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Wow, well what can I say other thank you stnylan! :eek: :) I'm truly amazed at recieving this award!

Taylor grew out of two things - firstly simply getting the Doomsday expansion with its system of espionage and secondly coping with the very different style of a HoI2 AAR. Most of my AAR's tend to focus on fictional (or at least fictionalised) monarchies - it's a style I enjoy as I can combine national policy with character writing. I'm proud of the Bonaparte-Romanov (Canada), Falconi-Falieri (Byzantium), Fitzgerald (Ireland) and D'Alema (Spain, North Africa, Egypt and so on) dynasties and I would say this is my most comfortable style - even my Tuscan republic AAR ended up being about an Imperial family!

A HoI2 AAR is very different. For one thing the politicians are, in most countries, not monarchies (removing the family intrigue aspect) and are well known historical figures which prevents the sort of character freedom in CK, Victoria and even EUII. So having historical leaders appear in the flesh - as narrative characters that is - is fraught with difficulty as it is so difficult to capture a character most of the audience knows just as much about, or even more than you do. Enter Taylor.

Having a 'street level' character is useful in some ways in that you can have him walk around the place and interact with people and places that just isn't possible with monarchs - I can't see Joséphine I, Empress of Canada and France (and Queen of Hawaii) wandering around turn of the century Montreal. Taylor can go anywhere in Dixie from Richmond to Jacksonville (Culiacán, Mexico in OTL). His job is not entirely dull either... ;)

Anyone I would just like to say that I'm glad people enjoy this character as he was a real risk for me to write and I'm pleased to see it's worked. :)

Thanks guys!
 
An excellent choice, just knowing of RossN's previous characters. I have been extremely remiss in my HoI2 reading over the many months and have thus missed this particular one. I am trying to catch up on many, and it is slow going. But I can surely say this is no surprise!

Congrats, RossN!
 
Congrats RossN, well deserved :D
 
Congratulations RossN, you definitely deserve it.
 
Congratulations!
 
Congratulations RossN :)
 
congrats!
 
Congratulations, RossN!

I'm most familiar with your tremendous writing style and characterizations from The Patriot's Sword, and I haven't quite made it over to this new one. But it sounds very interesting, and I will endeavour to check it out when I first have the opportunity!

Rensslaer
 
This is very embarassing to admit guys but I'm afraid I've been so busy this week thanks to real life concerns that I've had next to no time to spend on this site let alone read any AAR's so I'm pretty much stumped for finding a new winner. :eek:o

I could try and read as many AAR's as possible on Tuesday (another awful day from the perspective of free time, but I don't want to delay too much) to arrive at a winner but for the moment I'm so far behind on other narrative AARS that I'm a little stuck.

Sorry guys. :(
 
No problem RossN. Real life happens to all of us ;)

If you would like, I am sure someone else would volunteer to make the selection.
 
stnylan said:
No problem RossN. Real life happens to all of us ;)

If you would like, I am sure someone else would volunteer to make the selection.

Thanks, that is a weight off my mind. :)

I'm really snowed under with coursework at the moment (and a heavier than average burden of social committments) otherwise I'd have been right on it.
 
Okay folks, who else would like to select the next character writer of the week? As I choose RossN, I feel it is probably better that someone else make the pick this time around. Any volunteers?
 
Well, to get this restarted again, I nominate Fulcrumvale for his depiction of Bernard I of Baden in his AAR A History of Baden. Fulcrumvale does a good job at portraying his other characters too, but Bernard I is such a great villainous hero, I'll name him as the reason for the nomination.
 
Way to go, Fulcrumvale. He is a nasty old brute, that Bernard. Congrats! :)
 
First off, I’d like to thank stnylan for nominating me.

The award is a bit of an odd fit because I haven’t actually written Bernard in narrative format yet. So far, A History of Baden has been solely history-book format. I have been focusing a lot ton the characters and I have often given descriptions of their positions on various problems, but I’ve never really shown any of them in the process of thinking, weighing their options etc.

Bernard is an interesting case because I had a definite view of him as an all around nice guy, who knew his limitations and acted accordingly. That image got completely co-opted by about the middle of the story. He eventually evolved into an arrogant, incompetent, reactionary, brutal jock who freely backstabbed his former allies and called in the inquisition on his populace for no decent reason.

So, if you start to read my AAR, skip the description of him in the first update. It’s point blank wrong.