#2. A Character A Day - Day 6 Pierce III

My second seven-day project is to develop a character a day.

From day 4 I am developing only one character (and I haven't finished yet).

Well, cuz I was busy, and also because it is difficult to develop a character whose life and work have so much to do with the most essential problems in the whole story.

The latter is the reason I got stuck after writing off a bit about Pierce's life yesterday.

There were a lot of bloody tricky (and big) questions embodied in his life!

So today I took a bit of different approach: to tackle his job. 

Sometimes, like the above, I jot down (this time I searched the word "surveillance", which was his main job, in thesaurus) words that (seem to) relate to his work. Then I gradually get a sense of what he is like.

In this page, I began comparing Pierce with two other characters whose job (or role) in my story is to observe or stalk the same person that Pierce is watching. I think it helps to compare and differentiate characters and define their roles in the story. I am not finished yet. :P

Also, I guess that in this way, I'm not just developing one character. Well, isn't it nice? :)

#2. A Character A Day - Day 5 Pierce II

Today I am continuing my development of this character, Pierce.

Taking over from yesterday's notes:

I like scribbling those little figures and words while I am working. Because it's fun, it does not have to be nice, and it helps clarify my thoughts. It's also convenient when you come to these pages later, because you can easily spot what are the main things and concepts here.

Wow, I am pretty busy. I only managed to write about three pages! But as always, taking time, even a little time, to sit down and jot down my ideas about my stories totally worth it. :)

#2. A Character A Day - Day 4 Pierce

Today's character is Pierce.

This is one of the first side characters that I created in the earliest stage of my story project #10... in October 2010.

I think I made this drawing in less than a few minutes.... 

Basically I imagined him to be a chubby, normal-looking guy that you can see anywhere. (Well, he has a rather curly frizzy hair, that may stand out a bit..) But actually he isn't. He is a traitor and a very cunning and patient observer of his target. He pierces through people's mind.

And after I made this drawing about a year and half ago I just left him and never came back to him.

Today I tried to develop his character a bit further.

So... this is one of the ways I create a character. I designate a rough function/role for a character, create his/her life story, and then further define how he/she plays in the whole plot.

I was rather busy today, so I only went till his early adolescence...  :/

#2. A Character A Day - Day 3 Joel O. Popper

Today's character is Joel O. Popper, another side character for my story #10: The Devil's Protégé.

I had created this character a few months ago, as someone who's like Eddie Murphy and Chris Tucker--I mean, someone who could talk and talk and talk without stopping or being bothered by anyone else.

Today I made this drawing and developed his character a bit further.

- Full Name (not his real name--no one knows it): Joel O. (Oliver) Popper
- But people call him: Jello ;-)
- Species: Devil.

- Life story: He was born human in Africa, then was transported and lived as a slave in America. He died in the early 19C century and became a low-rank devil. Usually a low-rank devil in the devilsphere cannot survive for long for various reasons. But he is one of the very few who managed to and earned the right to live without being controlled by the devilsphere.

So, after two centuries of slavery he finally gained his freedom. He can do what he likes.
And living as an AV director in Japan is what he chose to do these days. He has a small studio in a crappy alley, and makes such surprisingly dull and trashy porns that nobody bothers to watch.

- Misc.: He likes his looks and is proud of his fashion choices.
He has a huge thing with chrysanthemums, so he owns several shirts with them and makes origami chrysanthemums as a hobby.... (So yes, he has a "delicate" side in him)
And of course, he never stops talking.


....I really enjoyed making this character. I can't wait to write a scene of him confronting someone who is his  opposite--someone who never talks and looks like he is 60 million years old but never moved once. :)

#2. A Character A Day - Day 2 Geun-Seok

#2. A Character A Day - Day 1 Saša

So the second project (again for seven days) is to develop a character a day. 

I may create a new character or develop further a character I have already created.

Day 1 character is a new one, and his name is Saša (Serbian, Croatian, and Slovene diminutive for Alexander or Alexandra; pronounced like Sasha).

Origin (?): Eastern European (of the above regions, but does not really matter)

Age: mid-30s to mid-40s.

(Note: I'm not so great with drawing. Especially with the body. Also, since I primarily make drawings to get an idea of a character, when I'm done with the face and once I got the idea, I find it really tedious to do the rest...)

His face looks rather.....brooding or ominous (at least that is what I intended to do).

That is because he is a devil. He is a side character (a pretty insignificant one, honestly, but I like to make such characters all the more interesting!) in my project #10: The Devil's Protégé. 

(a close-up)

He is the leader of the Level 3 operation team in charge of the northeast coast of the United States.

I do not want to elaborate here what exactly my story is about and what precisely Level 3 op. team does...

(too complicated + this is a blog...) 

But basically Level 3 op. supplies information and manpower for Level 2 op. team. Level 2 op. team devils, in a nutshell, design events what you would see in politics and economics sections of newspapers (or that aren't in newspapers when you should see). 

So, Saša is the man who handles meticulous details for the bigger operations. His job is considered inferior to what Level 2 op. team does. But Saša chooses to be in his position, because he likes dealing with particulars. And he is quite good at it. That's why he's been doing that since the early 1800s. (So he is about... 200 years old... not so old for a devil)

So I wanted Saša to look methodical and rather aloof (like many devils).

But I didn't want him to look vain or extravagant (he doesn't aspire to get a higher job, he's content with his present job). 

Also, since it was rather unconventional for a devil not to want to reach a higher status, I wanted him to look and behave rather unconventionally (within boundaries. He likes dealing with details and he is orderly...).

At first I gave him a suit (that a normal devil usually wears)...

Then I found it rather..... plain.

So I gave him a t-shirt and a casual jacket, but then he looked so.. well, plain in another way. :P

So for now I decided to give him a turtle-neck shirt and a jacket with -- I don't know what it's called -- the patches(?) in the right shoulder and elbows. Not a usual attire for devils and, to a degree, men who look like him.


Just to write few things down about Saša:
- he likes coffee, but not black--with a certain, precise amount of cream and sugar.
- he is appreciated by some of the Level 2 op. team devils. They know that Saša is good and they sometimes ask for or take his opinions in their operations. But when the system changes and when Level 3 op. members like himself become clearly differentiated and discriminated, Saša does not find that so pleasing. He feels insulted, though he would never show his anger externally.


I need to work him further and define his role in my overall story, but this is pretty much it for today! :)

#1. A Picture of Me A Day - Day 7 (Last Day!) Five Stars

So here is my last picture for the first project: A Picture of Me A Day!

Today's situation: my cold hasn't gotten better, I had a terrible insomnia, my spine hurts a lot, from the ankle up to my head and every finger. I cannot digest, I have constant headaches, and my eyes and nose are burning. I have had these problems for a few years now, but the cold put all these up to a new level. Yes, it's annoying.

But surprisingly, despite all that I'm not feeling very bad! This may sound kind of self-complimentary, but I'd like to congratulate myself on getting better at dealing with these kinds of stuffs. X)

So here I am, taking pride in not looking so dejected or ill. :) I want to live a five-star life (in my own standard, whatever that is), no matter what happens!


I haven't decided what to do for my next project. I want to do a variety of things, that's why I'm not doing one project for 365 days. ;P I'll think about the next project. I'm sure there will be a lot of fun stuffs.