Simstorytellers: Swhedonberry Interview

So, hey, guys.  This is the interview that will be posted to simstorytellers soon.  I hope that you guys enjoy it!

Tell us about yourself. (What you do for a living, your interests, where you live, your non-sim hobbies, etc.)

Hi, everyone.

My name is Stacie and I'm an actor living in Richmond, VA, USA. I can already hear some of you saying "Actor? What restaurant?", but I am a professional and theater is how I pay a decent portion of my bills. It's wild and crazy and I love every minute of it. I recently finished a sold-out run of A Midsummer Night's Dream for five actors (which was really fun) and have spent more than four years on the road doing children's theater.

It was touring that led to my meeting Lucas. We dated for five years before marrying this past January. He's a delight.

This is our fake rock band Mackie B and the Scottish Play. Lucas and I are at the top.  Halloween is awesome.

Hobbies…I knit and crochet (which meant that I had a little bit of righteous indignation at the Free Time EP). I write, but you knew that. I do some not so fabulous artwork, but I enjoy it, so that's the important thing. I do a lot of reading whenever I can. I play tennis now and then. I, on occasion, work as a bit of joke doctor for our stand-up comic roomie.

In other words: Jack of all trades, not a master of a darn one.

Do you have other creative pursuits that affect how you tell your sim stories? (Such as photography, creative writing, etc.)

My work in theater and my love of writing helps out a lot. In acting classes, I was taught many different methods for developing a character. I often use those methods to determine whether or not I should go a certain way with someone in the legacy.

I've actually come to think of each of my characters as actors, somewhat. Each has different strengths and skills. For example, Dean has a permagrin. It's so bad that if I have to film a scene with him not being happy, I have to modify his facial structure for that scene so that he's not so darn jovial. Because of this, he doesn't do a lot of angst in my story. He tends to be as happy-go-lucky as I can make him.

"Seriously, if you were married to her, you'd smile all the time, too."

Why did you start creating and posting sim stories?

When I was younger, I really enjoyed writing. I stopped when I had a particularly unsupportive boyfriend who fancied himself to be a much better writer than I was. He also told me that women are inherently less funny than men. Like I said, I was young. Young and stupid. Someone who looked strangely like him may have been brutally torn apart by vampires a few chapters ago.

Maybe.

A few years ago, I found the Sims 2. I played the game a lot, creating stories in my head, melodramas mostly. The first time I played, I created a household of girls who consistently caused trouble. PT9 Smith had an affair with one of them, resulting in an unwanted pregnancy. Two of the girls were involved with each other, but one was cheating with another guy. It was pretty ridiculous, actually, but I enjoyed that it told a story. It wasn't until we got cable internet that I discovered I could post stories.

I read for a good 5 months before I started posting. I got involved with Boolprop.com and found out about legacies. It took a long time to figure out what I wanted my legacy to be about, but once I did, there was no going back.

Do you use Maxis pre-made sims, original sims, sims based on other sources (TV, movies, books, other games), or some combination of these? Why?

I'm a combo girl. I started out pretty much just using CAS sims (being a new god and all that). Also, I started playing my legacy completely by the rules. This is why my first few chapters are pretty painful. It was my third generation kids that changed my mind. Those of you that know me know that my game crashed beyond repair during gen three. My bad. What you might not know is the story that happened before I rebooted Whedonberry.

There were three kids in gen C: Chakotay, Cardassia, and Cordelia. Cardassia was a total pain, so I dealt with her as little as I could. However, Chakotay and Cordelia became best friends before Cordelia was even a child. Just before Cordelia turned into a teen, Johnny Smith began hanging out at the Whedonberry household 24/7. They all became best friends in a big way.

Pictured left to right: Cordelia Whedonberry, Chakotay Whedonberry, and Johnny Smith

What I didn't count on was ACR and Inteen put together. As soon as Cordi aged up, she and Johnny got biblical with each other and conceived. I found this out because I heard a lullaby while I was watching Chakotay and his mom talking in the kitchen.

After a series of expletives, I decided to go with it. Johnny had endeared himself to me and Cordi couldn't be with anyone else. Johnny Smith is why I use pre-mades and I'm so glad that I did.

