Why I'm Fyndorian

Why did I choose Fyndorian? In short--it's a long story!

In my teens I was a member of a group called The Society of Creative Anachronisms. This was a role playing group and my character was Kira, a wandering storyteller. During a week long event, I was playing my character and telling stories to earn my keep. During one tale, a bard stopped by and as I drew a breath, he stole my story. This tall, long haired, funny guy with a whole cast of voices in his mouth took my story and ran with it in his own direction!

A few moments later, I took it back. The crowd loved it and we garnered lots of the coin of the realm. So we decided to keep doing it and work together. His name was Thynordian. In the parking lot at the end of the event, we finally could step out of character and back into our skins. Introductions and addresses were exchanged. He was Jim Something-or-other. . . nothing I recognized (at the time.) I was a want-to-be writer and he was a cartoonist-wanna-be. He loved my character, Kira, complete with my pointed ears (really, they are pointed--no curls at the edges like normal folk.) I liked his name but kept mispronouncing it as Fyndorian.

Years passed. A galley of a screen play arrived at my folks house. It was the treatment for 'The Dark Crystal' and scrawled across the front page was a note from Jim Henson saying that I was the inspiration for the character, Kira--pointy ears and all! In 1986 I eventually wrote and subsequently published the book 'Alyndoria:Tales of Inner Magic.' In the third part of the trilogy is a unicorn that I named Fyndorian. Fyndorian had the ability to look at all sides of a question, was very much an optimist, very observant and ended up being my favorite character.

As requested, I sent Jim a copy of the manuscript. He was very interested in using it and we had plans to meet in NYC. Two days before our meeting, a secretary called to ask if we could reschedule the meeting for the following week as Mr. Henson wasn't feeling well. He passed away that Sunday. All projects were shelved and that was then end of that.

When I joined WDC, it wasn't a thought process to choose the name; it simply was who I had to be. It is who I am. The writer whose soul is mixed up in the magical, who is on a mission for folks to be more observant and who tries to be ever optimistic.

Since then, I have become Fyndorian or Fyn across the net, in my own fotologe business, 'Finally Fyndorian', and everywhere I need a nickname. I am fyndorian!