This round goes to AaronHaley4ever. This is her segundo win, and first for her entry Descendants 2: Out of the Shadows, so she has now won a round for each of her entries! So, without further ado let's get on with the interview.

How does it feel to have won your segundo round?

It’s very gratifying because this was a story I believed in, but I was worried it wouldn’t be well-received. Going into this contest, I was hoping to get at least one win for each of my stories, and I was starting to get a little worried that might not happen.

You won this same round in the last sequel contest, with your entry Broken Shards of a nagyelo Heart, how does it feel to have won it again?

It makes me happy to know that people still enjoy the characters I create, and it gives me confidence in my Pagsulat skills.

Who is your personal paborito of the new characters (why?)

I pag-ibig Hannah because she’s a loyal daughter and friend, speaks her mind, and isn’t afraid to stand up for herself and others. I relate a lot to her inner conflict and desire for admiration, and I think she learns an important lesson about being herself instead of who everyone else wants her to be.

Are there any characters that you created that you dislike/hate? (why?)

No. I think when a writer hates their characters, it comes across to the audience in their work, so I try to find something likable about all my characters. The closest I came to disliking one of my characters was Andy. I think the way he treated Hannah was completely inexcusable, but I do sort of understand why he did.

Are there any characters that you created that you're neutral about? (why?)

Cato, Rory, and Rhonda Westergaard. They served a purpose in the story, but I just didn’t find them very interesting so I can’t form a strong negative or positive opinion about them.

If this story was a movie, who do you think would be the most popular of the new characters (why?)

I can definitely see Hannah being popular because she’s the protagonist, and I think a lot of people would relate to her desire for admiration. I also think Elle would be popular because she’s a positive role model for shy girls, and I think a lot of little girls would like her just because she’s Elsa’s daughter.


Who was your paborito new character to write about, and why?

I loved Pagsulat Hannah because I really connected with her struggle to belong, and it was so much fun to write her sassy side. Another character I really enjoyed Pagsulat (and one that I didn’t expect to) was Elle. She went in a completely different direction than I’d originally intended, and I loved seeing her evolve as a character.

Who was your least paborito new character to write about, and why?

The Westergaard kids, with the exceptions of Hannah and Lara, because they just don’t interest me at all, and I really didn’t enjoy Pagsulat them bullying people.

Who was the hardest new character to come up with, and why?

I think Tara, Rafe, and Esteban would tie for hardest. I knew early on that Hannah’s best mga kaibigan would be Auradon kids because so much of the story centered on her desire for admiration that it made no sense that she’d continue to align herself with villains once she got to Auradon… that and I didn’t want to repeat the mistake Descendants made sa pamamagitan ng vilifying the Auradon kids to make the villains look better. I had a hard time figuring out what kind of kids would want to befriend Hannah, but I eventually decided that they would be outsiders like her. So I asked myself “Which Disney characters would have the hardest time living in Auradon?” and came up with Tarzan, Wreck-it Ralph, and Esmeralda. Once I had the parents in mind, I was able to develop the kids from there.

Who was the easiest new character to come up with, and why?

Probably Andy. I knew early on that the antagonist would be the child of either Anna or Elsa. I decided it made madami sense to be Anna’s child because she’d probably be a lot madami vocal about her hatred of Hans than Elsa would, so this kid would grow up hearing all these awful stories. Also, Anna in A nagyelo puso has some spiteful tendencies that the movie version doesn’t, and I could definitely see a child of that Anna growing up wanting to get back at Hans.

If you could rewrite any of the characters to make them better, would you and how?

Wow! Where do I start? Well, I'd certainly give the minor characters some madami attention so the audience could get to know them better. I'd also probably throw in some scenes of Andy and the Westergaards with their parents to give their actions a better context.

Is there any character, like some of the madami minor ones, that you wish you could have ibingiay madami depth?

