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Get Your Ass to Work

Believe it or not, a few of my characters actually have day jobs to support themselves. Megan, for example, is officially a historian, which is my in-universe explanation for how I can write stories about all my other characters. She's a time-traveler, too, apparently, but that's a secret. Ciara's a farrier because I've always thought it would be a neat job to have, and because she just has an affinity for horses. Deirdre's a soldier, because everyone gets to have one standard fantasy hero in their collection, right? Or maybe two, now that I have Bleu, who's a soldier, too. I keep thinking that it might be kind of fun to show some of them actually doing their jobs for a change, too. Though, except for Deirdre and maybe Jessamine, that might not make for particularly exciting art. Then again, even my girls can't have sex all the time. Not even Jessamine.

But I was wondering, what do your characters do for a living? Do they have the same job you do, or do they do something far more glamorous? Far less glamorous? Or, if they don't have a job, what do you imagine they'd enjoy doing?

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Added:	10 years, 10 months ago 28 Jun 2013 04:24 CEST

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dmfalk

10 years, 10 months ago

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Amy repairs radios. Those that don't pay her to repair a radio often just dump old, broken radios at her doorstep, which she somehow manages to repair, then sells them on eBay. (She only keeps a few she actually likes. Consequently, she has probably over 1000 radios scattered around the farmhouse her landlady gave her.) It's often more than enough to pay for her necessities, because she's just that good, often not needing schematics, if she can't find them. There isn't much "serious" work, otherwise, for a "little person" like Amy.

When she isn't repairing radios, she programs a small, very-low-power automated FM radio station, playing an eclectic variety, usually oldies from 5am to 10pm, and the rest of the time, world & ambient music, or whatever else suits her fancy.

d.m.f.

MeganBryar

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ dmfalk

I knew Amy was involved with radio, from reading her ref. sheet, and I've always thought that was pretty neat. I briefly considered a career in radio, myself, until I was lured away by my failed attempt at becoming a historian. But I spent my first semester as an undergraduate playing with radio equipment and exploring that world a little bit, and I've still got a bit of a soft spot for it. She sounds like quite the resourceful gal, too. I'd imagine it would be tough for someone as short as she is to find much work, but on the flip side I'd bet it makes her radio repairs that much easier.

dmfalk

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ MeganBryar

For her, it's both a gift and a curse, as she sees it. For one thing, she instinctively knows what's needed, and can do it, often with no technical specs, no test equipment, nothing- except a set of screwdrivers, most of the time. :) The curse part comes into play as she can't even tell you just how she knows what she knows, because she doesn't know, herself! Yes, she has technical books- lots of them- and can read a schematic cold, but it's more like a sixth sense that just kicks in. (If you hand her a brand new mass-produced radio, she'll tweak it-- Factories don't set radios to optimal performance once built, but rather, follow settings and values in prototypes and first-production models- They're seldomely up to their potential! Why? Cheaper that way. Amy can fix those blind in minutes!)

It's the fact she can fix beloved radios- including antiques- from dead to newer-than-new that had given her a reputation as a miracle worker, so she gets on average 20-50 radios a month (and sometimes a few TV sets), only some are paid for as repair jobs. The rest, because their owners didn't think the radio could be revived- maybe usable for parts- end up being fully repaired and sold on eBay. It pays the bills and gets some food in the fridge. :) Only a few she keeps for herself, usually the more unusual types.

...Then there was that day some fox gave her a radio that was deliberately blown up, set on fire, scorched with hot acid, and generally unrecognisable. 3 days later, there was a working radio....

