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Lit Literature member interviews

Discussion in 'Literature' started by Point Given , Jun 6, 2013.

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  1. gizkaspice

    gizkaspice Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 27, 2013
    Zorrixor
    Cool, nice to know other people care about animals!
    I agree, parrots/birds don't get enough attention---descendents of dinosaurs deserve respect.

    I'd also suggest the film Epic----sort of like FernGully, but more adventurous.....and lots of hummingbirds.
     
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  2. Todd the Jedi

    Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 16, 2008
    Zorrixor 19. What's your general opinion on America? Do you think the people on here and elsewhere online are a fair representation of the USA?

    20. If time travel were possible, what is the one period of time/year/specific event you would want to travel to most?
     
  3. Zorrixor

    Zorrixor Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 8, 2004
    Hmm, complex question... where to begin! :D

    [​IMG]

    I dare say my views of the US are broadly the same as my views of the UK, due to the amount American culture penetrates British culture, and vice versa, etc. By and large, we watch the same shows, mostly eat the same foods, both have fairly similar economic and political setups -- albeit the impression I generally get is there's more polarisation between the Republicans and Democrats than the increasingly centrist nature of both Labour and the Tories in the UK.

    Of course, I could be totally wrong there, as I admit I don't exactly follow US affairs anymore than what's mentioned on the BBC news or in the daily papers. Both of which are generally on America's side about most things -- albeit there's obviously differences on this foreign policy or that economic policy, but you get that inside both countries too. ;)

    Do I like how much American stuff influences the UK? Yes, no, maybe, it depends. But that goes the opposite way too, as I see lots of American Doctor Who fans, or UK shows that get exported abroad -- you all have my apologies for the Teletubbies, something the British government should put on its Apology List (hey, it's no worse than some of the other stuff Gordon Brown apologised for a few years ago trying to win some cheap votes :p).

    [​IMG]

    I accept sometimes I... wish things didn't become so "Americanised" sometimes (or should that be "Americanized" with a "z"? ;)) but it's kinda rich for a Brit to talk given how many countries we forced our own stuff on once upon a time. I don't always like every kid in the world growing up eating McDonalds or in love with the Disney Channel, but... that's globalisation/globalization for you, and not the US itself's fault -- just human nature, albeit something I sometimes wish there was a... not "solution" to as its not a "problem" per se, but I do sometimes mourn the loss of other cultures and everything gradually merging into a one-size-fits-all global world, so to speak, if that makes sense...?



    It's why I kind of like Rammstein's Amerika song, albeit it's tongue-in-cheek and over the top, given they like to mock their own German Nazi image, but the line about Mickey Mouse standing outside Paris has always stuck with me. (Not that I like French culture, so in that case, whatever, yay Disneyland :p) But you get the exact same stuff here in the UK, so possibly I'm talking about Anglo American culture as a whole, rather than the US itself here?

    Maybe what I'm really getting at is more the dominance of global multinational corporations, that just happen to often be based in the US like Disney, etc, which is not inherently the "fault" (or however you wish to see it) of "America" but just circumstance that Disney set up shop where it did, as that could have just as easily had its main powerhouse in any other country. (Same deal really as the problem with everything being made in China.)

    As for how much you guys all represent it? Noooooo idea. :D

    I'd need to do a poll on how many of you carry guns or something. :p
     
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  4. Todd the Jedi

    Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 16, 2008
    Zorrixor you skipped #20- If time travel were possible, what is the one period of time/year/specific event you would want to travel to most?

    And may as well post the final two.

    21. Say Disney makes a film based on KOTOR. What actors would be your ideal choice to play Zayne, Gryph, Jarael, etc.?

    22. What's the funniest thing you've ever seen/done?
     
  5. Zorrixor

    Zorrixor Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 8, 2004
    Oh my, this... is difficult, very, very difficult... [face_plain]

    If I'm honest, the only thing I would want a time-machine for would be to go back in time to earlier in my life, in order to prevent something from happening... but... that's a very depressing answer, so I'll spare everyone that one, even if... that would be the truth...

