12-01-01

Time has been slow in Berkeley...

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the Zero site
1999-2021
by Andy Bloxham
since 7-11-99

Monday, June 2


March 13th, 2001
Conducted by Charles Rote
Originally found at the CWL

Charles Rote: Thanks for taking time for an interview, Andy.

Andy Bloxham: Oh, thank you for having me. You have a great line of interviews that you've conducted. I'm just glad to be apart of that.


Rote: You've had some strong recognition for your character, Zero, yet seem to have avoided many of the self-promotion other handlers give to their creations. Was this by design?

Bloxham: Well, yeah. I mean, I know I have my moments while talking to others when I might ramble for too long about the character, but I feel like a dick if I do that. And I see other people just flaunting their character and giving him all types of self-praise, but I don't want to be like that. It just isn't me, and it isn't what I want to be.

I think it has a lot to do with maybe my personality. An example is, I play in a band, but back in my senior year of high school, despite playing shows pretty frequently, it was just something I done but didn't proclaim it every day in school. One day, one of my friends in class went "Andy, sometimes forget you're in a band." I just try not to be the one who initiates every conversation about something I'm into. It's the same for e-wrestling as it is with everything else I'm involved in. But see there, I've already babbled on for too long about the whole mess!


Rote: It seems that it is currently popular for handlers to use outcast styled characters. How do you separate yours from the pack?

Bloxham: Just write, I guess, and see what comes out. Basically, I think that as long as people show more than one dimension to a character, they can break them out of that "generic outcast" mold. As long as the writer can show him from all angles, delve into his mind and see what makes him tick and why he does, then it will instantly separate the character because he would suddenly have a certain "it" factor to him. That's how I try to separate my character. It isn't really anything about stuff like a certain ritual gimmick that he does before matches. It's just finding out who the character really is. Give people a reason to care about him. Show reasons WHY they should care about him, instead of him just being "picked on, laughed at, and abused" and hope that creates the persona. Say why he was viewed as the outcast. Give details. Present a background story for him. Try to be unique and make the character a normal human in the end.


Rote: How important is a supporting cast to an e-wrestling player?

Bloxham: Everybody's different with how they treat their characters. I've seen some superb characters that are complete solo artists in the writings. A supporting cast is really just a judgment call on how the writer chooses to display his creation. For me, I'm a big fan of the supporting cast. Zero is just another character amongst the others that appear in what I write. His only catch is that he also has a job as a wrestler, and that profession happens to be the central focus in e-wrestling. But while I attempt to flesh Zero out, I also try to give equal time to the rest of the cast and give them their own drive and personality, too. I think that the better you know the people around a character, the better you'll know the character himself. If the supporting cast is just a wall for the wrestler to bounce his thoughts off of, then the cast serves no purpose. But if the cast is something dynamic and equally molded like the wrestling character, then it's a complete deal and opens a LOT of more ideas up for when it's time to sit down and begin writing on a one shot story or another series.


Rote: More recently you've gotten some attention for a series of role-plays that have pegged you as one of the top writers on the internet. In the upcoming RSPWF awards you are an early favorite to win for best role-plays. How do you motivate yourself to write consistent, lengthy role-plays?

Bloxham: Well, that's all news to me. But I would like to say thanks to anyone if they actually took the time from whatever it was that they were doing, and decided to read something that I wrote. About writing lengthy stories, I always try to start out with something small. If I set out with a goal to write something big and large, the task just becomes daunting and makes me want to just put it aside. But if I start writing without a certain length in mind, I find more ideas that pop up and in turn, make the story longer. First and foremost, though, I always make out an outline and map everything that should go on. That way, I stay mentally focused on what it is that I want to accomplish and how I want to get to that conclusion, which can help keep me motivated. It all goes back to the wonderful high school grammar classes and those outlines that people would always complain about. I liked doing those things.


Rote: People often use the length standard in evaluating role-play ability. Does size really matter in role-plays?

