Where Chris is From.

A Lesson by Ardeth Lane

Lesson two in your character creation quest.

So, I was sitting in my black leather swivel chair thinking to myself, 'What am I going to do today?' While I was doing so I realized the style of house I'm staying in and thought to myself, 'If I attempted to describe this house to someone, what would I say?' And THUS created my lesson today.

WHERE YOUR CHARACTER LIVES!!!

So, today, instead of going back and forth with he/she, I'm going to name the 'character' I'll refer to constantly...Chris. A nice, simple unisex name. SO, continuing with what I was saying.. today I'm going to try to help you create a house/living environment for Chris, formally known as 'Your Character.'

SO, I guess as a good, question #1 I should ask what your char- Chris's style is. Think about is, is he a Penny Pincher? A Free Bird? A Worry Wort? Or a Carefree Silas?

Does he dust every three hours or procrastinate another five minutes, and another five minutes, and ANOTHER five minutes?

Does Chris have any addictions like, maybe he's a smoker. And if so, where do his addictions take place? Inside or outside? Where outside? Is it a concealed area or can anyone see him?

These are all very important questions to consider and I suggest you take them seriously because the moment you think 'Oh that won't matter' It will, and you'll be left wishing you'd planned that out better.

Okay so lets start some rapid fire questions and when we're through them I'll explain why you need them answered in case you want to know.

What kind of road is outside of Chris's house?

Is it a country road or not?

Where does Chris live?

What kind of driveway does he have?

How long is his driveway? How wide?

Are there any things lining his driveway?

If so, what?

What kind of grass does he have?

Alive or dead?

How long is the grass?

Are there weeds in it?

Is there a garden?

If so, what's he growing?

Is it full with beautiful crops or are they dead?

Is he growing pumpkins?

How large are they?

How many trees are around the yard?

What kind?

If you were standing on the road, could you see his house?

How much shade is in the yard from trees?

Could the amount of sun coming through even support a garden?

How long does the dew sit on the grass?

Okay be honest, did you at any point think, 'Why does that matter?' I mean, LOOK at that last question! The dew? Why does the DEW matter? Well, thank you for asking because I'll tell you.

Starting at the road. The style of the road and what it's made out of all depends on the town. If its a VERY wealthy town, there won't be any dirt roads. If it's a poorer town there will most likely be more gravel than pavement.

His driveway. That is important for many reasons. One, you need to be able to visualize where Chris is living right? The answer is yes. Yes you do. (: Two, it also depicts whether he's rich or poor. Gravel or Pavement? HOWEVER, he CAN be wealthy with a gravel driveway. It all depends on the style you give Chris. As for the things lining his driveway...that can either say how conscious he is of other peoples opinion of him, or its a part of his style. I only ask for the length of it for your visual benefits. OH! But, if it is gravel, Are there weeds coming through the gravel?

I ask about the grass because it shows how much he cares about his things. My mom once told me if you take care of the smallest thing like it was the largest, you'll have no problem caring for something large. So, how does Chris take care of his lawn? Does he fertilize it and weed whack it or let it go? Are there things laying everywhere?

The garden thing...yeah it's all about his personality. Or he could have it because he doesn't trust any foods from the store which would only say that he didn't trust things/people to easily. As for the pumpkin...well, there ARE pumpkin growing contests and if he was trying to get 'known' he might try to enter a pumpkin in, in hope of his 15 minutes of fame.

The trees are for many reasons as well. 1. So you can visualize it. 2. So you know what kind of trees he likes...or doesn't like and merely tolerates. 3. If its as thick as a forest not many people can see in right? Causing a shield of privacy from the world. 4. How much sun gets through says if there's shade or not. So, is he a mole or a bird? It could also affect his complexion.

:) The dew was a question for the amount of shade as well, how long does it take for the amount of sun coming through to take all the wetness?

Was that too much explaining? Mmm, I'll try to cut back on that. Anyhow, now that we've settled the road/driveway/yard/shade/garden/pumpkin/dew we can move on.

By the way, if you don't know by now, I think it's time I tell you. MY lessons are NOT a short, thirty seconds long. They take a while. So stick with me, read it all, and we'll get through this alive. . .unless it kills us. Then we'll get through this dead. :)

ANYWAYS

I'm going to give you some rapid fire questions more about the house he's in and try to cut back on any explaining at the end.

Homework. (:

Write a paragraph or two before I do ask you questions. Detail the house as much as you can without making it sound like a list. Do this before you move on.
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How many stories high is the house?

What color is it?

Is it wood paneled or that plastic-y, fake stuff you never have to repaint?

If it's wood, is the wood chipping or not?

Looking directly at the house, how many windows are there?

Are they covered up or not?

How large are they?

If there IS a porch, what's on it?

A swing?

A grill?

Flower pots?

Or maybe nothing...

Is the porch painted or stained?

Painted? Oh, what color?

Stained? Cool, how dark?

How good of shape is the porch in?

Is it rotting away or not?

Describe it.

How about a walkway TO the porch?

Is there one?

If so, is it cement?

Round, flat stones?

If cement, are there weeds coming through it?

Is there a roof over the porch?

Is there a back porch?

What kind of door leads to the back porch?

Sliding?

French?

Normal wood?

How large is the back porch?

What is it over looking?

Is there a backyard?

If so, how large is it?

Is it flat or does it have hills?

Is there a swimming pool?

A pond?

A creek?

Or is there a small swing set for Chris's children?

Is there a barn?

If so, what animals?

Horses?

Cows?

Is everything ship shape or a complete mess?

Is Chris happy where he is?

I think for the most part you can figure out why I ask the questions that I do but there are a few I'd like to explain.

To clear this up quick and easy, the condition of the house and color and all of that is, like I said before, either his style or how conscious he is of others. Or, if he cares at all.

Ah..the cow question was a, how big is his yard, question. Remember it's an acre a cow if you want them to have enough grass to eat. Er, that's what I heard at least. :)

Okay, I'm going to run over a few more things and wrap this up for you so you're not sitting here ALL day.

How light is it IN the house?
The amount of light going into the house shows how many windows there are. It also shows how you made Chris as a person.

What style of house is it?
Did I ask this already? I dunno, answer it anyways. There's a HUGE difference in say, a trailer house and a mansion.

Is Chris even IN a house?
Is he in a trailer? An apartment? If so, please try to make this lesson work for you. If, however, you can't and have questions send me a message and I'll answer you as soon as I can.

Who lives around him?
Druggies, homosexuals, goody two shoes, spoiled little brats? (Now, I don't mean to insult anyone who may be homosexual. I'm just trying to have you think about where he lives. What's accepted. What's not..)

OKAY. I'm done. If you have any questions you'd like to ask me, send me a message. I'd appreciate any comments, reviews, or criticism but PLEASE don't curse me out or anything. It's not like I'm a professional writer who has degrees in this stuff. I'm just a kid trying to be useful. :)

And, if you want me to make a lesson about something involving Chris, where he lives...etc. Send me a message or leave it in a comment. I'd appreciate it!

As a note though, I'll probably do another one on the inside of the house because I'm just one of those freaky people who thinks all of this detail is important. ;)

Thanks

Bye