    Personal tragedies that I wish could be changed aside... then maybe some time in the future or something? I like characters with farsight. I like oracles and seers. The novel that I may one day finish, or not finish, or whatever the case will prove, is about the last colony at the end of human history, albeit it's a sort of science-fiction/fantasy mix with seers and mystics and things, but... it shows I like people who know the future and that kind of thing (maybe my own aforementioned life events have caused that...?) and so I'd maybe quite like seeing where human history will lead, finish, whatever, and be able to learn "what happens", so to speak, even if I came back to my own life again instead of staying there in the future. :)

    [​IMG]

    I like learning things, I guess, so travelling that far into the future... I guess has the appeal of all the things I'd be able to find out, not just future human history, but all the knowledge, all the science, all the discoveries of how things work, what the meaning of life is, if such and such really exists, if there really is life on other planets, if Jar Jar Binks was only ever my own imagination, and if we ever learn the answers to all of those Big Questions or wipe ourselves out first. :confused:

    ...I must be so fun to have at parties, eh? No nice, friendly answer... I just talk about the end of time and humanity blowing itself up. :p
    Wow, I thought the last one was hard. :D

    I'm always terrible with this kinda thing... mostly due to not watching enough stuff anymore I guess, making me pretty... blank when it comes to actors anymore (I don't recognise half the names who've been mentioned in the Disney thread as having supposedly auditioned for roles -- people have been talking about Zac Efron this week, and... I barely know the guy really. I don't even remember the name of that other dude a couple of weeks back who'd been rumoured as having been cast for Ben Skywalker... some redhaired guy... from a TV show... something called Breaking Bad... or something like that, I think? I must sound like I'm a 50-year-old as I'm so clueless right now :p).

    Getting back to KOTOR...

    I think the most cogent answer I could probably give is: nobody.

    [​IMG]

    One of the things I love about the Original Trilogy compared to the Prequels is how most of the cast are nobodies. Even if I was only a kid when I first saw it and wouldn't have recognised pretty much any celebrity even if they walked into the room and shook my hand, I still like that none of the cast -- bar Harrison Ford really -- were exactly "big name stars" when they first got the roles, and even though Hamill and Fisher sorta tried to continue their careers, and I don't exactly mean to enjoy the fact their careers never went anywhere the way Ford's did, I kinda like the way that in my mind the characters' faces are still the characters' faces, and not the actors' faces. That's... a bit dehumanising for the actors, I know, but... I like that Luke Skywalker makes me think of Luke Skywalker, not Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, and that sorta makes the characters feel "real" to me, so to speak, if that makes any sense at all...? :confused:

    But maybe that's just because I'm older, and so when I saw Natalie Portman, I was still just thinking "Hey, it's that girl from Mars Attacks" and wasn't seeing the character, but thinking about the actress. So that problem might be unavoidable, and be why I can't now watch a film with the same childhood innocence and naivety that I did when I saw ANH. But still... that's what I'd like from a KOTOR adaptation the same as I hope for from the Sequels, as I'd rather the success hinge on the script and the acting itself, not because of whose name is on the poster. :)
    [​IMG]

    There's a point to that... because the real answer would probably get me banned from the forum due to it not being PG13. [face_laugh]

    And with that silly final non-answer, my torture is finally at an end! [face_dancing]
    (This is where I now learn there's no prize for finishing, is there? :p)

    Joking aside, this has been fun, especially as I'm not normally one to share much online, don't normally want to put much on Facebook or places like that, so this was an... experience, but an enjoyable one. :)

    [​IMG]
     
  6. Todd the Jedi

    Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 16, 2008
    Here's your prize- funny SW emoticons!
    [​IMG] [​IMG]


    And that's the end of the interview! Give a round of applause for Zorrixor. =D= In a day or so we'll continue with _Catherine_.

    In the meantime, the floor is now open for anyone else to ask Zor any questions.
     
  7. Barriss_Coffee

    Barriss_Coffee Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 29, 2003
    Zor, I have a really random question -- have you ever tried to get anything published? You mentioned a few pages back you liked writing (and obviously you probably had to do a lot of it for your degree I'd imagine).
     
  8. Gamiel

    Gamiel Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2012
    Who do you consider Star Wars best dressed character?
     
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  9. Zorrixor

    Zorrixor Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 8, 2004
    I've always wanted to try, but sadly never really known the right outlet these days for small stuff. I'd have definitely tried something if small publications still circulated, but just don't really know the outlets anymore, if I'm completely honest?