Bloxham: To a certain extent, yes. I'm not really talking about comparing lines when people talk about length of role-plays in order to see who's better. But in order for some sort of structure to be established in writing, you need some type of buildup. That takes length. Not the absurd length that I've seen around sometimes (and have probably done on a few occasions), but you know, you need something to come before the heart of the story. The climax of a role-play for most people is when their character cuts their promo and such. That can't be at the very beginning of the writing. It can, but it totally destroys any buildup whatsoever for what the character could have said.

If you're a storywriter inside of e-feds, you need some length in order to get the story going. It's as simple as that. Basic English lessons that we were taught in high school. Not too much length, but enough to make people want to care enough to continue reading and find out what really happens.

I'm not saying you HAVE to have length in order to have a good role-play. I'm just saying that if you do the writing correctly, the length will automatically come. If someone is just writing long, mundane role-plays, though, simply to say they are a certain length, then that is pointless. You can't sacrifice the story for the length.

Of course, there are always those exceptions. In the CWL, there is a character named "Billy Lovemuscle" whose chapters can be just a few short sentences, but those sentences get that character across and do so very well.


Rote: In the past you've stayed mainly to smaller feds. What are the differences you notice between a smaller fed and a fed like the CWL?

Bloxham: You get a lot more friends if you're in a big fed. Some are some great people and deserve to be called friends. Some, you know. If you're in a small fed, people won't play nice to you in order to get in. They'll just fill out an application and be on the roster beside you the next day. That's basically what I'm trying to say there. As far as productivity or quality, I don't think the size is what creates that. It's goes back to whom the people are who are putting it on. People in both small feds and big feds work hard to present something they're proud of. Size of a fed doesn't dictate that, dedication does. People put a lot of heart in their work, regardless of how popular they are. Given, some don't. But a lot do.


Rote: Do smaller feds have a chance against the larger feds, many of whom have bigger resources?

Bloxham: I think it's really all relative. Some people of smaller feds want to be as well known as the bigger feds, but it isn't going to happen. I'm speaking purely on popularity right now. The reason is because of their setup. Something like a web address, as weird as that might be, can sometimes make someone decide whether or not they'll join a fed. If a prospective member sees "angelfire" or "geocities," then it could turn them away. In that perspective, then the smaller fed can't compare with the bigger, more well known feds. The other side of the relative factor is if they want to compete with the bigger feds in how much fun and enjoyment they can produce. No domain name is going to create that. No fancy artwork and graphics is going to instill that. It falls strictly on the shoulders of whomever it is that runs it and the rest of the people involved. It's really all relative to what the owner of the smaller feds considers to be what their success area lies in.


Rote: Along the same lines, many e-wrestling help or news sites have sprung up recently. What kind of impact have these wrestling news style sites had on e-wrestling as a whole?

Bloxham: They've had their positives and their negatives. For the longest time, I never even knew that they existed. Then one day, I happened to find the now-closed EWZone. I was surprised to find that there were places on the net that were built strictly for e-wrestling topics, but weren't an actual fed. But then I realized that it was closed. Not long after, though, I came across eWCenter. Again, the whole concept was something kind of new to me. I was impressed. I liked it, got involved a little on the message boards, and even had a column on it before it closed. The place seemed to make a community of sorts where everyone from different feds could converse as just one unit. But since it closed, I have sees a LOT of e-wrestling news sites come across the web. Some are set up very well and I'm not knocking some of the people who run them, but it seems like we have a sudden flooding of them. That can have an affect of watering down each one's own appeal. When you had eWCenter, you just had eWCenter. Now that we have so many different places to choose from, it can make the glimmer of something special begin to fade away. So, I personally think the effect has been slightly negative, in the aspect that it just creates too much. and that it what causes burnout. I like them, but since there are so many now, my desire to post on their boards or have a column at one has went down a lot.


Rote: So is e-wrestling in danger of becoming over politicized?

