I’ve been writing some fanfic (might post it eventually) about my character Anna, a gallente musician turned capsuleer, and have been having a blast having AI put sound to the goofy lyrics I come up with, tinkering over and over until I end up with something more or less singable. Every now and then I end up with something I feel like sharing, and today you, dear reader, have the questionable honour of being on the receiving end of that.
Anyway. Here’s my latest creation, Anna’s loveletter to the city she grew up in.
Arcurio is the historical capital city of the Caldari and remains hugely important in their culture, but as a consequence of having been under Gallente administration since the earliest years of the Gallente-Caldari War, the city is also described as having a significant Gallentean population. Anna grew up in this mess, and considers it formative to who she is. I tried to write lyrics that portray the city from the ground, from the people who live in it, rather than the typical EVE scope of high politics and greater-than-great men. As a Gallentean she would have been resented by many of the caldari inhabitants, but I like to think that’s not a universal thing, and in the song Anna explains how Arcurio’s multicultural community and the Caldari spirit of communal loyalty meant many still welcomed her as a fellow Arcurian. Arcurite? I dunno. Anna left the city (and the planet) to pursue her career in music many years before Tibus Heth rose to power, so the city she sings about is brittle but hadn’t yet been broken apart.
I like to think I’ve got a solid grasp on the lore, but if anyone has suggestions or nits to pick, feel free to do so. I love learning new things.
I like it when characters have back stories and context in the game. Makes it all more real.
I’m not too familiar with EVE lore at this time. I’d like to read up on it more some time in the future. But I try to put my characters into some type of a context within the game too. They’re actual people with life and history to them.
I know that’s a common attitude, which is why I made this little ”containment thread” for myself. Unfortunately now that you’ve replied to it you’ve kind of invalidated that for yourself, and will now be notified of updates. I recommend you click the little bell icon on the bottom of this page and select the Muted option. Okay, thanks.
I wish I could do that, but sadly this forum software does not allow anyone to completely hide any updates from slop people. Even if I blocked you, I’d still see new topics in New. Naturally, I do not automatically subscribe to updates to any topics, let alone slop topics, don’t worry about that.
When you come up with fiction/story for your character – is some of it inspired from real life events or is it purely fictional? In my case, I keep it connected to real life. Some of the things I take from real life, but naturally it’s in a different context within EVE, so it will be a bit different. My main is also analogous with who I am in real life.
I don’t think it’s possible to not draw some inspiration from real life, no matter how hard you try. For example I wouldn’t call myself a musician, but I do play the piano. I don’t live in a city where it snows year round, but winters here can still be quite harsh. I’m part of a minority, and (in the context of Arcurio) so is Anna (even if her group ultimately constitutes the majority of the greater polity the city was part of). I could list any number of parallels if I looked for them, but I don’t think that’s necessarily meaningful.
Authors will write what they know, that’s the same for professionals and hobbyists alike. I don’t think that’s a bad thing, as long as you’re open to learning new things and incorporating those elements as well, lest you get stuck writing only the same story over and over again like Dan Brown.
For the stories I’m writing, I’m still at the stage where I find that stuff I’ve come up with contradicts other stuff, so I have to go back and rewrite sections or outright retcon things. My process is very slow as a result, but figuring that puzzle out to make a consistent character that fits in the established lore (such as it is, EVE is full of contradictions and blank pages) is a large part of what I find fun about it.
People who complain about AI are even less intelligent and less creative than the people who overrely on it. It’s obviously a powerful and useful tool, and there’s certainly no shame in using it. People did the same whining about digital art, and before that they didn’t like prints or electronica either.
People who show up in every such thread (whether its art or brainstorming) and just incessantly shut every idea down, such people are just limiting themselves. They are generally overcompensating, and feel acting ‘superior’ makes them look better, even if they don’t produce any content themselves.
Naturally, I do not automatically subscribe to updates to any topics, let alone slop topics, don’t worry about that. 