    I always liked writing stories though. I remember when I was... something like 7 or 8, we had an English lesson to write a little story. I wrote about a three-horned chameleon on an island, and have faint memories of how I "continued his story" for a few years every time we had another creative writing homework. I always loved those. It genuinely surprised me for GCSE English when one of our coursework projects was to rewrite the ending of Lord of the Flies, and practically everyone else in the class hated that -- even the A students who loved English.

    But I only really "saw" my writing as... I hesitate to say any good, as I'm always very critical of myself, but a few years ago... 2008 or so I think it was, a friend of mine whose in his 40s and who I've written some Star Wars stuff with for years commented that I should try and write a proper story, as he's been an English lecturer and had his poetry published in the States. That's what sparked me doing an English BA when I finished my Bachelor of Laws, and I did the creative writing modules rather than the Shakespeare ones, and from those pieced together the ideas for a novel outline. I'd planned to do it as half of my thesis for a PhD, with an analysis for the other half, but that got put on hold when my parrots got stolen, and... it's now a case of finding the time to go back to uni to do it...

    I have sworn I will do it one day, even if I end up one of the people who do it in their 60s, as I don't want a bunch of petty thugs to be the reason I never finish the degree I've wanted since I was 14... but hopefully that'll be in a few years when I can work out how much time a week I've got free. :)
    Surely the answer must be the Emperor, on account of how socially aware his robes are, showing he is one of the people, and how he need not dress above the common man. [face_flag]

    ...okay, okay, I'm not Jello, so that is not my real answer :p

    I'm not sure. I doubt I'd say someone from the films purely on account of how they must smell. (Honestly, Leia, what did you see in Han... the dude must stink wearing that same outfit and never changing his clothes. :p) The prequels the costume department was a lot more creative, but... I'd say that went two "space-agey" for my tastes, so I'm unsure I'd say anyone there either.

    Which means I'm moving toward looking at the comics...

    Oh, I know. I'll say Jarael. I always liked her outfits. She looked really pretty, without needing the low cleavage and stripper appearance of most comic book females these days (Darth Talon, I'm looking at you). It was nice seeing a woman that actually could pull of elegant -- and space-agey -- without looking totally stupid (I saw the Dune remake a couple of months ago, and seriously, what was up with the Mickey Mouse ears of half the women's dresses and the neon purple clown robes of the Emperor?). But Jarael always felt classy and sophisticated, without that meaning she had to be a complete prude. I liked that, and feel it's a shame that you don't see that many female characters like that.
     
  10. Gamiel

    Gamiel Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2012
    Of the known SW eras which is your favourite?
     
  11. Zorrixor

    Zorrixor Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 8, 2004
    As much as I love the Vong, and feel that recently Sith War stories have become horribly repetitive, I would have to say the really Old Republic timeframe.

    (Although, I do also love DOTJ, and so would include that as well, even if "officially" they've itemised the Before Republic era as its own thing.)

    I love DOTJ, TOTJ, [parts of] TOR, Knight Errant, all that sort of stuff. I just like how the "ancient" times are often much more... magical? If I had to narrow it down more than the "publishing" eras, then... I'd possibly say it's a toss-up between either the Tythonian era or the New Sith Wars, as I like how in both there's a strong sense of "mystery". In DOTJ, it's the mystery that comes from them just not knowing what is out there; and in KE or JvS in the New Sith Wars, it's that same feeling, albeit it's because of the hyperspace cordon of the Outer Rim and Sith Space, and just everyone having forgotten and lost contact with people -- so the mystery of what Kerra would find out in Sith Space, I loved that, for much the same reason as the DOTJ story.

    But yeah, basically anything that recaptures that same sense of wonder that first watching the OT gave? (Which is why I absolutely loved stories like Traitor and the mystery of Vergere, or the Jaden Korr novels, but those are just one-off books, and so can't elevate the whole era above the general wonderment of the ancient Republic timeframes.)
     
  12. Gamiel

    Gamiel Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2012
    Which of the known "ancient races" do you like the most?
     
  13. Zorrixor

    Zorrixor Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 8, 2004
    Toughie, hmm... [face_thinking]

    Ten years ago, I'd just have gone "Sith". Today, I do still like the Sith, at least the Sith you see in things like the Book of Sith, and some of the rarer sourcebook accounts by people like Abel Pena, but... as cool as I like their caste system and the Pre-Jedi Sith Empire, it's hard to answer "I like the Sith like they used to be without all the diluted modern nonsense".

