In doing the A to Z Challenge last month, even though I couldn’t come up with anything for X, Y or Z, there were numerous characters and ideas that I didn’t hit, due to something already laying claim to that letter. So without further ado, here are a few more entries that you may enjoy!
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Q: What is Farraway’s origin?
A: Along with Alec and Caren, Dylan Farraway was one of the newer characters in the Phoenix Effect reboot. I’d originally pictured him as a takeoff of Chief Aramaki in Ghost in the Shell: bald and kind of weird-looking, bound to blow up at his staff on a daily basis. I soon backed away from that idea and recreated him as an even-tempered, highly intelligent but extremely overworked boss.
Q: How is he connected to the Mendaihu?
A: Well…it’s kind of complex. But I can say that he’s quite efficient at obtaining and retaining his various contacts outside of the ARU, so he knows quite a few Mendaihu and Shenaihu.
Q: That’s Kevin Spacey in that picture. Did you base Farraway on him?
A: Actually, no! It wasn’t until maybe about a month ago that I realized he’d be good at playing Farraway. Just like when I chose Kathleen Turner as Madeleine Jakes…I had a general idea of what they looked like and how they acted, but didn’t have anyone in mind until recently.
Q: He has quite a close relationship with Alec and Caren. Is there a reason for that?
A: In general, yes. Farraway knew Caren’s parents quite well, having come up through the ranks around the same time they were high-level agents themselves. He was never their chief, but he would work alongside them on many cases, and got to know Caren personally in the process, while she was at the ARU academy. He’d become Chief Inspector at the Branden Hill HQ around that time, and had personally put in a request to have her assigned to him when she graduated. So in the process, whoever Caren has worked with, he has connected with. He was also the one to decide that Caren and Sheila should remain close workwise, ensuring she remained as part of the Team Two setup.
Q: Anything else?
A: He lives not that far from the HQ, actually…he walks to work. He has a wife, but she unfortunately never made it into any of the stories. He’s quite aware of Alec’s connection to Vigil; in fact, he deliberately says nothing because he knows it’s a safe and very lucrative connection for them. He always plays his cards close…even with his agents, he never reveals everything unless absolutely necessary. He won’t even reveal who his own outside connections may be. He does have some psionic strengths (he’s quite good at clairaudience and clairsentience), but refuses to use them as a crutch. He speaks softly, but he can really raise his voice quite loud when need be. He drinks way too much coffee.
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