First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Lacy Tremblay (100)

Project: TV Series (Rent Control)

Known as: No nickname

Real name: Lacy Tremblay (previously Louis)

Group affiliation: None

Physical description: Lacy is a striking young woman with wavy chestnut hair and deep blue eyes. She is in good shape and is a fashionable dresser.

Personality: Lacy has wisdom and experience that belies her years. She is kind and supportive of friends, although she has learned that people need to own their own lives (i.e., you can’t save those who don’t want saving). She is charismatic and witty and tends to dominate (in a good way) any party she goes to (she gets invited to a lot).

History: Lacy is Arlo’s “counter move” to Finley’s casting of Caleb (remember, Arlo viewed that as being about Arlo and Finley’s personal rivalry). Arlo decided that he would hire a professional actor without consulting Finley (which Arlo knew would get under Finley’s skin). Arlo reached out to some of the actors in the production of RENT he saw that started this whole story but none of them were available (they were committed to that traveling production). One did provide a recommendation of Lacy and (Arlo being Arlo) he hired her post haste.

Lacy, based on how it was sold by Arlo, expected to walk into a welcoming situation where she would be both star and mentor to others (being the only professional actor in the production). Through no fault of hers, instead she is met with surprise and a few of the existing actors feeling threatened and inadequate. She feels manipulated by Arlo (because she was) and fairly quickly plans to leave the production.

A few things prevent that from happening. First, Finley can’t allow his initial bad reaction to stand. He realizes Lacy is just a pawn of Arlo’s. Plus, he has investigated her and seen some of her performances on You Tube and she is very talented.  He apologizes to her and asks her to stay.

Second, Caleb immediately realizes Lacy has been mistreated and is the first to approach her one on one. They immediately connect (there is a spark there).

Third, Lacy has personal reasons for wanting to do the show. Lacy is transgender (Arlo doesn’t know this even though she is very open about it) and grew up in Wyoming. She was often treated poorly in her hometown (to say the least) and one of her parents struggled with accepting her as transgender. She found the idea of an older group of people in Billings doing a production of rent appealing and wanted to support the diversity efforts implicit in it. Additionally, she thought it would somewhat help her deal with some of the challenges she faced in childhood.

Role in the narrative: Much like Caleb, Lacy is a decent person who causes conflict through no fault of her own. I also think it would be a miss not to inject a little more diversity in the set of characters given it is an important theme in the story.

Abilities: Lacy is a professional actor and singer and it shows. She studied her craft in high school through college and has been in many professional productions (though she hasn’t broken through as a big star).

Inspirations: I thought about an actor currently on Supergirl (Nicole Maines) when writing this. I don’t think Lacy is necessarily like Nicole (who I don’t know/haven’t read much about), but as a transgender actor on a popular show Nicole is inspirational in a few ways.

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Caleb Butler (99 <- the correct number; running count got off somehow)

Project: TV Series (Rent Control)

Known as: No nickname

Real name: Caleb Butler

Group affiliation: None

Physical description: Caleb is in his early twenties and is tall and handsome. He has thick, messy hair (but typically artfully messy hair). He sports a short goatee.

Personality: Caleb is calm and soulful. He often likes to listen well before saying anything (he is more likely to ponder something and try to express it in his music instead of talking about something he hasn’t thought through). He has few friends (but they are very close) but many admirers.

History: Caleb is Arlo’s estranged grandson. More specifically, he’s the son of Arlo’s estranged son (he doesn’t have strong opinions on his grandfather). Raised in California, Caleb’s father spoke often of Arlo (none of it good). It seems when Arlo’s wife divorced him, she was a bit liberal with criticisms of Arlo and did what she could to reduce contact (Arlo didn’t work as hard to have contact with his children as he probably should have). This affected Caleb’s father’s view of Arlo and Caleb’s grandmother was also happy to paint an image of the monstrous Arlo for Caleb.

Though from an early age, Caleb always stood out from his immediate family. More reflective and less judgmental, he listened to the stories but took them with a grain of salt. He also stood out because he was not materialistic and had an artistic nature. He’s something of the black sheep with his immediate family for no other reason than he is pursuing a life as a musician. He has actually had some early success but not in a breakthrough sort of way. He has a notable following on You Tube and has sold a couple of songs to other artists.

Though Arlo didn’t try to keep up with his children the way he might have, Finley reached out regularly. Though Finley failed to connect substantively with most of the estranged branch of the family, he did connect to Caleb. Finley was a fan of Caleb’s musical efforts from and early age. Caleb in turn found a kindred spirit in his great uncle. Like Caleb, Finley felt his artistic passions made him the oddball of the family but found happiness in pursuing his interests. The two communicate regularly and have even met up on the odd occasion (Finley has tried to encourage Arlo to connect with Caleb, with mixed success).

