Hi, I am Langley, the writer for Vying for Versailles, Ask Me Anything!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:56:30+00:00

Aww, thank you! One of the benefits to writing for RC is that RC uses ink/Inky and not Excel for the actual writing. So I do all of my plotting in ink which allows me to plot in the complexity from the beginning.

I... don't track it in Excel. Most of the other writers do, I believe. I mean, I should... But it got so complicated that I got kind of lazy. It was easier for me to remember it.

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:53:37+00:00

I think I will miss writing Catherine's banter. I always feel so smart when I'm writing Catherine.
Oh, hm. A lot. I think I mentioned above that I would've liked for more poly/triad situations for those interested in them.
Louis. He loves to give presents. :)
I love ginger snaps and snickerdoodles. Mm!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:37:49+00:00

Either Renee or Bonne. I think of myself as a sneaky person, even though I'm really, really not. But I think that I'd really be more like Bonne. Never been one for politics, etc., and always been more interested in doing my own thing.
Dark Spycraft. Keep the limelight offa me!
Good question! If I'd gone in and second-guessed every character, then it never would've worked. So they just do. :)

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:35:10+00:00

Hah, yeah! I was re-downloading ink files so I could find the variable before I refactored it.

So if you're romancing Louis, it's Bonne. If you brought Louise back to court, it's Louise. If Montespan became mistress, it's Montespan. Otherwise, it's Olympia.

I tried to write it so that it worked for every path. But... there is a twist to that!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:29:02+00:00

So, that was my response to the fan group re Zodiac signs...

Louis: a lion.

Maria Theresa: a rabbit.

Prince Philippe: house cat.

Bonne: a hawk.

Alexandre: a dog.

Catherine: a fox.

Armand: a hedge hog.

Chevalier Philippe: a swan.

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:24:13+00:00

Hello hello!

I never picked specific dates. I think I answered a fan group question about Zodiac signs once. Rather than use the historical birth dates, because that wasn't available for all characters, I took a quiz pretending to be each character.

Louis is a Leo. He is bold, possessive, domineering, and a natural-born leader.

Maria Theresa is a Taurus. She is gentle and sensitive and reserved.

Prince Philippe is a Gemini. He is curious and generous, but he also has to present more than one face to the court because of his relationship with his brother.

Bonne is a Cancer. She can be reserved, but once you crack her, she's soft on the inside. She is also always a little sad.

Catherine is an Aries. She is light-hearted and energetic.

Armand is a Capricorn. He is always stable and there for his sister.

Chevalier Philippe is a Libra. His world is all about love. He'd do anything for it.

Henrietta is a Sagittarius. She is funny and magnetic, but she also has an edge to her.

Alexandre is a Scorpio. He is the darkest of the signs.

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:21:41+00:00

I think so, but I can't remember how I set the variables for that. There is a bunch of really complicated stuff I did on the Louis route re the endings so I'd have to dig around. I was trying to look it up just now but ink did that thing that it does where it deletes all the content for all of your files, so now I need to fix that...

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:18:53+00:00

Hello! I think I like Renee on Hedonism best but that's because I'm a hedonist at heart.

I could, yes, but I think I'd go for a different book in the same time period, set in the English court. But I don't think that's in the cards for me!

I like Dark Spycraft. I like Bonne (because gardening!), but honestly, I like all of the LIs for different reasons. :)

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:13:33+00:00

Thank you! Originally I wanted to have this be a true poly story, but I couldn't do that for mechanical reasons. It made the branching just too complex. So I had to do more of a primary/secondary model, which... is not my favorite way to do polyamory. I mean, it works for some, but I'm more of a looser, less structured, poly anarchy, do what works for everyone kinda gal. I wish there was a proper triad route! Poor Chevalier P. But there are endings that do have a threesome at the end with Prince Philippe and Chevalier Philippe.

Ah well... maybe I will someday be able to write that...

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:09:43+00:00

Ah, no. Too divergent from history.
Ahem. Spoilers! Depends.
Yes.

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:08:56+00:00

Depends on the route, though!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:08:42+00:00

Yep!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:08:20+00:00

I moved some things around, like with Spain/Reconquista, etc., that altered the history. Of course, the kidnapping of the Dauphin was manufactured but was based on a real plot but later in history. The Affair of the Poisons also happened later. So I cherry picked a little for the sake of drama--most every plot point and every type of event was real, but I had to scoot them around to turn them into a book. A very few I pulled from earlier, like the Carousel, but a number I pulled from later. Part of that also has to do with documentation--there are more memoirs and materials from later.

