Lady Aoi
Aoi: Since I saw u last on line I've been flamed thrice.
Baka: Flamed? By whom?
Aoi: Some jerk off who WROTE IN STICKAY CAPSST AND CANAT SPEL. And I would be honored to be interviewed (xel-chan's email is hojosama@aol.com)
Baka: Woo-hoo! Sugoi! (one step ahead of you! Xel-Chan's already confirmed for an i-view.) Yah, I'll hafta get to work though...everyone's either getting busy or Taking off...
Aoi: Well I'll consent to being interviwed now.
Baka: ...with that said, do you have time to do one- I was typing that...but stopped!
Aoi: *dies*
Baka: k, here we go...ready?
Aoi: *nods* Hai!!
Baka: First off, what can you tell me about yourself?
Aoi: I'm a twenty-something small-town English and Theatre major who got into anime at the ripe old age of 20 (I wonder if there's something in otakudom about not trusting anyone over twenty *L* anyway...) Living in a small town, I have developed a warped sense of humor and a deep love for anime, literature, theatre and music (basically anything that doesnt involve watching the corn grow) I should cut to the chase then: I'm an unashamed yaoi/yuri fan and an even more unashamed Hanagata fan. this takes up a lot of my time, seeing as Hanagata is a demanding muse. But when I'm not occupied with fan fic writing, you can usually find me reading victorian literature, attempting to write the great American play (tm) or... well, i'll be honest. Sleeping. I love to sleep.
Baka: Victorian Lit, meaning from the Victoria period, right? Remind me, when did that happen, century-wise?
Aoi: 19th Century in England. hehe. I'm a Dickens junkie O.o;;;; And Shakespeare. Gotta love the Shakespeare and all his Elizabethan buddies... oddly enough a lot of my SMJ fic and original work draws from Shakespearean themes, and Greek Tragedy... and yeah, I know that sounds pretentious O.o;
Baka: Alright, well I've got plenty more questions to make you think (I think...), so let's keep going! Next up: What's the stupidest thing you've ever done?
Aoi: *grins* Okay this is gonna take some thought...
Baka: So you don't do anything stupid?
Aoi: No, I mean chosing one thing out of the thousands of stupid things! *L*
Baka: LOL!
Aoi: Hrm... okay the stupidist thing I've ever done that had humorous consequences and left me able to laugh about it years later was probably *thinks* well this is really dumb but...when I was about four years old, or so my dad says we were both flying on an airplane. Wait, Seven I think I was seven.
Baka: Seven...four. Little difference.
Aoi: And my dad turned his back for ten seconds and immediately I was over at this woman's side, tugging on her skirt. (She had a very short skirt, according to my dad) And I said "Excuse me, miss? Why is your skirt so short?"
Baka: LOL! Poor dad!
Aoi: I was a... um... precocious little thing. The stupidist thing I ever did that had really bad consequences and I will never laugh about ever was being a theatre major in college. It nearly destroyed my writing.
Baka: You have regrets over this?
Aoi: *nods* Professors can be .... cruel, especially arts professors. I won't name names but I'm sure all Theatre/music/art students out there will nod their heads along with me. I began to write for them and not for me... and as them not as me... in the end I got so confused I was writing nothing but well... post-modern dribble and then they trashed me for that. I mean I have had good times as a theatre major. but if I had it to do over again... I'm not sure if I would have gone for it, knowing what I know now?
Baka: So...it wasn't more of a career problem, as it was a curriculum fault?
Aoi: It was both. I don't fault the theatre on this though, just the way that most fine arts departments on the university/college level are run.
Baka: Okay, of course I would start with the negative side...soooooooooo.......What are a few of your favorite things (food, movies, music, etc.) ?
Aoi: hm... food: Sushi, Indian, Thai, think anything Asian or Middle Eastern that doesnt' have meat and I'm up for it! I'm a vegetarian as well. Music? Very diverse tastes... some favorite bands include: Stabbing Westward, VAST, Smashing Pumpkins, Switchblade Symphony, Oh and Bare Naked Ladies! Praise be to they! I love that group. Favorite singer by far is Loreena McKennitt...and of course Hanagata's image songs **
Baka: Do you idolize anyone?
Aoi: *L* who isn't a two dimensional drawing with a large bowtie? Not really. But I admire many writers.
Baka: Let's go into the next set of questions...since you're hinting that way with a certain blonde...What was your first encounter with SMJ like?
