character list: jed

Hello, friends.

Firstly, I just wanted to say how much I appreciate each and every pair of eyeballs that somehow finds this little corner of the Interwebz. Y'all brighten my day, and to think that even one person would read my words is so encouraging.

Anyways, I recently participated in the A Novel Idea writing link-up (that post can be found here), and I thought I'd give it another go!

This week's prompt:

"Make a list of 20 things about your character. They can be as simple or unique as you want, but hopefully it well help you learn at least something new about your character and their backstory." 

Gnifty! I'm in.

The character I chose is Jed, from my as-of-late untitled novel. 

(I have a few new title ideas, but none are *just right* yet.)

AND NOW FOR THE LIST

1. Jed would rather listen than speak. He's a very quiet, private person by nature, and somewhat withdrawn, especially around strangers.

2. He was more talkative as a child.

3. His middle name is Atticus.

4. He is fairly anxious.

5. Jed surrounds himself with the words of people printed on pages, rather than real, live humans. This is his cowardice and comfort, inspiration and insecurity.

6. He only has one friend at school, a boy named Elias, who is tall like a lightpost and twice as bright.

7. Jed collects records, partly because of nostalgia, but also because it was something he and his father used to do together.

8. He wears an old, ragged black coat as a security blanket.

9. Jed is an old soul.

10. His favorite sandwich combo is peanut butter & bananas.

11. He is deeply empathetic and often very selfless in caring for those closest to him.

12. Jed has a crappy car he named Henry David the Honda, hoping that naming his vehicle after Thoreau would endear him to it. It didn't.

13. He is a romantic.

14. Jed is extraordinarily talented at playing the piano, but he can't bring himself to even look at the instrument anymore. This is made especially difficult by the fact that the only place for his piano is at the foot of his bed. It is the very first thing he sees when he wakes in the morning, and the last thing his eyes avoid at nightfall.

15. Jed borrows books from the library without actually checking them out, because he doesn't have a library card. He stacks titles and tidies his secluded reading nook for the librarian to compensate for this flaw.

16. If he had to choose between cats and dogs, he'd pick dogs.

17. When he was younger, he used to sit in his closet and softly say his name, Jedidiah, to himself, over and over again, nice and chant-like. His name was his most prized possession for years.

18. He is both morning, and mourning.

19. Jed doesn't understand why growing up means abandoning your childlike spirit. He thought everyone would be friends forever, and then middle school happened.

20. He loves nature.

I hope this gave you some insight into one of the many people inside my head, haha. Thanks again, Sky, for hosting this link-up. I had a blast!

+ How about you? Can you relate to any of the things on this list? What is something about you that would make for an interesting story? And is your middle name Atticus?