Hey all. It's been awhile no? But anywho, the FPL's finally back, and I see we have quite a few new faces about. Whether these are faces that are new or new faces, who knows? Who cares? What's important is, the FPL's back baby!

So, to welcome our new members, here are some of my personal advice, beliefs, what-have-yous on creating for the FPL.

First, I guess, is originality. While I'm given to "twisting" my characters, the idea that that characters have to be totally original (concept-wise) is a bit overblown in my view. A character doesn't have to be new. The main thing it has to be is well-liked (or hated, but for the "right" reasons). After five years or so of internet using contributors, we've just about seen it all, from pilots (complete with jets) to 80's tributes to "main character"-archtypes to the Predator in a sailor fuku (whose actually quite witty by the by). At this point, the easiest source of originality is probably the "silly character", like, The Stinky Cheese of Doom or Leonard, the Master of Pimples (complete with an ugh-able rl pic). Alas, these kind of characters carry with them a stigma in the FPL, and truly, they ruin it for those of us who would probably pull off a decent sentient Swiss Army Knife (I call dibs).

So, the advice here is, simply create a character you'd enjoy. If you enjoy it, chances are, others will as well. And if not, hey, no problem. After awhile, if you stick around, you'll soon get the hang of things by osmosis. It might take awhile, depending on your individual ability to improve as a FPL style writer and the "timing" of trends in the FPL, but in a year or two, as you look back on your time in the FPL, you'll probably find you had no regrets, if no success either.

Second, there's this old addage, "Don't tell, show". Meaning, don't tell us what a power can do, show us. This again, is a bit of an overbloated concept. People have been showing rather than telling for so long in the FPL, that telling can be just as refreshing as showing these days. Again, the main thing is, to create your character, to your satisfaction, while not straying out the boundaries of the rules of course.

Finally, for now, create what you will. Again, while staying within the bounds of the rules. But, remember, create to your own satisfaction. It's good to get comments, and especially advice for before you actually submit your character, and equally, it's good to take those advice into serious consideration. However, don't let others dictate your character to the point where it simply isn't really your character anymore. If through feedback, you can enhance your character, great, but if the basic idea gets tossed aside, then you're probably in trouble.

So, in closing, originality is passe, a little genericism (that a word?) can be oh-so-refreshing these days.

Aloha.

Q Rant 28