Yes, a miracle worker. :)

She can work with all manner of electronics, but that affinity with radio is where she is happiest with. :) As a technician, she's unlicensed, so she tells customers that she might void the warranty. But with her reputation, most think she's worth the $5-$75 a repair. (Tweaks of fresh radios and any working radio under warranty are just $5, since they only take minutes. This includes blown speakers.) Being on the central Pacific coast, she can make an AM radio pick up San Francisco with ease, even receive CBC Vancouver 690 in the daytime. No, these aren't impossible- Many car radios can do that, because they're well-grounded, but because radios aren't usually tweaked to maximum potential, most don't realise their radio can be that sensitive. I can do it, if I can hear it, but she can do it just by feeling it. Tweaking is about the only skill Amy and I have in common ( except for reading schems cold), but beyond that, I can only dream! :) She can do it without batting an eyelash, and had been doing it since she was about 5 or 6. It's when she realised she needed to earn money for food and rent she put that skill to good use.

d.m.f.

VerbMyNoun

10 years, 10 months ago

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You've seen the preview about what happens with MY Megan's job. I have something new lined up for her, though. Derek works at his parents' car customization shop. Yvette is a grad student studying Sports Medicine. Tatiana is a financial advisor. Amelia is an English and Philosophy teacher, and the head coach for the school's aquatic sports teams. George works IT. Xavier is the CEO for the local power company. Sean and Stacey work together at the local sex shop.

Since my stories mainly revolve around school, most of my characters are students.

MeganBryar

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ VerbMyNoun

That's actually a pretty good collection of jobs, and some of them sound pretty neat. Pervert that I am, I've always kind of wondered what it would be like to work in an adult store like that. And, of course, having most of your characters be students is probably a wise choice, as far as story-telling goes. One of the main reasons most of my characters are unemployed bums is that it's much easier to write for someone who isn't tied down by a nine-to-five. Plus, a student can grow up to be anything you want them to be.

Windmutt

10 years, 10 months ago

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He's a wanderer with no job and hangs out with his friends. If he bothered to stay in one place, he'd probably get hired as a living air-conditioner or as a new channel's "eye-in-the-sky"

MeganBryar

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ Windmutt

He sounds like a pretty, ah, cool guy to have around the place.

Okay, you can smack me for that one. I deserve it.

But I kind of like the idea of being an unemployed wanderer, too. I've always wanted to see the world, and answer to no one but myself.

Windmutt

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ MeganBryar

Oh I know the feeling there

Zinzoline

10 years, 10 months ago

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*giggles*

It's actually far less uncommon than you'd think to have your characters having actual jobs. You can often see characters in art performing some kind of work (granted, that's mostly being the sexy luscious librarian/nurse/whathaveyou), and when you read stories, the characters tend to be portrayed as working at their job, or there is at least a mention of what they do for a living.

*grins*

Now for the long list...

Minty is head of order processing at Weyerhaeuser, a huge paper company, working at the relatively new branch in Amity, Oregon - before that she worked as senior order processor at one of the Weyerhaeuser main branches in Portland, Oregon.
Dusty works from home as she is a divorced mother, and I have to admit, I'm not sure yet what it is exactly that her work entails. Most likely something administrative or similar that can be done from home by computer.
Phoebe is now Minty's direct assistant at the Weyerhaeuser Amity branch.
Chevelle, whom we only have seen yet in the picture @Iko drew of her and the huge textual character sheet I made of her, is a student but has an evening job of babysitting at the Amity babysitting agency to pay for her hobby, which is maintaining and dragracing with her car.
Kayleigh, who is also more or less part of the Minty Mouse universe by now, is head of Division south at the Salem Agency for Adoption and Foster Care.

