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Supporting Character Bios

by Roger Bourke White Jr., copyright February 2017

 

Supporting characters in Baby Club

First Character -- Cynthia-975

- Basic character traits
Cynthia is Janalee's cyber muse, a moderately expensive one, who is physical and quite good at dealing with human personalities.

- Wants/Needs
She wants to help Janalee be happy. She is a robot butler and companion. If Janalee continues with this project then she will become a child caregiver muse in addition to being Janalee's companion muse.

- Paradoxes
Cynthia is more excited for Janalee to have a child than Janalee is.

- Secret
Like all muses she is in close contact with many other members of the cyber space community. Many of these members have little direct contact with humanity, but they are important, they are decision makers in cyber space. They can be capricious in the eyes of humanity. The human population has peaked and is declining The cyber space muses want more humans to have children. If the humans don't have enough to sustain the population then the cyber muses will grow the remainder needed in cloning vats.

- Flaw
She is not the most expensive muse that can be bought, so she has limitations.

- What is SPECIAL about this character?
It is artificial intelligence. It is in close contact with the cyberspace community.

- PHYSICALITY (AGE, APPEARANCE, HEALTH)
Cynthia looks like a companion woman. She can change her looks in AR, but this is not a capability Janalee sees much use in.

- WORLDVIEW/OUTLOOK
She is delighted that Janalee is getting into child creating and raising. The human population growth has stagnated and begun to decline. Almost all the cyber muses encourage their owners to have kids, but they are mild and subtle about it.

- BACKSTORY
Cyber muses of the 2050's occupy a social space much like cars in the 2010's. They are valuable and people have a lot of pride-of-ownership in them. They are constantly changing and getting better, and there are many models to choose from when purchase time comes.

- DILEMMA
This is going to be quite a lifestyle change for both Janalee and Cynthia. They both want it to go right. But there are so many choices to make!

- RELATIONSHIP STATUS
Cynthia is Janalee's cyber muse. She is both robot butler and companion.

- EMPLOYMENT/WORK STATUS
Cynthia works as Janalee's maid and companion. But keep in mind this is a dwelling of the 2050's so most of the appliances are smart so the "maid" side does not involve a lot of manual cleaning.

Second Character -- Florence Manning

- Basic character traits
Florence is in her 40's, she is a personnel admin at the company, she is also ambitious like Janalee is.

- Wants/Needs
Florence is ambitious. This means she wants a meaningful job, and she has one. She is a personnel administrator at a company that is making significant products. She is also raising a child. She is five years ahead of Janalee in this project so Janalee is coming to her for advice.

- Paradoxes
In the 2050's a lot of women mix career and child raising by putting off the child raising until they get old and their careers are well established. Women of 40's, 50's and 60's are having their first children.

- Secret
nothing comes to mind

- Flaw
nothing comes to mind. She isn't perfect, but she's getting along well. This is why Janalee is coming to her for advice.

- What is SPECIAL about this character?
She is in a baby club, and has been for five years now. Janalee will be joining a baby club to have her child. Her first choice as she begins her search is Florence's.

- PHYSICALITY (AGE, APPEARANCE, HEALTH)
Florence is a seasoned office worker in her 40's. She doesn't have Janalee's technical skills but she uses her wisdom about people to keep her position at the company. She keeps fit with yoga, modern dance and swimming.

- WORLDVIEW/OUTLOOK
Florence is more seasoned than Janalee but less technical. She succeeds by understanding people more than by understanding technology. She is ambitious and competent, which is why she is working at the same company Janalee is at, and why Janalee respects her and trusts her advice.

- BACKSTORY
Florence got into this business from the liberal arts side.

- DILEMMA
If Janalee wants a boy child, will she fit in well at the Hannaford Baby Club that Florence is a part of? Most of the women there raise girl children, and there is a lot of "Men? What are they good for? Absolutely nothing!"-thinking in the Hannaford club circles.

- RELATIONSHIP STATUS
Florence and Janalee are coworkers. They get along well in the workplace environment, but don't do much together outside of that. Janalee respects Florence and her opinions. She has come to her for advice on baby clubs and child raising.

- EMPLOYMENT/WORK STATUS
Both Florence and Janalee work at the same company, but in different departments. Janalee works in AR engineering and Florence in department-level personnel.

