Rebecca, why is your Iphigenia (and Polyxena) tag "It begins and ends with a girl"? Where is it from and why did you choose it? I was talking with a friend about my own story and a character's role in it and the tag popped into my head, so I wanted to ask some more about that sentiment :)
i don't think it's from anything, but i've been using it for so long that honestly i don't remember why i chose it. it does speak to how much in greek myth everything comes down to girls, who are so often metaphor or instrument or vessels. a girl and a pomegranate makes a winter. a girl and her laundry makes an epic. a girl and a god makes a city or a nation, usually with not more than a name, a place, and a hero for a son. of course it takes a girl to start a war and to end it. they're the raw material out of which myth builds civilization.
Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
✓ Live Streaming✓ Interactive Chat✓ Private Shows✓ HD Quality
Anya is LIVE right now
FREE
Free to watch • No registration required • HD streaming
I'm gonna go ahead and do the full thing because my brain works better that way lol
10 character building questions + justifications here!
What is the character’s go-to drink order? (this one gets into how do they like to be publicly perceived, because there is always some level of theatricality to ordering drinks at a bar/resturant)
Winter is a very choosy person and has a specific palate, but tends to get caught up in the effort of it all sometimes which causes her to end up getting overwhelmed and shut down. She likes smoky, sweet coffee, black tea with lemon or flowery syrup, and specific red wines. She can't stand overly sugary things and will often make unsweetened or instant versions of all of her drinks if she's in a hurry.
What is their grooming routine? (how do they treat themselves in private)
It's long. She's got a Patrick Bateman level of skincare routine and an even longer one for her hair, because it has a magical texture that requires extra care. Not only does she need special products for it but she needs to perform a morning ritual to keep its luster and flowing quality intact. She also tends to pay very close attention to her makeup and shaving routines even after she leaves home, though with less obsession.
What was their most expensive purchase/where does their disposable income go? (Gets you thinking about socio-economic class, values, and how they spend their leisure time)
Honestly despite the fact that I tend to only draw her in the one outfit, clothing and jewelry. Less glamorous is spell components for school use, but Winter is from a rich family and has a decent allowance for that specific use. She also has a food budget but she tends not to use it, relying instead on the food from the school itself in order to have a little bit of a stockpile fund.
Do they have any scars or tattoos? (good way to get into literal backstory)
None at the beginning of her arc, which was a miracle as her family did die in a house fire with her inside.
However her most notable scar that she racks up during the story itself is one through her abdomen. It consists of five small divots, very clean but rather deep, as she dove in front of [love interest tbd] to save her from a surgical strike administered by her Aunt Blanche.
What was the last time they cried, and under what circumstances? (Good way to get some *emotional* backstory in.)
Winter isn't really a crier, she just dissociates for the most part out of habit. But the last time she remembers crying notably was when her parents had just died and then on and off for a few years as she struggled to adjust to Blanche's household. It tended not to get a sympathetic response.
Are they an oldest, middle, youngest or only child? (This one might be a me thing, because I LOVE writing/reading about family dynamics, but knowing what kinds of things were ‘normal’ for them growing up is important.)
Technically she's an only child, but she was essentially raised as an older sister to her cousin Autumn. Though she rarely was ever in a position of actual responsibility over her.
Describe the shoes they’re wearing. (This is a big catch all, gets into money, taste, practicality, level of wear, level of repair, literally what kind of shoes they require to live their life.)
Black heels are a must. She's already tall, but she likes the extra bit of height, the sound, the poised gait, the fragility, everything. It's a perfect garment for her, even if it's a bit impractical.
Describe the place where they sleep. (ie what does their safe space look like. How much (or how little) care / decoration / personal touch goes into it.)
She does technically have a bed in her room and in her dorm but she rarely uses it. She prefers to sleep at her desk in short bursts, even using her ergonomic wrist support as a pillow, sort of. Sleep is the kind of things she'll take when she can get it. Wherever she sleeps she needs to have a lock on her door and ideally no windows. She's never had roommates.
What is their favorite holiday? (How do they relate to their culture/outside world. Also fun is least favorite holiday.)