Aoi: *L* it's a funny story. I have a friend who lived in the student apartments at my college when I was 20 *so last year* And he lived two doors down for the longest time and we never met. Turns out he's also an otaku. We started hanging out and one day he showed me some SMJ. *L* I thought Hanagata was disgusting *dies* I really just fell in love with it though... even though we only watched the first two eps.
Baka: Heh, it'll do that!
Aoi: But well, I'm an English major, right? And we're trained to analyze texts and well... even films and animation. I immediately became fascinated by how gender was presented in SMJ
Baka: Would you say SMJ has sexist attitudes towards women?
Aoi: You know I have struggled with that question. I think you can view it as such, but I don't. I think the show has a lot to say about objectifying women, and I think it really does some refreshing things with gender roles.
Baka: Refreshing in what way?
Aoi: Well, the ladies in SMJ are anything but vapid and helpless. Actually a lot of the men kinda are ^_~ BUT NOT MY HANA-SAMA!!!
Baka: Speaking of the character Mitsurugi Hanagata...What do you see in him?
Aoi: Ohhhhh!!! O.o;;; You do realize you've just opened yourself up for like pages on pages of text, yes?
Baka: Keep it to interview level.
Aoi: ROTFL Okay, okay! I warn you: get me talking about Hana-sama and the only thing that may shut me up is holy water and a stake through the heart *L*
Baka: *holy water and stakes on standby*
Aoi: LOL! One sec. Must breathe! *L*
Baka: So, you've said you hated the character at first...
Aoi: yeah. I was like "who's the little freak and why is he so damned annoying?"
Baka: ...so what happened to make you like such an annoying personality?
Aoi: *L* I think since I'm a yaoi fan as soon as I found out he was yaoi I was kinda like "what's a yaoi character doing in a shounen anime?" so I started watching him a bit more closely.
Baka: And in closer examination....?
Aoi: Hrm... he just somehow walked away with my heart. I just adore that little freak *said affectionately*.
Baka: *scratches his head in confusion....*
Aoi: First of all, I usually tend to like characters no one else does; Saionji from Utena, Schreient from Weiss Kreuz...bashed and underrated charas often and Hana certainly fits this profile.
Baka: I guess, the question should have more generally been: Why the love for Yaoi?
Aoi: I think it's because they're misunderstood. I think Hana-ko is very misunderstood. I've heard him called everything from "icky", "pointless" and "annoying" to "a harmful stereotype of a gay man". I don't think those are true. On the surface level maybe, but not deep down. *L* *shrugs* it's a fan girl thing, methinks. tht is one question I've never been able to answer.
Baka: Would you say you have common ground with Hanagata, meaning do you feel downtrodden by others, or weak, maybe pathetic??
Aoi: oh yeah... I feel very misunderstood sometimes, and I feel that I'm an annoyance to others.
Baka: Annoyance? You aren't one to push your own views on others, are you?
Aoi: I'm actually a pretty opinionated woman. I don't push my views on others, but I don't actually hide them or apologize for them either.
Baka: So you make them well known, and stand up for them if needed...?
Aoi: Hehe. I try to. And sometimes I can really be a pest. Hanagata and I have exactly the same sense of humor. I even laugh like him at times *L* or like Tickle me Elmo.
Baka: Let's get away from Hanagata while I still can....(or we'll see...this next question might not go that way) Given the chance, what would you have made different in the original SMJ story?
Aoi: *L* Ohhhh that's obvious. Hanagata and Otaru end up together in the end. Oh, God! That sounded really wrong *L* Okay, "they end up as a couple."
Baka: What sort of SMJ Merchandise do you own?
Aoi: I have the J videos, the J Again Videos, the J to X Dvds, the second J DVD, a few cards, four art books, all five manga, and a Hana-sama plushie.
Baka: What sort of things do you like to do to get in the mood for writing?
Aoi: Watch Episode 3 of J to X over and over and over. It always inspires me. I often write to BNL music, or another group I like, but BNL works best for Hanagata-sama. Often something to nibble on helps too... veggies, orange juice, or bread... And Xel-chan to bounce ideas off of.
Baka: Do you read fanfic yourself?
Aoi: Mainly SMJ fan fic... including Mattsurugi's wonderful series *plug pluggity plug plug plug* and anything on ff.net in that section.
Baka: Are there any specific stories out there you would highly recommend to others, besides those?
Aoi: I really like theCarlinist's work *L* Yeah any parodies. And I also like the work of BlueFiragaCarter, and XenoExistence shows much promise too.
Baka: Have you ever written a fic you thought little of, only to have readers praise it?
Aoi: Yeah, the fic is called "So I Need You" I'm not a fan of it but most ppl say it's my sweetest story.