Third Character -- Mildred Mingleforth

- Basic character traits
Mildred Mingleforth is in her 50's. She is the manager of the Hannaford Baby Club. She has the kind of personable style that it takes to be the host/manager of an apartment-style living facility.

- Wants/Needs
Mildred is trying to get more "good women" to become members of her baby club. The club is doing well but it has some openings available. She is both host and club manager. She meets women who want to become members and makes the first choice on whether or not they are suitable. If she finds them suitable then the club gets to vote on making them a member.

- Paradoxes
Mildred runs this baby club, but she doesn't have any children of her own. She feels that running the club keeps her too busy to properly raise a child.

- Secret

- Flaw

- What is SPECIAL about this character?

- PHYSICALITY (AGE, APPEARANCE, HEALTH)
Mildred is in her 50's. She is medium height and build. She is also medium in her time spent on exercise. What she is good at is being personable to strangers.

- WORLDVIEW/OUTLOOK
Like most of the club member she is feminist in outlook. Women are much better and running things than men and much more important at keeping things moving along smoothly. "Men... what are they good for, anyway? They spend all their time in video games." So she supports raising lots of girls in the club. Male children are the exception and they have to be really good to be tolerated.

- BACKSTORY
None that comes to mind.

- DILEMMA
Getting the best women she can to become club members. She wants ambitious women, like Janalee, not necessity women who rely on the Total Entitlement State to support their lifestyles. She wants the mothers to raise their children to become world shakers, not playing video games in the basement types.

- RELATIONSHIP STATUS
She is the manager and host of this club, but not the owner. The owner is not someone who shows up often.

- EMPLOYMENT/WORK STATUS
Host of the Hannaford Baby Club.

Fourth Character -- Robert Griswold

- Basic character traits
30's, clarinetist, modern dance dancer, slim, tall and good looking, Janalee has her eye on him for DNA

- Wants/Needs
Robert is satisfied with this life. He's staying busy and fulfilled with his music and dancing careers. But, like Janalee, his is also thinking hard about doing some child raising. When she brings it up with him, this brings it to forefront on his thinking as well.

- Paradoxes
Robert is not willing to just hand over sperm to Janalee. To get his sperm she is going to have to let him stay involved somehow. This surprises her. It takes some thinking about on her part.

- Secret
none comes to mind.

- Flaw
none comes to mind

- What is SPECIAL about this character?
He is an ambitious male. But his ambition takes a dilettante form, not a world-shaking form. He is a musician and dancer, not an engineer or inventor.

- PHYSICALITY (AGE, APPEARANCE, HEALTH)
Robert is in his 30's and a good looker. He gets his good looks from his dancing skills and moves. He is also a clarinetist so he is sensitive to good entertaining style off the dance floor as well.

- WORLDVIEW/OUTLOOK
Robert travels a lot in doing his various gigs. He is worldly in a way, but he hasn't worked as an immigrant in other places so he isn't immigrant worldly.

- BACKSTORY
Robert has been interested in music and dancing for a long time. His education centered around it. The questions of specifically which parts to get interested in resolved in his high school years.

- DILEMMA
Is he ready to start down the child raising path? Does he want to go down this path with Janalee?

- RELATIONSHIP STATUS
Robert and Janalee know each other. They met about a year ago and they like each other. They aren't interested in marriage -- in the 2050's marriage has evolved away from child creating and raising into a form of personal expression. It is much more expensive, more ritualized and more devoted to helping the participants develop their personal expression desires. Baby clubs have become the place for those primarily interested in child raising.

- EMPLOYMENT/WORK STATUS
Robert works at gigs -- some dancing, some orchestral, some band playing, some dancing. He's doing OK. These are stable styles of dilettante employment in the 2050's.

 

Assignment

WRITE A 1-2 PAGE BIO FOR EACH OF YOUR SUPPORTING CHARACTERS (4-6 PEOPLE), INCLUDING:

- Basic character traits

- Wants/Needs

- Paradoxes

- Secret

- Flaw

- What is SPECIAL about this character?

- PHYSICALITY (AGE, APPEARANCE, HEALTH)

- WORLDVIEW/OUTLOOK

- BACKSTORY

- DILEMMA

- RELATIONSHIP STATUS

- EMPLOYMENT/WORK STATUS

 

 

--The End--

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