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[Silentcook]

And then The Letter happened.

[uwa]

I think the last thing I wrote was actually the conversation with Misha, because it was decided that as things were it was too easy to fuck up and miss out on the good end (and once that was written I had to go fiddle with the bad end and make it a not-so-bad end instead).

What, did Emi originally get hit by a bus and Hisao die of a shock-induced heart attack? I think one of the major reasons KS has such an impact is its restraint, and it has become obvious in this thread that that came only after a lot of revision and editing over time.

[Boppin]

I have a few questions for the artists of the game.

1. Concerning the sprites, how were they handled? There are many different sets of clothing. Was the school uniform the original sprite for each character, or were there base "dolls" that you eventually drew each set of clothing onto?

2. I'm assuming you all used electronic tablets to draw everything on PC. Did any of you draw anything on paper and then scan it in, then refine it in Photoshop or SAI?

I love to hear about the various processes people go through when they are creating. I'm decent with analog techniques, but I'm still having a hard time adjusting to working on a computer. All of the artwork in Katawa Shoujo looks so thought out. I would be lying if I said I weren't a bit jealous of all of the talent you possess. One day I hope to be able to create something so moving, but it's hard for me to find inspiration since I graduated college.

[Pseudogenesis]

Question for Aura: What was your tone with Nomiya? Just looking to clear things up. I've seen a disproportionate amount of hate towards him, and maybe it's because I haven't played KS in so long, but from what I remember his reaction was very similar to Hisao's, something Hisao touches upon himself. Is he one of those hate magnet characters, or is he deeper than that?

[TheHivemind]

I think the last thing I wrote was actually the conversation with Misha, because it was decided that as things were it was too easy to fuck up and miss out on the good end (and once that was written I had to go fiddle with the bad end and make it a not-so-bad end instead).

What, did Emi originally get hit by a bus and Hisao die of a shock-induced heart attack? I think one of the major reasons KS has such an impact is its restraint, and it has become obvious in this thread that that came only after a lot of revision and editing over time.

Sorry, let me clarify: I altered the bad end as it stood to allow it to bridge into the good end (which is why they both take place on the track. I was actually WAY lazy about that). The plan for her bad end was (once we threw the idea of epilogues out) always meant to be abrupt.

[Reksho]

The really amazing thing though is that KS has inspired a lot of people to improve their lives. I can see the "feels" coming from the romantic pathos that's all over the game, but there is absolutely nothing in KS that should inspire one get their shit together, start working out, get better grades or what have you. It was really unexpected. As I said I don't really know what to think about all this, but drawing a reaction from the reader is one of the core goals of a writer, so I am satisfied.

Fairly old post but whatever. I find this bit to be fascinating.

Basically, you are saying that your intentions you had with your writings, did not correspond with the amount of response from the readers. That in itself is something to think about. Almost every creator on the world will tell you that they drew inspiration from their own lives. Their own experiences and own views. So when they try to project that into a creation, they try to convey that inspiration to the viewer.

So what does it mean when the viewer receives much more inspiration from the creation than the creator himself put into it? What does it mean when the intentions do not correspond with the response? I always thought that the intentions behind the creation - the intentions of the creator that is - were essential to invoke an emotional response from the viewer. But I'm starting to think that's not the case.

The creation is independent. It doesn't matter whether the creator was sad, angry, ambivalent or whatever with his creation. The only thing the viewer sees is the end product. You are saying that there is nothing in KS that should inspire someone to get their shit together and improve their lives. But the fact that you may have not put that intention into the game, does not necessarily mean that it does not exist in the game.

In a sense, the creator does not have full control over the creation. And frankly, I don't think that's possible either, even if it's only because we are human.

[OtakuNinja]

It's been almost 5 months since the last artbook was released, but we still haven't seen a digital version. When will it be released?

[Kyvos]

Did you guys anticipate how positively people would react to certain parts of the game? (eg: lemons or "The problem must be in your pants")

[Aura]

Did you guys anticipate how positively people would react to certain parts of the game? (eg: lemons or "The problem must be in your pants")

It was given that some things would catch on, but exactly which ones is pretty much unpredictable.

[Reksho]

A question for the writers.

I assume that most, if not all, of you are male. Since a large chunk of the text consists of things said by female characters, how was it to write these parts?
Was it different than writing lines for a male character? Did you have difficulties with those?

I have heard of writers of books and manga having trouble writing lines for the opposite sex and sometimes consult the help of others for this.

[Kulthozuer]

I actually do have a question now, is it at all possible for me to get a copy of the Tomorrow/Today artbook without going to the Anime Expo save for someone getting it for me (Which I can't do either). If it was at all possible for me to get there to get it I would but that is tragically extremely far for me to travel. Will you only be distrubuting them there and no where else? I would love to buy one even if I had to pay extreme shipping costs.

[Aura]

A question for the writers.

I assume that most, if not all, of you are male. Since a large chunk of the text consists of things said by female characters, how was it to write these parts?
Was it different than writing lines for a male character? Did you have difficulties with those?

I have heard of writers of books and manga having trouble writing lines for the opposite sex and sometimes consult the help of others for this.

Not any harder than writing the parts of characters who have other traits I don't, such as any of the disabilities, being a nurse or whatever. In fact, I'd say I can write female voice a lot better than a disabled voice, due to having had quite a bit more contact with females than disabled people.

[Aura]

I actually do have a question now, is it at all possible for me to get a copy of the Tomorrow/Today artbook without going to the Anime Expo save for someone getting it for me (Which I can't do either). If it was at all possible for me to get there to get it I would but that is tragically extremely far for me to travel. Will you only be distrubuting them there and no where else? I would love to buy one even if I had to pay extreme shipping costs.

We'll release it digitally at some point.

[TheHivemind]

A question for the writers.

I assume that most, if not all, of you are male. Since a large chunk of the text consists of things said by female characters, how was it to write these parts?
Was it different than writing lines for a male character? Did you have difficulties with those?

I have heard of writers of books and manga having trouble writing lines for the opposite sex and sometimes consult the help of others for this.

Like Aura already said, it wasn't any more difficult than writing from the perspective of a nurse, or from the perspective of a blind person, or deaf person, or someone without legs/arms/whatever.

The secret to writing female characters is that women are not actually some mysterious puzzle. They are, surprisingly, almost exactly like males. If you want to write convincing female characters, make a convincing character and use female pronouns when describing her. It's like MAGIC.

I mean there's a little more to consider if you want to really write something that delves into gender politics (although a great shortcut for that is to just have nobody take anything seriously that your character says, and indeed have them be as patronizing as possible. A bit too on the nose, perhaps, but there you are), but the secret is there isn't any secret, writing a woman is identical to writing a man because gender isn't going to inform like, whether or not a character likes long walks on the beach or swears a lot or has a sore spot about a dead parent.

[Helbereth]

If you want to write convincing female characters, make a convincing character and use female pronouns when describing her. It's like MAGIC.

From As Good As It Gets (1997):
Receptionist: How do you write women so well?
Melvin Udall: I think of a man, and I take away reason and accountability.

I don't really have a question, but reading you and Aura's responses made me think of this little exchange. Actually, on second thought, I probably do have a question.

Some of the characters have some unusual quirks that go beyond their disabilities. Hanako's tile game gets referenced a lot, but there are others. Were any of them based on people you knew, or perhaps from some other source, or were they simply pulled out of the ether?