About...
What is a fanlisting?
A fanlisting is a place for all the fans of a particular show, movie, actor/actress, singer, etc. to come together and build the biggest listing of people all around the world who are fans of that subject. This fanlisting has been approved by TheFanlistings.org.
Who is Lenneth?
Besides being my wonderful best friend, she is an accomplished web designer with eclectic tastes and quirky styles. She has always inspired me and challenged my design style, for which I am eternally grateful. Her main domain is FoxyWriter.com.
Didn't she used to be called...
Momoka, yes. Her personal site was SakuraKingdom.com. She moved. And renamed. ^^; She also formerly owned Herself-The-Elf.net.
Lenneth, by Lenneth (an interview of sorts)
- Name your perennial favorites, both anime and manga series.
For anime, I'd have to say Marmalade Boy is definitely at the top of my list. I'm kind of different in that I prefer the anime to the manga by a lot; the anime has that New York story arc everyone gripes about and that I love so much. Can't get a much funnier rivalry than Kei vs. Michael. I also love Ranma 1/2. It was really my introduction to anime, and the Japanese sense of humour (which I really relate to) and of course it's the origin of Mousse, my favorite anime character for 10 years and counting. Please Save My Earth is classic and I can watch it over and over.
As for manga, Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne is my favorite. Tanemura-sensei's characters are always so real, and the storyline is deep but deceptively simple. Second here too is Ranma 1/2, and I vastly prefer the manga over the anime. The characters in general get a better treatment than in the anime, having a bit more depth (for Takahashi-sensei, anyway) and my favorite pairing, Shampoo and Mousse, is second only to the main pairing in "screen-time". I also adore Senichiya no Kagi, Saitou Chiho's short story collection that ran recently in Petit Comic. Lots of sensual, emotional stories, exactly the kind I love. ;)
- Name your *current* favorite, and why.
Right now I'm enjoying Anastasia Club by Saitou Chiho. It's a pretty light story with a lot of adventure and intrigue, and more humourous moments than Saitou-sensei typically has in her stories. I love the heroine, Kamui, who is short like me, sort of this cute little disgruntled creature who is also an antiques expert. There is also Sumi Raisuke, a miserable, grumpy guy with lovely black hair, but disappointingly he's played more for comic relief than as a possible romantic interest for Kamui (though there is something there). The hero of the story, Sena Takuto, is pretty cool too.
- They say pets resemble their owners, and vice versa, therefore... describe your pet! ;D
First off, Mr. Knightley is in much better shape than me. Can't say I'd really want to be that thin, but it looks good on him. He's a Borzoi, or Russian Wolfhound, which means he looks like a big hairy Greyhound. We sleep about the same number of hours per day (read: most of them) and we both like carrots for snacks. We also tend to be a bit hoity-toity; I imagine that if Knightley could speak, he'd be able to rant on irritating minutae for hours, making us together a fair imitation of an episode of Seinfeld. ("I can't *believe* they said the backyard is as good as the house! Morons . . .") His nose is much longer than mine, but just as pointy (hey, the Jodie Foster look isn't bad!) and while I don't like chocolate but can eat it, he likes it but it makes him sick. We both think kids are okay but perplexing, and we both run at the sight of the vacuum. We really are a lot alike, come to think of it, but I hope to God my breath is much better.
- Favorite author(s)?
JK Rowling, Patricia McKillip, JRR Tolkien, CS Lewis, Jane Austen. This list changes only in order lately, not in authors. JK Rowling gets a lot of flak for her writing style because she's so popular and other authors just can't stand it, but I'm convinced that she's a storytelling genius, even if she doesn't follow a do's and don'ts list published by Writer's Digest books. McKillip is a true artist with words, Tolkien is a master of worldbuilding, and CS Lewis, like Rowling, simply has that wonderful, witty British style that I can't get enough of. And what can I say about dear Jane? In the words of JK Rowling, "she is un-put-downable."
- Favorite book(s)?
The Harry Potter series has to be first. The Wizarding World is a place I could really live and feel comfortable. When I picked up Chamber of Secrets, and the Weasleys showed up in that flying Ford Anglia, I felt I was home. The characters feel like close friends to me now, and have since probably the second or third chapter of the first book. Like real people, they seem simple at first, until the layers start to peel away and you find out they are more complex than they seem. The very fact that Rowling chose a rather grumpy introvert with a tendency to mope and hold grudges as a hero shows you how creative she can be with characters.
