(no subject)

[dontjudgeabook]

Body and Appearance
1. Describe the character's height and build. Is he heavyset, thin, short, rangy?

Dallin is 6'5" and built like a praying mantis--spindly, bony, and impossibly long-limbed. He has a hard time retaining body fat or building any muscle.

2. How old is he?

27.

3. Describe his posture. Does he carry himself well or does he slouch?

He has a habit of slouching and bending his knees when he talks, just because it makes it easier to interact with people.

4. How is his health? Is he fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?

He almost never exercises and is too out of shape to climb more than one flight of stairs without getting winded, but people assume he's healthy because he's thin.

5. How does he move? Is he clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?

He's not really clumsy, but his movements tend to look kind of jerky just because his limbs are so long and spiderlike, and he has to contort himself more awkwardly than most people do in order to fit places.

6. How attractive is this character physically? How does he perceive himself in the mirror?

He's average, though he has pretty eyes and nice hair, and while he's self-conscious about his weight, he doesn't think he's exactly ugly.

7. Describe his complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?

Pale to the point of translucency, with a tendency towards sickly dark circles under his eyes.

8. Describe his hair: color, texture, style.

His hair is dark brown, straight but thick, usually cut conservatively and parted to the side.

9. What color are his eyes?

Pale blue.

10. Does the character have any other noteworthy features?

A rather large Roman nose that he's never sure how to feel about, and ears that stick out embarrassingly far.

12. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does he have six of the same suit?

Dallin dresses like the nerdy science teacher he is. He owns a blazer with elbow patches. Most of the rest of it is wrinkle-resistant button downs and performance fleece.

13. Do his clothes fit well? Does he seem comfortable in them?

His clothes always look a bit baggy on him, because it's hard to find things that fit his skinny ass really well, but he's not swimming in them. He seems as comfortable in his usual day-to-day workwear as he's capable of looking, though formalwear makes him feel really awkward.

14. Does he dress the same on the job as he does in his free time? If not, what are the differences?

Mostly the same, though he'll swap out his chinos and hiking boots for jeans and sneakers when he's not at work. Dallin doesn't have enough money not to recycle most of his work outfits on the weekend.

15. You knew it was coming: Boxers, briefs or commando?

Boxers, usually in boring stripes and plaid. He has a few silly pairs that he mixes in. The only color underwear he won't wear is white, because it reminds him too much of his old temple garments.

Speech
1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?

Quiet, fairly deep, prone to vocal fry, and with a sort of hesitant quality to it. His students say it's a voice that can put anyone to sleep, but he doubts that.

2. How does he normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does he talk easily, or does he hesitate?

He's soft-spoken, frequently needing to be asked to talk louder, and he hesitates a lot, though because of that, he rarely uses filler words like "um" or "like." He chooses his words carefully, and so his speech seems a little on the slower side.

3. Does the character have a distinct accent or dialect? Any individual quirks of pronunciation? Any, like, you know, verbal tics?

He has a tinge of a Boston accent, though not much of a dialect--his slang is influenced more by his Mormon upbringing than anything else, hence his habit of saying things like "fudge" and "darn" and "heck" and "flippin'." "Crap" is reserved for when he's especially furious.

4. What language/s does he speak, and with how much fluency?

His native language is English, and he's conversant-but-rusty in Spanish.

5. Does he switch languages or dialects in certain situations?

Not really, since he's only fluent in English, though it's very easy to slip back into Mormon jargon around old friends and family.

6. Is he a good impromptu speaker, or does he have to think about his words?

Dallin is the master of l'esprit du escalier. He's tongue-tied when put on the spot, and only when it's too late does what he should have said come to him, fully-formed. It drives him crazy.

7. Is he eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?

He's not inarticulate, but the fact that he thinks before he speaks and avoids filler words or repeating himself makes him sound a bit more eloquent than he really is. He's capable of the occasional snappy comeback, but not always, and once he's missed the opportunity for one he tends to shut down and sulk.

Mental and Emotional
1. How intelligent is this character? Is he book-smart or street-smart?

Highly book-smart, but not the most socially adept individual.

2. Does he think on his feet, or does he need time to deliberate?

He definitely prefers having time to deliberate, and doesn't appreciate being put on the spot.

3. Describe the character's thought process. Is he more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?

Logical and practical, occasionally to a fault.

4. What kind of education has the character had?

He has a master's degree in molecular biology, along with a requisite teaching certification. He's one of those teachers who's bitter about not pursuing a doctorate and thinks he's wasted his life. Yes, at age 27.