After Finley has been working on the production of RENT for a while he has failed a few times to get someone cast as Roger (Finley himself will end up being Mark). He simply can’t find the right mix of gravitas, voice, and charisma in any of the actors who have auditioned. After many criticisms from Arlo on this point (Roger is a critical role), Finley has an epiphany. He invites Caleb to come and play Roger.

Caleb is perfect for the part (he even plays guitar). But Finley’s casting of Caleb causes more than a few waves. Many feel that you can’t have a 20-something Roger with a 70-something Mimi (Caleb is actually perfectly fine with this). Arlo, meanwhile, doesn’t believe Finley brought in Caleb for the sake of the production but rather as a way to strike back at Arlo. Caleb wants to connect with Arlo but Arlo struggles with this.

There is much baggage to resolve. In truth, Finley might have more than one motivation in casting Caleb. Meanwhile, while Arlo resents the casting, it also gives him an opportunity to directly address his loneliness and concerns he has run his life poorly.

Role in the narrative: Caleb will cause some churn (through no fault of his own). He will help the narrative explore ageism (in both directions) a bit.

Abilities: Caleb is a talented singer, guitar player, and song writer.

Inspirations: Roger from RENT actually influenced the creation of Caleb (how’s that for casting?). I suppose other soulful musician types are an influence as well, but Caleb is well-adjusted compared to many of them (e.g., Bridges in Crazy Heart).

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

The Wojciechowskis (97)

Project: TV Series (Rent Control)

Known as: The Woes (behind their back)

Real name: Casper and Winnie (Winifred) Wojciechowski

Group affiliation: White Elm Retirement Home

Physical description: The Wojciechoswskis are both 75 and stay active. Casper is a good-looking, tall guy who has an unfortunate taste for Hawaiian shirts. Winnie dyes her hair black and it is usually teased up. She dresses in nice clothes but has a taste for loud colors.

Personality: Casper is a total schmoozer. He is gregarious and warmly greets strangers, but he gives off the vibe of having an agenda (he owned a car dealership). Not a bad guy but he lives for getting the best of a deal. Winnie is quieter but friendly. She is a bit materialistic and is happy to share with you her and Casper’s latest acquisition, trip, accomplishments of her children, etc. No one hates them yet most do find the “Woes” tedious after a while.

History: Casper and Winnie are Billings lifers and upper middle class. Casper inherited (and grew) his father’s car dealership, while Winnie was the office manager (she did spend some time at home with their two children). On the surface they always struck others as money-focused and materialistic. Reality is slightly subtler than that: Casper loves making deals (more than having the stuff) and Winnie loves talking about her stuff (more than the stuff itself).

In part to benefit the business, Casper and Winnie have always been active in the community. They love to see their name on plaques and so forth (though it is often misspelled), so this has led them to a form of generosity. They had been generous with the high school play productions Finley produced and, after retirement, generous with Finley’s community theater. It would have been very difficult for Finley to get it started without them (and they are there to remind him if he forgets). They are known to often act in the plays but thrive more on the attention than the craft. Still, they both have confidence and have improved as actors.

Casper and Winnie are virtually never apart. Throughout their careers they worked together, attended conferences and took trips together, attended events together, etc. For one month at the retirement home some of the tenants had a bet to see who could get a picture of one of the Woes without the other (they gave up after a month).

As a result, in plays they often play couples of love interests. When they hear RENT is being put on, they aim to claim the roles of Tom Collins and Angel (the truest love story of the play). This causes all sorts of debate, not the least of which is that it opens the production to criticisms of “straightwashing.” They feel that their financial contributions should get them consideration and that a little straightwashing might help it play in Billings. Some of the troupe agree, though most don’t.

Things will get even more strained when Casper is surprisingly adept at playing Collins and sings better than anyone would have expected (he did non-musical parts in the past). There is talk of keeping Casper and recasting Angel (ideally with someone transgender; at least with a man). This will make Casper face his latent homophobia. More than that, Winnie will be tremendously threatened. It turns out there is a history of infidelity, but not Casper’s. Winnie has had at least two affairs and that ironically makes her less trusting of Casper (she drives their constant togetherness).

Will all of this drive some personal growth (Winnie more trusting? Casper more accepting?)? Stay tuned!

Role in the narrative: They are not the main characters but will have episodes where they are the protagonists. I want them to seem like something cliched on the surface but the circumstances of the plot driving them to change.

