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Elorei: XD , maybe someday , hm ? ...

ForzaA: Well we've already been to Siberia . Africa though might have to wait till Vicky XD
 
VILenin said:
That makes sense, and gold's appeal is certainly an "old" magic for people. I guess I'm too greedy, not impressed by mere gold. :p

Well , you do have to remember that it was the gold that they need to exchange for heroin XD .
 
But with those two brothers there wasn't any heroine in the game was there? So that must have been quite a big stone would it turn one brother against his brother.
 
Yup, still here and reading, but I got lost somewhere in the discussions some pages ago... ;) :D
 
Murmurandus said:
Yup, still here and reading, but I got lost somewhere in the discussions some pages ago... ;) :D


Oui, I stay out of that sort of thing ;) :p
 
Grubnessul: Yes , you are correct ; but those brothers were also conquistadors so they had an especially large lust for Gold . It is a relatively large stone , however .

Murmurandus: Thanks Murmy XD . Usually the people aren't that involved with the discussion but I like to have it every once in a while XD

English Patriot: ROFL , a little across the channelling going on here ? XD Alors ... je ne sais quoi !
 
canonized said:
Well , you do have to remember that it was the gold that they need to exchange for heroin XD .
I assumed the Germans wanted gold because 1) of its abundance in the region and 2) it's the closest thing to a universal currency at the time.
 
Where are we at with getting Instrumentality up for April along with the AARlander? It's April 1st and I am waiting for my issue. Hmmm...I suppose I could have put this in the "comments and discussion" thread. :eek:o
 
VILenin: Yep ! And that's what makes it more important to the soldiers that even a relatively small amount like the size of a basketball sized stone would incite them to fight for it considering that it's the only thing the germans would want that they have in exchange for the addictive substance .

grayghost: It'll be up later on tonight :D I'll announce it here too as part of our campaign :D .
 
Alright folks , let me just give you a rundown of what's happening this week so that confusion goes down .

Sometime this evening (whenever anonymous gets online , really) we'll be publishing Instrumentality .

On Thursday I plan on having another update

Saturday/Sunday another update

Interview with Alexander Primus on Monday :D .

VILenin , if you have a chapter feel free to post it in any of the free days . Full week ! Hope you all enjoy what's coming up :D
 
I may be a little behind (By behind, I mean by pages, it's in the double digits - however thankfully not triple!)


Congratulations on the WritAAR of the week, anyhow. If that doesn't motivate me to read faster, I don't know what will... Ah yes, alcohol and money! :D


Keep up the good work, at this rate, I'll catch up in mid 2011. :p
 
Hardstuff said:
I may be a little behind (By behind, I mean by pages, it's in the double digits - however thankfully not triple!)


Congratulations on the WritAAR of the week, anyhow. If that doesn't motivate me to read faster, I don't know what will... Ah yes, alcohol and money! :D


Keep up the good work, at this rate, I'll catch up in mid 2011. :p

Thank you very much for stopping by :D
 
canonized said:
VILenin , if you have a chapter feel free to post it in any of the free days . Full week ! Hope you all enjoy what's coming up :D

Ok, that's good since I didn't get a chance to post today; maybe I can work it in for Friday. I'll pm you the details. :)
 
VILenin said:
Ok, that's good since I didn't get a chance to post today; maybe I can work it in for Friday. I'll pm you the details. :)

Excellent ! sounds great ! Looking forward to it :D
 
comagoosie said:
Wow, for the total of 50 posts he has he won weekly showcase and now he is going to be canonized *goes away to find his AAR and read it*

Looking forward to the interview :D


Stumbling after comagoosie. This is most disconcerting. ;)
 
comagoosie: Yes it's good stuff XD . And you know me , I like promoting new writers :D

grayghost: stumbling , sir ? XD Oh , and I'm going to start uploading instrumentality and the interview up now :D
 
canonized said:
grayghost: stumbling , sir ? XD Oh , and I'm going to start uploading instrumentality and the interview up now :D