Bloxham: Probably so. I just try to stick to my own little corner of people I know, be friendly to others, and not try to get wrapped up in the political game. Politics are everywhere. it was just a question of when they would wind up in e-feds.


Rote: Can a person successfully avoid falling into the trap of e-fed politics? Any suggestions to others on how to avoid them?

Bloxham: Yeah, definitely. Unless you want to be in the politics, you can usually keep out of them. Those that most often find themselves in the politics are those who wanted to be there in the very beginning, but are now wanting to back out of it. Some people get trapped into it because of someone talking about them and such, but those are usually resolved and, as long as they keep their cool, the innocent don't lose face because of it.


Rote: With all of the unpleasantness of politics and positioning several people are leaving the hobby. Is e-wrestling losing steam? Is the popularity failing?

Bloxham: Oh, I don't think it was ever too popular outside of those who actually participated in them. Heh, but seriously, I've seen people ask that question time and time again. But no, I don't see how it's losing steam or falling in popularity. There has been no official survey to say one way or the other. It's just a bunch of repeated hearsay that makes people believe it's true. But as long as people continue to enjoy writing, and that's a "trend" that I don't see dying anytime soon, I don't see e-wrestling losing steam. Some who are in e-feds might quit because they lose interest in wrestling, which is something that the ratings say is losing steam. But, if people are in e-wrestling because of the enjoyment they get out of writing, I don't see them leaving what could be the best platform to get one's writing out to others on the net.


Rote: What kind of advice would you give to people who are desperate to get into one of the bigger feds?

Bloxham: Just relax and play it by ear. Don't search far and wide on how to get in one. For almost two years, I was in what some might call a smaller fed because it wasn't known across the internet. But I had fun in it and I got along with almost all of the guys in it. That's all you can ask for in a fed. The size of a fed shouldn't be the issue, compared to how much fun you're having in it. You could be in the biggest, most popular fed in the world, but if you're not having fun, your time and enjoyment is blown. Then again, there are some bigger feds out there that are fun to be in. It's not because they are some huge success, though. It goes back to the core of what they are centered on. If their objective is just to have fun, then you've killed two birds with one stone. You're in a big fed, AND you're having fun. You have to have those two ingredients for it to all work.


Rote: You have your own site for your character at http://www.thezerosite.com. Are there things you can do with your own site that enhance your character? Is it necessary for a handler to have his own character site?

Bloxham: Oh, it's definitely not necessary for a handler to run a character site. It should be strictly out of the enjoyment of building sites, combined with the enjoyment of writing the character. Anything you do in e-feds out of necessity should cause someone to step back for just a moment and recollect their thoughts.

But I guess having my own character site helps enhance the character. I get to do things with him that you just can't do inside of regular writing. I can add certain galleries or writings that further enable people to understand what he is all about and where he is heading. It all boils down to the fact of understanding the character(s) presented. A site picks up where the writing is sometimes left off.

Character sites shouldn't be done so someone can get "fans," though. I have a problem with people throwing that word around so casually in e-wrestling.


Rote: What kind of pitfalls are there in working to attract fans in e-wrestling?

Bloxham: Well, in actuality, I don't believe that there can be an "actual fan" in e-wrestling. Some people might say "what do you, my fans, think of this," or "I have a lot of fans," but that's all just bullshit to stroke their own ego. This group inside of e-wrestling are all inside of it together. No one has the right to look at another and deem him as a "fan of theirs." The Fan label should just be reserved for people who actually deserve them.

So, to work in e-feds in order to attract a fan is just running in circles. All you'll get is either someone who reads your work occasionally and will give you feedback on it from out of the blue, or someone who only wants to know you so they can get in a fed with you. Sometimes, people mistake the first instance as a "fan." It's not. The second. those are just annoying.


Rote: Thanks for your time with this interview.

Bloxham: Thanks for taking your time out to have me. Had a lot of fun.


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