Character Origination Prompts: Week 33

The Mood is Write

Mom-de-Plume
Original poster
DONATING MEMBER
FOLKLORE MEMBER
Invitation Status
  1. Looking for partners
Posting Speed
  1. 1-3 posts per day
  2. Multiple posts per week
Online Availability
It varies wildly.
Writing Levels
  1. Advanced
  2. Prestige
Preferred Character Gender
  1. Male
  2. Nonbinary
  3. Primarily Prefer Female
Genres
I'm open to a wide range of genres. Obscenely wide. It's harder for me to list all I do like than all I don't like.

My favorite settings are fantasy combined with something else, multiverse, post-apoc, historical (mixed with something else), and futuristic. I'm not limited to those, but it's a good start.

My favorite genres include mystery, adventure, action, drama, tragedy (must be mixed with something else and kept balanced), romance (again must be mixed, and more.

I'm happy to include elements of slice-of-life and romance, but doing them on their own doesn't hold my interest indefinitely.
Character Origination Prompts​

Time to make a new character, but you're clueless? Just want to invite a new person to live in your head? Want to round out a character who's been untouched for a while?

This thread is for you and anyone else who feels like doing character work today.

Use as many or as few of the prompts as you like, and create!


How Do I Take Part?​
Each week, I will post three random prompts in line with the title theme: images, text, dialog, links to articles, or other neat things that seem like they could spark new life. I may also include bonus rounds! You can make whatever character you want, and they don't have to fit everything (or anything at all).

I'll provide an (optional) "basic" character sheet that you can use.


Click Here for the Optional Character Sheet
[b]Full Name:[/b]
(Including titles.)

[b]Nicknames:[/b]
(Including titles that aren't part of formal address.)

[b]Species:[/b]
(Could include a few notes on if they're variant or unusual.)

[b]Occupation:[/b]
(Don't be afraid to be descriptive!)

[b]Age:[/b]
(Actual and/or apparent.)

[b]Sexuality:[/b]
(Gender, physical sex, and preferences.)

[b]Eyes:[/b]
(Color, shape, position...)

[b]Hair:[/b]
(Color and style.)

[b]Features:[/b]
(Facial and skin descriptions. Eyes, nose, mouth, eyebrows, etc.)

[b]Height:[/b]

[b]Build:[/b]
(Bone structure, musculature, amount of fat, body shape—this is great for giving an idea of history and personality.)

[b]Outfit:[/b]
(What do they wear?)

[b]Body Mods:[/b]
(Scars, tattoos, piercings, prosthetics, and more.)

[b]Impression:[/b]
(What do people think when they encounter this character the first time?)

[b]Voice:[/b]
(Describe the tone, manner, volume, and more about how a character communicates: should include any nonverbal communication methods too!)

[b]Fears:[/b]
(Big or small, what frightens the character?)

[b]Motivation:[/b] (One of the two links below might be helpful.)
https://dragonwritingprompts.blogspot.com/2013/08/maslows-hierarchy-of-needs-for-writers.html
http://www.fiction-writers-mentor.com/maslows-hierarchy-of-needs/

[center][size=2]~*~[/size][/center]

[b]Virtues:[/b] (Definitions below, pick however many fit and describe how, if you are so inclined.)
Chastity ([i]Castitas[/i])
A habit of controlling inappropriate physical desires and impulses.
Temperence ([i]Temperantia[/i])
Attentiveness to one's needs, with restraint from wasteful excess.
Charity ([i]Caritas[/i])
Willingly giving of the self to ensure others' happiness and health.
Diligence ([i]Industria[/i])
The habit for performing work with perseverance, honesty, and care.
Patience ([i]Patientia[/i])
The ability to forgive and eagerness to seek paths toward harmony.
Kindness ([i]Humanitas[/i])
The sharing of one's skills and possessions for the sake of others.
Humility ([i]Humilitas[/i])
Prioritizing of other individuals and the community above oneself.

[b]Vices:[/b] (Definitions below, pick however many fit and describe how, if you are so inclined.)
Lust ([i]Luxuria[/i])
The lack of self-control over one's bodily desires and urges.
Gluttony ([i]Gula[/i])
Overindulgence and overconsumption to the point of waste or harm.
Greed ([i]Avaritia[/i])
A disproportionate valuing of material wealth and its acquisition.
Sloth ([i]Acedia[/i])
Habitual apathy or aversion to effort that results in detriment.
Wrath ([i]Ira[/i])
Uncontrolled urges that encourage one to harm to others and self.
Envy ([i]Invidia[/i])
Sad or resentful desire toward traits or possessions of another.
Pride ([i]Superbia[/i])
Obsession with one's own superiority to the detriment of others.