There are lots of original characters and characters from other sim stories, as well. Eli Branson and Lucius (see above) came from a comic antihero that my husband and I were writing. Senator Jess Fitzhugh came from smoothiqueen87's Fitzhugh legacy. I’ve also recently added some other characters from some of my favorite stories. I have rules to whom I add, however. I don’t add characters unless they have a very specific purpose within the storyline. Some folks add in every character that they like. I can’t bring myself to do that because, for the most part, everyone in the neighborhood ages at approximately the same rate. I'm not going to show Roxy Morgan (De's Morgan Legacy) hopping off the boat and not do anything with her. That just seems like a sloppy use of a great character.

How long does it take you to create a new CAS sim for a story? (If you create original sims, that is.)

It depends, really. Nebula Wallace took awhile to create because I wanted to find the right balance of "hey, this guy has alien heritage" with "he wouldn't have to register". It was harder than it looked. All of his Emerald City girls were a challenge, as well. I have this idea that a lot of them probably had cosmetic surgery to make them look less alien. Nebs is under the impression that his clientele want the most human looking aliens as possible so nose jobs and collagen injected lips are a must.

Pimping ain't easy when you're part alien.

There is one character that’s coming up who is a very old vampire. I made her over a year ago. It took forever to get her just right because I wanted her to have a certain look. I guess it all depends on whether or not I want I have something specific in mind as to how long it takes.

Do you have one sim that frustrates you more than any of the others?

Not really. Some are better "actors" than others. Eli always looks a bit jaded, even when he's smiling which is perfect for his character.

Do your sims have their own theme songs?

Do I? And how! Music is a central theme to Whedonberry whether anybody knows it or not. Darn near everything I do has its own soundtrack. Examples (warning, there's spoilers in the lyrics):

Derrial: "Selling the Drama" by Live.

And to love: a god

And to fear: a flame

And to burn a crowd that has a name…

And to Christ: a cross

And to me: a chair

I will sit and earn the ransom from up here

Cassandra: "Minnesota, 1945" by Eddie From Ohio

My mother was a black woman

And my father was a white man

And in the middle of a Midwestern winter

They took cover in the night

And they talked about injustice

And they talked about freedom

And they talked about Hitler

And made love to piss him off

Dean and Miranda: "You're My Home" by Billy Joel

When you look into my eyes and you see the crazy gypsy in my soul,

It always comes as a surprise, when I feel my withered roots begin to grow.

And I never had a place that I could call my very own,

But that's alright, my love, cause you're my home.

Do you like using aliens, vampires, zombies or any other non "normal" sims?

My blood runs cold, my memory has just been sold. Angelis is the centerfold.

I try to use everything the game offers as far as the abnormals go, even if they all haven't made it into the story, yet. I find it to be a writing challenge to incorporate the scientific with the supernatural. That's why Whedonberry is a sci-fantasy legacy. I’ve yet to use Weres, Plantsims, and Witches, but they are on the way.

Using the different supes in the game has allowed me to do some genre overlapping, as well. There's some sci-fi, horror, and even a little detective drama thrown in. I’m actually pretty proud that I’ve been able to do so many different styles without it becoming too terribly ridiculous.

Do you usually create backstories for your sims?

Probably to a fault. Often, I will come up with a backstory that I am so excited about that I want to add it to the story, but I later realize that it's just too much. I try to limit myself to only using reveals that push the plot forward. However, I do like to think of each of my characters as having a very full and detailed life before they ever get to their first slide.

I have a few backstories that I want to explore. The Grunt family, for example, has a story that needs to be told.

"Stacie, would you ever like to elaborate on this "Moony" fellow you introduced last year?"

Also, I want to eventually do a full on backstory on Marcellus Lane. That’s a special project that will require building a large and very old set. Thank goodness for All About Style and the delightful creations of Dicreasy (A Victorian Legacy).

Yeah, I haven't forgotten about this cliffhanger. I promise. But I'll bet that you did and now you're wondering.

If it were possible, would you carry out "romantic interactions" with any of your sims?

You know, I don't think so. I actually feel too responsible for them to attach to them in that way. I do enjoy seeing my simself getting wooed in other stories, however. I'm looking at you, Archie Vetinari.

Have you ever cried when a sim died? How emotionally attached are you to your sims?

