has inspired me more or less. Deus Ex Machina is something that stuck with me when reading Greek plays and literature, while SAO allowed me to dive deep into character development and world building. These two alone laid the framework for my writing, and they're pieces that I would love for anyone to take a crack at.

I created this story with the sole idea that any mammal could figure out the Nighthowler conspiracy. The events of the story are pretty limited to Judy and Nick, and I thought that anyone with knowledge of farming or anyone monitoring the situation closely enough would see the discrepancies and connect the dots themselves. Surely Judy wasn't the only one in the Burrows to leave for the big city with a lack of basic farming knowledge.

I was debating for the longest time if I wanted to follow the events of the main plot of Zootopia to the tee or meld it into something more. Personally, I don't care for meddling with the main plot of an intellectual property because there is always this lingering fear that I would sully it or the characters if I dared to try—hence why Nick didn't appear until very late in the story. Creating characters is too much fun anyway. There's a whole city to explore, why stop at a rabbit and a fox?

Eventually, I went for a 'plot of steroids' idea, where if Judy or Nick got back together after the first part of the movie, everything would play out similarly, but way faster than what's shown in the film. In a way, I'm kind of happy that I did. It feels more personal.

If you asked me back in 2016 that my little Tumblr post could spiral into something of this caliber, I wouldn't have believed you. Now, three years and twenty-four chapters later, the end is finally here, and I can't help but feel… proud. I mean, sort of elated and happy, a little sad, but grateful more than anything to be able to share this story with all of you.

For that, the first of many thanks I would like to give is to the readers. Every follow, favorite, review, comment, and kudos does not go unnoticed. Every single one of you have given me boundless amounts of hope, and I can't explain how much you all have motivated me to keep going. Without you, none of this would have been possible.

Secondly, I would like to thank my editors, DrummerMax64 and YFWE, for going out of their way to make sure my frantic typing coalesced into something fluent and readable. You both have my gratitude.

Thirdly, I would like to thank ZNN for taking my story under its wing. With colossal fan works already in their midst—When Instinct Falls, Take a Stand, Embrace It, even Return to Zootopia (the fan-film) just to name a few—I thought that a little story like mine had no place among the giants. Although, that doubt of mine slowly faded over time, and I found that a niche of people were liking my fic too. Putting a work of mine out for everyone to see was something I've never done before, but it was something that also drove me to continue. For that, I thank everyone there.

Last, but most certainly not least, I would also like to thank Ziegelzieg, OceRydia, and TheWyvernsWeaver for creating art for the story and bringing my characters to life. Visualizing has never been a strong suit for me, but after you all took my descriptions and created art for all to see, I was more adamant than ever before about continuing Project Snow. And here we are. At the end of the road.

Before I go ahead and announce my new project, which most of you may or may not already know about, I would like to say one last thing. Depression and anxiety have made my life a living hell over the last few years. Those fortunate enough to notice and help me through, thank you. Writing about it and writing to begin overcoming it has been a challenge, and I'm glad you got to ride out that wave with me. For those of you who share this demon, you're not alone. Keep fighting. Keep dreaming. Keep living. We're right behind you.

Thank you again for reading my fan fiction. One-offs and other minor spin-offs are likely (or even another full-fledged story, who knows?), so keep a close eye on my collection, Tales Around the Block, for more content in the universe of The Fall.

As for my next major work, I'll see you in Bound by Steel, an original character-driven, Sword Art Online / Zootopia crossover.

:heart:

-D3ath