Character Survey Meme
Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is she heavyset, thin, short, rangy? Jilly is 5'0 tall...or, more specifically, just a little over it. Not quite 5'1. She's tiny, very gamine like in face and build.
2. How old is she? 24
3. Describe her posture. Does she carry herself well or does she slouch? She's got good posture unless she's sketching. Then she can be found huddled around her sketchbook.
4. How is her health? Is she fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities? She's in decent shape and stays pretty healthy. She doesn't exactly work out, but she's constantly on the move and dancing and working, so she keeps up.
5. How does she move? Is she clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid? Fluid and constant.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does she perceive herself in the mirror? She's pretty, but she doesn't really work at it. Her hair is usually tangled and she tends to dress is baggy, paint-stained clothes.
7. Describe her complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred? Light.
8. Describe her hair: color, texture, style. She's got dark brown, wildly curly hair (that's usually got extra color from paint).
9. What color are her eyes? Very, very blue.
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features? Just the paint, really.
11. What are her chief tension centers? Probably shoulders and neck? Idk?
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? Very casual. Usually not formfitting. She has a penchant for construction boots, fingerless gloves, and baggy everything.
13. Do her clothes fit well? Does she seem comfortable in them? Fitting well? No. But she's perfectly comfortable.
14. Does she dress the same on the job as she does in her free time? If not, what are the differences? She wears a uniform when working at Kathryn's cafe, but when helping at shelters or just painting or going out with friends, it's the everyday attire.
15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando? Briefs?
Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse? Not sure. Not grating or particularly melodic, though. It's not really mentioned in text.
2. How does she normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does she talk easily, or does she hesitate? Fast and with a great deal of enthusiasm/excitement.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics? She has a more rural, twangy accent if she spends too much time talking about where she came from or if she goes back to visit. She also calls her best friend "Geordie, me lad," even though she's not irish... but he is, so that's more teasing than tic.
4. What language/s does she speak, and with how much fluency? English. Headcannon says a little bit of spanish and/or french from working lots of minimum wage jobs close to the canadian border.
5. Does she switch languages or dialects in certain situations? If she's reminded of her past and gets to talking about it, she can get a bit of a twang to her voice, but that's it.
6. Is she a good impromptu speaker, or does she have to think about her words? She's a good impromptu everything.
7. Is she eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change? Eloquent, except when faced with relationships or her blood-relatives.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is she book-smart or street-smart? Very intelligent and she strongly values education. She's a little of both. She's lived on the streets and has a lot of common sense (not that it always shows), and she's got a college education.
2. Does she think on her feet, or does she need time to deliberate? She very much thinks on her feet.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is she more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical? Her actions tend to come across as intuitive and idealistic, but, if asked, she can explain the reasoning behind it. She's a lot more rational than she first appears.
4. What kind of education has the character had? Dropped out of middle/high school, went back to get her GED and college degree.
5. What are her areas of expertise? What, if anything, is she interested in learning more about? Art, mythology and fairy tales, and she loves learning...so...pretty much anything.
6. Is she an introvert or an extrovert? Extrovert
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is she even-tempered or does she have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven? She's incessantly cheerful and even-tempered. It's hard to shake that good mood (though she's easy to excite).
8. How does she respond to new people or situations? Is she suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic? She's openly friendly and enthusiastic. She loves new people. But she's got more wariness than is immediately apparent.
9. Is she more likely to act, or to react? Act.
10. Which is her default: fight or flight? Difficult question... probably flight? She doesn't really have a fighter's instinct. But, after deciding she'd never be a victim again, she tends to choose fight anyway. Verbally, though... she'd be useless in a physical fight.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does she appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks? She loves to laugh. Puns would probably make her silly. I'm sure she's been involved with pranks. And she loves to tease.
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does she deal with them? No.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined her as a person? The abuse she went through as a child, Lou finding her on the streets, learning she could make a difference by telling her story, getting her degree.