Her favorite holiday is Year's Masque, Tela's Halloween equivalent. It tends to feature elaborate masquerade balls as part of the yearly ritual, so she takes it as an opportunity to go all out. She dislikes Year's Tears because it's just gloomy and wet and especially down in Cursarius it was basically hurricane season. Up in Stagfell it's just sleet but it still sucks.
What objects do they always carry around with them? (What do they need for their normal, day-to-day routine? What does ‘normal’ even look like for them.)
Winter actually doesn't really keep a purse because she can make a lot of temporary objects out of her flame magic. She can usually write with just a heated fingernail. She DOES have a makeup bag and a bookbag but she doesn't personally carry that shit when she can help it, so she just invents a goon to carry it for her.
Fantakuchen situation: The picture used for the article has something that a) I'd never associate with a Fantacake and b) LOOK AT THAT, THAT LOOKS LIKE OUT OF FOUND FOOTAGE HORROR MOVIES.
Which is why I also laughed so hard my stomavh hurt about the tags which say "That is not a Fantacake, that is a Situation." 'Zustand' really translates as state of being and using it in that way is probably most like how British or Irish people use 'state' in "Look at the state of you!"
Fantacake seeing how its been massacred:
But also im intrigued by fantacake.....Is it like the soda??? How do u make cake out of fanta??? Brb off to go down a Wikipedia rabbit hole
🎶 Do you listen to music while you write? What song have you been playing on loop lately?
Not really, because I end up singing along and then not writing. I get too much into the jams. I listen to a bunch of video essays though, especially ones about writing advice. And sometimes I just sit in silence, typing away. Not related to writing, but I do listen to Pink Floyd's The Wall on repeat ever so often.
🛠What tools/programs/apps do you use to write?
I use Pages, because I was born and raised with Apple. xD Lately, I've started using the Notes app for writing too, because I can write on my phone on the go, and then copypaste it directly to the Pages document.
⛔ Do you have a fic you started, but scrapped?
I have three wips with nothing published I'm waiting to get back to, because I still love the ideas, I just have a hard time continuing them. I'm not scrapping them, two of them are 80k+, I'm in too deep.
Back, ages ago though, I started a bunch of fanfics that I only got a few pages into, then never finished. For example, I have a file on my computer which is half a page long called "science fiction AU" I wrote in 2013, and there's no indication of what the story was going to be about going forward apart from spamano happening. There's just a (bad) introduction to Lovino and half an introduction of Antonio, with some shoddy world building (something about space slavery? Ew), and I am never continuing that. :'D
Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
✓ Live Streaming✓ Interactive Chat✓ Private Shows✓ HD Quality
Anya is LIVE right now
FREE
Free to watch • No registration required • HD streaming
There are different things about different fics that i like about them but i think probably would go with To Remember, To Forget for a more serious fic and the cat one was really fun to write
18. What’s one of your favorite lines you’ve written in a fic?
From the cat fic
"He admitted that he too, would probably react with much hostility if some random person picked him up and forcefully removed him from his current residence next to the garbage can, so he couldn’t judge."
20. What’s a favorite title for a fic you’ve written?
My titles are terrible but i like Sea of Shooting Stars and Employees of the Month
I still voted for Rome bc #Daddy, but I could not date that mfer. So I think I get your point here, totally, but age is not the problem, me reading too much ancient historiography is XD
NOO I DON'T MEAN HIS AGE I MEAN HIS AGE RELEVANT TOWARDS HIS VIEWS U KNOW???
I am currently working on keeping my promise to you aka getting the references together buuut could I get one of these things:
- Spooky Lovi (just bc I am thinking of all the ghosts I sent/will send you. Doesn’t need to be Sicilian specific spooky tho, just spooky Lovi)
- Ludwig! I wonder what the boy looks like in your style.
- Nekotalia kiddy kat of your choosing
- I am feeling so bad for this one, even though you do say you like drawing the kids but … perhaps the Simonides in like beach wear … So he can show off the body hair he grew. Or instead of the Simonides, just t4t Dilan & Omar, bc the suave nerd and his strong girlfriend are very cute and the transphobes can die mad about fictional and real trans people living their best lifes.