Well, this was not exactly a real time/face to face interview, it was just questions I asked him via email and he answered it. This interview is for the readers to understand more about the writer of the fanfic and his works. The interviewer(Gan) is me, C.K. Gan, the webmaster of this site of course, and the interviewee(Patraw) is the writer of "Electric Demon". Mark Patraw has written other short fanfics on this site, and he is also the first person who put up his fanfic on this site.


Gan: Why did you want to write this fanfic?

Patraw: I like Bust (and Slash) Galford, and wanted to do a story about him. The other characters in the story came later. Actually, as usual when I write or even draw, the final version is much different than what I had originally envisioned.

Gan: What were your motivations?

Patraw: Lightning! I love Bust Galford's fast and furious fighting style and his electrical powers. He's a dangerous character, taking the original Galford's "plasma blade" attacks to a new, destructive level. I probably made him too strong in my fanfic, but that was okay.

Gan: What aims did you have? And have you achieved it?

Patraw: I wanted to tell a story about good and evil, Galford's dark side pitted against the good. As I said before, the final product is different than what I had originally started with, but it still says pretty much what I wanted to say. There were things I'd probably add or take away now that it's all done, but for the most part, I'm happy with it.

Gan: What do you think was the best part of your fanfic? And what do you think was the worst?

Patraw: Well, the last chapter is freshest in my mind, so that comes through the most clearly for me. My favorite part is probably when Haohmaru has Genjuro's dead body before him, and he sadly remembers what Genjuro used to be like, not what he became. That little section there was actually an idea I had for a fanfic, but I incorporated it into this story at the last minute. The thing I really don't like about my fanfic is that I know I could've done a better job, a lot of the parts are rushed and don't mesh all that well. It's hard to keep on top of details and events with so many characters over many chapters.

Gan: Did you have any readers' feedback? If so, how have the readers reacted to your writing?

Patraw: The feedback I've gotten has been almost entirely positive with a bit of constructive criticism thrown in as well. No complaints there, I encourage anybody who wants to tell me how great they think I am (or how much I suck) to let me know.

Gan: Any suggestions to future/current fanfic writers?

Patraw: First and foremost, don't be afraid to write. You can only get better by doing it. Giving up and saying, "I'm no good" won't get you anywhere. Also, don't bite off more than you can chew, there's several unfinished fan fics on this page already. If you don't think you can handle a chapter by chapter thing, then just write a short, self-contained story.

Gan: What do you like best about writing a fanfic?

Patraw: Well, I just like to write period. But writing about samurai characters is fun, it's cool to be the one directing the action. I like to bring them to life, through my perspective, and see what kind of crazy stuff happens. There are a lot of interesting characters and relationships to work with in SS.

Gan: Do you like to write the short fanfic or the long fanfic?

Patraw: You can do more with a long fanfic, but a short one is definitely easier in many ways. I may write another long one again, but I think I'm going to go back to the short ones for awhile.

Gan: Do you plan to write a sequel or a new fanfic?

Patraw: I have all sorts of ideas for SS fanfics. I'm writing a Charlotte one right now that I've got about six pages typed up for so far. I don't know if I'll write a sequel to Electic Demon, but I may, there's plenty to work with there.

Gan: Are there anyone who have inspired you to write the fanfics? And who do you want to give thanks to(like the publisher, SS Forever, and C.K. rulez!, hehe^_^)?

Patraw: I'd say my inspiration for writing fanfics came from reading other fanfics on other websites (mainly KOF stuff). So, one day I asked CK if he would start a fanfic page if I wrote one for his site, and he agreed. And, so, it went from there, and rather well I'd say. CK does deserve a lot of the credit, it's a lot of work to keep doing all those updates and everything else that goes with maintaining this page.

Gan: Anything else you want to add?

Patraw: Well, I hope more people will contribute to SS. Write fan fics, draw fan arts, do an editorial, whatever. Especially some of you nuts on the message board, you can't tell me you're not creative... Come up with something SS related that CK doesn't have yet and run the idea by him. And I appreciate all the people who have read my fanfic (hopefully enjoying it), thanks a lot!


Gan: I wish the best of luck to Mark Patraw, and hope to see another kick ass fanfic next time. Thank you.