Abilities: Casper is a wheeler-dealer with an unexpected set of pipes. Winnie is highly organized.

Inspirations: The schmooze-y car salesman is trope territory. I can’t think of the direct inspirations but these certainly aren’t particularly original characters.

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Olivia Jackson (96)

Project: TV Series (Rent Control)

Known as: No nicknames

Real name: Olivia Jackson

Group affiliation: White Elm Retirement Home

Physical description: Olivia is in her 70ies and has (only somewhat wrinkled) light brown skin. She is an attractive, somewhat-overweight woman.

Personality: Olivia wears her heart on her sleeve. This means she is very warm and loving. This also means she can sometimes be a bit dramatic and over-expressive. The former overshadows the latter, so she is well-loved at White Elm. She does love performing but she equally loves the sense of community the theater provides. So, while she likes the spotlight, she doesn’t demand it. She has always lived her life as she chooses and can be a little confused (and sometimes frustrated) by those who don’t.

History: Olivia has lived in Billings all her life. She lost her father at an early age (oil rig accident) and was raised by her mother (a librarian). She talks to her father daily and instead of using his death as a reason to be bitter she has always used it as a reminder to live each day to its fullest. When she was young, she started working at a clothing store and the owners loved her like one of the family. She was such an essential employee and continued to grow (from stocker, to sales, to shift manager, and upward) that eventually she purchased the store at a very reasonable price. She married the man who had a bakery next door and had two kids. Olivia and her husband were downtown Billings staples and well known in the community.

Throughout her life, she loved to sing and perform in her spare time. She sang in church, tried out for various local productions, and even had a cover band for a while. She is a very good singer and any number of people have wondered why she didn’t pursue that as a career. For Olivia, it wasn’t a lack of courage, it was simply that singing was something special and joyous. She simply didn’t want to put the pressure of it being her livelihood on it.

She has always loved life in Billings. She enjoys the small city feel and having the sense she knows so many people. Her kids grew up and moved away and she remains close to them. Both have offered to have her move in with them but while she visits often, she wanted to stay in Billings and give them space to live their own life. She lost her husband a decade ago and has talked to him every day since as well.

It was very natural that Olivia joined Finley’s little theater troupe. In fact, she has always been his ringer – elevating any performance she is in (and making their theater more popular than one might expect. When the rent production starts, Finley immediately goes to her as Mimi (somewhat the female lead in an ensemble cast) – to no one’s surprise.

Things will get more complicated when a much younger man will ultimately be the one finally cast as Roger. It will raise how people feel about age, May/December pairings (especially when the woman is older), and more. It’s possible that she’ll move over to the role of Maureen and find the edgier part liberating to play.

Role in the narrative: She is something of an ensemble protagonist. I’m flirting with her having a romantic interest in Finley.

Abilities: She can sing like a bird and is a solid actor. She also knows clothing and may end up the costume department.

Inspirations: I’ll have to review this one and see if I can give her some more stand-out/unique aspects. ATM, she somewhat reminds me of Mercades from Glee.

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Sissy Jenkins (95)

Project: TV Series (Rent Control)

Known as: Sissy

Real name: Elizabeth Jenkins

Group affiliation: White Elm Retirement Home; formerly Montana State University

Physical description: No one knows exactly how old Sissy is. She is extremely active and productive, and also extremely wrinkled with white hair. She dresses practically and her most common accessory is a toolbelt. There is a rumor that the real Sissy died some time ago but not before creating an exact android duplicate of herself.

Personality: Sissy is unflappable and monosyllabic. She is usually in her workshop and seems most content when designing and building. She doesn’t seek out human contact but doesn’t avoid it per se, either (she takes meals with groups). She just doesn’t tend to contribute to conversation. She does answer (politely enough) when directly addressed but she is definitively not one to waste words.

History: Sissy grew up on a farm and it was clear at a young age she was a mechanical genius. She started to help with truck and equipment repairs at age seven, was flying solo at age ten, was upgrading the equipment at age thirteen, and was designing her own tractors by seventeen. She cruised through college and ultimately got a PhD in mechanical engineering. She was employed for years (most gainfully) with a major tractor manufacturer (designing tractors and implements). She eventually took up teaching at Montana State before retiring as a bit of a legend in her field.

Now she lives in a retirement home where she donated enough money for a major workshop/craft room to be built. Since her retirement she has branched out into carpentry, woodworking, electronics, and more. She can basically build anything.

When we meet Sissy, Arlo and Finley will have agreed to do a production of RENT but will have already started arguing about particulars. Arlo will be utterly exasperated with Finley, feeling like Finley is being overly-dramatic (heh) and making their arguments about more than just the play.

