Each month we interview a First Officer of the fleet as part of our “First Officer in Focus” column to get to know them better, and learn more about what their positions entail.
This month, we’re interviewing the First Officer of the starship USS Constitution-B Lieutenant Commander Diz’mim Ch’Nilmani.
Nilsen: Tell us a little about the writer behind the character. I understand you’ve been around the fleet in one form or another since 2003.
Ch’Nilmani: That’s correct. Joined up when I was the tender age of 19 with Nugra which is wild to think about because I’m 40 now. Lol I found the group when I was looking for Star Trek stuff and was fascinated with the idea that one could promote and get a ship of your own.
Tell us more about your writing style. What’s your process for putting together a sim? Besides Star Trek, where do you draw inspiration from when you’re writing?
Ch’Nilmani: My writing style is a bit all over the place. I grew up reading classics and so my writing has sometimes be described as neo-victorian. The way I usually put sims together is to read through everything, put together the bones of the sim, then write my character’s perspective on it all. If I have like two or three characters going like a PNPC and MSNPC I usually do that for both of them before filling in things.
How would you describe your approach to being a first officer?
Ch’Nilmani: I’m more of a hands off type that wants to nudge things in directions when needed. One of my biggest concerns when I first started in the command was being a micromanager and always being in people’s email. I have found I prefer to let people sim and then correct styles or behavior when it starts manifesting. This way people feel like they are in a more collaborative environment than “senior staff” telling them what to do.
How is this first officer position similar to or different from your previous postings?
Ch’Nilmani: It’s different in a way than others because the responsibilities are more administrative with the FO being responsible for a lot of the paperwork. Most ships have the FO running the mentorship program which means I have to manager the mentors and make sure the mentees are being communicated with, filling out the ship reports, and working with my CO to watch the numbers and try to spot trends. I always want to be a FO that when the CO reaches out with: “Hey, have you noticed [insert thing]” I don’t have to scramble and try to figure out what they mean.
I guess the simple term is that an FO has to keep the pulse of the ship.
If I said I wanted to be 118’s next first officer, what sage advice would you give me?
Ch’Nilmani: It is a lot harder than you think and being proactive is extremely important. You are going to be the right hand individual for your CO and no matter how new or experienced they are, your CO needs to know you are right there supporting the vision and willing to put the work in.
Finally, what’s next for you, both in-character for Ch’Nilmani and out-of-character for you?
Ch’Nilmani: I have no plans, maybe get another pip one day but having been here for 20+ years, I just float where I want to go and do what is fun to help the community! Starbase 118 has been a big part of my life and being here for the community is all I want to do.
Thanks for your time, Lieutenant Commander Diz’mim Ch’Nilmani!
You can read more about Lieutenant Commander Diz’mim Ch’Nilmani here on the wiki