I've never cried when it happened in game. I got a bit emotional when I went back and read about Malcolm's death. I never expected to like that character as much as I did. He was never intended to be as large a part of the story, but he won me over. He loved the twins. He loved Dru. He was magnetic and I couldn't deny that in the story. Unfortunately, I also knew that his ultimate role would be one of sacrifice. He made his death harder on me than it would have been otherwise.

Dangit, Mal! Why'd you make me love you? It made it that much harder to let you die.

Do you have a favorite character/family?

You can always tell who my favorites are at any one point in time by who I am focusing on in the story. Right now, I'm all about Derri and Dean and have been for quite some time.

I've said it many times, but their particular dynamic really wrote itself. When they were younger, Dean was always bringing girls home and Derri just seemed to watch with a somewhat disapproving eye.

I had always planned on Derrial becoming a preacher, but he went with it completely. Dean was always going to be an investigator of the supernatural. Together, they form a dichotomy of faith v. proof. Dean is brains and Derri is heart (there’s a certain irony to that). I've always liked that kind of relationship.

"The ladies, Bro. They love us."
"You're married, Dean."
"I know. But you!! You should get in on some of this action!"

I love the new dynamic that Miranda Legacina adds to the mix. Dean is so in love with her and Derri-cow is the best Bro-In-Law that one could have.

Are there any stories in particular (sim or non-sim) that have inspired your storytelling?

I'm incredibly inspired by the work of Joss Whedon. His ability to write each character with both wit and heart is stunning. If I can create one twentieth of the life spark that he does with his characters, then I can be pretty pleased. I read a lot of comics and graphic novels. I love Alan Moore and Mike Mignola. I like to think of my legacy as a cross between a graphic novel and a television series. I often attempt angles and lighting that make the pictures reflect that fact. Sometimes, I even accomplish it.

As far as sim stories go, different authors inspire in different ways. Orikes (The Psuedo Legacy) is who I share the most with stylistically speaking. Often we'll discover that we're doing similar things and laugh about it. She inspired me to relax and to not put myself on a timetable to finish this thing. The story is more important than the challenge. Dean winning Miranda Legacina's bachelor challenge absolutely inspired me to open up Whedonberry for more "guest appearances". DoctorSupremeNerd (The Vetinari Dualegacy) has gotten me to take my characters to darker places. We also tend to share a brain with plot points at times. Strange Tomato (Strangetown, Here We Come) inspired me to allow the story to edge right up into PG-13 territory and let me know that it wasn't weird to allow the characters to be baser, more carnal creatures.

How do you decide on names for your sims?

The main legacy family is done in alphabetical order with names from sci-fi and fantasy. The founder's name was Lucas Whedonberry after George Lucas, Joss Whedon, and Gene Roddenberry. It took me forever to decide on that name, btw. Thus far I've used names from Star Wars, Enterprise, Buffy, Voyager, Deep Space 9, Star Trek: TNG, Firefly, Supernatural, The Chronicles of Narnia, X-men.

Other families get different names for different reasons. Bromley and Katrina Miguel are named after characters from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Cassandra Windsor is named after a playwright with whom I had the opportunity to work a few years ago. Cassandra's writing embodies the strength of woman with the strong stance against prejudice. I want Cass Windsor to do the same. Eli Branson's name literally means "Sword of God". I let the names happen as they happen. I try to give decent variety in the non-Whedonberry families.

Do you use hacks in your game? If so, which ones? How do they affect your stories?

I use a bucketful of hacks from MATY to make gameplay more realistic. I have ACR installed and a ton of the posing boxes. More than anything, however, I use InSim.

Do you have a favourite EP/SP? Which expansion adds the most to storytelling for you?

I remember early in my legacy getting the Seasons EP. The first time I saw the snow, my breath audibly drew into my body. Something about that moment still sticks with me even with all of the other packs.

Stacie thinks snow is very pretty.

Do you make your own custom content?

I’ve made a few pieces of custom content in the form of T-shirts. The only one that didn’t get deleted in the crash was my Wonder Woman Tee that my simself wears.

"Hey, you! My eyes are up here!


Do you have a favourite sim outfit or hairstyle?

No, actually. I enjoy picking out different outfits and hairstyles to match the characters and personalities. I could play with the CAS for hours (and have!)

What are some things that you wish were included in Sims 2, but aren't? (For example - social interactions, the way sims interact with objects, etc.)

I’d like to see a ton:

Make-out in front of fireplace.