Mara is head of the Design department at Tybertsen & Co., a large advertisement agency which has a branch in Gruno Town, Colorado. Before that she got a job as senior designer at the main office of Tybertsen & Co. in Jackson, Wyoming, where she went to college.
Celeste has no set job, her occupation is being an adorable bubbly airhead =~.^= She keeps herself busy all day every day with thinking up cute ways of welcome Mara home, working on her classic cars, and getting her money by, very unexpectedly, playing the stock market (emphasis on playing; she views it as a game which is what helps her be rather successful at it)
Abby is a cook, owning and running the small diner in Gruno Town, Colorado.
Cerise is now one of the designers in Mara's department at Tybertsen & Co, one step above junior designer and up for promotion to senior designer. Before that, she has gone through several types of jobs during her travels all over the world, from waitress to fashion model and even nude model.
Penny, from Celeste's band, is waitress at the Moonshine Café in Gruno Town, CO.
Alani, from Celeste band, teaches music at the Elijah Gruno High School in Gruno Town, CO.
Lydia and Silvia, from Celeste's band, work at the music store in the New District of Gruno Town, CO.
Miriam, from Celeste's band, drive one of the Gruno Town school buses in the mornings and afternoons, and in between drives a van to deliver parcels and bundles of newspapers.
Ashleen the Mauwria cat-taur is a bus driver for the Walsenburg Public Transit Company in Walsenburg, Colorado.
Jamie the Mauwria cat-taur is a mechanic in the garage where the buses of the Walsenburg Public Transit Company are serviced and maintained, as well as other heavy-duty trucks and vehicles.

Several of my adopted characters and a couple of my own creation work various jobs in The Gogo Club and the At The End Of The Rainbow Resort, respectively at the border of Rye, Colorado and in the Black Hills near Gruno Town, CO.

Ronya is a certified masseuse owning and running her own small massage parlor with a crew of five.

Of course, my own tall fluffy winged calico self is a First Priestess of the Circle of Bastet, and running the Temple of Bastet and the rituals in there is a full-time job. My secondary job is with my band, giving concerts and recording singles and albums.

*chuckles*

And I could go on and on and on like that for quite a while yet... but these are the main characters I used the most in my stories =~.^=

MeganBryar

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ Zinzoline

Oh sure, a lot of fictional characters have jobs, of course. Even Superman has a day job, even if the bum never does it! The believe it or not part was just referring to my own characters, and the fact that they never seem to do more than just lounge around and pounce on every pretty girl in sight.

But goodness, that's quite the impressive list of jobs for your characters! I like how a lot of them intersect, too, and bring your characters together on yet another level of interaction. There are some really fun sounding jobs there, too. I must say I think Celeste has the best one of the bunch, except maybe for your own. I like how so many of them work for specific companies, too, and don't just have rather generic sounding jobs, like most of my girls do. And, of course, leave it to you to leave me in awe of how detailed and well thought out everything is!

Zinzoline

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ MeganBryar

Hee! Yes, that is true indeed! But even if Superman is hardly ever seen actually doing his job, I still have more respect for him that for Batman. At least Superman ain't some kind of spoilt rich kid =Þ

I know what you mean, though! The same pretty much goes for my characters; save from the one picture of Mara in her work clothes, the two or three pictures of me in my priestess robes and the one picture of my playing guitar onstage in that wild zoot suit, all my characters seem to be doing in pictures is either showing themselves off, or snuggling or even more with other sexy girls =~.^=

*giggles again and winks*

Aww, and thank you, darling! I'll admit that some of the intersecting jobs have mostly been done so I could bring certain characters into the story line as part of the steady cast (such as Cerise coming to work in Mara's department and Phoebe being Minty's assistant), but it does certainly make for several extra interesting options I can use when writing about them. Hee, and yes, Celeste's job is certainly a lot of fun!

*chuckles*

I kind of like creating a company that my characters can work for, but in Minty's case, I used an existing one. When I first introduced her, I simply described her as being order processor for 'a large paper manufacturer', and lateron I by chance found out about Weyerhaeuser, which is a large paper manufacturer and whose company colors are green and white; that just totally fit Minty! =~.^= But yes, some of my characters have rather generic jobs (after all, we authors are allowed cop-outs on such things =~.^=), but just as I always try to make my characters unique by means of both their fur colors/markings and their personalities, I like to also make sure to use the same kind of distinguishing detail in their jobs/occupation when they have any, it just gives them that extra bit of uniqueness =^_^=

*chuckles and playfully patpats the bunbun on the head*

Aww, and it's alright, darling. It comes with experience, and I know you have plenty of that and will get even more of it in the future =~.^=

MeganBryar

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ Zinzoline

Good point. I like Superman, really. I just can't help but rag on him a little bit, because his alter ego shtick is one of the least plausible in comic book history. But it's done in an affectionate sort of way.