Yay! Good to hear. I was going to really start harping on you about that very thing. :D
 
CANONIZEDcyrus_the_great.png


You’ve Been Canonized!: Cyrus_The_Great​

Greetings everyone and welcome once again to this month’s INSTRUMENTALITY edition of You’ve Been Canonized! our weekly interview segment at Timelines ! As you all know , not only do we interview various well known personalities of AARland , but we also do our best to support new writers on the scene ! To that end , today we have one of our newer writers in AARland , Cyrus_The_Great author of A Sicilian Tale: The Adventures of Giacomo D'Acciaio . If you’re new to the programme , I’m your host canonized author of Timelines: What if Spain Failed to Control the World? Let’s get to the questions !

Part I: Prince of Persia?
Cyrus talks to us about himself

canonized: First , welcome to the programme ! Could you tell us a little bit about yourself ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Hello, I am a fifteen year old currently in highschool, and surprisingly enjoying it for the most part. I enjoy running, 70s music, and obviously writing.

canonized: Could you also tell us how did you come upon Paradox games and the forum ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Actually, one of my friends from world of warcraft, back when I used to play that, would constantly tell me about his various campaigns as obscure kingdoms or duchies I had little to no idea about. Finally, I decided to order EU2 for my birthday, I believe it was a bit more than two years ago, and fell in love with it. I needed help and that is when I was introduced to the forums, which I have become addicted to ever since. I have slowly chiseled away at the list of paradox games I don't own, and finally own all of them.

canonized: What got you to first start writing AARs ?

Cyrus_The_Great: At first I had no clue what they were, and thought it was some advanced thing for players to do, and was slightly afraid of the section, for some reason I do not understand. Finally, I ventured there and remember reading some of Duke of Wellington's AARs, and I decided to make my own as Genoa. That went well, until I got tired of that gameplay AAR, so I made my first narrative, which was horribly planned and executed. Nonetheless, I have been striving to write a successful narrative ever since.

canonized: Why in particular have you chosen the narrative format ?

Cyrus_The_Great:: Hmmm...the reasons are hard to pinpoint. I guess one reason could be that I have always loved to tell/create stories in some shape or form. I and my friends when we were younger would design video games, which were all destined to be doomed but fun nonetheless. One of my jobs was creating the main plotline. When we got too old for that I guess my thirst for creating plots lived on. Another thing is my love of reading, which I guess I did not mention. I always seem to be in the middle of several books, and for some reason they get me in a mode where I feel the need to emulate the happenings of that book in my own way. The same goes for movies. I guess you could say the narrative AARs appeal to me because they require and allow for the creation and expression of a plot, and provide an outlet of sorts for my creativity.

canonized: As a relatively new writer in a field that is admittedly not as popular as simple gameplay AARs etc , what kind of challenges have you come upon ?

Cyrus_The_Great:: One of the biggest challenges always seems to be lack of comments, and I don't mean to complain, but they are what fuel my writing. My first two narratives ended up as failures partly because I felt no one was reading them, and therefore I put in a significantly less amount of time and effort into my updates, resulting in the quality getting worst and my losing even more readers. It is sort of a vicious circle. I have mostly overcome it, but reader interaction and comments, or lack there of, still play a big part in my motivation.

canonized: In what ways would you say your age factors into your work ?

Cyrus_The_Great: One of the setback's may be that I still think like a teenager while I am attempting to realistically portray adults, so I guess I may not be in a correct mindset. Also, there have been some ideas that came very close to being AARs that were incredibly bogus, but seemed like a good idea at the time. I wasted a good amount of time planning these, but the plots were something someone a lot younger than me might have thought of. I guess an advantage would be, if looked at in a Wordsworthian sort of way, that the younger you are the more creative you are, so someone my age may be able to think of some more out there plots and still be able to make sense out of them.

canonized: Do you have any real life experience that you draw upon for your writing ?