5. What are his areas of expertise? What, if anything, is he interested in learning more about?

Aside from his professional area of expertise, he's knowledgeable about baseball, being heavily involved with a fantasy league, and he likes to think of himself as a Civil War buff, though he isn't really that much of an expert. He's really good at remembering random trivia, and he's trying to be more invested in football, mostly for his older brother's sake.

6. Is he an introvert or an extrovert?

Mostly an introvert. He doesn't enjoy socializing or friendliness, complains about it, and then gets lonely and realizes he can't complain about that.

7. Describe the character's temperament. Is he even-tempered or does he have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?

He's prone to grouchiness and irritability, not really even-tempered, but he doesn't often get really angry. When he does, mostly at his students, he'll lose it and yell, but it runs its course quickly. He tends to see his relationships with other people as adversarial, and so he always feels on the defensive. He's not laid-back in the easygoing sense, but he's not ambitious, mostly because of his lack of self-confidence.

8. How does he respond to new people or situations? Is he suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?

Suspicious is a good way to put it. Dallin, ever the pessimist, tends to assume people won't like him, which then of course becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

9. Is he more likely to act, or to react?

He does tend to be in favor of preemptive action, which then often screws him over because it turns out to be unnecessary.

10. Which is his default: fight or flight?

Fight, at least when the conflict isn't physical.

11. Describe the character's sense of humor. Does he appreciate jokes? Puns? Gallows humor? Bathroom humor? Pranks?

Dallin's sense of humor is surprisingly dark for a guy who doesn't believe in profanity, and pretty acerbic, though he is genuinely working on making it less mean-spirited.

12. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does he deal with them?

Mild social anxiety, but nothing really medicatable. He doesn't really deal with it at all.

13. What moments in this character's life have defined him as a person?

His mission trip, which made him realize once and for all that he just wasn't cut out for Mormonism even if it cost him his relationship with his family. Realizing the extent of his brother's marital problems was a turning point for him too, if only because it really changed the way he thought of his family dynamics.

14. What does he fear?

On a more concrete level, he's afraid of antibiotic-resistant disease and preventable illnesses coming back because people won't vaccinate their kids, and he has a serious squick about hand injuries. More abstractly, he's always worried that people who claim to like him are making fun of him behind his back.

15. What are his hopes or aspirations?

Sometimes, he thinks he might be able to leave teaching eventually and become a researcher, but at other times he loses confidence and doesn't think he has what it takes to achieve that. On a smaller scale, he'd like to be on Jeopardy someday.

16. What is something he doesn't want anyone to find out about him?

Secretly, he's always carried a torch for his sister-in-law.

Relationships
1. Describe this character's relationship with his parents.

Close, though it's been strained by his leaving the church. He's a bit of a mama's boy, and was spoiled as a kid.

2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?

Dallin grew up absolutely hero-worshipping his older brother Spencer, wanting to be confident and charismatic like him, wanting to cultivate hobbies that Spencer would respect and help him with, and to a degree, he still does. But Dallin feels about his brother the way most people do when it gradually dawns on them that their parents are flawed human beings. He's coming to realize that Spencer is a cheating dick who doesn't really deserve the family he has, and it eats at Dallin to know that and try to reconcile it with the brother he loves.

3. Are there other blood relatives to whom he is close? Are there ones he can't stand?

He's very close with his cousin Levi on his father's side, because they're the same age and were always in the same class at school growing up, but he tries to have as little to do as possible with his mother's brother and his family and the racist things they post on Facebook.

4. Are there other, unrelated people whom he considers part of his family? What are his relationships with them?

There's nobody he isn't related to that he'd consider family, especially because he's not great at even making casual friends outside his family.

5. Who is/was the character's best friend? How did they meet?

He has a few people that he hangs out with, but the only person he confides in enough to really consider a best friend is still his cousin Levi, with whom he's been close literally since birth.

6. Does he have other close friends?

Most of his colleagues don't like him much, but the other teachers in the science department have gotten used to him and his acquired-taste sense of humor by now, and he hangs out with them outside of school a fair amount.

7. Does he make friends easily, or does he have trouble getting along with people?

He doesn't make friends easily at all, being too abrasive to get along with easily.

8. Which does he consider more important: family or friends?

Family, partly because he doesn't have very many friends.

9. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has he been married more than once?

Currently single, never married, though he was once engaged to a woman he met in college. That ended badly.

10. Is he currently in a romantic relationship with someone other than a spouse?

Not at the moment.