14. What does she fear? Her brother. Being a victim.
15. What are her hopes or aspirations? She wants to help others who have been in her shoes and stop others from being put through the same things.
16. What is something she doesn't want anyone to find out about her? That she's pretty broken, emotionally, under the surface.
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with her parents. Not there. She doesn't hate them, but she would never want to go back.
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like? She had 3 brothers and a little sister. Del = bastard and sick, twisted pervert. Raylene = the one she tried to protect, until she ran away. Other two brothers = nonentities. Jerks, but more in Del's shadow than instigators.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom she is close? Are there ones she can't stand? She isn't close to any of her blood relatives.
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom she considers part of her family? What are her relationships with them? This list is huge, but the main ones are probably Lou and Angel (took her off the streets... like parents), Wendy and Sophie (part of her tribe of small, fierce women), the Professor (her sponsor and dear friend), and Geordie (her best friend)
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet? Geordie Riddell. They ran into each other (literally) while working at a Post Office during the holidays.
6. Does she have other close friends? Countless.
7. Does she make friends easily, or does she have trouble getting along with people? She makes friends like breathing.
8. Which does she consider more important: family or friends? To her, they're one and the same.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has she been married more than once? Single, and has an incredibly hard time getting into relationships.
10. Is she currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse? No.
11. Who was her first crush? Who is her latest? Her first canon boyfriend (that we know of) is a guy named Rob, who discovered his life's ambition was to be a pimp. Her latest crush is Geordie, not that she'd ever admit it.
12. What does she look for in a romantic partner? She tries not to think about it, but she'd need someone who could know about her past and accept her with patience and without judging or taking advantage of it.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does she relate to them? If no, does she want any? No, but she later gets a god-daughter.
14. Does she have any rivals or enemies? Her sister, though she doesn't find out until later.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does she fall on the Kinsey scale? 0 or 1?
16. How does she feel about sex? How important is it to her? It terrifies her. And, unless she's high or drunk, she'll have an incredibly hard time with anything intimate. Since she doesn't do drugs any more and won't drink more than two beers, that means this is pretty much a no-go.
17. What are her turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits? Hard to say, considering how tangled her feelings on sex are.
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does she fit type? Don't know it, unfortunately
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in her life? She's either Christian or Agnostic, but she is less worried about the faith aspect and more interested in living her life in a way that helps others. She doesn't go to church (and Catholic churches make her uncomfortable)
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? She wont' write anyone off as unsaveable or beyond hope, because she would have said she was beyond hope when Lou and Angel saved her, so anyone has a chance.
4. How does she regard beliefs that differ from hers? Is she tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent? She's incredibly tolerant and very curious.
5. What prejudices does she hold? Are they irrational or does she have a good reason for them? Her prejudice would be more towards "rednecks" because of the experiences she had growing up in Tyson County (Hillbilly Holler). Otherwise, she's pretty accepting.
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is she rich, poor, comfortable, in debt? Poor and happy with it.
2. What is her social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected her? She's lower/middle to middle class. Considering she used to be homeless? This is a huge step up.
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? Apartment. It's a studio, just with her living there, and it's a place to do some of her art.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does she spend her money on? Charities, art supplies (though those are basic necessities for her), friends, coffee.
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? She's an artist (very talented), a waitress/barista (incredibly friendly), and a volunteer at countless charities.
6. What are her interests or hobbies? How does she spend her free time? Music. She loves music and dancing. Also...free time? What free time?
7. What are her eating habits? Does she skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods? She eats cheap, but she'll eat all meals if she can afford them. She doesn't drink much at all.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is her favorite:
1. Color? Yellow
2. Smell? Paint thinner
3. Time of day? Morning
4. Season? Summer (longer daylight hours and warm enough to do plenty of wandering)
5. Book? canon mentions a book of fairy tales.
6. Music? Irish reels
7. Place? Newford (cities)
8. Substance? As in drugs? Probably heroin.
9. Plant? Sunflower
10. Animal? Puppy
END
{{ Get the HTML here so you can do it yourself. }}