Cyrus_The_Great:: There is nothing major besides classes for school, but reading on my own helps as well. For school, I feel the classes are starting to get to a point where they can really help you to develop a good style and approach towards writing. Whether I successfully execute what I learn in my AARs is another issue, but classes in school help. Reading on my own helps out a lot as well. In school I was introduced to Hemingway, and have been reading some of his books. His method of creating dialogue has a pretty big influence on me, even if it doesn't fit perfectly into an AAR taking place in the 15th century. Other books and authors obviously teach me bits about writing as well, but I don't think it is necessary to go into that.

Part II: Empire Builder
Cyrus talks to us about his experience reading Timelines !

canonized: I remember you told me that you had originally intended to read Timelines a while back but were intimidated by the length ; what are your thoughts now that you've actually begun it and are a chunk in ?

Cyrus_The_Great: I am currently very happy that I began reading it. It truly is one of the best AARs I have ever read on this forum. By the time I had heard about what a great AAR it was, it was already well in progress, and at the time I was involved in sports after school and had very little time, so I put it off and up until this interview never read it. As I said though, it reads like a novel, so the length really isn't an issue and I am more than happy that I have begun. Even at a few chapters a day, I still have a good amount of catching up to do, however.

canonized: As a fellow narrative writer , do you have any elements of the work that appeal to your sensibilities in this genre ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Hmm...almost everything is done really well, but the thing that stands out the most is how real you are able to make your characters. For example, with a spy master who seems to always have a plan, it would be so easy to make them seem like some sort of superhuman who can not be defeated. However, you keep Isabella really seeming like a human being, the scene of Antonio and her on the horses was the one that pops out for successfully doing this. Another element that stands out is the mood that you are capable of setting. The chapter with the Cardinal and Jakob in the fire-lit room was the one that stands out well for successfully delivering this element. I could go on...

canonized: Speaking of the characters , any that you particularly have a fondness for so far ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Antonio and Renault are two characters I like very much. Once again, I really can not give exact reasons for this but only guesses. Antonio has a good amount of flaws, and Isabella always seems to have a plan for them. This creates a sense of frustration Antonio is going through that really makes him seem relatable...which I guess is what makes him likeable. Renault is an adventurous and daring archeologist, who sometimes reminds me of Indiana Jones, and is the classic type of character that everyone has to like. I can't really say much more about what causes Renault to be a character I am fond of, but I am fond of him nonetheless.

canonized: Part of Timelines is that we have a kind of rhyming scheme with the 'present' situation with Tom Rodrigo etc from the 'present' timeframe . What do you think of this narrative device ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Ah, I was waiting for a moment to describe my astonishment at how well this works. Besides a really interesting plot in the present timeframe, I find it also provides an excellent analysis of events in the other timeframe, how and why they happened, what they caused, and also some of the what ifs. This aside, the plot centered around the timepiece intertwines really well with the two time periods. We can see its effects and consequences in both of the timeframes, and I am eagerly awaiting the truth behind it, although right now I would theorize it is some sort of time traveling device.

canonized: Any particular adventures you've enjoyed the most so far ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Renaults adventure into the catacombs was quite exciting. That would have to be my favorite, although the "zombies" chapter, coming next, may replace that. Anyways, it was full of adventure, once again slightly reminiscent of Indiana Jones, although not in a bad way, and also written very well. The whole thing, especially when the rooms flooded, really put me there, I spent a good amount of time trying to figure out what I would have done or whether I would have thought to make the snorkel. I think it is this connection that makes a scene/character likeable.

canonized: You've already mentioned that your guess on the Timepiece is that its a time travel device . Any other details about it that you have hunches on or other theories ?

Cyrus_The_Great: I usually tend to be horribly wrong on these guesses, but I will guess anyways. I think that after reading the essay, some group decided that they would rather have the world be that way, probably that Ming group, whose name I forget. The reason I think this is that with China being the steadily rising superpower it is today, why wouldn't the Chinese want a world like that? Anyways, they may think of the essay as a "guide" of sorts on how to get the world to go that way, and will use the timepiece to go back in time and make it like that. The only theory about why I think the characters of the other timeframe wish to obtain it is to prevent something like this from happening.

