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Character survey
BODY AND APPEARANCE 1. Describe the character's height and build. Is she heavyset, thin, short, rangy? A little above the average height for girls her age at 5'7", and about average weight, if not slightly heavier. She has an amount of extra chub, mostly around her hips and thighs due to her inactive lifestyle and problems regulating her diet (thanks to her hybrid digestive system). 2. How old is she? 17 years old, and in her final year of high school. 3. Describe her posture. Does she carry herself well or does she slouch? Prone to slouching and slumping around like she's reluctant to be anywhere. 4. How is her health? Is she fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities? More or less normal. She prefers to live an indoor life plonked in front of a games console or computer, so her physical tone is less than great. But otherwise she's fairly healthy, though she does often have problems sleeping due to being innately nocturnal and forcing herself to go against that drive to function at the same time as the rest of society (Maya, her octopus hybrid friend, also has this problem), and she needs to take a few special hybrid-tailored supplements and vitamins to help her body absorb the nutrients from her food. She gets sick sometimes just like everybody else, and like many hybrids can be hit unexpectedly hard by common bugs, but her immune system isn't in too bad a shape. Steph suffers from moderate sensorineural hearing loss, a disorder where the hair cells within the cochlea are damaged, preventing sound signals from reaching the brain. Hers is genetic (given that one of her younger siblings has also just begun to display symptoms) and she was diagnosed as a child. The condition has worsened as Steph has grown older, making it difficult for her to hear clearly in environments where there is background noise. She has trouble understanding people from over the phone, joining with group conversations, and locating where sounds are coming from. She has been told that she may one day completely lose her hearing. 5. How does she move? Is she clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid? Stiffly, adding an air of unapproachability to her body language. Her movements are deliberate and forward with a sharp edge to them, and she appears uncomfortable in most situations, like she's on the very verge of getting up and walking away at all times. She becomes more tense and her posture takes on a more alert form when she's in loud environments where she has to struggle more to hear. 6. How attractive is this character physically? How does she perceive herself in the mirror? Steph gives little care to how other people perceive her, but does not believe that many others would view her as attractive, as she is a hybrid. She went through a phase of being self conscious about her leaf-nose, and believes this would put other people off too. Nowadays she puts little care into her appearance. She wears no makeup (the fact her face is mostly furry means there's little need for it, though Kelly used to nag her to at least try apply mascara and a little lip gloss) and the full extent of her grooming routine involves brushing her hair and fluffing out her fur in the morning. 7. Describe her complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred? In a word: furry. Most of Steph's body is covered in short, medium-brown fur or hair. She has no visible complexion to speak of, though she can start to look haggard around the eyes if she hasn't been sleeping right. 8. Describe her hair: color, texture, style. Long, straight, and dark brown. Steph doesn't use any dyes or heated styling tools so it's thick and healthy. It reaches just below her shoulder blades at the back, while some of the front sections are cut shorter and sit a few inches below her collarbone. Her bangs sit at eyebrow level and have a straight, blunt cut. 9. What color are her eyes? Dark brown, a similar shade to her hair. 10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features? A leaf-nose like her genetic ancestor, the artibeus watsoni, and large bat ears that are rounded at the bottom and taper towards the tips. A trait that is unique to Steph is the excess of long, tufty fur surrounding her neck and ears. Nobody else in Steph's family line shares this characteristic, and it's thought to be the result of a genetic mutation (as are common in hybrids). The fur around her neck juts out like a fur collar and tapers downward to end in a downward point at the centre of her chest. 11. What are her chief tension centers? Wrists, elbows and neck/upper back, since she tends to be at the computer often. 12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does she have six of the same suit? Lots of subdued, monochromatic clothes that blend in with the crowd, interspersed with much brighter comic book series brand clothing with bold super hero emblems. She has a small selection of "nice" clothes picked out for her by her mother when she's in town, but otherwise she dresses like a teenage nerd. She favours long sleeves and pant legs over shorter styles and often wears plain long sleeve shirts beneath her t-shirts. 13. Do her clothes fit well? Does she seem comfortable in them? Teen nerd clothes are like the easiest clothes to be comfortable in, let's be real. Most of her clothes fit well, but she likes her hoodies and jackets to be a little over-large. Larger sizes are more snuggly, you can hide your hands inside of them, and the pockets have more room for your ridiculously oversized "phablet" phones. 14. Does she dress the same on the job as she does in her free time? If not, what are the differences? Steph is an unemployed student, but her school uniform consists of smart, boring trousers, sneakers (she technically shouldn't be allowed to wear them, but the school is lax with its uniform policies due to the variety of sizes and shapes its students come in), and slightly oversized school jumpers. 15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando? Girl boxers with superhero emblem print, or high-leg briefs. SPEECH 1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse? Lower pitched and at points more nasally than most girls her age. Due to her hearing disability affecting how she perceives speech she lisps on certain words and sounds, particularly "h" or "s"sounds. 