Once I get the gist of the story in my head and begin to write, the characters reveal more about themselves as the story progresses. So for instance, I didn't know the character Wil was married to Jillian for several chapters. Jillian's role is small so she didn't have much time to clue me in.
I'm sharing the sketch for Magpie today. She's the main female in my current WIP (working title: Magpie Mackenzie, a Joshua, Arizona Novel). Beware, it's highly possible not all of this will show up in the finished book. Knowing details helps to write the book, but could bore the reader.
Character Name: Magpie Muse MacKenzie Nickname: Mags to Phaedra and Maggypie to her dad
Birth Date and Place:
February 1975 Joshua, AZ
Character Role:
Heroine
Physical Descriptions:
Age: 43
Race:
Caucasian
Eye
Color: Caramel with yellow specks or burnt sugar at other times
Hair
Color and Style: Light brown with strands of gold, just past shoulders and
curly to the point of uncontrolled (Zack sees it as caramel like her eyes)
Height/Weight/Build:
5’7”, 130, medium
Skin
Tone: very fair
Style
of Dress: very casual skirts or jeans or leggings, strappy sandals or boots, no
underwear, tops vary
Distinguishing
physical traits or mannerisms: her eyes and hair, her favorite swear word is
Sacrebleu.
She twists hair around her finger
by her face when she’s thinking.
Personality Traits:
curious, independent, logical but unorthodox in her thinking. Not afraid to try
new things. She likes unusual and intellectual. Critical of herself.
Background: Born
and raised in Joshua. Got a business degree from NAU. Married a fellow student
after college and talked him into moving to Joshua. He worked in Copperdale in
IT. Never really liked Joshua. They had twins, one boy and one girl. He finally
left her for another woman he met through work when he was down in the city
(Phoenix). He didn’t like the lifestyle of Joshua which he didn’t realize she
was so much a part of because she was a business major. He’s now in Phoenix
GOAL: She’s
determined to find out what really happened to Mark, her teen love who
disappeared 28 years ago.
MOTIVATION: The
remains of a murdered person are found. She’s attracted to Zack who looks like
him. Her father is a suspect.
Internal Conflicts:
Zack is younger, and she thinks of Mark when she sees him. She suspects her
father murdered his girlfriend and her teen boyfriend 28 years ago.
External Conflicts:
Her father is the cop’s number one suspect. Zack’s obsession with solving the
mystery.
Occupation/Education:
Is the owner of Magpie’s Mercantile. Went to college for 4 years. On Friday
nights and sometimes Sat she sings at the Apparition Room.
Miscellaneous Notes:
She was born a month early so her parents didn’t have a name decided on. They
called her Baby until she was five. She announced she was too old to be called
Baby. Her father came up with Magpie because she flitted around town and
dragged home castoff treasures of others. (magpies are known for thievery but
they are really just overly curious)
She likes to
sing and has a lovely voice as well as being able to grind out rock songs. She
loves to cook and loves making unusual lattes. She drives a four-year-old Suzuki
SX4 (all wheel drive) maroon in color with a few dents. Her aura is yellow: The
Yellow Aura individual tends to put their head above their heart when faced
with difficult choices and decision making. They are unorthodox and
unconventional thinkers and not afraid to experiment with different ideas and
original concepts. To some the Yellow Aura seems a little eccentric with
unusual interests and hobbies. They are attracted to anything which is
considered avant-garde, intellectual or unusual. The main fault of a person who
has a predominant Yellow Aura is that they can be overly critical of themselves
and others.
Scent: herbal/earthy
If you'd like to meet characters from other books I've already published, click on over to Meet the Characters on my web page.
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