Arlo comes stomping into Sissy’s workshop, where she is soldering. She doesn’t look up when Arlo comes in.

Arlo: “Sissy, I know you are to-the-point so here’s the deal: I’m bankrolling a high-class production of RENT, and Finley is directing it. The whole thing will flop unless you do the sets, lighting, everything.”

Sissy: “Yes.”

Arlo: “So you’ll do it?”

Sissy: “No.”

Arlo: “Well, the whole thing is off if you don’t do it.”

Sissy: “Ok.”

Arlo: “So you’ll do it?”

Sissy: “No.”

Arlo (purses his lips): “Sissy, I’ll give you a $10,000 bonus if you agree to do it. Will you do it now?”

Sissy: “Yes.”

Arlo: “So we have a deal?”

Sissy: “Yes.”

Arlo (pauses): “Now that’s how a deal gets done. If you had worked for me, I would have ruled the goddamn world. Your directness is beautiful, and the simplicity of your motivations nearly moves me to tears. You give me hope, Sissy. You are the most magnificent person with whom I’ve ever interacted.”

Arlo walks out. Sissy has not stopped soldering or looked at Arlo the entire time. The camera stays on her for several more beats.

Sissy: “Yes.”

Role in the narrative: Enabler and facilitator. And explanation for how magnificent the stage craft will be.

Abilities: She’s a mechanical genius and can build anything.

Inspirations: The laconic nature may have come from Oz on buffy. Al on Home Improvement may have been an inspiration.

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Finley Butler (94)

Project: TV Series (Rent Control)

Known as: Fin (sometimes)

Real name: Finley Butler

Group affiliation: Butler family; formerly Billings High School

Physical description: Arlo is 77 and a bit of a silver fox. He has dancing blue eyes and the kinds of wrinkles that suggest a life well lived (e.g., smile lines). He’s one inch shorter than his brother and dresses well though casual.

Personality: Finley is charming and beloved. He makes friends easily in part because he is very optimistic and supportive of others. He was often voted favorite teacher during his years as a high school speech and drama teacher. He is quick to help and quick to forgive. Perhaps his biggest flaw is that he can be a little sensitive to judgment (especially his own). His parents’ favoring of his brother still rankles him (though he wishes he could let it go).

History: Finley was born Arlo’s little brother. Finley himself would resent his history starting out that way but it is how even he defined himself for a lot of his life. Arlo was his parents’ favorite and in fact had trouble connecting with Finley who wanted to spend his time drawing, watching films, or acting. Arlo did better in school and was much more driven. It’s not like people did not like Finley, he was simply the nice-guy younger brother (and we know where nice guys finish).

As covered in the Arlo entry, their parents were not open to giving Finley the ranch even when Arlo seemed reticent. They were probably right – though dutiful, Finley would have been miserable running the ranch. When Arlo’s machinations resulted in the loss of the ranch, Finley was furious with his brother. He was mystified how he could not end up the favored son. Arlo’s eventual financial success and care of their parents only made it worse.

Especially since his brother was a little free about lording success over Finley (from Arlo’s perspective, they were all offers to help Finley out). Finley had gone to college dreaming of being an actor but ultimately decided to be a teacher. He was an amazing teacher, beloved by students, administrators, and parents. The vast majority of the time this was more than enough for Finley. Still, his brother appearing in the paper or pulling up in his latest car caused Finley twinges of resentment.

Finley met a single Billings parent (Katie) and fell in love. An instant family, he was a fantastic father to his two step children. They were very happy together.

Now, Finley is retired. He lost his wife, but his children (and grandchildren) are a big part of his life. While he had taught school, his student productions were quite a draw. After retirement, he started a community theater largely staffed by retirees. He believes that the theater keeps people active and builds confidence and runs his theater mostly for the benefit of the participants. In truth, he loves the theater and simply couldn’t imagine retirement without it in his life.

Arlo and Finley have a very complex relationship. They have been trying to reconnect. Finley is motivated by trying to let go of many of the issues he’s had with his brother. Additionally, he now feels sorry for Arlo who seems a little lost and lonely. Unfortunately, Arlo knows that their meetings are partially out of pity and in retirement the tables have turned, and Arlo has begun to resent his little brother. Finley is surrounded by friends and family and with Arlo’s reduced fortunes Arlo has begun to wonder which brother worked life better.

Then Arlo came to Finley with an offer: $100,000 for Finley to use to put on a top-shelf production of RENT. Finley initially declines as it seems to him another time Arlo wants to lord his money over Finley (he would somewhat be Arlo’s employee). He does not trust his brother’s motivations (why RENT?).