Baka: What didn't you like about it?
Aoi: Hm... it feels like it meanders a bit. I think too that I made Otaru a bit too soft, and Hana a bit too... submissive at times and too outspoken at others without clean transitions. *L* If I ever have the time, I will surely rewrite it.
Baka: Are there any plans for your future fanfiction writing?
Aoi: A lot of them.
Baka: Any specifics that stand out...or do we have to wait?
Aoi: I am now working on a new and very dark series that centers around Hanagata. And that's all I'll say on the record ^_~. Also a few one shots...and I'm doing two straight pairings too. Tiger/Faust and Bloodberry/? *L*
Baka: What would you say inspires your fanfic writing (other than the obvious answer of the original works) ?
Aoi: Xel-chan initially inspired me to write hanagata fics in the first place. Music really inspires me too, especially the groups I've mentioned. My relationship with my Dad really influences anything I write about Kamatarou and Mitsurugi. *L*
Baka: Are you more comfortable writing serious or humorous stories?
Aoi: I can do both, but humor is easier to do sometimes... especially Hana-ko humor. But I would say I am comfortable with both.
Baka: Okay, which would you say you prefer writing?
Aoi: Probably serious. I feel a little closer to my serious pieces. They take more time usually and more energy.
Baka: How long in estimate does it take you to write a full fanfic?
Aoi: Depends on the fic. I wrote "Things the cast would never say" in about an hour or two. Ophelia all together took me a month off and on. Often I write multiple fics so I can be working on up to four at a time.
Baka: What would you say are the most important traits a writer should have?
Aoi: *thinks* Dedication to the story, an ability to tell a plot bunny from an idea that will actually float, a love of their characters *clings to her Hana-sama plushie*, attention to detail and the natural organic growth of the story. And persistance. Never listen to flames, my young writer friends!!
Baka: Okay, define for our audience (well, me, actually) what a "plot bunny" is?
Aoi: Plot Bunny: An idea for a fic. Sometimes you get a cool idea like "what if I did this fic about Hanagata as a pirate?" and then three pages into it, you find out that it doesn't work because Hana is not pirate material... if that happens, you need to abandon ship *_~.
Baka: Well, I think that drains my question base, Is there anything else you'd like to add?
Aoi: Yeah... write more Yumeji fics everyone!! He's like a little version of Hanagata only um... with more common sense ^_^. He's rarely used in fics, and I'd love to see that happen. I'd also really love to see some more Bloodberry/Akashi fics.
Baka: So, you're done with it, or just have no time to devote to it?
Aoi: No, wait. I did have an idea of something to write. I just haven't put it on paper yet, and I still do some online roleplaying.
Baka: Oh, and after asking all this of you...it's only fair: Do you have any questions to ask me?
Aoi: Ohhh yeah. What's your take on the great Hana-sama? I won't punch ya if you recoil. ^_~
Baka: My take?
Aoi: Yeah. We've kind of talked about this before.
Baka: In which way...his overall scope in SMJ or his own self?
Aoi: As a character. As his own self. And yeah, in SMJ too.
Baka: In SMJ, I see him a very vital character. He has that ability to make you laugh at, hate, and feel sorry for him all at the same time...
Aoi: I agree with that.
Baka: ...on the surface he seems like a simplistic fallguy, but he's actually a very complex personality...
Aoi: Oh yay!! I love you!! thanks for saying that!!
Baka: so in his scope of SMJ, I fully support him...BUT...I still find him pretty pathetic at times...
Aoi: *grudingly nods* Yeah.
Baka: ..and I would probably loathe him if he were a real life person.
Aoi: *L* I'd ask him to be my roomate.
Baka: Any more questions for me?
Aoi: *thinks* Yeah. Why do choose Otaru/Cherry as the cutest SMJ couple? It's a good pairing, but a rare one.
Baka: I dunno...I just kind of look at the other obvious pairings, and they either seem improbable or too probable...And well, Cherry seems so needy at times, but ignored...
Aoi: Yeah..."And I could be good... and I would... if I knew I was understood...?"
Baka: And, well, picture the two in my head (like the beginning of the end credits featuring Heart Break Down) they look very cute!!
Aoi: Yeah, hehehe. Japoness Ward and June Clever?
Baka: The Beavers?
Aoi: *_* Yeah. Okay, now i'm being silly.
Baka: Not at all...well, yeah, you are, but...ah forget it! END INTERVIEW!
Aoi: *L* I was just about to say is that a wrap?? *L*