Supplemental
Remi is her own antagonist
The goal is to create characters that you really love AND really hate, because of their slightly self destructive characteristics. They don't mean to be, but being products of their circumstances, they tend to hold themselves back a little. I want the audience to cheer for them, and then be disappointed and slightly angry when they make the WRONG choices, because when they make the right ones, it will be more intense. I want relateable characters, people you know, maybe even yourself, and that's hard to convey in a synopsis without sounding corny. I want the best friend who you cheer for and feel intense disappointment when she shacks up with some guy living in his basement that she met over WoW. That's Remi. She isn't stupid and she isn't a brat, she wants to solve her own problems, but her dad has always solved them for her, and is still constantly telling her that she can always come back home and he'll fix things. Remi doesn't want to do that. Although she thinks that romance novel romance is her end goal, she realizes that she has real goals that are for her and only her, things she needs to take care of and accomplish. She learns what she needs to hold up her head, and sometimes she fails and sometimes she succeeds. Julia's the same. She comes from a small town that's slightly misogynistic. She's been raised to think she can't do it on her own. Her sister gets knocked up at 13 and her parents praise her for catching a man, for starting early. Maybelline (her sister) and Joline (Julia) were really close, Joline is intensely disappointed and realizes that her town is toxic, and that it's time to get away NOW. Remi reminds Julia of her sister, and Julia's relationship with Remi is very sisterly, to the point where Julia can get bitter and angry at Remi's poor choices. Remi doesn't realize this, and sometimes thinks Julia is just a bitch, and Julia never explains it because she's too embarassed. She thinks that by escaping the town, she's escaped her life of poverty and oppression, but she's continuing bad habits. Julia's been raised to think that she can never be successful without a man, so she tries to date successful men because she wants success for herself. Her only positive female role model in this town was the news anchorwoman, and this really left an impression on Julia, although she's tried to repress it in her attempts to chase down wealthy men. She can be extremely manipulative, and other women usually know better to stay out of her way, but she's a good person at heart and very generous.
Sammy's entire childhood was full of abuse and being ignored, the only people who cared about her were her special ed teachers and her paid caretakers. Sammy wants someone who will love her for her in a familial way, she wants a safe place to fall. She tends to push people away because she fears that they'll eventually reject her, which is what she does with Remi at first. Remi has a little experience with special ed children (her mother is a 5th grade special ed teacher), and while it's a little offputting (Remi never knows that Sammy is autistic), Remi persists (at first, because she refuses to go home defeated, and later because she has a real friendship with Sammy and Julia). When Sammy realizes that Remi isn't going to desert her, she becomes extremely attached, to the point of following Remi to her classes and sitting in the back playing handheld videogames.
Towards the end of the story, Julia's past comes back (her parents track her down, gawk at the apartment, hound her about getting married and having kids) and Sammy and Remi realize why Julia is the way she is. Julia and Remi bond over Remi's failed attempts at writing romance novels, and Julia confides in Remi that she always wanted to be an anchorwoman. Remi strongly encourages Julia to go for it, praising her appearance and poise, and Julia begins taking classes in earnest towards her goal. As Julia begins achieving her goals, she stops chasing wealthy men and allows herself to start dating the guy she actually cares for- a cop from the local elementary school.
Through the course of the story, Remi's love interest Luke tries to win Remi over in a variety of ways (none of which include him actually ASKING her), even writing a sci fi romance where they are the main characters. Although Remi has strong feelings for Luke, she constantly pushes them aside because he isn't man enough to ask her out, and she refuses to break the romance novel code. In the end, nothing is resolved (although they are still young, Remi is only 22 by the end of RSG) and Remi steps up to fill Julia's shoes as Sammy's permanent caretaker. Luke is still in Remi's life, publishing short science fiction stories and is changing his sci fi romance to stand on it's own as a novel and not just as a serenade to Remi. Sammy realizes that she needs to start taking responsibility for herself, and takes community ed classes such as financial responsibility, housekeeping, and begins taking driver's ed, so that Remi is not so much a caretaker as a roommate. The story does not end with a typical 'happy ending', there is no solidified romance for Remi, but it does end on an optimistic note that they will continue to pursue their own personal goals and work towards a future that they have determined for themselves.