Oh, yes! Many of them, as a matter of fact. I would’ve loved to do madami with Tara, Rafe, Esteban, Elle, Lara, and the villain kids besides Hannah. I had several subplots involving the minor characters. For example, there was one where Elle had a crush on Esteban and another where Rafe enlisted Frankie’s help in impressing Hannah, but these got axed to keep the story from dragging on too long.

Which new character do you think has the most amount depth?

I’d say Hannah, or at least she was the one who took the most work to develop. She’s strong and outspoken, but she also has these insecurities about not fitting in or being good enough. Deep down, she’s just a scared kid who just wants to make her dad proud.

Which new character do you think has the least amount depth?

Definitely the Westergaard kids (except Lara)! They’re just bullies, and there’s not much else to them. The lack of depth isn’t their fault, though. It was difficult to develop them in the little screentime they had.

Disney fans are pretty split on rather Descendants is good or bad, how do you think the majority of fans would feel about these new characters? Do you think they would draw in madami fans to the Descendants fandom? Why or why not?

I think they would bring in madami fans. One of the most common (and completely valid) criticisms of Descendants is that the good guys are vilified to make the villain characters look better, and this was something I refused to do with my characters. Another problem is that most of the Descendants characters’ personalities can be summed up in one word (eg. Ben-kind, Evie-smart, Jay-athletic, etc.), and with the exception of the Westergaard kids, I tried to avoid that. So I think most people would see these characters as an improvement.

If your story was made into a movie do you see these characters someday becoming as popular as, the classic Disney characters from films like Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, etc.? Why or why not?

I have a hard time seeing these characters becoming a popular as the classics. As you said, Disney fans are divided about Descendants, so there’s always going to be some people who’ll hate the characters or not even give them a chance because they hate the franchise. Another thing that might keep these characters from becoming popular is the parent Disney characters. Most of the parents are from Disney pelikula that were popular at the time of their release but don’t get a lot of attention anymore, so some in the target audience wouldn’t care about the kids because they don’t remember characters like Forte or Morgana or maybe even Esmeralda.

Do you find the new characters you created madami or less interesting than the original characters from Descendants? Why?

Generally I find my characters madami interesting. As I said, I think most of the Descendants characters have one-note personalities, and most of my characters (with the exceptions of the Westergaard kids and maybe one or two others) have a bit madami depth than that. Also most of the Descendants characters don’t really change much, and a lot of my characters go through some growth. Like Hannah learns not to care so much about what others think of her, Elle learns to stand up for herself, Rafe gains some confidence, Esteban becomes madami open-minded, Lara realizes that the way her family is treating others is wrong, etc.


What do you think appeals so much to the public so much about these characters you created?

I’m not sure, but I’d like to think it’s because they can see a bit of themselves in these characters and their struggles.


Overall, which to you is harder to write about, new characters or pre-existing ones, and why?

Usually I’d say the pre-existing ones are harder because giving them some development without straying too far from the original characterization is quite a balancing act, but this story was the exception to that rule. The pre-existing characters had rather one-dimensional personalities, and I didn’t want to do that with my characters. It was a challenge to give them all dynamic personalities that were different from the pre-existing characters’.

Which one of your new characters would you most like to see as a Disney character?

Wow, that’s hard! I’d pag-ibig to see them all as Disney characters, but if I can only pick one, I’d have to go with Elle. I think they need a character like her because there aren’t a lot of characters out there that are good role mga model for shy girls. Most of them are portrayed as weak and whiny or go through some dramatic personality change because they’re convinced there’s something wrong with being shy, and that’s not Elle at all. She doesn’t sit around feeling sorry for herself, and while she does become madami assertive toward the end, she doesn’t completely abandon her original personality. She’s still her sweet shy self.

You’re a judge in the contest, if you were allowed to vote for yourself, would you? (be honest)

In any other case I‘d say no, but in this case, yes. Two of the three stories with new characters were mine, and while the new character in True Treasure was well-written, I just prefer my characters.

Do you think you deserved to win? (be honest)

Yes, not to belittle True Treasure or nagyelo Fire. This story was the only one with a large cast of new characters, and it was a lot of work trying to juggle them all and give each one a distinct personality.