[b]Strengths:[/b]
(What they're good at.)

[b]Weaknesses:[/b]
(What they're not good at.)

[b]Quirks:[/b]
(Habits and other little things.)

[b]Racial Details:[/b]
(Optional details about the character's race.)

[center][size=2]~*~[/size][/center]

[b]History:[/b]
(Write a brief backstory.)

[b]Hook/Summary:[/b]
(You can include something meant to catch interest here.)


Prompts:
  1. They live in or are from a low-tech setting, desert area.
  2. The character is very hard on themself and a child.
  3. They make excuses not to take care of themself.

Bonus Rounds:
  • This is due to circumstances they can't help, but they want to overcome.
  • Except for the hardness on the child. They just don't like kids.
 
Full Name:
Martin Thornson

Nicknames:
Marty, Farty Marty

Species:
Human

Occupation:
Was a full time laborer and overall 'fix-it-Felix' before his accident. Now on permanent disability/welfare.

Age:
Thirty-six

Sexuality:
Numb from the waist down.

Eyes:
Clear blue

Hair:
Blonde, used to be worn short, now long and tangled.

Features:
Marty was quite a handsome catch when he got married to his wife right out of high school. Tall, heavily muscular, and with the strong Nordic features of his parents who'd immigrated over for work. He was considered the 'All American' standard of his dinky high school town.

Height:
Was 6'4" now 5'9"
Build:
Broad shoulders and barrel chest, his arms and shoulders are still strong, but his abdomen has gotten chubby and his legs are withered beyond repair.

Outfit:
Dirty pajama bottoms and a shirt several sizes too large. No socks.

Body Mods:
Wheel chair (rarely) and forearm crutches.

Impression:
Bitter man looking to make everyone as miserable as he is.

Voice:
Snappy and aggressive. Only yells at his son, but he is still intimidating enough that quiet is scary to everyone else. Doesn't speak a lot with his hands as they are either wheeling himself or holding himself up. His face, neck, and shoulders are very expressive.


Fears:
  • Pain
  • Abandonment
  • Rotting body parts
  • Becoming an addict

Motivation:
Martin's motivations are purely for safety. Unconsciously he makes himself disgusting and abhorrent to Daniel to keep the boy away from him since Marty doesn't feel safe around the child. His self destructive tendencies make his appetite spotty at best, but he is always thirsty for alcohol.

~*~

Virtues:
Diligence (Industria)
The habit for performing work with perseverance, honesty, and care.
Kindness (Humanitas)
The sharing of one's skills and possessions for the sake of others.
Humility (Humilitas)
Prioritizing of other individuals and the community above oneself.

Vices:
Gluttony (Gula)
Overindulgence and overconsumption to the point of waste or harm.
Wrath (Ira)
Uncontrolled urges that encourage one to harm to others and self.
Pride (Superbia)
Obsession with one's own superiority to the detriment of others.

Strengths:
  • Throwing things accurately
  • Ignoring the fact that he's laying in his own waste
  • Preparing and cooking scrambled eggs with only one hand
  • Being relatively self-sufficient despite injuries
  • Takes a lot to get him past tipsy


Weaknesses:
  • Being alone
  • Being in pain
  • Sitting or standing for long periods
  • Dealing with pain related stress
  • Taking pain medication on schedule

Quirks:
  • Leaving all the lights on
  • Refusing baths. Shower or nothing.
  • The worse it smells, the more he wants
  • Humor as dry as the desert he lives in


~*~

History:
Martin was born in the United States in the city fifty miles from the desert town that he would grow up in. His parents had decided to live there instead of the city because it was more of what they were used to. People looking out for other people, friendliness, and community. He grew up hearing that he was going places, that he could be whatever he wanted to be when he got a job. It wasn't perfect by any means, home phones were barely able to make calls and getting on the internet in the library was next to impossible thanks to dial-up.


