And now to writing. On this fine Monday morn our MadLib will blossom from Kate Grenville's 'The Writing Book'
exercise 1.6 - Describe a character. You will find MadLib at the end of this exercise.Once again we will be exploring the character Jax from my WIP @jax #theinceptionofchaos
*first draft
**jax excerpts may or may not appear in chronological order and may or may not make the final cut.
The Grenville Exercise - Without trying to think of a story, describe a character. Sex, age, race, occupation, appearance, mood, city, country, inside, out, rich, poor, weather, alone or with others, surroundings, family, schooling etc
Luca- pronounced Lu-sah. Tall large man, muscular and lithe like a lion and capable of crushing small animals in his giant sized fists. In his early forties he is as camp as they come, his voice is high and light and he has a tendency to giggle like a school girl. He has never had a relationship with anyone other than his mother and he is flattered easily and has a weakness for feisty young women who need help. He is a hit man for hire and he owes a small debt to Agnes and is working it off at her hideout as a butler / thug. He dresses impeccably in dress shirts and linen pants with a frilly white apron over the top to protect his expensive attire. His demeanour is unusually friendly which works in his favour more often than not, people trust him. He grew up in a small country town, loved by everyone and hated by many more. His mother was a successful business woman, strong and feisty but screwed one too many people over and eventually succumbed to heart failure due to high stress levels. His debt to Agnes is not of the monetary variety, Luca has more than enough money to support himself. He doesn’t particularly care for Agnes's attitude particularly her attitude toward his lifestyle choices but prefers not to get into an argument with her- he knows what she is capable of as he has been known on occasion to be the deliverer of her bad news. Although people gravitate toward him he has a hard time keeping friends due to his occupation, he has three degrees including a masters. His father was never around and he hopes one day for the man to reappear but seeing as he has absolutely no idea who the man is that is highly unlikely. He has no other family and is lonely although he would not admit it. Oh and he is also in love with Gregor. Jax and he have sooooo much in common, and he love love loves her!!!!Now describe the same things about a second character - no need for them to have anything in common with the first. Now connect these two characters.
Nix- Male, 50 something, Caucasian, short, compact, muscular, fit,graying hair, soft baby face, kind blue eyes, nice full smile, gentle voice. He is a little bit devilish, fast witted, loyal and intelligent to boot.Nix is friendly to a fault but also little bit weary, he looks over his shoulder a lot more than he would like and living on the edge does not sit as comfortably with him as he would have others believe. He is a southern boy and likes the hustle and bustle of the big city, the quiet country air makes him nervous and jumpy and he hates the hot humid weather up north. His parents are still alive, although quite old and senile, and he has a vibrant family life back down south that he would prefer to be near but circumstances of his marriage to Agnes keep him away. On the outside he portrays a confident and happy demeanour, only those that pay close attention see that he is longing for something else. He is very good at his job and it is with his help that has allowed Agnes to be as successful as she is. As a spy he is reasonably well off, not rich, not poor. He has made sure his parents are comfortable in their retirement and his sisters need not worry about money. He prefers company to being alone and this has led him to be somewhat dependant on Agnes. For the most part he and Agnes have a good relationship, he is one of the only people she will listen too although recently she rarely pays attention.
Do they know each other, if not do they meet, how? If they do how, related, love, hate, accident, proximity.
Luca and Nix are familiar with one another. Nix likes to keep himself separate from the people Agnes employs to do her dirty work but he does do a thorough background check on everyone. Nix knows about Luca’s past, his mother’s death and the fact that the man blames the government for not protecting her from bad investments and dodgy underworld figures. Luca thinks nothing much of Nix, he sees him as Agnes’s beck and call boy and thinks he has no spine. When Agnes orders Luca to get rid of Nix Luca thinks it will be a breeze.
Is there something that is important to them both, an object, desire? Do one of the five senses predominate? What is the mood?
Surviving Agnes is important to them both- Nix because he loves her, Luca because he owes her his life. Agnes rescued him from a spiralling life of crime that would have seen him dead before his 40th birthday. Both men are big aftershave users and neither likes the others scent. They dance around each other, sniffing the air in disgust and largely ignore each other.
Write a page in which these two characters interact.
And now to regale ye with the a MadLib
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'Close the door behind you,' Agnes snapped.Luca gritted his teeth on the way out, if she wasn't ____ he would tear her ____ off and serve it on a platter.
In the hallway he ____ by the open ____ to take a few ______. The sun set glowed pinks and oranges against a stormy backdrop. Way out to sea Luca cold make out a tinge of green in the heavy clouds and the wind whipped the _____on the shore into a frenzy. He smiled, a tropical storm would be the perfect setting.
If Agnes's calculations were right, and ________for her victims they usually were, Luca's target should be in the _____ enjoying a _______.
Luca made his way quickly towards the intricately carved wooden doors at the end of the breezeway. The victim had no need to ______of a butler so Luca threw the doors open and strolled ______into the _____.
Nix looked up ______, his face flushed with _____. Luca stopped short as the _____picked herself up off the ___ where Nix had ____her and scurried out of the room.
Luca raised his eyebrow, 'Seems Agnes has a right to be ______ after all.'
Nix ____ got to his ____ and sniffed the air, 'Is that a new cologne Luc? What is it, Eau de ____?'
Across the room Luca spied the abandoned drinks tray. He helped himself to a ______before replying, 'Don't call me Luc Nix, you know I don't like it.'
'What do you want Luca? Don't you have something better to do, like ____Aggie's next victim?'
Luca turned and smiled, 'Funny you should say that.' He sat his glass down and opened the doors to the balcony. This side of the house sat higher than the front. Two stories below the ______ glistened under the garden lights.
Nix eyed him suspiciously and inched toward the doors. In two quick strides Luca barred his way, 'Not so fast Nix. Let's have a little chat eh? What were you doing in here with the sweet Miss Lily? Not ______ the poor girl surely, I mean, you know it would be a death warrant if Aggie found out don't you. I don't mind getting my hands dirty but I would hate to make a ____ of that pretty little face.'
'You really should get laid Luca, it might help you lift your mind out of the gutter. As for Miss Lily,it's not what you think. I have been helping her with ______.' Defiant Nix side stepped Luca and crossed to the other side of the room. He poured himself a drink but his hands were shaking and the vodka slopped onto his shirt.
'Here, let me help you.' Luca whipped off his frilly white apron and mopped up the vodka, dropped a _____ into the glass and poured Nix another drink. 'There you go...'
The glass smashed against the wall as Nix reared up to his full height, which barely reached Luca's armpit, and lunged for Luca's _____. A flash of silver passed Luca's line of sight and he let out a _____scream as pain seared across his cheek.
Three doors down Jax mumbled something nonsensical into her pillow and rolled over. The guard watching her kept his eyes trained on the bed and his ears trained on the commotion in the library. Another head on a platter he thought. The commotion died down soon enough and he turned his attention back to his book, if he was lucky he would finish _________ by morning.
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