Hello Fellow Mizaharians!
Keeping with our tradition, the Founders Circle and Regional Storytellers are proud to announce that the Featured Character of the Month of June is Taurina. Taurina has been a regular fixture in Endrykas and now Riverfall for quite some time. She has some fantastic plots and has managed to write some amazing solos. Please join us in welcoming her to the elite club of Featured Character! His interview is below! |
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The Interview
1. How did you discover your love of writing? Is that the basic itch Mizahar scratches for you or are you here for another reason?
There is no defining moment I can look back on and say was the moment I decided I loved writing, I think it has just always been there somewhere. Reading has always been something really important to me because of my dad, he read to me whenever he could when I was a kid and stories are something we have always been able to really bond over. That love of reading eventually turned into a love of storytelling. First it was the chaos of a child bursting with ideas who had few to share them with. I distinctly remember wanting to put on a play and writing several screenplays that I could not convince my friends to put on so I eventually turned to writing for myself. I scribbled in journals with plots and characters; always excited, always sure I had something that was going to be amazing. I wanted to be like the authors of my favorite books, capturing minds and hearts with words on pages. Then I found roleplaying, and it turned out to be exactly what I needed.
Roleplaying in general has been a way to learn and get out all those overflowing ideas. Mizahar has been a place to grow, to interact with other really amazing writers, and to learn how to build character in a way other mediums do not always allow. Here I get to tell Taurina’s story and watch her grow as time passes and circumstances change. Anywhere else and it would not quite be the same. In a way, one could say Miz scratches that writing itch, but without it that itch would grow into something unbearable.
2. Being an Eth isn’t an easy race to play. Sometimes people find them too emo or two dramatic for regular use in the game. How do you find balance playing an Eth and juggling both the heavy emotional aspect of it and the fact that your PC in essence involuntarily shapeshifts from day to night?
There is something incredibly appealing to me when it comes the challenge of balancing emotions and that forced day to night shift. The mind, to me, is much more fun to torture and abuse than the physical body. Emotions far more entertaining to play with, though, don't get me wrong, both can be plenty fun to play with. Taurina is a lost soul wandering and I think that really shows throughout her existence. She questions everything. Constantly looking for a reason for why she is here, why Leth allowed her to fall, what purpose this life of hers is meant to serve. When others tell her that she is strong, that her soul does not change from one form to the next, she has a tough time believing them. For awhile there her shift was causing a bit of an identity crisis. She was fully Drykas because of her bond with Starfire, but she was also Ethaefal because of her nighttime form and the fact that she was stuck in her past life as far as appearances go. It took a night of nightmares and her Ankal making it very clear to her that she was one of them for her to finally accept it. These days she accepts that she is Drykas and Ethaefal and apologizes for neither.
3. What has been one of your favorite character interactions to date? Why was it your favorite? This could be something you wrote or something you read that someone else wrote.
While I’ve greatly enjoyed many character interactions, both my own and reading other people’s threads, my favorite would have to be Reach for the Stars, but be Prepared to Fall. Very few times in Rina’s existence so far as she been truly excited and happy, and this thread is one of those times. She had just bonded to Starfire and wanted to share her receiving of Windmarks with Azmere, but like with most things not everything goes as planned and Taurina is reminded of just how stuck in the past she really is. It is an emotional thread, but really beautiful at the same time. I enjoyed writing it greatly, and it has not been beat -yet- for me as a personal favorite.
4. What are your PC’s long term goals? Do they change season to season or are you slowly working towards something specific?
This is tricky because what Rina wants and what I want are not always the same thing. I believe her long term goal is to find purpose and be happy. Same as anybody really. My goals for her generally change often as new ideas arise and plots shift. There are some goals that have remained the same throughout her existence, however. One being to unlock her past life so that she might figure out what she was meant to do in this life. Branching off of that, I have always been attracted to the idea of her continuing something from that past life. So like some greater meaning or purpose that she has been carrying with her throughout her soul’s existence.
5. What are the best and worst things your PC has ever done in thread?
Taurina would say that the worst thing she has ever done in thread is abandon her pavilion.. twice and betrayed Azmere… twice again.. though the second time is up for debate cause she is convinced he is dead. A lot of good things have happened to her, but there is nothing particularly great that she has done herself. The closest thing would probably be saying yes to Azmere when he invited her to join the Stormblood pavilion or holding on to the unexpected Kelvic bond she found herself in with Alek instead of breaking it off.
6. What made you decide on your PC’s job? Is it something you knew about irl or just something you were curious about? How has it translated to your IRL? Have you been inspired to get tattoos or have you already had them?
I have always found tattoos (and piercings as well) extremely fascinating and am in complete awe of ones beautifully and tastefully done. When building Rina and looking at potential occupations, I knew I did not want her to be a hunter, warrior, or healer like a lot of others in Endrykas were at the time. She is an artist and I needed to find a place for her to be able to be one while it also working in the city. So when I found the Lilacwind pavilion (or Wind Skins, as it was called at the time), I decided instantly that was what I wanted her to do. The fact that Windmarks are so important to the Drykas culture was also a major selling point because, at the time, Taurina was looking to immerse herself in the culture and that was her way of being able to do it. Personally, I do not have any tattoos and while I enjoy the look of them greatly, I do not think getting one is something I will be doing for various reasons. Who knows though?! Maybe one day.