I wish that there was a "punch in the face" option.

I’d love to see a kiss where the sim cradles the face. You know, the classic airport kiss.

I wish sims had more interactions with objects. I totally wish that a sim could have a tantrum and throw decorative items.

I wish that you could choose to do all the activities that are autonomous.

I wish that the turn-ons/off section had aliens on the list. I know that within the game, it's just a skintone, but imagine the added depth that it would give some of the characters. Imagine if Buzz Grunt had blondes and cleaning as turn-ons and aliens as a turn-off.

How long does it usually take you to prepare a story update?

Lately, it’s been long. Like a month and half long. I’d prefer to get a chapter out monthly, but that can’t always happen. I’ve been working pretty constantly in theatre since January which has made my schedule hectic.

Show and tell: Please show us your workspace (a photograph, if possible, or just describe it), and tell us about the conditions you prefer to work in. Do you have any bizarre habits or rituals?

Okay, so I can't get my picture to load on my computer, which sucks. I have a desktop computer, where I play. Beside it is my old laptop. I put the writing part on the old laptop and use it to see what pictures I need to take for the story. I don't really do anything bizarre. Most of the time, I will put together my story on a full day off. It takes several hours and then it's done.

Do you usually have your sims act to a pre-written script, just follow what they do, or some of both? what comes first - the text or the image? Is one of the elements more important than the other to you, or are they about equal?

A little of both. I have a major plotline that gets followed, but I leave room for sims to choose love interests, friendships, enemies. I’m pretty flexible. I play until someone in the house is nearing a major event (birthday or marriage or the like), taking lots of pictures. Then I decide what of that is interesting enough to be shown within the plot. I write the script with all of these things in mind and film any scenes needed.

Can you give us any hints about what is coming up in your stories? (Oh, come on...)

Eustace and Evangeline will meet their half-brother.

There's going to be a few unexpected pregnancies.

Stacie's taking a trip to the Underworld.

Addiction, Death, and the return of a character that most thought was gone forever.

"Could you please work faster so that we can get to this age?"

In your opinion, what makes a good sim story? What do you like to read in other people's stories?

If someone can tell a story where the characters come across as "real people", then I'll probably read it. I hate to see when someone takes a character, establishes who he is, and then proceeds to have him behave entirely different from the character's established traits. Also, characters have to have flaws that negatively impact their lives. Otherwise, their journeys are boring to watch.

You have to create characters that make you disappointed in them from time to time.

How often do you check your flist to see if your favourite authors have updated?

More than I should. Probably hourly during the workday. Less than that on weekends and evenings.

Storytelling aside, what first drew you to The Sims? What do you like most about playing The Sims?

I've always leaned towards games where I can create characters. Also, there's something appealing about being a god.

I like seeing what surprises the sims bring. A guy you'd never guess as unfaithful could flirt with another woman at his wedding. Maybe the nicest girl in the world has an illogical hatred of her sister. I see a lot of sim writers say things like "OMG, she's totes hating on her sister. Way to work those nice points, Charactress!!" I like to see things like that as opportunities to explore a character more deeply. In many ways, they really do act like humans with their responses.

How long have you been playing The Sims? Have you been playing since Sims 1?

I started playing the Sims 1 when I was on tour in 2004(?) with my friend Johnny. He and I roomed together and we had a laptop and a weekend stay in Euclid, OH

Oh, the possibilites.

So, we bought the deluxe pack with all the EPs. We created a reality show house with lots of bad stereotypes as characters. There was Lindsay J, who was a far-right republican from the South who believed in purity above all…until someone brought in booze and a hot tub; Austin, the former high school football star, who became romantically involved with Brent, a musical theatre major with aspirations of being in Rent; Trapper, a free-lance wedding singer and videographer who was also the house slob; and Condoleezza Rice. Yeah, they all lived in a house with Condoleezza Rice. Johnny and I were making chocolate martinis with cheap booze in a Comfort Inn while playing this game. You can only judge us so much.

"I swear to all things holy, Trapper. If you don't wash your damned dishes, I will invite Cheney over for one of his hunting trips."


Do you only play the game with stories in mind, or do you also play just for fun? Do you record everything with photos anyway?

I do both when I can. Lately, I've really been playing to the story because I haven't had time to do anything else. I still take photos like a nutcase, though.

