The Interview
Welcome to the first 2015 edition of The Featured Character! Below is Sedge’s interview.
1. Starting off the beaten path a bit, in regards to a contributor interview, I’d like to know what appeals to you in regards to both what types of characters you like to roleplay and what appeals to you in character types you enjoy roleplaying with. I ask this because I think it sets the stage for how one interacts within the game as a contributor.The characters I play tend to fall under a handful of archetypes. On one side, I have those who are pragmatic and straightforward, sometimes more ruthless, sometimes feral in nature, who usually wind up settling into a 'right-hand' role with someone else. At the other end, I have characters who are optimistic, sometimes excessively nosy, often crafters or healers, and otherwise soundly 'good' in the classic sense. My characters frequently take on more supportive or 'effector' roles rather than leadership or combat, though that's a general rule and not universal. I've played plenty of variations and exceptions over the years, including some pretty marked detours from the 'usual' archetypes, but these comprise the mainstay of my RP.
As for the characters I like to play
with... I honestly enjoy RPing with any well-developed, complex character. 'Good' or 'evil', quiet or assertive, crafters or warriors or scholars -- the role of the character is secondary in my view to their presence and identity, their depth and development, the journey behind them and ahead of them. Many of these characters start from the most humble, even cliche beginnings, but story happens to them and they come out the other side more than they were initially. Not necessarily 'better' or 'worse' in an alignment sense -- in fact, I
really appreciate good bad guys, because they're not in my own repertoire. What these characters become is more realized, more faceted; they grow in ways no one could have predicted at the outset. I find these characters bring an immersive depth to threads that I really enjoy.
2. What do you think makes up a successful contributor? Are there stand out characteristics that people have or can anyone play a role in this very necessary aspect of Mizahar?The first characteristic of a successful contributor is determination -- not being daunted by "I don't know anything about that" or "that's too big for little old me to do". The second is perseverance, sticking through distractions and research and the sometimes extended process of getting an article written up. I very much think that anyone who wants to contribute to Mizahar, can. Anyone. I think writing lore might not occur to a lot of people because the lore is a backdrop to their everyday RP, something that exists for their reference but in the making is someone else's responsibility. Others -- understandably -- might consider volunteering but also find the idea daunting, because there is so much depth to Mizahar's lore articles; to write any of them requires a good bit of effort. But
anyone who is willing to put in that work can roll up their figurative sleeves and develop lore. Also, I am
more than happy to help anyone with any part of the process they get stuck on: if they're not sure how to start, if they're daunted by the idea, if they're having trouble with planning or composing, if they want feedback and confirmation that something's okay -- whatever it is, it can be worked through. Helping with those hurdles is part of my job, so just come talk to me.
Also -- in this, Mizahar offers a very unusual opportunity for its players. With essentially every other RP I have played on or even visited, lore development is either finished before the game ever opens, or it is reserved solely to the admin. Here, only a few subjects are restricted; on most topics, players are welcome to contribute, and their lore articles become a permanent part of the game (after passing the review process). You have the opportunity -- take advantage of it!
3. What is one of your favorite pieces of lore in the wiki to date?Oh, where do I even start?
If I had to pick
one single article... it might be the Wilderness Survival skill. Talk about an excellent practical reference for RP!
If I can pick a category -- which I'm going to do regardless -- I think my favorite would be the deity lores. Many games have multiple locations, multiple races, multiple magics -- different ones than Miz, of course, but my point is they have and document these sorts of things. Relatively few that I've seen provide the depth to religion that makes it an active and meaningful element of gameplay. I admit, most of my characters didn't start out particularly religious, but as each has grown into their own devotions, religion has proved to seriously mean a lot for their development.
4. You’ve done a fantastic job and we couldn’t be happier but taking on The World Development Forum, its reorganization and retasking, is even to me a daunting task. I often pinch myself that we found someone so great to handle this aspect of Mizahar. What motivated you to say yes and what keeps you going on this project? I've wanted to step up and do more for Mizahar for a while now. I had been thinking of going for an ST position, but a combination of things held me back -- partly my availability, which isn't as consistent as I'd prefer for such a position; partly the fact that I just didn't feel I quite
fit with the positions I was considering. But then the advertisement went up for someone to take on the World Development forum. Truth be told, I'm actually much more logic-minded than creative; organization and technical writing are really where my strengths lie, and those are exactly what the Scribe position called for. Needless to say,
that clicked immediately. The best part of it is that these tasks aren't as draining for me as creative writing; they're even part of what I do to recharge. So this role fits well around everything else I have going on, rather than being purely competitive for my time. I suppose you could say all that is also why I keep going in the position -- it suits my inclinations and my circumstances,
and lets me give back to the game I enjoy. Everybody wins!