    Do I also like the Rakata...? Kinda. I like how they've become -- especially now with DOTJ -- what the Sith used to be, as that Proto-Dark Side Empire group, before there were all these Darths and Vaders walking about like in the films. The Sith Empire used to be that... then we had TOR. So the Rakata are nice, we just don't really know that much about them yet still, and I'm not entirely sold on whether I like all of the ideas in DOTJ as much as I did the original idea of the Sith as this strange backwater primitive cult.

    I still sorta like the idea of the Kwa or the Celestials and the interactions between, it just depends "what" we meant when we talk of the Celestials and the Ones, etc. I love the Aing-Tii stuff about "Those Who Dwell Beyond the Veil", which back when FOTJ was still being released, I had taken to be their way of describing the Semi-Force-Plane where Abeloth lived beyond the shadows of the material world, but... FOTJ didn't really turn out that way, or at least it seemed to rule it out more than it supported that sorta metaphysical, kinda D&D realms setup.

    So... while I love what the Celestials might be, it depends if they ever actually live up to what I hope for in my mind. :p

    So maybe I'll be boring and come back and answer the Red Sith. I love what their original culture was/still is in the sourcebooks like Book of Sith, even if the more mass market depictions in TOR are a bit... watered down, but I still like the basic idea of a backwater world with these creepy dark side people. (Which actually is why I do really love what the Nightsisters are being built up to in recent years, but Dathomir has a way to come before I fully embrace that, as Dathomir to me is still what Dathomir first was in COPL -- but if Dathomir hadn't had any of that, and this modern depiction of a super strange society with all kinds of strange ties to the precursor races had been its own world, unburdened by our pre-existing ideas of the planet, then I'd definitely have fallen in love with that stuff, but... it's a bit of a muddle presently, which makes me torn on if I'm ready yet to embrace Dathomir the way I originally embraced Korriban.)

    But I suppose what the Celestials do have is they still have that mystery, which the Sith have lost. I love getting answers, but I also love the reader being left with questions, though I accept I can't have my cake and eat it, but that's what makes me so torn between Ones and Sith. :D
     
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  14. gizkaspice

    gizkaspice Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 27, 2013
    The first arc of DOTJ showed Rakata as a unique dark-side empire group, but later they kinda began acting like Sith (like the films)..... But there is a lot more to them, same with the Red Sith. The Book of Sith is also very cool.

    and....two questions: 1) Besides parrots, what other animals do you like?
    2) If you someday publish, will it be something about birds?

    I would totally buy it. :p :D
     
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  15. Jedi Ben

    Jedi Ben Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Jul 19, 1999
    Clearly you've never seen the Falcon's wardrobe compartments where Han has multiple copies of the same outfit hanging up!
     
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  16. Zorrixor

    Zorrixor Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 8, 2004
    I suddenly feel the urge to demand Han's Wardrobe be a set piece in Episode 7. :p
    Oh, the Rakata go more Sith-like in the later issues? Bleh, I suppose that's the problem with them having to keep the series short. :(

    I've only read the first arc so far -- need to get the TPBs for the others still -- but really enjoyed the basic premise that it set up at the start, and I do like the previews I've read about the Flesh Raiders, which so obviously were Rakata when I played TOR. I kinda hope they still do manage to flesh out all those originally planned Timeline vids somewhere, even after Marvel take over -- maybe Gnost Dural can come back and finish the job again? [face_praying]

    1) As for other animals? I've always kept dogs -- although my labrador died a couple of years ago, before I moved home after the parrot break-in, and I'm moving again in a few months, so haven't been able to get another dog just yet, but am hoping to get a couple of probably German Shepherds later this year. (I'd like to name them Smithers and Monty, and train them to respond to "RELEASE THE HOUNDS!" :p)

    [​IMG]

    For some reason, I've never been much of a cat person though. Dunno why really, my mum never liked them, so maybe that rubbed off on me maybe. Not that I mind cats, just more of a dog person.

