Okay so... I finally decided to get off my ass, figuratively speaking, and write this author's note. After a whole six months of being away from this story I figure I owe everyone an explanation of why I haven't been writing it any further. And to apologise. For both my inactivity and for what I'm about to say.

First off, I got a job. That alone drastically limited my writing time and killed my motivation for a while, but I figured that was fine and that once I settled into my new routine I would be able to find my motivation to write again and continue writing, albeit at a slower pace than before perhaps.

And then it didn't...

And didn't...

And it still hasn't. I have been completely unable to find interest in picking this story up again, and to be honest for a while I wasn't sure why.

But, after some soul-searching I think I have finally found the answer. Not just to why I lost motivation for this particular story but why I lost it for my other attempts to write a long story since I finished my Digimon/Star Wars crossover in Secret of the 327th. Since then I have tried writing three equally long stories - this one, Quest of the Gods and To Be a King. And in all of them I just fizzled out and lost interest. And now, finally, I think I understand why.

To put it simply - in all three stories I overloaded myself with too many characters!

For those of you who have read Secret of the 327th (and to be honest it's probably not many of you), you will know that it is a crossover where only six Digimon characters form a team with three Star Wars characters (although some more from both sides join the main team closer to the end). But in essence, most of the story had a core cast of just nine protagonists. There was a multitude of other characters of course, but until the final showdown at the end these characters were firmly side-characters. And furthermore, Secret of the 327th may have been a long story but until the end it was firmly divided into separate arcs every ten chapters, which essentially made it multiple stories within a bigger story, with only the nine core characters appearing in every arc and joined by guest characters every so often.

But if you take a look at the other three stories I have written since then, I haven't been following that same formula. Look at Dance of the Fairies. I put a grand total of twenty-two separate Fairy Tail characters into the Harry Potter universe! Twenty-two! And I am trying to make every single one of those twenty-two a main character in some way. I have been trying to keep all of them relevant to the story at all times after they emerged from their separate Fairy Spheres. And that's even before you start factoring in all the Harry Potter characters as well - everyone in Dumbledore's Army, everyone in the Order of the Phoenix and more besides. In essence, I have over fifty protagonists all vying to make themselves important. All struggling to make themselves seen and heard at the same time, so much so that I've ended up sticking random characters in random places every so often just to give them some lines! Like for instance, why did Elfman go out into the Forbidden Forest to meet Grawp? What was his purpose there? Well, the reason I put him there was just so he could meet some centaurs and have a cool encounter with them - that is literally the only reason he was there. But why were Gray and Juvia there? What was their purpose in the forest?... Well... none. There was no reason for them to be there at all, other than the fact I noticed neither had done much for a while.

And at the same time, this story does not have the same arc system as SOT3 did. It's not even divided into separate books like the actual Harry Potter franchise or bigger arcs like Fairy Tail is. It's basically just a solid block of story and according to the plan I've made we're not even a third of the way through yet!

Is it any wonder I burned out? It's a juggling act with too many balls. Eventually I was going to drop them.

In effect, what I've ended up building with this story is a chessboard, and the characters are the pieces. I am moving the pieces from one place to another and making them do things, but I am really struggling to just have fun with them, like I did with SOT3. Sure I can give some of them character development every once in a while, like I did when Harry learned he was a Horcrux, but I haven't just been enjoying the story. I haven't wanted to push forward and get to the next bit anymore. It was easier at the beginning when only a few Fairy Tail characters had emerged from their spheres and I could just enjoy them but the more characters I add the more I struggle. And I think, in reality, that's been obvious for a while. With Secret of the 327th I was putting out a chapter every two to three days even while I was at university. While with DOFFOP, even when I've had literally nothing better to do but write all day between university and getting a job, I was putting out one chapter a week, with a strict writing schedule to make sure that I even managed to do that!

If I'm being completely honest with myself, there may be another reason for the slower writing pace. With SOT3, I was crossing over Digimon and Star Wars: The Clone Wars - two franchises that are incredibly close to my heart and I have a real passion for. I started SOT3 with no set plan and basically just rolled with it. With DOFFOP, I had a very clear plan right from the start but only one of the two franchises has that distinction and that's Fairy Tail. As much as I love Harry Potter, it is not as near and dear to me as the other three are and that may also have been affecting my motivation. I paired Harry Potter with Fairy Tail because both involve magic more than anything else. That, and because it gave me a legitimate way to give Lisanna Dragon Soul, which I just thought was way cool.

Now, having said all that, I am reluctant to simply abandon this story completely. Despite the fact I've been burned out on it for a while I put a lot of effort into planning it out. I do not have writer's block - I know exactly what's going to happen until the story at least reaches it's halfway mark. But at the same time, I just don't know how I can proceed without forcing myself to.

As I see it, there's only one way out of this rut, and that is to put this story up for adoption. To see if I can find someone who would like to continue writing it for me. And if, by some miracle, someone is willing and able to take it off my hands. At least for the writing - I would still want to be involved in the planning stage and would want to approve of every chapter before it was posted up.

Beyond that though, I think I have learned from the mistakes I made with the planning of this story, as well as Quest of the Gods and To Be A King. Perhaps in future, maybe even the very near future, I will return to the drawing board and plan another crossover. But, if and when I do so, I will be keeping the core cast to a minimum once again, and choosing only true passions of mine. Already I'm wondering whether I should try crossing Fairy Tail over with Digimon Xros Wars. Or possibly RWBY. I even thought about making a story where the members of Oracion Seis met the Guardians of the Galaxy.

Anyway, that's my long and very detailed apology for my absence. And for my continued absence. I really hate letting everyone down like this - you can't imagine how disappointed I am in myself. But at the end of the day, fanfiction writing used to be a hobby, but unfortunately it became a chore and I'd like to find a way to make it a hobby again. I'm sorry. But, if anyone reading this wants to try and pick up the reigns from where I dropped them, please get in touch and let's discuss it.