I'm not sure I actually have any pictures of my characters doing their jobs at this point. Well, except for a couple of pictures of Ciara as Queen, though that's more something that's in her future. And there was the one sketch of Deirdre with a sword. One of these days, I'll have to do something about that.

I'm quite familiar with Weyerhaeuser's paper products, too. Back when I was an undergraduate, half the things I owned could be packed into a couple of old paper boxes from the company, and my first couple of jobs out of school had to do with printers and printer products, including a brief stint in quality assurance, so I used a lot of Weyerhaeuser paper in feeding the machines. So it's kind of neat that you picked that company for your characters to work for.

Zinzoline

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ MeganBryar

*giggles and nodnods*

I know what you mean! I mean, a newspaper reporter, and he needs to dive into a phone booth every time he has to change? What's with that? =Þ Haha, in one of our comic weeklies we actually had a running comic called Sooperman which spoofed the whole thing; you had Clark Klont, a nerdy guy with a talking pet hedgehog, and he was secretly Sooperman, and every time he was flying around as that you saw the jet engine on his back and all, hee! and there was always at least one time this plane going by where one of the pilots went "Hey Dave, there's that geezer again!"

Mmm, and yes, I should actually get some more pictures done of my girls where they are actually doing their job. Well, okay, I remembered I also have that one nude of Cerise where she's strutting her stuff on the catwalk, I guess that counts since she's been a model... and come to think of it, I have, in the same series (Alishka's IA from a year ago), that nude of Abby in an apron where she's sitting on a counter amidst some (other) Scottish dishes =~.^=

Hee, and I see! That is quite a funny coincidence, alright! I just happened to blunder upon them because I was watching/downloading broadcasts of old stock car races from like the 60's, and one of them still had the commercial breaks in it so I got to see American commercials from the 1960's - it was real fun actually, hee! And one of those commercials was from Weyerhaeuser, so I thought; hey, that would work for my truck sim game! Let's go and see if I can find some logos of that and download them to make skins for my trailers. And that's when I found out that Weyerhaeuser still exists and is still going strong! And that also kinda made me place my green mousie on their employee list =~.^=

dmfalk

10 years, 10 months ago

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BTW, I only have one other character with a paying job: Ilene, my out-of-time leptictidium. She's a self-employed licensed landscaper (and pretty damn good at it), which keeps her pretty well occupied. :)

d.m.f.

Malachyte

10 years, 10 months ago

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I don't often think about it much, but now that you mention it, I guess I did give some of my characters hobbies and jobs without realizing it.

I've got one boy who's a college freshman, who spends most of his time doing his homework as efficiently as possible so he can play more gameboy/DS games. He just kind of lays around a lot. There's my dragoness who studies herbs and medicine in solitude out in the woods. And one of my first characters who somehow ended up being a professional stripper, though I don't recall deciding this (one of those "life of their own" moments).

Spix is just... well she just does whatever I wish I was doing at the moment, ha. So mostly walking around book stores and cooking it seems.

MeganBryar

10 years, 10 months ago

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@ Malachyte

A lot of my own characters followed a similar path to the one taken by your professional stripper. Some of them were given specific jobs when I created them, of course. I always knew what I wanted Megan to do, because that was what I used to want to do, myself. But most of them just sort of ended up getting whatever job seemed to fit their personalities or the way their stories were shaping up. One of them even ended up as a prostitute because that's what fit her story, even though I'd always sworn I'd never create a character like that. Though I flatter myself that she ended up as something more interesting in the end.

Anyway, thanks so much for answering. It's always fun to read why people created the characters they did, and the thought that went into them.

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