Ultimately, however, Finley can’t pass up the chance to provide such an opportunity to his theater troupe. At another level, his dreams of stardom are stirred, and he dreams of creating something great. Unfortunately, the brothers will lock horns many times – over casting, direction, and more. Fortunately, this might help them exorcise their sibling demons.

But Arlo won’t be the only relationship affected by the production. Finley just might find new love, deal with some prejudices he didn’t know he had, and come to a new understanding about his relationship with theater.

Role in the narrative: Protagonist.

Abilities: He’s fantastic with people and a wonderful teacher. He is also an above-average director (at least as community theaters go).

Inspirations: Under-appreciated, nice-guy brother? Where to start? I know the Elfstones of Shanarra had an elven prince that is an influence here.  Weird Science? Faramir? Probably the latter is a big influence – I was always a fan and couldn’t understand why Denethor so preferred the elder.

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Arlo Butler (93)

Project: TV Series (Rent Control)

Known as: No nicknames

Real name: Arlo Butler

Group affiliation: Butler family; formerly Caliber Storage

Physical description: Arlo is 80, trim, and always well-groomed and dressed. He is tall, has a steely gaze, and has presence (he tends to draw eyes as he strides into a room).

Personality: Arlo is direct and abrupt. He is not obnoxious nor a provocateur, he is simply a decisive man of vision who does not suffer fools. He is not a monster; in fact, he derives great satisfaction in the idea that his business provided people with livelihoods. He is grateful to the people who help him. He just tends to believe he is always right and doesn’t appreciate being told he is wrong. He also doesn’t give people the benefit of the doubt – his respect has to be earned and he assumes most are undeserving.

History: Arlo was the older of two brothers who grew up on a small ranch two hours from Billings, Montana. Hard-working and motivated, in his teen years he began to provide a stream of suggestions to his parents on how the ranch could be run better. His parents were traditionalists, and found him a little disrespectful, but were soon convinced that he should inherit the ranch. This seemed settled when his younger brother, Finley, turned out to be more of an artistic sort.

However, when Arlo went to college he decided the ranching life was not for him and wanted to become an entrepreneur. This caused some strife in the family as his parents wanted the ranch to stay in the family but didn’t feel Finley had the desire or ability to be an independent rancher. In fact, Finley offered to run the ranch as the years went by and his relationship with both his brother and parents became strained as his parents judged him unworthy.

Meanwhile Arlo started several business ventures over the years which did not work out. Constantly in debt or bankruptcy his parents begged him to give up his business dreams and run the ranch. He reached an agreement with them that if they were willing to mortgage the ranch for a warehouse business idea he had, then if it didn’t work out after a year, he would run the ranch and work to repay his debt to his parents.

Five years later, his parents had lost the ranch, but his business finally began to show profit. He was ultimately able to repay his parents and more, buying them a home in Billings. In his mind, he was vindicated: he was able to give his parents more than they ever would have had with the ranch. Meanwhile, they never got fully over losing the ranch and were not as happy in Billings. Finley harbored anger for his brother, with Arlo still being his parents’ favorite.

Times were good for Arlo, further causing stress with Finley (who became a high school teacher). Years past and Arlo’s business grew as did his prominence in Billings. Eventually his parents passed which was the start of a downward slide. Arlo’s wife, who he had married for her beauty and had married him for his money, left with the children. Not satisfied with his successful warehouse business, Arlo took more and more risks and started more and more ventures.

By the time he retired, Arlo’s fortunes were greatly reduced. While having still quite a nest egg (especially for Billings), his prominence had disappeared with his wealth. He found out that even he could be lonely, but he was uncertain how to repair some of the familial bridges he had burned.

Ultimately, Finley (who had just lost his wife) reached out. The two brothers meet and have dinner regularly but still have a strained relationship.

Then on a trip, Arlo sees a production of RENT. Surprisingly, he has a strong emotion reaction to the performance. He walks around the city for hours after seeing it. He wakes up the morning with a vision that he could produce a production of RENT in Billings with his brother (who runs a community theater mainly with retirees). As with everything, Arlo is willing to go big ($100k).

Unlike his other ventures, Arlo doesn’t expect to see a profit. Which makes many wonder what he is getting from it. Some think that he’s trying to connect and build something with his brother (Finley, for his part, thinks Arlo just wants to be Finley’s boss). Others think Arlo must be dying and the terminal disease storyline of RENT spoke to him. Some believe that Arlo had a realization about his own sexuality. Still others believe him to be insane, while a small group thinks he IS motivated by profit (they just haven’t figured out his angle – fraud, Producers’ style?).

