I’m cheating a little and doing all this in one blog post instead of answering one a day on my Minds account. I’m travelling right now, so I won’t be posting regularly, but I haven’t completed one of these tags in a few months and wanted to make sure this one wouldn’t be forgotten like the others.
Introduce your character and story they’re from:
Sole & Callan are from Black Zone Reports. Yes, I’m cheating more by using two characters instead of one, but they’re a package deal. Since Black Zone Reports is a collection of smaller stories, these two are not the only main characters, but with the way things are shaping up, their story will probably be at the beginning of the book.
Sole is the daughter of a big city cop and Callan is the son of an astronaught living on the opposite side of the neighborhood. When the first wave of the Obsidian Plague hits after a ball of fire lights the night sky, Sole is left to fend for herself with the help of her dog Tinker while Callan takes to hunkering down is his ruined home. Though young, these two must find a way to scrape by in the aftermath of the destruction.
5 words to describe character:
Sole: Protective, Fiery, Focused, Denialist, Blunt
Callan: Gentle, Innocent, Overwhelmed, Accepting, Comforting
Character goal at start:
Sole: Left alone with her dog at home the night everything collapsed, Sole is determined to search her ruined neighborhood for food, to find people in need of assistance, and to kill the new monsterous creatures roaming the streets with her father’s hunting rifle. Though barely eleven years old, she sees it as her duty to straighten things out as her father has yet to return from the city.
Callan: Unlike Sole, Callan hardly even takes care of himself after the collapse. With dustruction surrounding him on every side and chaos engulfing everything he’s ever known, he has no room for goals in his mind. He’s in a haze of sorrow and shock when Sole stumbles across him.
Character philosophy:
Sole: “If I don’t do it, no one will”
Callan: “There’s always more than meets the eye. Patience and kindness should always be the first step”
Character’s fear:
Sole: Losing the ones close to her. Her mother ditched her as a child, and there was nothing she could do to prevent it. She’s always worried she won’t be able to keep the people she loves.
Callan: Chaos. Being thrown into situations he’s incapable of handling. Everything feels overwhelming to him, and having grown up in a protected bubble only makes that worse.
Character’s strength:
Sole: Initiative and the willingness to follow through against insurmountable odds. She is just as firey as her namesake suggests, doing whatever she can to burn through the obstacles ahead of her.
Callan: Compassion and steadfast morals. Sole may bend the rules here and there, but Callan can always be trusted to advise with a clear mind with his moral compass never being shaken off course.
Character Quote:
Sole: “Tinker…” She sighed disapprovingly, dramatically rolling her head to the side in a childish fashion, “Get over here this instant before another dust spider grabs your face. We’re looking for food, not rats!”
Callan: “What is it?! Mom, mom!“ He choked on his words, then heaved in a gasp, “What’s happening?!”
Is character religious?
Sole is not religious, and generally regards the idea of a loving diety of any kind to be naive and even laughable. Perhaps there is a god, but if there is, then it’s by no means a very caring entity. After all, if you care about someone, you must protect them, and she’s seen no real evidence of worshipers being protected.
While not very vocal about his religious leanings, Callan has always lead a religious life. Sometimes he’s not sure which god is the real one, but he always strives to do good by those around him and spends personal time debating the religious choices before him. Sometimes Sole will give him a hard time about his beliefs, but Callan never claims to fully understand the forces that be and remains true to his core morals. He’s very open to religious pursuasions so long as they don’t contradict what’s good and kind in his eyes.
Dealbreaker for character:
Most choices that would result in these two being seperated long term would be no-gos for both of them. They would rather suffer together than have the other left behind for any reason.
Is character confrontational?
Sole: Yes. She can be a bit brash at times, and finds it difficult to speak softly.
Callan: Not so much, and when he does find it necessary, he approaches it with care and an openness that ususally puts others at ease.
Regret character has:
Sole & Callan both share similar regrets of treating each other a bit harshly, but they’re so young in this story that they’ve yet had the chance to accumulate any serious regrets.
Does character believe in fate?
Neither of them really consider the concept of fate. They’re far too consumed with their current reality to get distracted by things like destiny.
How does character feel about death?
Sole tries not to think about it, moving from day to day with her eyes pointed forward. Callan often ruminates on death, but deals with its existance by hoping that his will eventually serve a useful end.
Character Quote:
Sole: Sole’s gaze wandered around the immaculate home with its marble countertops, copper cookware, polished wood tables, and ornamented chandeliers. She’d never been to this side of the neighborhood before, nor had she seen the inside of a mansion like this one. She nodded approvingly with a slight smile, “Sweet. You must be pretty rich.”
Callan: “I’m coming!” He shouted as he clumsily wrapped himself in a scarf and tucked its ends into the collars of both of his thick jackets. Bundled like a hiker ready to take on an arctic mountain, Callan raced down the hall and out onto the balcony where the crisp autumn breeze hit his exposed face.
