Beautiful People: Elizabeth
(Picture by Charles Dana Gibson)
As you may know, I'm working on a creative writing project at the moment. Lizzie sent me the "Beautiful People" questionnaires, and I thought it would be fun to fill in some of the questions for my main character, Elizabeth. (The original questions are here.)
Just some quick background: the story is historical, but I haven't completely finalised the exact period! It's Jane Austen/Georgette Heyer in style, so somewhere in that time frame.
In terms of looks:
A little like this, thought I imagine her being smaller and slimmer.
Maybe a bit like Hedy Lamarr, though with her hair up. (No Keira Knightley P&P05 loose-hair looks around here, thank you!)
This is the first set of questions, but I may do more posts with more as the mood takes me.
What is his or her full name?
Elizabeth Rose Marlsdon.
Does his or her name have a special meaning?
Apart from the Hebrew meaning of Elizabeth ("my God is abundance"), Elizabeth was the name of her mother, and her mother's favourite flower was a rose.
Does your character have a methodical or disorganized personality?
She's basically quite organised, but in times of stress she can get quite panicky and lose it a little! As she matures, she learns to control herself better.
Does he or she think inside themselves more than they talk out loud to their friends? (more importantly, does he or she actually have friends?)
She doesn't actually have any friends because she lives a very secluded life. If she did have friends, she would definitely think inside herself more, as she is quite self-contained.
Is there something he or she is afraid of?
There is nothing specific at the start of the story. As the plot goes on, however... but that would be telling!
Does he or she write, dream, dance, sing, or photograph?
She loves to dance! She can play the piano fairly well, but no better than other young women of her time. She sings well. And... although photography wasn't a thing at that time, if it had been, she would do it.
What is his or her favorite book? (or genre of books)
She's interested in history and likes some classic novels. She doesn't read a lot, however.
Who is his or her favorite author and/or someone that inspires him or her?
There is someone called Dr. Francis Carew who definitely inspires her for the better!
Favorite flavor of ice cream?
Vanilla. Though I'm not really sure if ice cream was a thing at the time... do correct me if I'm wrong.
Favorite season of the year?
Autumn; the melancholia resonates with her character.
I was intending to find some quotations with which to finish this post. However, I can't find any that don't give away the plot!
What do you think of Elizabeth (from the admittedly little you've heard about her!)? Maybe I'll be sharing some excerpts from the story on here someday!
Hehe, do you know, Hedy Lamarr is one of my reference pictures for Katinka? I guess neither of us stint on beauty for our heroines xD
ReplyDeleteOh interesting, Dr. Carew's first name is Francis? Somehow I wouldn't have guessed that...names are funny.
As I found out when I once did this BP for a character, ice cream was definitely a thing in the Victorian era, so I imagine it would have been invented already in Regency time. (Some of their flavors were really strange, though. Like oyster, for instance.)
Yes, I saw that! I think Lamarr was one of the most beautiful actresses of that era. Well, I had actually imagined Katinka being very lovely, so I wasn't surprised when I saw that photo on your blog post.
DeleteYes, it is! Out of interest, what did you think his name was? I think names are especially funny things in that they conjure up such different images for different people.
Aha, I suppose I should have done some research😏! Oyster ice cream?!!! That sounds terrible! I think I'll just stick with chocolate myself.
Oh, she's absolutely gorgeous, isn't she? Heh, I'm glad to hear that - it's always a bit discombobulating when you have to adjust your mental image of characters!
DeleteHm, what DO I think his name would be...I suppose something like Arthur or Nicholas, though neither of those seem quite right either. It is funny how names are different for different people! For me personally, Francis is a 'lighter' sounding name, so I don't picture it going with a more serious personality. But perhaps I'll picture it more that way now. :D
That sounds like a wise plan! ;P (To be fair, I don't think the oyster was meant to be sweet - it was more of a savory ice cream. But even so, it doesn't sound terribly appetizing.)