5. What do you feel is your greatest contribution to Mizahar? Is there something else you are working on currently that you feel will well outshine this contribution?My greatest contribution? Hm. I would say, my 'greatest contribution' so far actually hasn't been on the lore side of things, but in trying to be available to new players, answering questions, pointing them at some of the less up-front lore articles, helping to get them hooked into threads where I can.
When it comes to things I'm working on... or considering taking up after I finish the current tasks...
*looks at the list*
...yeah, eventually, 'something else I'm working on' will probably outshine the other just by sheer volume. I want, eventually, to flesh out as many of the gaps in the lore as one person can. I know Emissary has some excellent plans for Eyktol's lore, and after those articles are rolled out, I'd like to update the other regions to a similar structure and degree of detail, in collaboration with their local STs. I have some notes on player guides I'd like to write, on skills, on languages, all of which would be boons to RP if completed. I've been considering some things that might boost opportunities for the aquatic races, which strike me as an underappreciated aspect of the game. And maybe the thing I'd most like to do is collate global and local timelines of major events since game opening, the kinds of events that are good fodder for new PCs' backstories but haven't been incorporated into city articles. There's a couple of things I might organize as community projects as well...
Now, if only I had the time to do
all of these things...
6. IF you had a magic developer wand and could wave it over any article or topic, what would be on your top ten list (or even top five) of getting developed?...I have to stop at ten? Hmm...
Wysar and Tyveth's lores.
The Observation and Socialization skill writeups, because combined they are relevant to 99.5% of threads.
An actual lore page on the Djed Storm of 512. Maybe with some more on djed storms in general.
Cyphrus, Kalea, and Taldera region lores.
The "serpents that swim through the land" in Cyphrus. They're one of those obscure little footnotes that I'd like to see get more screen time.
Speaking of footnotes -- the Akka. Are they the same as the Seiza, or not? If not -- if they really are a distinct group dedicated to restoring Zintila -- that looks like some nice plot potential there...
Also? While picking these out, I noticed there's a Constellation Template lurking in the depths of the wiki... but
that doesn't need a magic developer wand... *scribbles notes on her agenda*
7. This might be a hard one to answer, but being a sort of new Mistress of the Lore – a Scribe – do you have any advice for new players when they try to divide and conquer it? Is there a way to digest it that might seem easier than playing my favorite game which is hit ‘random’ over and over and learn something new every day? We are talking strategy here, of course.Start with what's immediately relevant to your character. Learn your race lore and your city lore. Read up on your character's primary skills, if the articles have been developed. Don't worry about all the rest of it right away, just let it sit there until you need it. (Case in point: I've been playing on Miz for a couple years now. I
still don't know more than the very basics about magic. And that's okay.)
After that, brush up on your Miz history. Read about the gods, especially the ones that your character might worship. Walk through links for a while. Take advantage of the random button. Personally, what I've done is continue to read up on articles as they become relevant in RP... and as they get mentioned in chat. Eventually, chat touches upon just about everything. In this manner, I've gradually read my way through most of the wiki, one topic area at a time. This seems to have done well by me as a strategy -- I know the details of what I need to know on a daily basis, and by now I have a pretty good idea where to look for anything else that comes up.
8. The World Development Forum has been hopping since you took over. What sort of plans do you have to keep people motivated, interested, and utterly encouraged to finish what they start in regards to articles? We always have lots of volunteers to write articles, but we’ve never had a great track record of having people finish. Can you share some of your plans for trying to circumvent this chronic issue?My single biggest aim is to keep the whole process moving, even more so than writing articles myself. I feel that, aside from just plain starting, the greatest handicap to getting articles into the lore is that period when the excitement of having completed a writeup wears off and the waiting for reviews stretches on. I will certainly contribute reviews myself, but I'm only one person. So one thing I will be doing as we come out of the holiday slowdown is recruiting reviewers. (Speaking of: There's two skill articles in need of reviews right now -- all of you go check them out!) I think an incentive system for articles and reviews may show up in the future, though I'm still thinking about what shape I might want that to take.
We also have formalized criteria for abandoned articles, which I will be keeping tabs on. While this is mostly meant to allow people to pick up articles when the authors go inactive... if you aren't writing on your article where we can see it, and if you aren't out there recruiting reviewers when you need them, you
do run the risk of losing the article. I'll also be looking for people to adopt any articles that go idle so they don't fall into the dust heap of forum history. That may not be inspiring to the original authors, but picking up an abandoned article could be a good way for new authors to get started.
I will also emphasize again that I am always accessible to help resolve any roadblocks people run into during the writing and review process.