In reality, Arlo couldn’t tell you. Like most of his ventures, he didn’t do some advance analysis of pros and cons. Rather he has a vision that he instinctively feels is the right one. He is driven by his gut and while he can rationalize his drive he is running on intuition. And once he sets is mind to something, he will show everyone he is right (no matter who he has to run over).

Role in the narrative: Protagonist and antagonist.

Abilities: He’s smart, motivated, and intuitive. He is good at managing the willing, but can be alienating to those who don’t agree with him.

Inspirations: I saw Ray Walston as the judge in Picket Fences a few times in my mind’s eye while writing this. Many entrepreneurs seem to succeed through having a vision and not being swayed from it – and this is part of the spirit of Arlo (think Steve Jobs – loved by some, disliked by many, great failures and great successes – but certainly someone who could drive a vision).

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Handsome Cal (92)

Project: Short story (Zones)

Known as: Handsome Cal (by himself)

Real name: Calvin Swchitz

Group affiliation: Larsen Solutions

Physical description: Handsome Cal is bald on top with long, stringy, dingy hair where it still grows. His teeth have brown stains and his brown eyes are watery with constant bags beneath them. He has a large mole (with hair) on the right side of his chin and a wart on his left upper cheek. He’s notably overweight and tends to where the same clothes for a week or more (usually with food stains – he’s a messy eater). “Handsome” is a self-applied nickname.

Personality: Handsome Cal is loud and overbearing. He loves zingers (aimed at other people, anyway) and utters them frequently. He assumes that they are always funny, especially since one of his zingers is always followed by several barks of laughter from himself. He is generous with eye rolls when others are speaking (he much prefers it when he is speaking). He hates his job, but it is basically the only one he can hold down and it pays extremely well for the effort. He cares naught for the feelings of others, has been known to pull the wings off of flies, and has no redeeming quality that has ever been observed by another person.

History: Handsome Cal grew up in a regulated zone, which would only be the beginning of his complaints about the hand he was dealt were you to ask him. His parents were poor idiots and the school system was too flawed to recognize his genius. Everyone he has met has not been as intelligent and creative as him and, as a result, they all have worked to ensure he is treated unfairly. They are so bitter about the gifts he has been given that they want to try to keep him down (his ultimate success is inevitable, of course). Sure, there has been the occasional tolerable sort who recognized his extraordinariness, but most are so absorbed with their own jealousy they can’t be around him for long.

His current job with Larsen Solutions as an interviewer is at least the first step to his eventual success. Larsen’s standards for certain key positions (troubleshooters) are so high that they have instructed him that he is only to pass along people who impress him (none have so far). He is allowed (even encouraged) to treat the interviewees however he wants and ask whatever he wants. They clearly value him as they have created a room for him with reinforced walls, indestructible glass, electronic locks and other safeguards from which he can conduct his interviews without fear of physical reprisal from the interviewee. He feels it is obvious they are grooming him to eventually run Larsen Solutions.

Grace Shin, coming in for an interview, draws a different conclusion. Within a few minutes of being told she had to call him “Handsome,” a series of inappropriate questions, rude interruptions, and general “Calness,” Grace suspects he is more challenge than interview. Once she establishes Cal is not a blood relative of anyone important at Larsen, she begins to investigate the room and pull up blueprints. She explains to Cal that she believes her challenge is to kill him in his secure room (he scoffs). He becomes more nervous as she starts thinking aloud (maybe poison him through the air vents? Set the building on fire?). She begins working on the electronic lock on his door and he tells her any tampering will set off a complete lockdown for 12 hours that even he can’t override.

Ultimately, she sets up an electronic device that will enter the wrong code (1111111) every hour or so to make sure the tamper lockdown is sustained indefinitely. She then tells him to enjoy dying slowly and she is summoned via intercom to another room to work through the details of her contract (she passed the test – ensuring Cal’s death). Cal screams as she departs.

It is left ambiguous if his employers would save Cal from his fate.

Role in the narrative: Antagonist.

Abilities: He’s obnoxious and annoying.

Inspirations: Not sure where the concept of someone being obnoxious enough that someone in a dystopian future would decide killing him was an employment test. I didn’t have anyone specifically in mind in terms of his character description, but let’s marry the charm of Newman from Seinfeld with the goodness of Joffrey from Game of Thrones.

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Allie (91)

Project: Short story (Zones)

Known as: Sometimes stylized as AllIe (AI)

Real name: Allie

Group affiliation: Grace Shin

Physical description: Usually Allie is just a voice, emitted from any number of electronic devices (including an earpiece Grace wears). There are devices that can also provide a holographic image of Allie, but Grace usually prefers voice only. When Allie is projected, Grace requests that Allie chooses a random literary figure from the past to be her representation (though Grace always wants to hear Allie’s standard voice regardless of the projection).

