A while ago, I posted a journal asking you to tell me your favorite Raspberry Kid, and why.
The goal wasn't to stroke my ego. It was just to get insight into how the character came to be your favorite. Maybe it was an ideal self-image or just something you could relate to in some way.
You probably know about my favorite chapter (see a previous journal for that). I would like to take this part of the anniversary to go over my favorite character; although, if you've kept up with journals you probably know who it is.
Though, if not, you might be surprised to find out my favorite character is neither of the two tigers that the story generally follows.
My favorite character is actually the one that started off meekly standing in the corner, originally created to be a splash of interesting backstory and comedic relief, and maybe a little bit of sympathy.
Little did I know when I threw her name into the story, that I would have to follow through with the traumatic past I gave her admittedly on a whim. More, that I would carry that further, so that she effectively stole part of, or even most of, the limelight in Lonely Oak Part 3.
Yes, my favorite character is indeed the little rabbit often found with baby-blue: Lyza.
It wasn't until Lonely Oak Part 1 was finishing up that I really decided I needed to do Lyza some justice. It's weird to say, but I almost felt awful creating her and giving her such a terrible past.
But, to be honest, it's not because I gave her some arbitrary story bits that makes me so attached to her. I put a little bit of myself into every character I write (that are my own creations), and... You might also find it surprising that Lyza is more "me" than any other character I've created, so far.
The past that she has might seem dramatic and arbitrary, but it is actually a past I share, in some ways. A sibling, once aggressive and abusive, suddenly matures and desires to teach the one they so scorned as stupid and inept.
Her attitude and frustrations about success and failure. The way she handles mistakes, as how Rini observes. How she begins to be more degrading and stringent on herself than any other could match when making fun of her. The hard work she puts into "fixing" what she feels is "wrong" with herself.
Even down to some small details. Her fleur-de-lis scar, caused by the embered tip of a doobie, is similar to a scar I have from the tip of a cigarette.
Someone made a comment about a particular scene Lyza was in, saying they were in a similar situation. I responded that I was also in a similar situation, and that I was able to draw from that to make the scene more vivid and real (at least I hope, as always).
But the truth is, for a great deal of Lyza's story, that statement holds. Lyza's story is, in many ways, my own story. More embellished, more dramatic, and there are many parts that are also her own story unrelated to mine.
But, of all the characters, she is the one that is the closest "self-insert" as you can get to me.
I'm glad that I went that direction with her. I'm glad I didn't keep her static and as she was from Raspberry Line. In may respects, she is the character that has changed and grown the most, at least from what you've seen in the story.
The only one who may have grown more would be Ket, but his growth occurred mainly prior to the story, and unlike Lyza I do not reveal that backstory in the same style.
I'm glad that you have a favorite character, and that yours is your favorite for your own reasons. I hope that every character is a favorite of someone's, even the "villains."
It is for these reasons that Lyza is my favorite, and she likely will be for a very long time.
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8 years, 4 months ago
18 Feb 2018 03:44 CET
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