My other favorites are Song for the Basilisk by Patricia McKillip, her words woven as intricately and beautifully as ever, with bards to boot; Emma by Jane Austen, now playing on my nightstand in fact, and the origin of Mr. Knightley's name; Lord of the Rings, which really needs no introduction except to say that there are elves and it is good; and finally, The Silver Metal Lover by Tanith Lee, a deeply romantic story about a girl and her robot (yeah, you read it right). I'm currently discovering Lewis's non-religious non-fiction works and enjoying them, but it's too soon to list them as favorites though I think I will be soon. My favorite in the Chronicles of Narnia is The Silver Chair.
- Favorite movie(s)?
Sense & Sensibility, definitely. I love the mood set by Ang Lee, the perfect costumes, the writing by Emma Thompson who is brilliant, and the fact that the brooding, elegant fellow gets the girl. :D Other favorite films are Dances With Wolves (I can and have watched it over and over and over and . . .), Bridget Jones's Diary, Amelie, and Lawrence of Arabia. Oh, better mention Galaxy Quest as well. Lordy, the writing on that one is sublime. XD
- Favorite actors/actresses?
I have two favorite actors. Alan Rickman is number one, for force of personality as well as huge amounts of talent, and he's been in a some of my favorite films. He has a dark, velvety voice, a look sometimes called "gothic" (in the real sense, having nothing to do with black lipstick), and he can play surly and funny equally well (making him the ideal Professor Snape, actually). A distant second is Tom Hanks, whose body of work is of amazing quality, and who has an irresistable warmth. He deserves every Oscar he's won, and in my opinion, deserves to be remembered forever like Carey Grant and Jimmy Stewart.
As for actresses, I really admire Cate Blanchett. She has a way of disappearing into her roles completely, and she was a magnificent Elizabeth. Bonnie Hunt is a brilliant writer and an actress who knows what she's good at. Emma Thompson is great in everything, and is also an excellent writer. I also like Kate Beckinsale, Kate Winslet and Liv Tyler.
- In a few sentences, describe your design process.
Stare at television or copy of Living, drink Cokes and eat snacks, and try to think of a layout that springs from the topic of the site (this part of the process can last anywhere from an hour to a year). It's really important to me that the site layout *depends* on the topic; that is, it should reflect the subject matter so well it wouldn't work with anything else. Next I hunt down or scan necessary images and open them in Photoshop 7, and either lay out my pages as planned, or if no idea presented itself during stage one experiment randomly with the images and various Photoshop tools until inspiration strikes (usually accompanied by trying every font installed on my computer, twice.) When I finally settle on a layout, I leave it alone for awhile, look at it again, scratch my head, let Hoshichan look at it, fuss with it until it's right. Then I add whatever important thing I forgot to include earlier and code it up.
- Internet pet peeves, I know you have them.
My biggest current pet peeve is the Totally Useless Splash Page. Now these things even say, "No fancy splash page". Why put up the boring, pointless splash page instead? Fact is, you do not *need* that page that says, "800x600 | Zillions of Colors | IE | Love for Swiss Cheese!" Most people visiting hobby sites will have a standards compliant browser, and even if they don't, if your site is actually *gasp!* standards compliant, it will usually still look okay (and unless the swiss cheese is mating, I doubt anybody will be offended by happening upon it without warning.) In my opinion, splash pages are for extra presentation and serve as a lovely "foyer" to a site. I think I only have two sites with splash pages, and those serve the purpose of adding an extra flourish to a layout that I felt needed it, and one doubles as a warning to a slightly naughty topic (though I primarily chose to use it for artistic purposes). It serves a similar function as a cover letter to a presentation; it just gives it that extra touch, like a slipcase on a special edition DVD. Some sites benefit from this, others do not. But please don't just put up a blank page with a lonely enter link and a button for The Fanlistings; it's a waste of my time.
- There is no 10.
*ponders the implications of that*
- Finally... are you mortified that you have your own fl, or secretly pleased? ;D
Both mortified, and secretly pleased. ;)
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