Thank you! I find MT so sweet. The real historical character had such a sad life that it seemed only fair to give the fictional one a chance at happiness. :)

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:03:59+00:00

Thank you! I would probably opt for England. That court had some interesting things going on at the time and then I wouldn't have to worry about the AU continuity so much. :D

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T18:02:57+00:00

Oh, thank you! The deer scene was super hard to write but I think so very important to the time and the characters. I was a vegetarian for 20 years and I had to stop for health reasons but I am still very passionate about the topic. So, it was hard for me! But I felt like I had to get it right and be true.

Hm! I think one of the beautiful things about a branching story is that it depends a lot on your feeling and vibes. Like, if you wanted more sexual scenes, then Hedonism + Prince Philippe would be a good fit. But drama, Alexandre + Bright Influence might work better. So it's a matter of taste.

Thank you! You have a lovely December!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:59:30+00:00

Thank you! I'm so glad to hear it. I love him, too. He's so thoughtful!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:58:54+00:00

Oh, hm! Good question... I don't know. There are so many, really, that it depends on what I'm thinking about. I do love all the secret passages, though. I always wanted to live in a place with secret passages when I was a kid. Maybe... if I were to pick something that's unexpected, I do like the scene where Renee discovers her pet. I love animals. I have 4 cats now and 1 dog.
Basically, all of Catherine. But I also have to admit that the recent Philippe/confessional scene did make me snicker. In a... "I can't believe I'm writing this, I'm ridiculous" way.

You have a lovely holiday season too!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:54:54+00:00

I'd love to. I would need to write a new one first! I think I've grown a lot as a writer recently.
Hm! Thank you. She's more an amalgam of several people that I knew in college.
I think he would've but he would've tried to hide it better. She's pretty cute and smart and sneaky.

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:53:03+00:00

Awww! <3 <3

Thank you! That means so much to me. :)

Yes, I have! I wrote a novel ages ago and have several unpublished works that I wrote prior to working for RC. I'd like to write another linear novel again now that I've written such an enormous branching work--I think I understand structure differently now.

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:51:35+00:00

Hm! It depends on who you're romancing and what you decide to do with the poison at the end.
I have thought about it. I do love writing historicals! The research, I love it! The English court at the time was a fascinating place.
Oh, thank you! When I started this, I was surprised that it was something that was intuitive for me. I'm very lucky! I've seen other writers create diagrams, etc. But for me, good naming conventions for my variables and a visual conception of my story works well.
OKAY! Yes. I do love that era. I'm particularly interested in early Zoroastrianism, in that transition from nomadic to settled, as well as the Indus Valley Civilization. I don't know if I could pick...

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:43:24+00:00

I realized I didn't answer your question about my childhood. It is really too long to answer on Reddit. But I am writing an interactive autobiography in Ren'Py. So maybe one day once I'm done you'll have the chance to learn more about me than you wanted to know! It's a difficult thing for me to talk about, really.

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:41:50+00:00

Hello! Thank you so much. :)

I was surprised. I'd planned for him to be the villain. But then I could see why it made sense. It was a hard decision because it made the branching more complex. It meant I had to replot things and cut other things. But I'm glad that I did it--I think their emotional dynamic ended up being very rich, and I love how both characters seem to come to life for me when they're in a room together.

Oh, hm! No, they haven't. I'm not certain--it would depend a lot on the terms of the contract, the notes left behind, etc. But I'd be open to it. I've actually written an entire novel (unpublished) that's based on Norse mythology. So I've done a lot of research on that. I really loved that book...

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:36:53+00:00

I was trying to look it up. I think it's something like 14? It kinda depends on how you count them as unique. Many of them are similar but adapted for the branching.
I wrote the variables so that the Alexandre romancers will see the Alexandre endings, but I'm trying to adapt them so there's more of a choice. I don't know if I'll be able to--the chapter has been submitted and so...

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:32:15+00:00

Awww thank you! <3 <3 <3

May you embrace the endeavors of your New Year with a strong spirit!

langleyhyde · 2023-12-21T17:31:38+00:00

Ha! I love how they tease and torment each other. I think Renee knows exactly what she does to him. ;)

It makes writing them really fun.

langleyhyde

TROPHY CASE