Part III: The Sicilian Defense
Cyrus sheds some light on his current AAR !

canonized: My first question is why Sicily in particular ? Tell us a little bit about the genesis of your AAR

Cyrus_The_Great:: Well, as I mentioned earlier, I tend to draw inspiration from books of movies. I thought of the idea after reading The Prince of Foxes by Sam Shellabarger, which has a similar era and main character, a renaissance man of sorts. Aside from this, I am Italian and know a good amount about the culture, so I tend to have a lot of AARs having to do with Italy. I just picked Sicily, played a bit, got an idea for what I wanted to happen and then modded and played the game in order to match the story. I actually tend to match the game to the story, instead of the other way around. Sicily being a vassal was also critical, because I needed a kingdom that could break free, and then suffer the consequences, which will be revealed later.

canonized: Certainly , the focus on the main character is an important driving force in this story and he is already knee deep in adventure and danger . Everything from assassins and north african pirates . Tell us a little bit about how you came up with this adventure style ?

Cyrus_The_Great: The actual process was that I first decided who the villains and "good guys" would be, and created character sheets for them. I then made some for friends of these characters. I then just remember spending a good amount of time just trying to figure out where I wanted to go with it. I knew I wanted adventure, and what the result would be, and after that I sort of connected the dots, and the plot was fleshed out. I think I am going to try to use this method again, it worked fairly well for me.

canonized: I do remember that I had the pleasure of answering a few minor questions you had for the story as part of your research . Tell us a little bit about the fact finding you do for each of your chapters ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Sometimes I get sort of nit picky about details, even pretty irrelevant ones. I remember needing the Archbishop to do a sort of biased sermon, and was trying to figure out whether sermons were done in latin, so I just asked you. Normally, a quick search on wikipedia answers the question, and otherwise I do some searching around. I actually sometimes tend to ignore some of the larger details, which is sort of strange. But I don't really do any major research, only if I am planning an AAR about some place or something I know very little about.

canonized: Speaking of the Archbishop -- as is natural in Italian politics , there is a lot of intrigue involved in your story . Is this an aspect of your writing you enjoy ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Yes actually, having little plots or conspiracies going on is always fun to write about. Having a conspiracy planned out in my head, and then trying to slowly release info about it and seeing who can catch on certaintly is a lot of fun. In my opinion, having lots of twists and turns also keeps things interesting. Actually, an AAR I am planning will almost solely be about a conspiracy and hopefully do a better job with it.

canonized: Your narrative style includes a lot of Italian as well . Please tell us how your heritage has helped to inspire your writing ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Ehh...I don't really know how much of an influence the heritage is, as opposed to the amount of knowledge I know about the culture. From family and other accounts of things, I have grown to know a pretty good amount about it, and also the fact that I am learning the language helps. If I knew as much about Serbia or Thailand, I may be writing most of my AARs about them. This is not to say my heritage had no influence on it, but it wasn't as major as one may have thought. I guess the fact that the Aragonese are the bad guys and the Italians are the good guys could come from some cultural pride, but unless it occurred subconsciously, as said it was not as large an influence as one may have thought.

canonized: And lastly , could you tell elaborate for us any details about your future AAR plans ?

Cyrus_The_Great: Yea, although I have a bunch of ideas going around my head, I have narrowed it down to two, and one may just be a small story. The first, which I mentioned briefly, will be a Doomsday AAR, the influences being the videogame XIII and the song Psycho by Puddle of Mud. I am also going to use a few different forms of media, such as newspapers and poems. I still have to get some of the details sorted out, however. The other idea came from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Taras Bulba. It will be a Cossack tale in the form of an English epic poem, (written/sung by an English bard after returning from the east). If it ends up coming into being, it will probably be for CK.

canonized: Thank you very much for being on the programme Cyrus and we’d also like to thank the audience for tuning in again ! If you’re interested in reading more interviews both of future and past interviewees please feel free to stop by the AAR thread where we do interviews every week ! Good fight , good night !