The most reliable piece of tech in the one stoplight town the factory where nearly everyone worked; converting the abundance of sand into glass. Martin's parents had wanted him to go to college and follow in his father's footsteps, get a job in a fortune 500 company, make big money. However the pull of the town proved to be too much for him. He married his high school girlfriend right out of high school and got a job at the factory making glass. His parents tried to convince him to go to college. He wanted to marry Shelly? Okay, but please go to college.

Martin refused, time and again to go. He said they were happy and everything they needed was right here in town. Why did he want to go see the world? What was out there different than right here? Finally, Marty's parents had enough they sold their house and moved, not telling him where they were going. They left a note saying they couldn't stand to watch their only child waste away in a town with no future.

At first he didn't care, thinking he would be better off without them despite the fact that before this they had been very close. Marty and Shelly had decided, after that, not to have children and took lengths to make sure that they didn't. Shelly hadn't had a great home life, so she was happy with the decision. Life was bliss for a whole six years until the accident in the plant. Three deaths and some major injuries. When Martin woke up, they told him he was lucky to be alive. A few days later when his pain medication was lowered, he wondered if they should have just let him die.

Crippled and numb from waist down. Technically from vertabrae L1 down. It hardly mattered, all Marty heard was that he would never walk again. Never go on runs in the desert. Never walk down the street holding hands with Shelly. He was in the hospital long enough to watch his legs start withering. Barely hearing the information doctors and nurses kept giving him so that he could live his 'best' life. He wanted to scoff. He would never have a 'best' life again. It was Shelly who eventually convinced him to give life a try again. They were still together, they could still do things, and she still loved him. Unconditionally.

The first year out of the hospital was a struggle, but Shelly never wavered from Marty's side. Even when the constant IV of pain meds and fluid wore off and they found out that he wasn't as numb as they had previously thought. There was, at best, a constant dull ache right at the line where he lost sensation. It quickly became agonizing if he was sitting or bent the wrong way for too long. Standing using his forearm crutches was alright, but he had to hunch his massive shoulders to make sure he wasn't going to cause more pain in his back. The forearm crutches were an experience in themselves. Muscles not before considered being worked to both hold him up and to move him. Marty fell a lot at first as well, causing damage to his already damaged body.

The medical bills kept piling up.

Shelly reassured him that she would never leave his side, they were in love and would be together forever. With her there, Martin felt he could do anything, so he continued to work himself to acclimate to his new restrictions. Though it finally came to the point where Shelly couldn't stay at home with him anymore. His disability was enough to pay their bills and get a few groceries, but they needed more to make payments on the other stuff Martin needed. Then there were the bills the insurance company hadn't paid. It took weeks to find a job in town. She couldn't fill the jobs the factory was hiring for and there were only a few other businesses in town who would take on a former homemaker.

Finally she came home with the news that she'd gotten a job at the bowling alley her family owned. Marty was concerned, considering her history, but Shelly assured him that it was okay, she could take care of herself now. Martin let Shelly convince him that everything was going to be alright just like every other time, but this time she had been wrong.

Nearing the two year mark since his accident, since he was able to function down there, Shelly found out she had become pregnant. Martin knew how it had happened without even asking and he felt a deep rage on behalf of his wife, who told him as soon as the test had come back positive and then had locked herself into the bathroom, yelling through the door that it'd only been once to get the job. Marty begged her not to say anymore, that it was okay. They were together and they loved each other. They would get through this. He even joked that even though he didn't like kids this one would be different because it was coming from her. Shelly let herself be convinced that it would be okay.

Two years since his accident and seven months since Shelly had gotten her job and pregnant, Shelly died giving birth in their bed due to sudden complications. Twenty seven, crippled, and now widower father, Marty looked at his life and wondered where he had gone wrong and if there was any way to fix it. Or if he even wanted to fix it. He doesn't tell anyone, but during the struggles of keeping up with a newborn's needs and his own body, Martin considered several times killing the child and himself. Or just himself. It would be at those times that he would see Shelly in Daniel's face, stopping him from just giving up. It'll be okay, the dusty air would say, we're together and we love each other.

They very quickly learned to hate each other. Marty no longer saw his Shelly in Daniel after he hit his terrible twos. Instead he only saw the unlikable characteristics of Shelly's family. The nickname 'Farty Marty' came from Daniel when he was six when Martin, unable to feel when he needed to go to the bathroom, especially number two, would sometimes 'fart', but actually poop himself. Daniel loved to make fun of Martin for it, teasing him relentlessly for being crippled and unwanted by the rest of the town. Martin, in return, terrorized Daniel as much as he could given his inability to physically catch him. Despite how often the cops were called, it was war in that house.