The goal is to create characters that you really love AND really hate, because of their slightly self destructive characteristics. They don't mean to be, but being products of their circumstances, they tend to hold themselves back a little. I want the audience to cheer for them, and then be disappointed and slightly angry when they make the WRONG choices, because when they make the right ones, it will be more intense. I want relateable characters, people you know, maybe even yourself, and that's hard to convey in a synopsis without sounding corny. I want the best friend who you cheer for and feel intense disappointment when she shacks up with some guy living in his basement that she met over WoW. That's Remi. She isn't stupid and she isn't a brat, she wants to solve her own problems, but her dad has always solved them for her, and is still constantly telling her that she can always come back home and he'll fix things. Remi doesn't want to do that. Although she thinks that romance novel romance is her end goal, she realizes that she has real goals that are for her and only her, things she needs to take care of and accomplish. She learns what she needs to hold up her head, and sometimes she fails and sometimes she succeeds. Julia's the same. She comes from a small town that's slightly misogynistic. She's been raised to think she can't do it on her own. Her sister gets knocked up at 13 and her parents praise her for catching a man, for starting early. Maybelline (her sister) and Joline (Julia) were really close, Joline is intensely disappointed and realizes that her town is toxic, and that it's time to get away NOW. Remi reminds Julia of her sister, and Julia's relationship with Remi is very sisterly, to the point where Julia can get bitter and angry at Remi's poor choices. Remi doesn't realize this, and sometimes thinks Julia is just a bitch, and Julia never explains it because she's too embarassed. She thinks that by escaping the town, she's escaped her life of poverty and oppression, but she's continuing bad habits. Julia's been raised to think that she can never be successful without a man, so she tries to date successful men because she wants success for herself. Her only positive female role model in this town was the news anchorwoman, and this really left an impression on Julia, although she's tried to repress it in her attempts to chase down wealthy men. She can be extremely manipulative, and other women usually know better to stay out of her way, but she's a good person at heart and very generous.
Sammy's entire childhood was full of abuse and being ignored, the only people who cared about her were her special ed teachers and her paid caretakers. Sammy wants someone who will love her for her in a familial way, she wants a safe place to fall. She tends to push people away because she fears that they'll eventually reject her, which is what she does with Remi at first. Remi has a little experience with special ed children (her mother is a 5th grade special ed teacher), and while it's a little offputting (Remi never knows that Sammy is autistic), Remi persists (at first, because she refuses to go home defeated, and later because she has a real friendship with Sammy and Julia). When Sammy realizes that Remi isn't going to desert her, she becomes extremely attached, to the point of following Remi to her classes and sitting in the back playing handheld videogames.
Towards the end of the story, Julia's past comes back (her parents track her down, gawk at the apartment, hound her about getting married and having kids) and Sammy and Remi realize why Julia is the way she is. Julia and Remi bond over Remi's failed attempts at writing romance novels, and Julia confides in Remi that she always wanted to be an anchorwoman. Remi strongly encourages Julia to go for it, praising her appearance and poise, and Julia begins taking classes in earnest towards her goal. As Julia begins achieving her goals, she stops chasing wealthy men and allows herself to start dating the guy she actually cares for- a cop from the local elementary school.
Through the course of the story, Remi's love interest Luke tries to win Remi over in a variety of ways (none of which include him actually ASKING her), even writing a sci fi romance where they are the main characters. Although Remi has strong feelings for Luke, she constantly pushes them aside because he isn't man enough to ask her out, and she refuses to break the romance novel code. In the end, nothing is resolved (although they are still young, Remi is only 22 by the end of RSG) and Remi steps up to fill Julia's shoes as Sammy's permanent caretaker. Luke is still in Remi's life, publishing short science fiction stories and is changing his sci fi romance to stand on it's own as a novel and not just as a serenade to Remi. Sammy realizes that she needs to start taking responsibility for herself, and takes community ed classes such as financial responsibility, housekeeping, and begins taking driver's ed, so that Remi is not so much a caretaker as a roommate. The story does not end with a typical 'happy ending', there is no solidified romance for Remi, but it does end on an optimistic note that they will continue to pursue their own personal goals and work towards a future that they have determined for themselves.