    Horses are another strange one, as growing up in the countryside around horses, you'd think I'd be a horse person, but... never really got into them. I'd kind of like to learn to ride one day just to say I can, but I guess keeping parrots I'm very conscious of the commitment, and so have always just been a bit hesitant about how much work a horse would involve. Be interesting, but... I dunno. Maybe if I have a daughter one day in the future I'll have to get into ponies. :p

    2) As much as people usually write about what they know, I doubt I'd ever write about parrots. I'm too much of a fantasy person, who likes reading to escape from life (I've never read a biography, like, ever, something that one of my English tutors a few years ago didn't believe :D) and so I'm unsure if I'll ever want to write something that close to home...? I'm normally more into strange places and exotic creatures, so expect I will always be more likely to write about Wookiees and Ewoks than I ever will parrots and rabbits.

    But you never know?

    Ironically, though, despite not liking stories set in real life, I've sometimes pondered some autobiographically-inspired tale of sorts... so who knows. Maybe I'll finally grow up one day and stop being into all these spaceships and laser swords. :p
     
  17. gizkaspice

    gizkaspice Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 27, 2013
    I agree, the first arc is awesome---esp. the KOTOR(game) references. Some later issues are interesting---kinda up to the reader to decide, I think.

    2) How about a fantasy exotic bird book? :p
    There is the peko-peko creature of Naboo, which looks a little like an exotic alien parrot.

    And....this isn't really a question, but more like a comment about your interview: it's really nice to have people who care about animals and who love learning----IMO knowledge and learning is important. I really hope you get that PhD----continue learning and write some books!
     
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  18. Gamiel

    Gamiel Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2012
    What is your favorite SW animal?
     
  19. Zorrixor

    Zorrixor Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 8, 2004
    gizkaspice I'll be sure to remember to keep the peko-peko bird in mind! :D

    And thank you. :)
    Honestly, outside the films there aren't that many I ever really remember... I suppose due to the lack of artwork and/or authors often just going with a rancor or else something completely new that nobody else ever mentions again. So hmm...

    Maybe I should answer "a worldship" given it's a living creature! :D

    Nah, that'd be silly. I often like the weird space animals, as they're pretty exotic and different to just the "space big cat" that you essentially get with a nexu, or most other ground based animals (though I do like nexu, mentioning it). But the space creatures I've always found exotic and interesting. Even Exogorths -- even if they're the same as space slugs, I prefer the way they're depicted in places like the KOTOR comics, where they feel a bit... more intelligent than just a dumb giant slug.

    Star Dragons are also cool. Bit overly fantasy maybe for Star Wars, but... I still sorta like them. Not that I'd want to see them all the time, but they're a touch of the less hard sci-fi that I wish we still saw more of in Star Wars. I've always had a fascination with Starweirds too, and love the design... though I only mention it because Wookieepedia has labelled it a "creature", albeit I'd call them some strange semi-sentient space spirit or something personally, so they don't really class as an animal to me.

    So hmm... [face_thinking]

    Maybe I should just be an Imperial and answer Wookiee. They're just big walking carpets, right? :p
     
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  20. Barriss_Coffee

    Barriss_Coffee Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 29, 2003

    Now that's cheating, you... you... Snivvian-idolizing Falleen!:p

    And I'm with Gizka -- when you decide it's high-time you wrote that epic children's novel about parrots in space (I'm thinking along the lines of the Redwall or NIMH books here), I'm totally getting a copy. And it will be like when I'm at a bookstore and I see a book by JJM on a shelf. "Zorrixor! I know that guy! He posts on a forum I go on! And likes all the sleezy SW characters!"
     
  21. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Mar 4, 2011
    I laughed at the worldship response. [face_laugh]
     
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  22. Gamiel

    Gamiel Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2012
    Have you read The wildlife of Star Wars: a field guide?
     
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  23. Zorrixor

    Zorrixor Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 8, 2004
    Surprisingly I've never heard of that before, and I bought practically every sourcebook there was when TPM came out.

    Looking at the Wookieepedia entry, I see it has lots of creatures in it. I'm tempted to try and find a copy somewhere.
    Parrots in space?! Now that idea I can get behind! :D

    And... sleazy? The Gryph is not sleazy. [face_not_talking]
     
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  24. Gamiel

    Gamiel Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2012
    I can recomend it
     
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  25. Todd the Jedi

    Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 16, 2008
    Alright, it's time for our next subject, _Catherine_! [face_party]

    1. Tell us about your username, why you chose it, what it means, etc. And what is the best way to address you?

    2. What made you sign up for the Jedi Council Forums? Do you post on any other forums?
     
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