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Topic:
Interviews with an author ~ IMPORTANT QUESTION~
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Kit'
Title: Manager Emeritus
Registered:
Oct '99
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 2:29am
Subject:
Interviews with an author ~ IMPORTANT QUESTION~
- Date Edited:
2/22/03 1:51am (83 edits total)
Edited By:
Kit'
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I thought it might be interesting to interview a few well-known authors, so that we could find out some intriguing facts about them!
If you would like a particular person interviewed, please PM me (don't post it on the thread) and give a good reason (as well as a few questions) why they should be interviewed 
First up, an interview with probably the best-known and loved author on the fanfic boards. She is the master of Obi-torture, the inventor of An-Paj...she is...
JANE JINN!
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Kit'
Title: Manager Emeritus
Registered:
Oct '99
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 2:32am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
- Date Edited:
7/15/02 8:18am (3 edits total)
Edited By:
Kit'
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Jane, could you give us a bit of background information on yourself?
I grew up in Salt Lake City, the 4th of 5 kids, and my biggest ambition was to work at the public library. Although I applied at least once when I was 12, I had to wait until I was 16 to get hired. Ah, the joys of being surrounded by books! I came to Germany for the first time when I was eighteen, right after graduating from high school. That was only for four weeks, but it was long enough to convince me that I had to come back, so I did, almost two years later. In the meantime, I worked hard at the library to earn the necessary money, and attended the University of Utah with vague ideas of majoring in History, English, or German, or maybe all three. But Germany was always in the back of my mind, and the ‘semester abroad’ turned into 16 years.
When did you first become interested in writing?
Oh, probably when I was about ten, though I’ve always been interested in stories. I learned to read before I was five and could never get enough. I’ve also ‘created’ stories all my life; talking them out to myself in the privacy of my bedroom, moving my action figures around to give my fingers something to do (my keyboard has since replaced those action figures)
When did you first find out about the JC?
In January, 2000. I had already seen TPM and had even started writing a fan fic in the autumn of 1999. A tiny article in the German news magazine Focus about SW on the web caught my eye. A link from another website led to me TFN, but it wasn’t until January that I accidentally hit „boards“ instead of „editorials“ with my mouse, and saw the words „Fan Fiction“.
What drew you to Star Wars?
Even by the age of eleven, when the original film came out, I’d always been a fan of science fiction and wanted to see any movie I could that took place in outer space. My older brother had already seen it, and wanted to take the entire family, and I was not about to say no. I was really excited. I went to see it several times that summer, and after it left the theaters, I used to wish I could go back in time and see it again (this was before video.) I was a fan of Luke Skywalker in those days, but when ESB came out, my heart was caught by dashing Han Solo. I remember getting impatient during the final sequence of ROTJ. There’d be a scene with Han Solo *yes!* and then *groan* the action would switch back to Luke, Vader, and the Emperor.
What inspires you to write?
When I first started, it was the desire to insert myself into my favourite television shows and become part of the action, to interact with my favourite characters. In my teen years, I also wrote original fiction to help me deal with a lot of the things I was feeling at the time. Now it’s become a pleasant habit, a way of expressing my creativity.
What contribution do you think you've made to the boards?
A few well-written, completed stories? Obi-Torture was there before I was, but I think I helped make it a recognized genre. I hope I’ve boosted a few authors’ egos by giving out good comments on stories, not just one word like ‘great’ or ‘more’ or even ‘up’, but by pointing out things that were really well done or that I particularly liked, so as to make the author feel good about him/herself.
An-Paj is probably the most popular healer of all time in the fanfic world. Where did you come up for the idea for him?
Oh, I was working on a round robin at the time and needed a healer in a minor role. At first, he was nothing more than a name and a few bits of dialogue. A few posts later, I needed an explanation as to why he wasn’t getting sick when everybody else on board the shuttle was, so he became non-human. Not being terribly creative with other species, I based him on a picture of an Andorrian that I saw once in a Star Trek book; blue skin, white hair, antennae. He just evolved after that and he’s still evolving.
Do you have any plans on writing an exclusive story for An-Paj and his family?