11. Who was his first crush? Who is his latest?

His first crush was on Sylvie Pratt from his first-grade class, who had the cubby next to his and even liked him back for a little while. His latest, deeply and secretly, is on his brother's wife Larissa, who calls him sometimes to talk when she's having doubts about her faith.

12. What does he look for in a romantic partner?

Someone a bit more extroverted to help him be more comfortable going out and socializing, with a similar sense of humor, kind of a tough-girl type. He remembers having a fierce crush on Julia Stiles in 10 Things I Hate About You as a teenager.

13. Does the character have children? Grandchildren? If yes, how does he relate to them? If no, does he want any?

He doesn't have any children yet, though he wants to have them someday--in spite of disliking nearly all kids who aren't related to him and even some of the ones who are. He thinks his own would be different, and he does adore Spencer and Larissa's kids.

14. Does he have any rivals or enemies?

He has an ongoing rivalry with Vinny Sorrentino, the school guidance counselor. At this point, it's almost like a hate-bromance.

15. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does he fall on the Kinsey scale?

1.5, maybe. He's straight, not counting the odd homoerotic thoughts and wonderings that most straight people have once in a while.

16. How does he feel about sex? How important is it to him?

Dallin likes sex as much as most people do, though he isn't big on one-night stands and doesn't have a whole lot of it outside relationships. He's self-conscious enough about his looks that sex can be a source of anxiety, but he's never had anyone laugh or be turned-off or otherwise react the way he worries about.

17. What are his turn-ons? Turn-offs? Weird bedroom habits?

(Still figuring this part out; will fill it in later.)

Beliefs
1. Do you know your character's astrological (zodiac of choice) sign? How well does he fit type?

He's a Capricorn, which fits pretty well, though he knows almost nothing about the zodiac and doesn't really care to learn.

2. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in his life?

He's no longer strictly religious, having become disenchanted with the Mormon church after his mission, but given how involved his entire family still is, and how hard it is to shake a lifetime of teaching, religion is still important to him to some degree. For him, it's more of a cultural thing than a personal struggle.

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?

His code of ethics doesn't line up with the religious one he was raised with--hence the occasional drinking and the premarital sex and so forth--and even things that most other people take for granted, like "don't sleep with married women" and "don't make children cry on purpose," are iffy for him. There are still lines he won't cross, of course; he avoids breaking actual laws, thinks animal cruelty is unforgivable, and would never take sexual advantage of anyone, but a lot of people would say he's not a super moral guy.

4. How does he regard beliefs that differ from his? Is he tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?

Dallin likes to think of himself as a liberal guy, but he's really a lot more conservative than he realizes. His more genuinely liberal colleagues get annoyed with him for always wanting to "play devil's advocate."

5. What prejudices does he hold? Are they irrational or does he have a good reason for them?

He's a straight white guy who doesn't fully understand how that makes him privileged, so he is capable of saying inadvertently insensitive things, but he's not usually that bad about it. He does have occasional moments of homophobia, and gets indignant when they're pointed out.

Daily Life
1. What is the character's financial situation? Is he rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?

He's a high school teacher. He's not starving, but rich he ain't, and those student loans aren't going to be paid off anytime soon.

2. What is his social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected him?

His social status is pretty much as it always was. Middle-class, comfortable, respectable job, good family.

3. Where does he live? House, apartment, trailer? Is his home his castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does he share it with others?

He's able to live alone in a smallish apartment, since it's far enough outside the city not to be too expensive. He's not an egregious slob, but he's a bachelor who doesn't entertain much, so there's a lot of cleaning to be done whenever he does have people over.

4. Besides the basic necessities, what does he spend his money on?

Tech gadgets, books, an exotic hot sauce collection.

5. What does he do for a living? Is he good at it? Does he enjoy it, or would he rather be doing something else?

He teaches tenth-grade biology at a small private school and hates almost every minute of it. The fact that he isn't doing research is a constant source of bitterness and self-loathing.

6. What are his interests or hobbies? How does he spend his free time?

Fantasy baseball, playing Ultimate Frisbee despite otherwise lacking in any kind of athleticism, trying to convince the US History teacher that they're on an equal footing when it comes to knowledge of the Civil War, and playing with his dog.

7. What are his eating habits? Does he skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?

He can cook well enough to get by without subsisting on junk, and to impress dates with low standards. He can't handle caffeine at all and only drinks decaf everything, and while he'll drink a tiny bit in order to be social, he can't manage more than a little without getting tipsy, so he generally steers clear.