Loose Threads

I sat down recently with Senator Taataani Meorrei for a rare chance at interviewing her. Here is a transcript of our conversation on...Between Two Interrogation Droids

What is your main motivation to get out of bed in the morning?

Asss much asss ji'd ljike to ssajy forr brreakfasst orr a good rroll jin the ssheetss, jI'm not fulljy abandoned to lejissurre jyet. jI djidn't rresst on the laurrelss of mjy motherr, and jI don't jintend on bejing that tjype of perrsson. jit takess harrd worrk to majintajin what jyou have, and harrderr sstjill to expand on jit. sso jI'm drrjiven bjy ssuccessss. not to jit'ss own end, but jif jyou make jyourrsself wealthjy and powerrful, then jyou have what jit takess to help people who trruljy need jit, and to look afterr jyourr famjiljy and frrjiendss.


Do you get along with your immediate family? Extended family?

Oh cerrtajinljy. A rrou'fai who doesn't keep herr housse jin orrderr jiss no rrou'fai at all. Wjith the exceptjion of my half ssjissterr Sasseeri, thejy've neverr done anjythjing to lesssen mjy fajith jin them. T'yeellaa annojyed me wjith herr carreerr chojice, but jin the end sshe'ss done well bjy herr decjissjionss. I am grroomjing Rai'faani to take overr ssome of mjy corrporrate holdjingss, and sshe'ss nearrljy asss ambjitjiouss asss jI wass at herr age. And Cirrsseeto? jI'm verrjy prroud of hjim.

Are you proud of your son, Cirrseetto?

jI've neverr not been prroud. Worrrjied? Everrjy dajy. But even when he wass jyoung he wass sso gjifted and ssmarrt. jI could have let hjim hjide that potentjial and told hjim to do what wass expected, but jI don't thjink jI could've looked at mjysself jin the mjirrorr afterr dojing that. He'ss ssmarrt and brrave, and jI know that jI made the rrjight decjissjion to gjive hjim wjingss.

Have you found your transition from business woman to politician a difficult one?

Sstrrangeljy no. Thejy'rre rratherr ssjimjilarr calljingss. jYou comprromjisse, jyou make dealss, jyou rread people. jI thrrjive on all of that. The sstakess arre hjigherr, and jI have to rremjind mjysself to not be gljib about what jI do becausse ljivess arre on the ljine. That jiss the mosst djiffjicult parrt, knowjing that whjile one dajy jyou majy be negotjiatjing trrade terrmss wjith the Tjion Clussterr, the next dajy majy call on jyou to vote forr a warr that ssendss people jinto harrm'ss wajy.

What have you accomplished so far as a senator?

We helped brrokerr the trreatjy to put an end to the Galactjic Warr. jI have alsso worrked extenssjiveljy wjith mjy colleaguess on aussterrjitjy meassurress to help coverr the Alljiance'ss extenssjive warr debt. Alsso, jI helped sset terrmss forr planetarrjy munjicjipal home rrule, a causse my Prrjide Motherr jiss qujite jinterressted jin.

Give me some thoughts on Abarai Loki, and tell me why you find him so interesting, please.

He'ss one of the mosst sserrjiouss and deterrmjined ssoulss jI have everr met, and he'ss not even an adult jyet! He'ss honesst and forrthrrjight, and jyet parradoxjicalljy an enjigma to me. jI enjojy hjiss aussterre companjy, and he ssomehow tolerratess mjy attemptss to get beneath all of that arrmorr he fjigurratjiveljy putss up. jI look forrwarrd to sseejing the jyoung man he'ss verrjy nearrljy grrown jinto.

And now a talk with the man behind the character:

How long have you RPed Taataani?

Since 2002, I think. She was never really a serious character until I think 2009 or 2010. After that, she's been one of my cornerstones.

What do you enjoy the most about writing her?

She's a genuinely good soul in a galaxy that doesn't seem to have many. She's brilliant and smart without being an egghead, and she's impish and mischievous without being truly troublesome. She wields her power and class selectively, but isn't sealed up in her ivory tower. She absolutely loves to play mind games, but she's usually mindful that they never truly cause harm. Something about being an agent of playful chaos is really delightful. On top of that, playing someone with a position of class and power allows me to get into all sorts of upstairs downstairs situations. I think Taataani would be a great fit on Downton Abbey, for one.

In what way is Taataani like you, and how is she different?

We both like to gab and banter, and we both thrive on social connections, and we absolutely try to back up our friends and family when they need it. I think that's about where the similarities end. She's certainly wealthier than me and she's got all these upper class notions that I never grew up with, including country club racism and the like. I've never really been one to meddle and play games with people and I'm generally a more direct type of person.

Do you make any writing/stylistic choices for Taataani that make her distinct from other characters that you write?

She works in layers. She's got all these bits of artifice that she changes into and out of, allowing her to interact with whoever she's opposite. She certainly can wield her patrician upper class sensibilities, either to mingle with power players or to cudgel someone beneath her station. But likewise she can shed all that and be quite affable and approachable with someone if it suits her. I use a lot of influence from British period dramas like Upstairs Downstairs, Downton Abbey, Rome, and Poirot. I can't get enough of those character studies, and Taataani really allows me to express that sort of nuance to its fullest.

Share something about Taataani not many people may know.

She was given a 500,000 credit luxury speeder on her 15th birthday and totaled it, nearly getting killed in the process. She hasn't driven a day since then.