7. Everyone is always fascinated by the inspiration for character creation. Do you remember, even though it was several years ago, what your inspiration for Taurina was and what gave you the idea for the pc in the first place?
Good question! I honestly wish I could remember more clearly what inspired her. I knew I wanted an Eth who was pretty newly fallen and looking to figure out why she was back on Mizahar while having to find her place among people again. She was really lost her first season, looking for belonging and purpose and understanding. The season of my life that I was in at the time was fairly tumultuous and I think a lot of who Rina is stems from that. I’ve heard people say before that their Miz characters are like a form of therapy for them, and I think that is how Taurina started out. If I was having a bad night, she was probably crying over a sketch of dark shapes or cowering in the dark. If I was in a good mood, she might have been being social or still alone but sketching something less depressing. Now I’m so attached to her that I cannot imagine not having her.
8. Can you describe your PCs relationship with Leth? It feels complex and interwoven so I’d love to hear more about how you play it and how you incorporate it into your roleplay.
Betrayed is a good word to describe how Taurina feels about Leth these days. She loves him, refuses to forsake him, but she feels forsaken by him. His silence towards her drives her to tears and yet, she finds comfort in his presence and goes crazy during stormy nights when she cannot see him. When first roleplaying her he was very forefront in her mind, she wanted to be out where she could see him constantly and talked to him when she needed comfort. These days, her relationship with him is less overbearing. She has accepted, in a way, that he is not going to talk to her. That she is alone and, she believes, he does not care about her. So while she still looks upon him fondly, she has allowed other things to be what takes up her day to day thoughts. She is learning to care more about the ones who are actually there for her rather than the one who is not.
9. Do you find being an introvert IC hard? It might prove difficult to interact with other pcs in a collaborative RP manner. What challenges have you found and faced in having this being one of your PC’s traits?
As an introvert myself, I find it easier playing introverts rather than extroverts because I more or less understand them. However, I will admit, in the beginning it was a challenge. With her being so introverted, distrusting, and closed off she ended up not really enjoying being around other people which becomes a problem in thread. I needed a reason for her to go out and meet other people in threads, and stick around so that those threads would not all turn out incredibly short. My solution turned into an overbearing curiosity that became the driving force for a lot of her early interactions. She may have been very closed off, but she needed to know about the people that interested her so she lingered instead of leaving. It is a way for me as a writer to keep her in threads longer than someone who is uncomfortable in social situations might stay. Another trait I gave her to balance out her shyness and introvert tendencies was a desire for change, a want to really interact with the Drykas culture and understand it.
Lately it has not been as big of a challenge. She has grown in that she no longer cringes away from everything that breathes. The curiosity is still there, but it is more of a smoldering ember than a blazing fire. She has been finding interactions easier and is not as closed off, but still really enjoys and probably prefers the time that she does get to herself.
10. Before Endrykas closed, you found yourself part of a pavilion. Can you talk about what it was like being part of a group of RPers that were all family members or clan members that had by their very nature complex interactions with each other? I love this sort of rp, but I was wondering how you felt about it and the pluses and minuses you felt it gave your PC overall.
Being apart of a pavilion is a great experience and I recommend to anyone to get involved with a family type of grouping if they can. As a writer, it is great to have that sort of “built in” group to plot and write with. The complex relationships family breeds, especially a family full of misfits and adoptees, is something that is very fun and always interesting to write about. The only minus to it -that I can think of- is that, as with all roleplaying, when life gets busy and people have to leave for whatever reason, plans can get upturned easily and untwining from those complex relationships can prove difficult.
From a more IC perspective, it was great because Taurina was completely distrusting of everyone before joining the Stormbloods, and becoming apart of them almost forcefully made her grow into trusting at least them. She went from being alone and unloved to having a family and having to learn how to let them love her. She was not always great at being apart of the pavilion. The rules of living among a group of people did not click with her at first which caused some grief at one point. But that care for them, and a want to not hurt them, was something that developed quickly and it taught her the importance of having people in her life.
11. Here’s your soap box question! Is there anything you want to talk about in regards to your character and or the game itself? You have an audience so feel free to jump on the soapbox and talk a bit about anything you want!
Write what you’re passionate about. Be unafraid in your words. Tell the stories of your heart, and let no one tear you down.
Taurina’s story so far is something I am extremely proud of and so happy to get to share with all of you. I’ve met, written with, and read so many amazing writers here on Miz. You are all, truly, an inspiration. Thank you for all your beautiful words and extraordinary stories. I am excited for the future and all the plots it will bring with it. Happy writing!
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by Allassanachassanya on June 2nd, 2018, 11:42 am 