Sometimes, after Daniel went off to do whatever he did, Martin would feel ashamed of himself and how he was acting. He would get up and do what he could to make the house a better living place because Daniel's behavior had to be his fault, right? He wasn't doing something to make the kid this way. Marty would even cook something for Daniel and shower so that he didn't stink nearly as bad as before. It was during one of these times, when Daniel was seven, that Martin realized he'd hurt his left big toe and it had started rotting. Apparently that explained the smell. The sheer sight of it scared Martin so bad that he pulled it off and flushed it down the toilet.

He was in the hospital the next day for two weeks due to deep infection and blood loss. Apparently a neighbor had tried to bring Daniel home and had walked into see Marty passed out on his half-made bed, bleeding from his foot, a trail leading all over the house showing that he'd been ignoring it as he dragged himself along, trying to pretend everything was fine. Once again, when Martin woke up, the doctors said that he was lucky to be alive. He laughed in their faces until he threw up.

It's now twelve years after Martin's accident and nine years since Daniel's birth. Martin hates the relationship he has made with Daniel, but doesn't know how to change it, especially since everyone in town believes Daniel over him anyway. He often wishes his parents had left at least a phone number, but they didn't and the tiny desert town still doesn't have shit for reception. The new cellphones the teenagers constantly bragging about never getting texts and their phone calls dropping as soon as they pass main street going away from the closest tower. The internet was still laughable.

Marin is stuck and he knows he did it to himself, but he doesn't know how to change it. Or if he even wants it to change.

Hook/Summary:
"I'm home you gross bastard!" Marty heard Daniel sneer from the front door before it slammed closed. They both knew this game, one more of a danger to Daniel than for Marty at this point. It'd been hours since the ten year old had been home and there was no way of telling if Martin was still in bed or not. Marty prepared himself as he heard scampering of nine year old feet come towards him. It gave Martin a thrill of happiness as he used one of his steel forearm crutches to trip Mart as he darted past, hearing skin slap onto cheap linoleum and then sliding painfully forward due to momentum.
"Ow you fucking asshole!" Daniel screamed, his brown eyes flashing angrily as he turned to stare up at Martin dragging himself out from a corner.
"Watch your language." Martin replied, swinging his crutch at Daniel again, who was quick enough to dodge the painful bruise that would have left.
"Make me you fucking cripple." Daniel sneered at Marty again from the corner of the room, though his face twisted with disgust once he noticed something. "Ugh, did you shit yourself again Farty Marty? It's the only reason you take a shower. Unless you finally found a girl who wants to come over and ride your useless dick."
Martin stopped heading for the fridge and laughed mockingly at Daniel, untangling his arm from one of his crutches, grabbing it with the other hand, and then flashing Daniel his 'useless dick.' "My useless dick will is bigger than yours will ever be." He mocked the ten year old cruelly. Martin was immediately ashamed of his actions as soon as he realized Daniel had a shocked and uncomfortable look on his face. Dammit, he'd told himself that he wasn't going to be doing this anymore. Sighing, he pulled his crutch back onto his brace and opened his mouth to apologize.
"God you're so fucking gross." Daniel said, eyes full of hatred and anger. With his piece said, Daniel ran back through the house, slamming the front door on his way out.
 
  • Nice Execution!
Reactions: The Mood is Write
Full Name:Bethany Bridges

Nicknames:Betts

Species:human

Occupation:Librarian, she works after hours restocking shelves and cleaning the library

Age:49

Sexuality:Asexual

Eyes:Muddy brown

Hair:Mousy brown

Features:Betts is average in just about every way. There is nothing memorable about her features, though neither is there anything repulsive about them. Her choice to wear very loose fitting non-descript clothing does not help overcome this fact.

Height: She stands 5' 7"

Build: Average height but above average strength and fitness from climbing ladders to restock shelf and lifting heavy piles of books every day.

Outfit:Loose oversized clothing, generally in black or dull colors, flat heeled shoes and usually a sweater with pockets over everything.

Body Mods:She has a birthmark on her right calf that resembles a flattened cat.

Impression:They see her and quickly forget about her, unless they happen to notice her odd behavior.