Oooh, you've met the BPQ's!!! This is wonderfully good news, we shall have them revived and back in circulation in no time now ;)
ReplyDelete(I intended, of course, to do my own bit reviving them, but unfortunately turned out to be all good intentions, and very little actual scribbling😬😆The busies being always more insistent than the scribbles, who very obligingly tend to let them take precedence....)
Oh, Elizabeth Rose is a lovely name! (And so is she🤗) What era is she from, may I ask? Or did I just miss where it said? (And ices and sorbets have been a thing for practically forever, if not ice cream itself, (I know this from Lizzie's Pauline BPQ😜) so it is entirely possible that it exists in her time too ;)
I begin to have a mental picture forming of her, I think, and I'm curious about where she must live to in order for it to be so secluded as that.... These potentially shared bits of story are something to be looked forward to now, I can't wait to find out more!
Yay! I'm looking forward to filling in more of them myself!
ReplyDeleteYes, writing does tend to be very polit in stepping out of the way of anything else that happens!
I'm glad you like the name :) She's from the Regency era, I think. I haven't completely finalised it, though. Yes, I should have researched the ice-cream thing! It was one of those things where you know you can google it, but you're almost sure you're right so you don't...
I'd love to share some of the story! Perhaps I could send a little to you? She lives in the Depths of the Countryside Somewhere In Shropshire... specificity not being my strong point xP
It does, doesn't it? Sometimes perhaps to its own detriment, but then it gets back by insisting on no uncertain terms to be written up on the spot at other times!
Delete(Though right now, it is simply making up for being Late by being Long XD)
Ahhh, she keeps good company! Some of the finest heroines share her era with her, after all ;) (Do the Austen ladies count as heroines? Perhaps they're mostly MC's, after all....)
Ohh yes, I know all about those😂 (Assuming one knows things confidently enough that you don't look them up sounds very familiar ;)
Ohh that would be wonderful, would you??! (I'm assuming you have my email address from comments, right? So handy, that!) Though I'm afraid I'm likely to be fairly scarce for the next while here, (busy
season on the farm) so I may take awhile to be able to reply.... But I'll be looking forward to this ;)
In The Depths of the Countryside Somewhere In Shropshire has such an intriguing sound to it, I think in this case, it had just enough specificity to fit things perfectly ;)😄
Ps. I guessed that was it😉 Comments have a funny way of not showing you (meaning me!) things like until after they're sent, and popping out at you right afterwards....
Oh, do you live on a farm?!!!!!! That must be so fun! (And probably hard work, too ;)) Unfortunately, I can't see your email on the comments, but I do have an email address for this blog, which I have been meaning to put on a "contact me" part... would you like to contact me via this? ceciliacraftcoffeeandcake@gmail.com
DeleteI do indeed, and it IS both of those things😂 It's a grain farm, though, so more planting of fields than gathering of eggs and feeding of stock! )
DeleteOh perfect!! And I believe you shall find something from me in your inbox, if you look just now ;) I should really do a contact page myself, that's clever....
That was meant to say, "polite in stepping out of the way," as "polit" isn't a word...
ReplyDeleteElizabeth seems like a very interesting and lovely character! The name Elizabeth Rose Marlsdon sounds so pretty. I can't wait to learn more about her - her tale sounds rather intriguing!
ReplyDelete"No Keira Knightley P&P05 loose-hair looks around here, thank you!" - This made me crack up laughing 😂
Oh, thank you, Liz! When I've edited (and completed...) the story, I may well share some of it on here! (Also, I'm planning to fill in more of the BPQ's soon, too.)
DeleteHa, I'm glad you liked it! xP
I see you’ve met the Beautiful People Questionnaires! Well, I loved reading about Elizabeth (does she go by Lizzy?) and I look forward to reading more about her in the hopefully near future ;D
ReplyDeleteYes, they're very fun, and very useful! I'm planning to fill in more of them... do you ever use them? Elizabeth does go by that name, but spelt Lizzie - it seemed to fit her character better, for some reason...
Delete