→ character study
Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is she heavyset, thin, short, rangy? Violet is 5’3.5” and she rounds it up to 5’4”; despite her petite stature, she has rather long legs. Her build is slender.
2. How old is she? 20, 21
3. Describe her posture. Does she carry herself well or does she slouch? She has wonderful posture and carries herself with pride - shoulders back, back straight. That being said, Violet is excellent at reading other people and will adjust her posture based on her company.
4. How is her health? Is she fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities? Violet is healthy with no preexisting conditions or physical disabilities. She is hardly able to participate in a marathon but she’s reasonably fit. She can take sprint down the street or take the stairs without getting winded and practices yoga, daily.
5. How does she move? Is she clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid? She moves with an almost innate sense of rhythm, all fluid moments and self-confidence.
6. How attractive is this character physically? How does she perceive herself in the mirror? Violet falls somewhere between cute and pretty and is not in the least unattractive. She knows as much and uses her looks to her advantage, when it suits her.
7. Describe her complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred? Violet has a clear complexion and pale skin but is able to hold a tan.
8. Describe her hair: color, texture, style. She has auburn hair which is lighter in summer and darker in winter. Naturally, her hair is wavy but Violet usually straightens or curls it. She has straight-bangs.
9. What color are her eyes? The Holmes children all have rather beautiful eyes. Violet’s eyes are listed as hazel but play hopscotch with the color spectrum and can appear to be blue, green or gray depending on what she is wearing or how she is feeling.
10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features? Violet has faint scarring in the shape of an eternity knot that is the result of edgeplay.
11. What are her chief tension centers? Violet carries tension in her neck and shoulders.
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? She has a varied wardrobe that ranges from casual to dressy and everything in between. However, she loves color and it is very rare to see her in solemn greys and blacks.
13. Do her clothes fit well? Does she seem comfortable in them? If Violet buys off-the-rack, she always has to have her pants hemmed but by and large her clothes do fit well (not counting fashions that are meant to be oversized.) She wears her clothes well and seems comfortable.
14. Does she dress the same on the job as she does in her free time? If not, what are the differences? Violet doesn’t really work but she is always well put-together in public. In private she values comfort: yoga pants, t-shirts, hair in a ponytail.
15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando? Violet has a drawer full of knickers in various styles, colors and cuts. She prefers “cheekini”.
Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse? Violet has a feminine voice, that is somewhere between soprano and alto.
2. How does she normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does she talk easily, or does she hesitate? She speaks easily, rarely hesitating. Violet speaks rather quickly, and her voice tends to be soft but clear. Her volume alters depending on her mood and she speaks overly fast when she’s excited or upset.
3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics? Violet has a non-regional, fairly posh British accent and adapts it, depending on her personal surroundings.
4. What language/s does she speak, and with how much fluency? Violet’s native tongue is English but she is by no means limited. She speaks French and German with confidence and if given a few hours she can pick up language easily.
5. Does she switch languages or dialects in certain situations? Largely, Violet speaks English but she does adapt her accent and adjust her wording to reflect the social circle she is currently moving within.
6. Is she a good impromptu speaker, or does she have to think about her words? It depends on the situation, honestly. She can debate off the cuff but prefers time to groom her words and fine-tune her speech if she is expected to speak in public.
7. Is she eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change? Violet is, hands down, an eloquent speaker.
Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is she book-smart or street-smart? Violet has a genius-level IQ and is immensely clever. Although not as savvy as Sherlock, she is reasonably street-smart and understands the way that people work.
2. Does she think on her feet, or does she need time to deliberate? It depends on the situation. She prefers time to deliberate.
3. Describe the character's thought process. Is she more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical? Violet is a Holmes and as such, logic runs in her veins. Despite this, she is more idealistic than either of her brothers though ultimately practical.
4. What kind of education has the character had? Her education is extensive. She studied in a well-to-do boarding school before following family tradition and attending Cambridge University to study mathematics. She graduated, with honors, from Trinity College at Cambridge and has a BA Math and an M Math.
5. What are her areas of expertise? What, if anything, is she interested in learning more about? Violet’s something of a Renaissance Woman and can become an expert at nearly anything she tries her hand at. As it is, she is an extremely gifted mathematician and well versed in computer sciences. She is a well-known hacker and an exceptional cellist.
6. Is she an introvert or an extrovert? She’s somewhere between the two, but given the chance she would prefer her own company or the company of just a select few others.