Voice:She speaks softly, just a habit from working in libraries, but her voice is pleasant enough.

Fears:Things being out of order which to her equals chaos and spiders

Motivation:Betts lives for order. Seeing row upon row of perfectly sequenced books is her ultimate high. She compulsively arranges anything she encounters into a logical order usually without even realizing she has done so until it's done.

~*~

Virtues:
Chastity
Diligence
Patience

Vices:
Lust
Wrath

Strengths:
Finding the logical pattern of order in chaos
Will work tirelessly until order is accomplished
Patient


Weaknesses:
Hates clutter
Wants things that she will never verbalize
cannot easily forgive ones who disturb her sense of order
too distracted to care for her own personal appearance or cleanliness

Quirks:
Checks locks three times each, often says the same thing three times, usually buys things in sets of three



~*~

History:
Betts has been closeted away most of her life. Her parents did not know how to handle her odd behavior and so sent her to a place that supposedly specialized in 'normalizing' problem children. This made them feel they had done their duty by her, and also relieved them of the stresses of dealing with her oddities. Officially diagnosed with OCD of the highest degree, this sentence has followed her all her life and in many ways crippled her. The school she'd been sent to had tried many ways to normalize her behavior, from shock therapy, to aversion therapy, and many others. Nothing ever 'cured' her and she was labeled a failure by the doctors there.

Knowing this however did not deter her. She was a bright child and excelled at schooling, especially math where he penchant for order and detail were of highest benefit. However, upon first entering a library her mind was at peace. It was if her entire universe achieved a sense of rightness and harmony within the perfect stacks of books. If she saw anything out of order she corrected it, and would feel that sense of peace return.

It wasn't difficult for her to choose her future profession based on that love of libraries alone. she did not attend regular classes but chose to school herself online. This played to her strength, but also to her weaknesses. She had been known to go weeks without bathing or even brushing her long hair. staying home for classes only extended that period of time to dangerous lengths.

She graduated with honors, though she did not attend the graduation. She applied for job after job and though her credentials and college grades made her a ideal candidate for all of them, her appearance and social ticks sent her away with nothing. Until one day she happened upon Ms. Grover's library. Catherine Grover saw the potential in Betts, and gave her strict rules to follow knowing that would appeal to the woman's OCD tendencies. She was to be bathed and groomed before entering the library out of respect for the books. She would work at night, when the library was closed to restore it to order and perfection for the following day. Betts was beyond ecstatic and immediately accepted the terms.

Though the conditions spoke to betts' condition in their strictness, in practice they were far more difficult to adhere to, especially the grooming part. Hair was such an annoyance. Tired of fighting with it, she grabbed scissors and cut her hair near the roots and afterward wore a wig which never had to be groomed or washed even. Working alone suited her, and took away the stigma of saying things in threes, or doing things in threes, or even of grouping things in threes. Whenever possible she put three chairs on a side of a table, and three stacks of paper by the copier, and three rows of pamphlets by the index files.

Hook/Summary:
One day as Betts entered the library at promptly 9 PM sharp, she heard the oddest noise. Intrigued she made her way to the origin of the sound only to find a man crawling out from under the sitting sofa near the restrooms. Which of them was more shocked was difficult to say, but both stared a long time before speaking.

"We are closed." She said in her soft voice.

"I am aware Madam."

"We are closed."

"Yes, you mentioned that."

"We are closed."

"Are you a robot?" he asked peering at her and actually pinching her to be certain.

"Ow!"

"Not a robot then. Look..Miss...ah...library person...I need a place to sleep. I will not bother you. I just need a place to sleep."

She was rubbing her arm for the third time when he explained his situation and reasons for being there after closing. "betts."

"what?"

"Betts."

"Oh for the love of Pete!...what?"

"Betts...is my name."

"Oh, Gregory Jeffries. Pleased to meet you, Betts. So, what do you say? May I rest here? I promise I will stay right here on the sofa..unless I need to use the loo..."

Betts thought for a moment, looking from the sofa to the bathrooms and back three times before looking at him again. "One time."

"Oh but Miss Betts...I may not find a place so quickly.."

"One time."

"But..."

"One time."

"Very well...one time tonight."

She nodded and went to work, waking him before she left so that he could leave before the others arrived. The next night the same sound as she arrived. "One time. One time One time."

He nodded, "One time tonight."