9. What is behind your staff name? This was a frequent question in chat when you first joined as a scribe. If its top secret, that’s fine, but if you refuse to answer we need some other juicy tidbit to satisfy our curiosity.Hah! That's honestly a very short story, and not a secret in the least.
I wanted a name related to
scribe. We already had an Ink, so that was obviously out. Scribes write on paper, parchment... but those weren't interesting names to me. I wanted something a little less everyday. I briefly considered the mulberry tree for inspiration, which I understand was the original source of wood-pulp paper. Didn't jive. Alternately, the word 'paper' derives from 'papyrus'. I kinda like papyrus as a word and as a plant -- did you know there's a miniature type you can keep as a houseplant? -- but the word itself, I thought widely-used enough that I also gave it a pass. That said, I do happen to like natural history trivia, so I followed up and did a little reading on the plant. Papyrus is a member of the sedge family, and Sedge was finally something I felt happy with as a name... so there you have it.
10. Since this is a New Years Interview, of sorts, what are your resolutions for this year both in regards to Mizahar and in your personal life? We, as society, love resolutions and sharing them with each other. What are your plans for yourself in the coming year?Resolutions, hmm. There are some resolutions I'd
like to make, but know I have no chance of attaining. So, not those.
As far as Mizahar goes, I resolve to be continuously active as well as available. I also resolve to finish at least half of those solos I have dangling on my PCs. That actually
is an attainable goal... And, of course, I resolve to keep the World Development forum moving along.
Outside of Mizahar... I resolve to actually finish a story. I've spent many years RPing, and I've noticed that that experience has trained me really well at alternating parts: when it comes to any creative writing, I frequently get a few hundred words in and stall with the expectation that it must be someone else's turn. That doesn't really work when it's just me. Then, combine this with entirely more ideas than are good for anything, and I wind up flitting about a lot rather than sticking through anything. Especially since new ideas mean I can detour into worldbuilding instead of writing narrative (see above about technical vs. creative writing). So my non-Miz resolution is to finally rein in that tendency, at least enough to get
something 'done'.
11. And finally, my favorite question! This is your time hop on the proverbial soap box and talk about anything and everything you want too. Practically everyone on the site reads these interviews, so take the opportunity to get a message out there to all the fellow players in whatever form you’d like it to take.I'll start with the acknowledgements. Nothing I do exists in a vacuum, and I have to thank all the staff of Mizahar for what they do on a daily basis to keep the site ticking along. Especially Goss. I really admire your persistence through everything, that you are still here and still keep going. I also have to thank all of the players for bringing life to the game, because they do; it wouldn't be much of a game without people to play in it! More than anything, my favorite part of RP is the synthesis of people coming from different perspectives, each bringing their own ideas and expectations, sending the story in directions I never could have conceived of by myself.
By extension, one of my favorite things about Mizahar's lore is that it is open to, even encourages, the same kind of synthesis. There are parts contributed by different Founders, parts contributed by different STs, and parts contributed by players. All you have to be, to work on lore, is a player in the game -- and when your lore is finally approved and incorporated into the wiki, it applies to
everyone in the entire game. By that token, we
all have a vested interest in every addition to the lore. Every single one. Every skill article that is completed is a guide for players and graders; skills are easier to recognize and award when they've been written up. More written skills == more XP for you! Language articles allow characters to learn, teach, and use languages proficiently in-thread. Worlds and summonable creatures are essential to the viability of Summoning as a magic -- for players who use it, but also for STs who employ it as a plot point, and as we get a greater variety of worlds to draw from, it becomes a more
interesting plot point. Songs, fables, monsters -- anyone can develop them, and once developed, anyone can use them as thread fodder. I could keep itemizing subjects, but that's not the point.
The point is,
you don't have to be staff to make a lasting contribution to this world.
You also don't have to be an expert on
anything to write lore articles. You may become an expert, or at least very well-informed, by the time you're done; you don't have to be one up front. Nor do you have to be an expert to review -- just be willing to think critically, to consider if the article makes sense and if there's anything it's missing that you would need to know in play. That's not a matter of knowledge, it's a learned skill, a skill you gain by doing. So go forth and
do: write articles, read articles, review articles. Start discussions on lores you'd like to see written. It would be a marvel if we had even half of the playerbase as invested in lore development as we all are in RP and plots. Imagine what the lore would look like if we all chipped in and built it up -- if we fleshed out all of those stubs, all of those empty, waiting links, and more besides. Mizahar's lore is as much a living, growing entity as the characters and plots it fosters -- so come join in and help make it grow!
And finally.. thanks for all your contributions to Mizahar. You mean the world to us.
.
by Keene Ward on January 2nd, 2015, 9:36 pm 