7. Describe the character's temperament. Is she even-tempered or does she have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven? Violet is driven. She is compelled to succeed and step out of her brothers’ shadows. But her personality is even and actually rather pleasing.
8. How does she respond to new people or situations? Is she suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic? Violet hates meeting new people, and new situations are not her favorite but she’s accepting of them and she can fake her way through it.
9. Is she more likely to act, or to react? She’s a bit of both, in truth, but she is more likely to sit and watch things unfold - to react - than to immediately take things into her own control.
10. Which is her default: fight or flight? She is a fighter.
11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does she appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks? By and large, her humor is dry and almost sarcastic.
12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does she deal with them? Violet probably has slight Asperger’s and is perhaps some symptoms of various Antisocial Personality Disorders.
13. What moments in this character's life have defined her as a person?
*Sherlock’s “death”
*Meeting Daniel
*Following Jim Moriarty to his hotel room for the first time
*The night that she killed Daniel King
*Her family finding out about her relationship with Moriarty
14. What does she fear? Violet’s ultimate fear is to die alone but more recently she has begun to fear Jim’s death more than her own. Superficially, she’s afraid of snakes.
15. What are her hopes or aspirations? Since meeting Jim, she lives in the moment and she doesn’t think much past a few months or years into the future. Short term, she wants to solve P vs NP and longer? She indulges the idea of children…of being a mother. More than that, she hopes Jim will stray from his Final Problem and stay with her, attentions away from Sherlock.
16. What is something she doesn't want anyone to find out about her? Violet would most definitely prefer that her sexual preferences not be discovered by anyone other than Jim.
Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with her parents. Like her brothers, Violet’s relationship with her parents is…complicated. The pair were simply not equipped to raise three children as extraordinary as Mycroft, Sherlock and Violet. Violet loves her parents and this should never be called to question, but she has a host of resentments. In particular, she and her mother tend to butt heads…especially after Violet reached puberty. Despite this, Violet still comes to holiday dinners and calls her parents from time to time.
2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like? Violet has three two older brothers and growing up as the younger sister of Mycroft and Sherlock Holmes is torturous. Their relationship is complex and an entire essay could be composed about Violet’s relationships with her brothers. To begin with, Mycroft was already at university when Violet was born and as such they never bonded as siblings. Instead, Mycroft has an almost paternal influence in Violet’s life. He is fiercely protective and has the ability to make his little sister feel as if she’s a mere child under his disapproving gaze. Sherlock, by contrast, is Violet’s favorite family member. The pair of them were actually very close when she was growing up. She was one of the few people who was allowed to see a softer, more empathetic side of Sherlock. The pair of them communicate exceptionally well through music with Sherlock on violin and Violet on cello. Despite the current strain on their relationship, Violet adores Sherlock.
3. Are there other blood relatives to whom she is close? Are there ones she can't stand? Violet is not terribly close with anyone else in her family and does not go out of her way to contact anyone outside of her immediate family.
4. Are there other, unrelated people whom she considers part of her family? What are her relationships with them? John and Mary Watson are, inarguably, part of the Holmes family. Though they are closer to Sherlock, Violet gets on well enough with the Watson family.
5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet? Violet does not, necessarily, have a best friend. See 7 for a better explanation.
6. Does she have other close friends? See 7.
7. Does she make friends easily, or does she have trouble getting along with people? Violet is a bit of an enigma in this aspect. By and large, her social life is superficial. She can play nice and is capable of adhering to social contract; she can make friends with relatively little trouble and she has “friends” but these are not people she would trust with her life or count on. These friendships have an expiration date and are gone as soon as they outlive their convenience…Violet doesn’t mind.
8. Which does she consider more important: family or friends? Family. If the friend is close enough, Violet will consider them family.
9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has she been married more than once? Single, but engaged.
10. Is she currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse? Violet is engaged to be married to Jim Moriarty, much to her brothers’ dismay. The relationship has been fluid and fast-paced. She is undeniably in love with the criminal and while what they have should not, necessarily, be considered romantic it is more honest and deep than what most couples have.
11. Who was her first crush? Who is her latest? Her first crush was Prince William, like any British girl. Her latest crush is James Moriarty. Obviously her tastes have changed.
