#laylaylabode

🍨SUNDAE—What is something that you always try to include in your projects/work? What is something that you always try to avoid?

Something I always like to include in my works is different, unique and interesting character dynamics. A lot of the stories I come up with(either written out or kept in my head) usually center around the characters' dynamics with each other, either showcasing their strength, how they slowly build and form, or the tension and unease between them. I tend to do a lot of character-driven like stuff, so whether for a shorter story or on the side of a longer story, I like to work on character relationships and how I can develop them. Sort-of related, I also like to include different family structures in all of my different story-verses(original or fanon/next-gen), both to give representation to different types and to have a variety. It's something important to me(as someone who comes from a messy one) and something I think is just fun!

As for something I always try to avoid? Hmm... One thing that comes to mind is including no comfort or some sort of a happy or 'resolved' ending? I do like to work with a lot of angsty or 'tense' ideas at times, but I also don't like to make things completely angsty with no sort of a happy ending to brighten things up or resolving the conflict. Another thing that comes to mind, is that I also don't tend to use a lot of profanity or cuss/swear words? If I am writing something that is meant to be a little more mature or 'suggestive' then I might include some if it is appropriate for the moment/situation, but for the most part, I do tend to avoid writing such language as I do not want it to get too excessive or vulgar.

🍰SHORTCAKE—What is a story you want to tell but don’t think you are ready to tell yet? What do you think is holding you back from telling this story?

Oooh boy, this is a good one. Honestly, of my current stories I would say The Lost Rainbow. This story has evolved so much over the years from the initial very simple premise("what if there were kingdoms each inspired by one of the classic four elements?"), and while I have done a lot of work fleshing out the characters and world-building, I'm worried about actually telling the main story. I am scared that if I finish writing and actually release the story, it will not live up to the image I have in my head or my potential readers' expectations, that it would be too convoluted or weakly-written, and that after everything it is deemed better off not existing at all.

🍩DONUT—Tell us about your process when creating something. Do you start with character or story? Do you write an outline or do you make it up as you go? Do you research extensively or try to be more original?

My process when creating something changes and depends on what it is that I am making, with no particular methods used every time. I will say that I am more of a 'make it up as I go' creator that starts with a basic idea or a few ideas, and see where my inspiration takes me from there. Sometimes I do write an outline or notes at the least if I am stuck on how something should go, but I also tend to play around with concepts a lot before I settle on something. I do do research a bit depending on what I am working on, as it does help to have structure and be more well-informed, but I usually start off more original. So yeah, kind of hard to describe exactly as its not super definitive, but that's the general way of things. Here's examples for some of my work, including one characters-first and one story-first:

- Spooksverse ("The Hauntings Of Poltervale"): Started out very simply with my two OCs, Shadow and Suzie, who I made way back when I was a child based on the idea of a goth and girly-girl being friends. I sadly don't have their original drawings, but I drew them a couple more times over the years before I redesigned/reworked them in 2017 and decided to make them girlfriends. At that time, I don't think I intended to work with them much as I was still heavily focused on my main fandoms at the time, but sometime in 2018 I first created Liam and Kyle to be friends with them and a part of their universe. I mainly worked with these four in the beginning but from there, the universe has expanded with more characters and some lore/world-building to flesh it out. When I eventually came up with the main story idea, I thought about my main characters and what kind of conflicts they could face, playing on the original universe name "Spooksverse" in having them become a supernatural hunting/detective group for all of the ghost and other supernatural activity that plagues their hometown.

🍮FLAN—What is a recent piece of media that you would like to reference or replicate in your projects/work? What did you learn from it?

You know I’m a huge fan of the fantasy/medieval theme, and one show I think got it down perfectly was A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms. Despite the trailer, most of the show isn’t even action. No dragons, no large scale battles, no crazy special effects. It’s pretty much completely character driven. I want to really nail down those scenes in between the action tension wise. Have the readers invested and on edge not just during the battle, but before when the characters are just sitting back talking about what’s coming.  