2. How does she normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does she talk easily, or does she hesitate? Steph speaks fairly little, and when she does it's measured and even. Her tone is even with a flat delivery, but she can be loud — sometimes too loud, particularly in an environment with background noise. This is due to her poor hearing. 3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics? Again, Steph lisps, but outside of that she has few distinct vocal quirks. Because she aims for clarity and brevity, her sentences have few useless filler-words, but being a teen she does tend to use contractions often and sometimes the odd article of internet slang might slip into her vocabulary, especially if talking with friends. Her accent is one native to the Dorbank region. 4. What language/s does she speak, and with how much fluency? In terms of spoken and written language, only Malevonainian, her native tongue. Steph also knows a small amount of sign language — Malevonanian Signed Language (or MSL) and Pidgin Signed Malevonaian (PSM). PSM is combination of MSL and Malevonanian and follows the syntax of Malevonanian. 5. Does she switch languages or dialects in certain situations? No; Steph speaks in more or less the same manner no matter the situation. 6. Is she a good impromptu speaker, or does she have to think about her words? She takes a moment to think before speaking and chooses her words carefully, rarely misspeaking or diverging from what she was originally trying to say. Her care with her speech comes from the fact that she has problems communicating with people, and has found that the more simple and brief she keeps what she has to say, the more simple and brief the response is likely to be. 7. Is she eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change? Eloquent...ish. She's clear and to the point, but also dislikes talking a lot and tends to speak a little slower than most people. She's rarely the sort to ramble quickly or at length unless speaking with a person she trusts, in an isolated environment where she can hear herself and them clearly. MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL 1. How intelligent is this character? Is she book-smart or street-smart? ANSWER HERE 2. Does she think on her feet, or does she need time to deliberate? ANSWER HERE 3. Describe the character's thought process. Is she more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical? ANSWER HERE 4. What kind of education has the character had? ANSWER HERE 5. What are her areas of expertise? What, if anything, is she interested in learning more about? ANSWER HERE 6. Is she an introvert or an extrovert? ANSWER HERE 7. Describe the character's temperament. Is she even-tempered or does she have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven? ANSWER HERE 8. How does she respond to new people or situations? Is she suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic? ANSWER HERE 9. Is she more likely to act, or to react? ANSWER HERE 10. Which is her default: fight or flight? ANSWER HERE 11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does she appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks? ANSWER HERE 12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does she deal with them? ANSWER HERE 13. What moments in this character's life have defined her as a person? ANSWER HERE 14. What does she fear? ANSWER HERE 15. What are her hopes or aspirations? ANSWER HERE 16. What is something she doesn't want anyone to find out about her? ANSWER HERE RELATIONSHIPS 1. Describe this character's relationship with her parents. ANSWER HERE 2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like? ANSWER HERE 3. Are there other blood relatives to whom she is close? Are there ones she can't stand? ANSWER HERE 4. Are there other, unrelated people whom she considers part of her family? What are her relationships with them? ANSWER HERE 5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet? ANSWER HERE 6. Does she have other close friends? ANSWER HERE 7. Does she make friends easily, or does she have trouble getting along with people? ANSWER HERE 8. Which does she consider more important: family or friends? ANSWER HERE 9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has she been married more than once? ANSWER HERE 10. Is she currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse? ANSWER HERE 11. Who was her first crush? Who is her latest? ANSWER HERE 12. What does she look for in a romantic partner? ANSWER HERE 13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does she relate to them? If no, does she want any? ANSWER HERE 14. Does she have any rivals or enemies? ANSWER HERE 15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does she fall on the Kinsey scale? ANSWER HERE 16. How does she feel about sex? How important is it to her? ANSWER HERE 17. What are her turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits? ANSWER HERE BELIEFS ANSWER HERE 2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in her life? ANSWER HERE 3. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it? ANSWER HERE 4. How does she regard beliefs that differ from hers? Is she tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent? ANSWER HERE 5. What prejudices does she hold? Are they irrational or does she have a good reason for them? ANSWER HERE DAILY LIFE 1. What is the character's financial situation? Is she rich, poor, comfortable, in debt? ANSWER HERE 2. What is her social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected her? ANSWER HERE 3. Where does she live? House, apartment, trailer? Is her home her castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does she share it with others? ANSWER HERE 4. Besides the basic necessities, what does she spend her money on? ANSWER HERE 5. What does she do for a living? Is she good at it? Does she enjoy it, or would she rather be doing something else? ANSWER HERE 6. What are her interests or hobbies? How does she spend her free time? ANSWER HERE 7. What are her eating habits? Does she skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods? ANSWER HERE ASSOCIATIONS Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is her favorite: 1. Color? Lavender2. Smell? That sharp, acidic smell emitted by certain electronic devices.3. Time of day? Dusk4. Season? Autumn5. Book? Some influential book on programming or something6. Music? Superhero movie soundtracks7. Place? Her bedroom, or someplace high up8. Substance? Air9. Plant? Foxglove10. Animal? Neotropical fruit batEND {{ Get the HTML here so you can do it yourself. }} |