12. What does she look for in a romantic partner? Ordinarily, Violet seeks out partners who are normal and this means settling for someone who cannot challenge her on an emotional level but serves a very particular purpose: the clever the man, the more prone he is to a host of personality disorders - men unable to love. Violet typically judges her suitors on the idea that they can be an adequate provider, husband, and father children who won’t be predisposed to psychopathy.
13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does she relate to them? If no, does she want any? No/No/NA
14. Does she have any rivals or enemies? Online, certainly. Outside of that, Sherlock and Mycroft have made enough rivals and enemies to go around and Violet is not particularly keen on making new ones.
15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does she fall on the Kinsey scale? The Kinsey scale is inaccurate - sexuality is not a number on a scale. Violet identifies as straight.
16. How does she feel about sex? How important is it to her? In previous relationships, sex has been a means to an end. However, her relationship with Jim has resulted in a sort of sexual reawakening. The pair have excellent sexual chemistry and as such, sex has become exponentially more important.
17. What are her turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits? Violet is turned on by confidence, more than anything and as such her biggest turn off is a man who needs her constant reassurance. As far as weird bedroom habits? She has her fair share and is collecting more. She experiments with BDSM and enjoys a few things (light bondage is her favorite but she’s played with a few more dangerous kinks) but this is by no means a requirement to get her off.
Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does she fit type? Violet is an Aries on a Taurus cusp and her Chinese zodiac symbol is the Monkey. She puts absolutely zero stock in Astrology, but each of these signs have their merits and flaws.
2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in her life? Neither. Violet finds religion to be silly, despite her interest in Theology, and doesn’t believe in a higher power - not truly.
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? Violet could be considered a chaotic neutral. Her morals and ethics are fluid and not exactly on par with what is considered traditional. She ordinarily adheres to those traditional morals, but is ultimately fluid and self-interested.
4. How does she regard beliefs that differ from hers? Is she tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent? It depends on the beliefs, truthfully. She is endlessly curious about religion. She is tolerant of other sexual orientations. However, she is intolerant of ignorance and hate; following Russia’s hateful legislation against homosexuality, Violet implemented a series of DoS attacks.
5. What prejudices does she hold? Are they irrational or does she have a good reason for them? She’s prejudiced against stupid people; this could be considered both for a good reason and wholly irrational.
Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is she rich, poor, comfortable, in debt? The Holmes family is comfortable. Violet, as a university student, didn’t really have a status of her own; Mycroft issued her an allowance and she had an excess of scholarship money. She also makes good money when she does contract work. She’s likely to make a good living for herself when she gets started.
2. What is her social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected her? Violet’s social status is dependent on where she is. She is a queen, online, in the darkest corners of the internet where hackers congregate: 3L3m3ntary is world-renowned. She’s highly revered in Academia, as well but she’s never been terribly popular with peers; Violet Holmes can play nice, but she has never been Queen Bee.
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? During her time in university, Violet maintained a one-bedroom flat in Cambridge that was her very soul. She’s planning on moving to a Soho loft that Jim owns but it’s more likely she’ll end up living with him, properly.
4. Besides the basic necessities, what does she spend her money on? Clothes are a favorite of Violet’s. She is also very fond of first edition books and little gifts for Moriarty - a pair of cufflinks by Alexander McQueen, a stiletto switchblade, etc.
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 a freelance hacker, usually for MI6; Mycroft employs her to test the security on various government websites on a semi-regular basis.
6. What are her interests or hobbies? How does she spend her free time? Violet’s hobbies are not the hobbies of an ordinary twenty-something. She loves mathematics and spends quite a bit of time attempting to solve the Millennium problems. She is a hacktivist, and has been known to cause (mostly) harmless trouble across the internet. Violet also reads, plays the cello, and is very fond of dancing…and sex.
7. What are her eating habits? Does she skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods? Violet never eats breakfast and can go days on just coffee and cigarettes. However, such bad eating habits were typically brought around during midterms and examinations. She can cook but hates the mess of it and she has a weakspot for Thai take-out. She hates the texture of corn.
Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is her favorite:
1. Color? Teal.
2. Smell? J’Adore.
3. Time of day? Twilight.
4. Season? Spring.
5. Book? Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions
6. Music? Eclectic. Violet’s tastes range from classical to top-40.
7. Place? Cambridge.
8. Substance? Coffee.
9. Plant? Violets, naturally. All candor and innocence.
10. Animal? The fox; playful and clever.
END
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