🍡DANGO—What is a piece of media you forgot about but rediscovered recently? Do you see similarities to it that show up in any of your projects/work?

I dropped Overwatch years ago and dabbled more in Marvel Rivals now, but I went back and watched some of the trailers recently and remembered just why even though it was a completely original IP at the time, you were invested in the characters. Like not just gameplay-wise, but as actual characters. I can definitely see some of the influence it had on me in Tales of Mewni. Not as much as some of the other shows that influences me, but it’s there. And something I want to incorporate in the future is how the low points (even if they were brief) really hit. I’m trying to invoke the same feeling as Honor and Glory 😭

🍩DONUT—Tell us about your process when creating something. Do you start with character or story? Do you write an outline or do you make it up as you go? Do you research extensively or try to be more original? 

Oooh, that's a tough one. I've seen phenomenally written shows and books that do both, but I think overall I prefer the entire cast to be fleshed out even if it's uneven. I think when that type of story if done well the payoff just feel so rewarding, and even if a character only gets a moment or two to shine then it really feels special to the audience.

Feel like My Hero Academia does a good job at this. Like obviously some characters get a lot more shine than others, but even the small one time moments some characters get are really impactful. There's a character named Rock Lock who's really strict and sort of a dick to the students helping out on a mission, but then you come the find out the reason why is because he and his wife had a kid recently and he's just really worried about them since he's in new dad mode. I loved that moment. It's quick, but it's memorable and it sticks with you.

Or like Mr. 2/Bon Clay. In all of One Piece, this character has been in a total of two arcs, but the impact he made was so strong nobody who ever reads the story is ever going to forget him no matter how many arcs pass lol.

I think if you do a good enough job that the core cast doesn't need ALL of the focus, and if you do take that extra bit of time to flesh out other side characters it'll make the big moment where they come together or even just show back up for a bit to help all the more impactful. That's also part of why I like playing FFXIV so much. Even small characters you don't see that often or aren't that important in the grand scheme make an impact (like if you play the optional side content they actually will show up in the main story cut scenes, interact with you, etc.) Anybody who's gotten to the delivery scene in endwalker knows what I'm talking about.

For the main cast, not really (Astro's full monster form and Nia's twilight mode are their final forms). But for the future AU, there's a few! Most of them are going to be revealed proper in the Titanomachy.

Dawn figures out how to use Twilight magic, and he calls the form his 'Sunrise' mode. Even after he gets it though he had to train with how to use it since he can't quite control it. He trains with Lacerta with it since his form is similar. He also uses a sword he eventually forges to help from letting off too much magic/heat.

Dusk (despite Nia's warning) keeps working with Mad Magic and comes up with his 'Moonfall' form (because he accidentally moved the moon out of place when he first went into it). He can still use Mad Magic without it, but it's pretty much him at his apex. The only way he can use it though is if Calliste breaks the seal from wherever she is. It's a dangerous form (and he's not the most mentally stable in it) for both him and everyone around him, so she's the only person he trusts to make the call of when and when not to use it (since she can see into the future and already know how it'll play out).

Pavo's Incubus form is a strange mix of both his incubus and butterfly blood. He doesn't like going into it very much not because it scares people, but because it enamors people. They become even more fascinated and even obsessed with him, and he can't tell if it's because they actually think the form it beautiful, or because of the side effect his Incubus DNA has on people being increased by his Butterfly blood. Either way he doesn't like the idea of people being falsely drawn to him.

Raza I don't wanna spoil too much since I have some one-shots planned for him regarding his origins and some of the other goliaths in the future AU, but he will technically be getting a new form too.

Hikaru is going to have one just like Dorado and Lacerta's that will tie into his birth and just what the full extent of her abilities are.

Aqua's monster form will change a bit as she gets older. She starts growing less self conscious about her teeth and other monster features and grows more and more comfortable using it when needed (though she still prefers her more mewman/cute appearance).

And Bergljot is going to have something that isn't exactly a transformation, but a technique I want to introduce into the story. The dynamic in her case will be pretty surprising given whose involved lol.