Erika Door ,a cute girl,is well known for her pretty good cosplay works.I was glad I had a chance to chat with her. Now let¡®s come into Erika¡®s cosplay world.
Pictures originally from www.cosplay.com

MMOSITE: To start, can you first briefly introduce yourself?

Erika Door: I was born in 1867 as the illegitimate daughter to a ruined Bavarian count and a nun of the Order of the Holy Cross. I was smuggled out of my homeland as an infant to be trained as a secret agent for the Queen Mother. I have traveled the world, gained six fortunes and lost nine, and posed for Bouguereau. I¡®m currently a freelance web/graphic designer in the Midwest with a fondness for good books, rock ¡®n¡® roll, gardening, and gerbils.

MMOSITE: When did you begin to take a liking for cosplay? Can you say something about the first character you cosplayed? And how did you fee at that time?

Erika Door: I have always been a costumer. I was the weird kid who would work on her Halloween costume for weeks, who spent a lot of time in theatre and other performance work. The effects of what we wear has been a fascination of mine. I grew up in a very small town...no one knew what anime was, I didn¡®t know what cons or cosplay were. I started watching and reading this stuff and just wanted to make it. My first costume was Belldandy from Oh! My Goddess. It took me three months and a couple hundred to make it.? I was also quite unprepared for attending a con and winning an award. I was not a social butterfly and the reception I got blew me away.

MMOSITE: What is your favorite cosplay form? Drama on the stage or show on the stage?

Erika Door: American masquerades are still incredibly rudimentary when it comes to performance. Think elementary school talent shows with drunk voice actor judges. I don¡®t usually compete anymore because their judging systems and standards are....well, they don¡®t have standards. Most cosplay is just done hanging around the convention and while that¡®s fun, the real pay-off is just in making the costumes.

MMOSITE: What is your parents¡® or friends¡® attitude toward your cosplay "career"?

Erika Door: My parents are very creative people and encouraged me in all of my artistic pursuits. My mother is a Miyazaki fan to boot. As for friends, many are cosplayers and the ones who aren¡®t are very supportive, usually suggesting things for me to make.

MMOSITE: Who, if any, helps you most?

Erika Door: Most of their support comes morally. There¡®s always creative slumps and difficulties in anything and they¡®re usually there to cheer me on and see that I finish things.

MMOSITE: Have you ever participated in any cosplay contests? What are they and what awards have you won?

Erika Door: I used to compete a lot, and I¡®ve won several Best in Shows from cons around the country, many workmanship awards. Mostly now I just hang around my art table or do judging.

MMOSITE: You¡®ve some gorgeous cosplay clothes and props. Did you make them by yourself?

Erika Door: Of course. I¡®ve never worn anything made by someone else. When I started doing cosplay, there was no one I knew who could help, so I just learned to do it all myself. It¡®s a matter of pride.

MMOSITE: A successful cosplay requires an enormous amount of time, fund and energy, how do you deal with theses problems?

Erika Door: It gets easier the more you do it. My recent gatekeeper costume cost me nothing at all....I had all the supplies on hand. I don¡®t have a lot of spare cash to fling around, so I look for sales and try to cut costs without sacrificing quality. I buy most of my fabric at Wal-Mart if you can believe it. As for time and energy, I¡®m a very fast seamstress....most of my pieces are done in one-three days and I¡®m lucky to have pretty boundless energy. I have a great number of hobbies.

MMOSITE: You have cosplayed so many anime characters, which is your favorite one? Do you unconsciously learn and imitate the talking and behavior of these anime characters?

Erika Door: After eight years, I judge based on comfort. I love wearing things like Selphie and Adelaide as I can not worry about a sore back or blisters on my heels at the end of the day. I¡®ll confess, however, that I really adore Maya Natsume....she¡®s one of my favourite manga characters and I plan to do as many of her costumes as possible.
When I cosplay, I try to study the character and learn poses/mannerisms for photoshoots, but outside that, not really. I¡®m more likely to do the night elf waiting bounce while I¡®m in line at a bank than act like an anime/manga character.

MMOSITE: For an excellent cosplay, what do you think a cosplayer should pay attention to while cosplaying?

Erika Door: I get asked this a lot....as if there¡®s a Holy Grail of cosplay somewhere such as "remember to iron!" or "learn to wear make-up!" In reality, you have to pay attention to the total package. Challenge yourself....skill comes with experience. Everyone sucks at first.

MMOSITE: Is there anything else you¡®d like to share with our readers?

Erika Door: I¡®m quite honoured and amused to be interviewed for your site. I don¡®t think people really know how much of a hardcore gamer I am [especially MMOs....] and it¡®s wonderful to be able to mix hobbies like this. I may not read many comics or watch much anime anymore, but I¡®ll never stop playing games.