Concrete plans for the near future? Not really. Vague, nebulous plans for ‘some day’? Yes. I’ve thought about transferring him and his entire family away from Coruscant to work in a Jedi chapter house on a planet farther away from the Inner Core. I’ve also thought about sending An-Paj out on a mission or two, but so far, nothing’s come of it yet.
Is there any other background information that a reader might not know about our intrepid hero?....I mean healer? 
Has it come across in the stories that his antennae are actually his telepathic ‘ears’? I’ve sometimes wondered if people are catching that, but I’m sure it’s all my fault for not writing more about him. Other than that, An-Paj is still evolving, and so something might come up later that surprises all of us, even me. But if anybody’s interested in his wives, they are six completely different women, not six copies of the same mind-set. They all have different personalities and very distinctly different ideas about everything, and An-Paj loves them all in different ways.
You originally made a name for yourself as perhaps one of the best 'obi-torturers' there is, what made you decide that Obi-torture was the way to go?
I guess there were two elements involved in this. One was quite simply the desire to get people to read my stuff. My first SW fanfic got one single reply. It was a bit discouraging. While trying to come up with something new, I read all the stories that interested me (all the Obi-Wan stories, I mean) and found that many of them had elements of hurt/comfort, which I liked, but there often wasn’t enough ‘hurt’, or at least not as much as I was hoping for. If I recall correctly, the label Obi-Torture was hardly in use at that time, and when it did show up, I often felt disappointed at how vague or weak it was. So the second reason was that I deliberately decided to set out and show people what ‘Obi-Torture’ was all about, according to the motto ‘if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself’.
Hachas Tlatilco and Kiusan Waurk are two of your most remembered characters ... what was the inspiration for them?
Most remembered? Are you sure you have the right characters? Okay, just kidding. Again, it was a round robin, and I needed a padawan of a certain age, and a master. Like An-Paj, Hachas evolved from a name and a position. At first, he was just there, and then suddenly, he was slinging a purple cloak across his shoulders and becoming a fairly outrageous character. I did have some vague idea that he was a sort of spy who made himself be conspicuous by clothing whenever he could afford it, so that nobody would notice his face when he changed into ‘grey mouse’ clothes to do undercover work. I’m afraid that part hasn’t come out in the stories yet, though, and perhaps it never will. I spent more time planning Kiu, trying to make her have both strengths and weaknesses and, above all, be interesting to read, but I think she’s paling in comparison to flamboyant Hachas.
Do you, personally find it easier to write a full length story and then to edit it before posting it, or to write and post at the same time?
I definitely find it easier to write the story and edit it before posting. Invariably, I get to the end of the story and find that I have to go back and change something at the beginning. I really don’t know how people manage to write and post at the same time and still tie up all the loose ends and make everything coherant.
Have you made any special friendships during your time on the boards?
Kit’, although, sadly, our e-mails have become few and far between now, because of real life. Marnie, Mistress Renata, and to a lesser extent, Imzadi.
While you were writing for UsJs your character Jane became very popular, can we expect to see her in stories again?
No, I don’t think so. I was already running out of ideas for her before USJS got stranded, and nothing has inspired me since. She’s much too like me to be interesting over a long period of time.
Finally, what do you see as your future in writing?
I’m not sure just at the moment. I’m at the stage where I’m discovering the joys of original characters, but I’m not ready to give up the background of the SW universe just yet. When I’m ready, however, perhaps in a few years, I might consider joining this Critters.org to get my original work critiqued so that I can improve even more. I’m not yet aiming to be published professionally, but perhaps that will come later.
Interested???
Walk before you run
Ultra Stressed Jedi Students Part VI
Crushed
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HaiGan
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 6:31am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
- Date Edited:
7/2/02 6:32am (1 edits total)
Edited By:
HaiGan
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Good idea having a thread like this on the boards, Kit'. 
Jane, since you first posted on my very first story here I've been of the opinion that you write good responses, and it's impressive the number of stories you manage to keep up with!
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"You Can Run But You Can't Hide" A tale of friendship, healing, and Corellian fast food http://boards.theforce.net/message.asp?topic=17272301
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PeterTutham27
Registered:
Aug '01
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 8:50am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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Wow, this is a great idea and insightful too!