.

Do you have a self sim? (We'd love to see him/her, if you want to share a pic.)

Yep, there's a sim Stacie and she is a character in Whedonberry. She functions as a deity of sorts.

Real Stacie's hair is much longer now. She also lacks god-like powers.

Orikes:

Have you ever had a picture change where you're going with a particular storyline?

I have actually. There was a scene where I had Marcellus flirting with a succubus demon at Branson's. I started messing around with the positioning and got this:

He wasn't originally supposed to sleep with her, but this picture (in my mind) is clearly a woman asking for payment. Suddenly, Marcellus sleeps with prostitutes and refuses to pay.

I also filmed a short scene (most of which didn't make the update) which flashes back to Buzz Grunt and Lyla when they were dating. Originally, I hadn't planned for it to be the day that Buzz proposed, but this picture was just so perfect for that.

I know you've got quite a bit planned out, but how flexible are your plans? Do you have wiggle room built in to adjust for sims being sims and doing their own thing? There's a lot of wiggle room. I have overarching themes, but specifics get nailed down as the sims choose their own paths. Right now, I do have the next heir's spouse picked out, which is pretty rare for me. I wanted to go with this storyline, so I put them both in another 'hood and tested it out. I was right, they were compatible. Yay!

Do you have the major plot arch completely planned out through the next few generations or are you playing it by ear?

I know where some characters are ending up. I know how some characters are going to die, but the getting there is a little more fluid.

This next generation is going to have a good bit of showbiz in there. I'm essentially going to be using a lot of my own experiences and what I saw on the road to tell the story of Eustace and Evangeline.

Peasant:

Do you find yourself playing favorites with your characters? If yes, then who and why? To be honest, whatever character serves the story the best at the time becomes a favorite for me. Right now, we're seeing a lot of stuff through Derri and Dean's eyes. Cecil is also a critical POV character. He has such frankness about him that he points out what's wrong in a way that other characters couldn't. He's judgmental, but can't effectively make anything better right now.

Have you ever written something that you really wish you could change when you look back at it? My first five chapters. I've almost erased them several times, actually. They are written in a completely different style and are just not as good as my other chapters. The only reason that I keep them is because I want people to have an idea of Angel/Angelis before they get to her as a full-fledged villain. My hope is that for some people who are reading for the first time, they will see the picture of Drusilla as a child painting the picture of her imaginary friend and say

"HOLY S**T!! HER IMAGINARY FRIEND'S BEEN ANGEL THE WHOLE TIME!! SHE'S COMING BACK!! THE BIG BAD'S COMING BACK!!"

Realistically, I know there wasn't enough establishment of Angelis, the big bad, to illicit that response. A girl can dream, though.

How far do you plan storylines in advance? Some of them have been in my head for years. The image you get of Drusilla jumping off of the building was one that I had in my head since 2007ish. The difference was that when I first though of it, it was a vamped Angel leaping off of a building at sunrise to kill herself and turning to ash before she hit the ground. That, of course, changed as the storyline changed.

So, yeah, this, but with a different vampire and lots of burning.

Cecil and Cecilia came into the story when I saw a staged reading of Ragtime last October. There's a strong "pilgrim in a strange land" theme with the characters of Tateh and his daughter, two Jewish immigrants who come to America to seek a better life. In one scene, a man tries to offer Tateh money for sexual favors from his very young daughter. Tateh goes nuts on the guy and gets suppressed by the cops on the street because he's a Jew and an immigrant and the "who gives a damn about these people" mentality. I immediately wondered what Cecil would do if someone made the same improper advance at Cecilia. I then wondered what would happen if he didn't have the money and clout to actually take care of the situation. I sent Professor Butters a request to use her characters the very next day.

Were you ever surprised at a character's popularity among your fanbase?

In all honesty, I was more surprised that there was a fanbase at all. I started this for my own enjoyment and got some other people along the way. It's been marvelous.

I will say that I've felt honored at the responses I've gotten for some characters that are usually written as heels. I had many people tell me that I was the first writer to make them love Vidcund Curious and Circe Beaker. That really brought a smile to my face.

*sniff* I promised myself I wouldn't cry...

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Thanks to everyone who takes the time to read Whedonberry. It's really a lot of fun for me and the fact that it brings other people joy really makes my day!!