City lights from the valley below glittered with the dazzling array of neon colors, competing with the speckles of stars in the dark sky above. He loved the way that the glow stretched up into the air like smeared paint, though, that was probably because of the smudges on his glasses.
Character’s darkest thought:
Sole: Killing others may be considered a dark thought, though in her case it would be for the sake of protecting others or herself. She wouldn’t just run out and murder someone for no good reason, but even as a child, Sole has had to deal with the possibility that she may have to shoot someone in order to survive.
Callan: Ironically, it’s Callan who is more prone to darker thoughts. Though he does not usually act on them, he is not afraid of considering more devious methods of getting what he wants. Playing on other’s sympathies or motivations crosses his mind from time to time, and he is not disturbed by the presence of those calculations. He simply acknowledges them, and then leaves them behind.
Character’s calming activity:
Sole: A habit learned from her father, Sole can often be found cleaning pistols, rifles, or other tools to settle her mind. Knowing that everything she relies upon is ready for anything puts her at ease.
Callan: Finding an elevated spot from which to look out over the surroundings or burrying himself in a book are his usual go-tos, though he can sometimes be found sitting quietly in a corner meditating.
Song that represents character:
This one pretty well encompasses the both of them:
Something character is proud of:
Sole: Her aim with her father’s rifle is a sure point of pride for Sole. It’s far too large for her frame and packs a kick, but that doesn’t stop her from using it.
Callan: His father’s ornamental badge that was given to him when he was chosen to join the Olympus ISS crew. He’s proud to be a son of an astronaught.
Character’s #1 deadly sin:
Sole: Pride.
Callan: Sloth, though it is often brought on by fear than rather than laziness.
Character quote:
Sole: They were walking into the wealthier homes now where fancy sports cars, manicured lawns, and the occasional stone fountain showed off the success of their residents. She looked from home to home, each so blackened and eaten away by the dust that they appeared to have been torched on one side. Their windows were smashed inwards, their once nice cars striped of metal frames, and the grass shriveled and blackened. Dried streams of dark ichor filled the cracks of the sidewalk from plants that had liquified the night of the dust storm.
“Wow, glad we weren’t rich when this mess hit or we’d have been toast!” She said to Tinker, who sneezed again in answer.
A two story house with long windows into the living room that made for an easy entrance caught her attention. “Come on, let’s see if that one has anything.”
Callan: “A cookie sure would be super… but dad likes chocolate cake more than cookies.”
Does character like to be alone?
Both of them sometimes need to be alone, but it isn’t long before they’re at each other’s sides once more. They rarely stay seperated for more than a day, prefering to remain in each other’s constant company.
Character special skill:
Sole: To restate an answer from eariler, Sole’s aim with firearms is more than just above average. She’s a sharpshooter in the making. This, and she’s also got her moments of intimidation.
Callan: Pursuation.
Does character makes friends easily?
Sole: Not really. Her standoffish nature can be a little rough to get by in some circumstances, and she’s always been a tomboy.
Callan: He can when he wants to, but he tends to stay more to himself. He prefers to listen than to speak in most situations.
Has character been in love?
No for both. They’re pretty young.
Character wish:
Sole: For everything to go back to the way it was.
Callan: To see his father again.
Thing character values the most:
Sole: Callan
Callan: Sole
Character quote:
Sole: Sole walked up to Callan and lightly jabbed him with her elbow, “What do you think? She clean? I think there’s something off about her.”
Callan: “We may not be human, but we’re not animals.”
What inspired character?
Sole & Callan didn’t really have sources of inspiration. They showed up when I was writing the first draft of Venture Imperium book 2 (which was originally going to be the first book in this series but is now the third). I hadn’t planned for them to be characters, but when their first scene came up, they simply existed as this inseperable duo and haven’t really changed from that starting point. Sole slowly turned into a more rough n’ tough misunderstood type while Callan gained more insight, but they’ve remained mostly the same.
Day 29 seems to be missing
So I’ll just throw in some bonus songs. The first is for Sole, the second is for Callan.
Have you struggled writing this character?
Sole: Early on in her development, I struggled with her dialog and character choices, but now that I’ve gone back to her childhood to flesh her out, she’s really shone through.
Callan: A little. Sometimes his mindset can escape me, and he’s so prone to being emotional that I often have to walk through the layers of everything in his head before I come up with his next step.
What has surprised you about this character?
Sole: Just how socially awkward she can be at times. I knew she wasn’t the best people person, but she can have a certain snappiness that I hadn’t expected. She’s a very confident person in most ways, and very skilled, but she doesn’t take well to being viewed in a negative light.
Callan: His potential deviousness surprised me. He has a darker mind than he often lets on despite being the most helpful and moral character in the current bunch. He’s not a book to be judged by his cover, I suppose.