More please!
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"Querido de las nubes."- My sweety 
Who died and made you the Chosen One?
ShadowWan to Shadow Master ArnaKyle
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Kit'
Title: Manager Emeritus
Registered:
Oct '99
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 8:53am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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The next interview shall be with HaiGan and will probably be posted in a couple of days time.
Kithera
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Jane Jinn
Registered:
Jan '00
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 8:57am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
- Date Edited:
7/2/02 9:00am (1 edits total)
Edited By:
Jane Jinn
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Thanks, Hai Gan. Sadly, I can only keep up with a few these days, Darth Real Life and all that. But I still strive for quality.
Oh, and I just wanted to announce this:
No, no, no, no, I don't torture no more
Obi's tired of waking up on the floor
Bad poetry, I know, but after having considered this for at least eight months, I've come to the conclusion that my Obi-Torture days are definitely over, and have been for quite a while. Apologies to anybody who might feel betrayed because of this, but I want to grow as a writer and improve my craft, which involves leaving the confines of a a very narrow genre. I'm now striving, among other things, to improve my characterizations, and create plots that don't revolve around torture scenes.
Edit: I'm looking forward to all the other interviews! I think this is a great idea to get to know my fellow authors!
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Mostly retired now
Just making the occasional guest appearance
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EmilieDarklighter
Registered:
Jan '02
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 10:22am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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May I make a request?
Could you interview Amidala_Skywalker, please?
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Master of Jedi_Emeritus Former Padawan of Gabri_Jade Little sister to Gabri_Jade and LadyPadme 25 Rules for Successful Writing http://boards.theforce.net/fan_fiction_resource/b10304/28400222/p1/?2
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Darth_Fruitcake
Registered:
Jan '01
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 11:08am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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I like this!
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This is the first time where I can safely say these boards are going to hell in a hand-basket.
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HaiGan
Registered:
Nov '00
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 11:21am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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*Starts making a list of all the other authors I'd like to be nosey about, to PM to Kit'*
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"You Can Run But You Can't Hide" A tale of friendship, healing, and Corellian fast food http://boards.theforce.net/message.asp?topic=17272301
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Mcily_Nochi
Registered:
Sep '01
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 11:37am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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Oooh, this is an intriguing idea.
*waves at Jane Jinn* You encouraged me when I was a newbie! Thanks!
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Princess1
Registered:
Dec '01
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 3:25pm
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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interview Val solo or Sarah_Kenoibi!
This is a cool idea!
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I am Red Jenny Flint, passionate and daring damsel of "Freedoms Fire"
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Kit'
Title: Manager Emeritus
Registered:
Oct '99
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 4:45pm
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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Great to see that people are excited about this!
But please, just PM them to me. Don't post them up on the thread because I really don't want this to turn into a popularity contest. Also, I need to get those questions to help get me started!
Kit
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Mistress_Renata
Title:
Manager Emeritus
Registered:
Sep '00
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 4:55pm
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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Wild applause and a bag of bunny Qwik-Gro for Jane! 
And HaiGan is a good choice... if you can get her to sit still long enough.
I also suggest Jedi_Galadriel. Let's see, who else do I want to know about...?
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"For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the Guardians of peace and justice
in the Old Republic. Before the dark times."
Denizen of the Crotchety Old Mods' Home... approach with caution...
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Sara_Kenobi
Registered:
Sep '00
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Date Posted:
7/2/02 7:27pm
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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I have a suggestion....Casper Knightshade.
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Kit'
Title: Manager Emeritus
Registered:
Oct '99
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Date Posted:
7/3/02 6:41am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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I'll unfortuntately be away until Sunday (australia time), if you'd like someone to be interviewed. Please PM me...
Hugs
Kithera
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DarthLothi
Registered:
Sep '01
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Date Posted:
7/3/02 8:11am
Subject:
RE: Interviews with authors
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Great idea, Kit!
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"Anything but mad passionate love isn't worth your time. . . there are too many mediocre things in life for love to be one of them."
Lothi Loreley
Darth_Tim's Unrelated Opposite Twin
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