It’s almost time for Camp NaNo again! Last year was my first time participating—I set a modest goal of 10,000 words, and ended up putting a little more than 14,000 toward my rewrite of One of Ours. This year I’m starting a project from scratch and taking on a slightly bigger challenge of 20,000 words, which I figure should get me most of the way through my first draft of The Mountain of the Wolf (very brief synopsis at my NaNo profile). In order to get warmed up, I thought I’d do this month’s Beautiful People (hosted by Sky and Cait) to get a little better acquainted with one of my story’s protagonists, Rosa Jean Kennedy—and I guess it worked, because I had a few good new ideas while answering these questions.
What first inspired this character? Is there a person/actor you based them off?
Actually, this character and this whole story began with a name. One day as an experiment I wrote out a chart of compound girls’ names—you know, Mary Ann, Betty Lou and so forth—in my “name notebook,” trying to see how many creative combinations I could come up with. When I was trying out the name “Rosa” for the first part, I came up with Rosa Jane or Rosa Jean, and I liked the latter name so much that I started imagining what sort of character it would belong to. I came up with a vague concept for a Western about a girl whose brother was murdered…and later when I had the idea to write a Little Red Riding Hood retelling, I matched it with that scrap of imagining and The Mountain of the Wolf was born. When I created my Pinterest board I found some pictures of an actress who matched my mental image very well, but that came later.
What is one major event that helped shape who they are?
Her older brother’s death, which left her to fend for herself, and left her with the desire for revenge that drives all her actions.
Write a list of things they merely tolerate. Ex: certain people, foods, circumstances in their lives…
At the head of this list would be Charlie and Wirt. They may have been her brother’s friends, but that’s the only thing that would make her tolerate them. Her means of making a living—cooking for and boarding itinerant mustangers and prospectors on their way back into the hills—is something she doesn’t particularly care for, but treats as a necessity.
How do they react in awkward silences?
For Rosa Jean, silence is a weapon of self-defense. It’s usually the other person involved who feels the awkwardness.
What theme song(s) fit their personality and story arc?
I hadn’t thought about this until I got the question during #WIPjoy on Twitter, but then I realized that “Lost” by Michael Bublé actually fits many aspects of Rosa Jean’s character at the outset of the story really well.
Do they believe in giving other people second chances? Do they have any trust issues?
Trust issues, yes. She’s been sharply disillusioned by the cowardly or indifferent behavior of people she counted on to seek justice for her brother, and so is in the habit of anticipating selfishness or weakness in anyone she meets. You might persuade her to give someone a second chance if you coaxed hard, but she would do it warily and without expecting much.
Your character is having a rough day…what things do they do to make them happy again? Is there anyone they talk/interact with to get in a better mood?
When she’s upset, she usually takes refuge in some kind of hard work—cleaning out a chicken coop, scrubbing the floor, baking a pie. Physical hard work helps her vent frustration and quiet her mind.
What do your other characters have to say about them?
Some of them just think she’s incredibly obstinate, and others can’t figure her out at all.
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