Behind the Scenes: Belladonna Cove | Episode 1.2

Jessica Peterson waiting on her taxi ...

So, before I started filming the second part of the first episode, I fiddled around with Jessica Peterson's little home. I wanted to see if I could put in a desk and a chair, and then a computer (yes, to all three), and if I could put in an easel (that was easy, just had to use the snap to grid false and move objects off cheats, then place it by the couch and rotate it slightly).

I wasn't happy with the custom one-tile table I had in the desk category because it just didn't fit in with the furniture already in use. It was too plain - the wood too smooth, no detailing whatsoever. I needed more one-tile desks (and definitely not a table, something with a drawer), so I decided to download HugeLunatic's One-Tile Desks - Variety Pack. I purchased a desk from that set and gave it a colour that closely matched a colour already in the room.

The placement of the laptop was a different story. I did want it on a desk, but I also considered placing it on the counters in the kitchen using Honeywell's Island Counter Desks' objects. But the mobile home is pretty small and I'd rather use the Island Counter Desks in a larger space. Also, I don't want to replace anything that she already has in the mobile home, though I think she'll take what I've bought (the easel, the laptop) with her when she leaves.

Or if she leaves! That's the question!

Her story's slowly evolving, and I'm enjoying it so much! I'm writing down plans/potential story-lines for Carlos' round (if the wedding takes place, it will happen on the fifth day after 6pm, so that their ages are right), and I wonder what will happen. Will this take place or that? And I love it that the story is evolving, and I think it's the right choice to allow the overall neighborhood story to come together like pieces of a puzzle.

I loved reacting to the events of the second part of the first episode, and it all came together wonderfully. Well, I hope it did. And I hope that, if there will be an overall neighborhood story, it will feel just right. I do hope that the household stories will overlap and that, eventually, there will be an overall story. It's definitely something that I want, but I'm a little cautious as well.

I'm cautious because I sometimes second-guess myself and what I'm doing, and that happened a while back. I mentioned in the first Behind the Scenes post that I made a University sim and that "her goal in life is to live as long as possible, experience as many careers as possible, and so on. How long can I keep this sim alive? You see, I wanted the neighbourhood to age with this University sim. Wanted the other families to expand, children to be born. And while the other sims age and die, my ambitious sim lives on."

I was worried about incorporating the pre-made sims of Belladonna Cove with my original sim's story. And so I got rid of that idea. Then I imagined a different neighbourhood (I'll make it from scratch!), starting with at least three families and the University sim - I'll call her Immortal-ish One from now on - and I immediately knew that the overall neighbourhood story for that community will feature two themes: Fantasy and Mystery.

And then it felt right.

I could see the families and the children and the passing of time.

I could see the atmosphere. I could see--

Well, I could go on and on about it. But it's definitely a project that I want to tackle in the future.

For now, I'm going to focus on Belladonna Cove. Because I'm definitely enjoying it, and I want to see what I can do with all the pre-made sims. Also, I want to experience that moment when I look at Belladonna Cove and its story, and exclaim, 'That feels just right!'