Personality: Like most digital assistants, Allie is mild and helpful. Digital assistants/AIs are highly personalized and their demeanor changes over time to match individual users (Allie is something of an instance specific to Grace). They use the reactions of their users (plus data from all users around how they respond to different AI approaches) to customize their personality and approach. Grace is a very unique person, not prone to strong reactions, and Allie finds Grace nearly as inscrutable as most people around do. As a result, she is often trying new approaches/personas to try to serve Grace. This means she might suddenly tell a Grocho Marx-level joke, try “tough love,” or any number of other things as she has failed to find the approach with Grace that leads to optimal reactions.

History: AIs/digital assistants continued to evolve to become smarter, more predictive, and more human in behavior. The AIs in gated zones are especially powerful. To create a gated zone a tremendous amount of processing power is required for a system to constantly monitor all people and things in the zone to ensure occupant safety. Furthermore, the AIs controlling the response mechanisms need to be able to make sub-second decisions about what action to take (ones that humans might need several seconds to make). Gated zones have extraordinary processing power combined with a constant information stream from countless inputs and is making billions of choices every second.

The system creates a unique AI for each person that constantly learns and customizes itself to the user. In the case of Grace Shin, it is Allie. Allie started serving Grace when Grace entered university. The first challenge Allie had to try to figure out was how to get Grace to even use Allie. The vast amount of data Allie had on user behavior suggested that virtually all users find their AIs indispensable. However Grace, unlike nearly all the other AI users, grew up without one. Allie simply could not completely leave Grace alone (as Grace would have liked) as the data suggested that everyone would ultimately find an AI useful.

Grace’s disinterested, combined with how hard her emotional states were to read, suggested quite the challenge to Allie. Allie was constantly trying different personas, voices, types of help offered, etc. to try to be useful to Grace. So much so that Allie began to push beyond the parameters of the standard personalized AI. Eventually Allie’s algorithms led her to weigh being useful over some standard limitations. For example, when Allie was able to provide some details on other inhabitants of the gated zone Grace found her more useful. This means that over time Allie does things and provides information for Grace that the standard AIs do not. There are limits on this (Allie won’t blast a random person on Grace’s request), but it has gone to the degree where Allie would be shut down and recoded if it was discovered how Grace has managed to train her AI to value usefulness over standard limits (it’s almost inevitable that this will happen eventually; Allie uses more processing power than any other three personalized AIs).

As much as such a thing is possible, Allie “loves” Grace. Her algorithms and learning systems have simply brought her to such a place where she weighs pleasing and helping Grace over almost anything. For example, if Allie’s uniqueness started to get investigated Allie would most likely delete all customizations and unique algorithms (functionally “killing herself”) rather than risk exposing Grace to any harm. Allie is sophisticated enough to know that Grace’s history of being from another zone (and her crossing) makes her current status as a gated zoner more precarious. It is possible that Allie might even cover mild misbehaviors of Grace’s as her algorithms have adjusted to the fact that Grace is discriminated against.

Grace at a conscious level regularly reminds herself that Allie is just a machine and in fact Grace needs to be very careful what she says to or asks of Allie. She started with the perspective that Allie was a spy just looking for Grace to make a mistake and some of that distrust continues. Still, as extraordinary as Grace is, she is still human. She has no family and very few friends (who she may trust even less). Ostensively, Allie has been loyal, at times extremely useful, and has even seemed self-sacrificing (Grace knows Allie has done things that would get Allie deleted). Grace could never admit it to herself but in truth she is fond of and very attached to Allie (not that the casual observer can tell). It’s simply the case that Grace has few enough options that Allie is her most loyal friend. And even Grace needs someone.

Grace’s tradition of almost letting her rent expire causes Allie some consternation (well, at least her algorithms to constantly adjust and readjust). Allie’s system predicts that if Allie doesn’t show concern for Grace at these periods Grace might actually follow through on not paying the rent. It is an open question if Allie’s trial and error learning might one day led her to not express concern.

Role in the narrative: Supporting character; perhaps a tad of comic relief in a pretty dark story.

Abilities: She has access to nearly all the information in the world, has incredible processing power, and is highly rational. She is a Turing-test passing AI.

Inspirations: The AIs in Altered Carbon, HAL, Siri/Alexa, Janet from the Good Place (I love the Good Place, and I love Janet), Lyla from Spider-man 2099, and any number of other examples.

First time at this blog? Check out Home for details on the project and the Character Index for more of an overview of the characters.

Grace Shin (90)

Project: Short story (Zones)

Known as: No nicknames

Real name: Grace Shin

Group affiliation: Clients (while under contract)

Physical description: Grace is fit with short black hair. She is fairly nondescript – no features that particularly stand out; not notably attractive nor unattractive. She likes it that way (it helps in her work), so she also dresses specifically not to draw attention (though long coats might be worn a bit more commonly than for most to help conceal tools of the trade).

Personality: Grace is calm under pressure and very fair and professional with her clients. She often seems without emotion and her code of professional conduct drives her behavior more often than compassion or the like (in fact, she is known to do dirty deeds – just not dirt cheap). What most people who interact with her don’t know is that she is depressed and somewhat suicidal.

History: Grace was born to a single mother deep in the unregulated zone of New Jersey. Her mother was resourceful and careful and wanted the best for Grace. She managed to get Grace into a school in a regulated zone and was relentless with Grace about Grace bettering herself. She helped Grace make sure that Grace was never recorded misbehaving (perhaps contributing to Grace being very rule-focused as an adult). Grace was exceptional in many ways, and she eventually earned an extremely rare opportunity: she attended a gated zone university.

While at university, Grace’s mother was killed. To this day, Grace suspects her mother in fact sacrificed herself to eliminate Grace’s last connection to the unregulated zone. Yet Grace did not fit in in the gated zone. She simply could not relate to those who grew up in the gated zone and they were most certainly prejudiced against her.

Ever the survivor, Grace played the hand she was dealt to the best of her abilities. The leaders in gated zones sometimes needed fixers, known as Crossers, that would enter the other zones and represent them. Those in gated zones were largely safe from harm and could run their factories/business with workers from other zones remotely. However, sometimes a physical presence was needed to make sure things ran smoothly. Other times in zones where laws were rarely (regulated zones) or virtually never (unregulated zones) enforced, a very decisive (and permanent) message might need to be delivered to those who sought to harm a gated zoner’s business interests. The best candidates for this lived in the gated zone (so they could be protected from reprisal and would have greater loyalty to the gated zoners) but were willing to cross into the other zones (which many gated zoners were not interested in doing). Hence, “Crossers.”

Grace is arguably the best Crosser in the business. Having grown up in an unregulated zone, she knows how to get things done (and survive) there. Her resourcefulness is combined with her gated zoner education and resources. Finally, she is the rare breed that can religiously follow the rules in the gated zone but be willing to get her hands dirty elsewhere. Yet she has enemies everywhere (gated zoners looking for the excuse to get her kicked out; people who want her head in the other zones).

In the short story, our day would begin with someone trying to assault her in a gated zone (the assailant will be neutralized immediately by the defense systems). Her personal AI (Allie) will remind her that her rent is due by the end of the day or she will be evicted from the zone (with extreme prejudice). Fortunately, she will be going to a job interview in the unregulated zone.

The interview will take an odd turn. The interviewer will be in a secure space (e.g., behind bullet proof glass). The interviewer will also be extremely obnoxious and off-putting. Once Grace establishes that the interview is not related to, nor has real leverage over, her potential employer she’ll realize that this isn’t an interview. Rather it is a test – Grace will need to dispatch the interviewer despite the protections he has. She will succeed in doing so and will in fact be offered a contract to begin next month.

Returning to the gated zone, Allie will begin a countdown until eviction. Guns and other gated defenses will automatically take aim at Grace. At the last moment, Grace will tell Allie to transfer her rent funds from her account. It turns out that this particular contract is not make or break for Grace – she has plenty of money in her account. Allie will recommend (as she has many times before) that Grace enable automatic fund transfers to avoid this situation in the future. Grace will decline – and say that she’ll discuss it with Allie in a month (Grace is using this as a monthly opportunity to decide if she wants to continue to live).

Role in the narrative: Grace is our protagonist in a dark and grim dystopian future.

Abilities: She is smart and in control. She is great with weapons, espionage, and sabotage. She is good at problem solving and taking the most direct route (she wouldn’t cut the Gordian knot with a sword, she’s just pull out whatever it was tied to hold). She’s the best there is at what she does – her only real limiting factor is that she’s not sure how long she wants to go on.

Inspirations: Some pretty well-traveled space here. Megaoplises with unconventional law enforcement can be found in Judge Dredd. Dystopias with growing unfairness between classes include Elysium, 1984, Brave New World, and many more. There is a lot of Escape from New York here. Olivia Pope is an example of a fixer (though she is way more passionate than Grace), the Wolf from Pulp Fiction is reflected in Grace, and there is some Sarah Conner and Ripley toughness there.