Would you believe me if I told you this guy is the main villain for my Feltling story.
Say hi to Glyde Connors! A self help philanthropist that is definitely not a cult leader who only wants to help heal you, you just gotta believe!
A kind philanthropist and self help leader with only the best intentions for everyone, Glyde Connors is seen as a modern day saint to even more than his followers. He was a sock Feltling that has since managed to stitch himself a serpentine body using scrap fabrics, and now through his strong speeches and appearances on TV and the Internet has managed to amass a large following, inspiring both Humans and Feltlings alike through Glyde's goal in achieving a world of no pain, where everyone has a purpose, and no one is left behind. His influence has become so great that he has managed to attain his own strong groups to contribute to charities and even set some up of his own.
Many followers even insist Glyde is able to perform miracles, such as healing the sick and showcasing mystic abilities, and Glyde himself claims this as well. The validity of Glyde's miracles are dubious, as many skeptics see them as just trickery from a charlatan that relies on placebo. However, interestingly enough, there have been cases of even strong skeptics becoming swayed by Glyde, fueling his ego and image even more.
However, for all of Glyde's charitable acts and gentle demeanour, there lies a more twisted and manipulative side. Glyde truly, wants the best for everyone, he wants everyone to have a role and a place to fill in, but it's all on HIS terms. He truly believes that the only way to live a fulfilling life is to fill a purpose for a greater whole, and it's all based on what HE decides is best for another person. In his view, if one has difficulty fulfilling that role, or if you don't get anything out of it or it makes you miserable, then you only have yourself to blame, because it was what was best for you after all…
Here we have Artie! Another of the main characters! They are a grumpy handsewn aardvark stuffie in their 60s and were initially made around the start of the Feltling Phenomena. They were made by a Ghanaian grandmother as a present for her grandson, and they've since become both a uncle/aunt figure and a family heirloom.
More about Artie under the cut! Feedback is appreciated for them especially!!
In the 60s, when the Feltling Phenomena was starting, a kindly Ghanaian immigrant in the UK handsewn a little aardvark toy based on the aardvarks she'd see in her childhood. She gifted this toy to her then young grandson, and to the family's surprise, the little toy could walk and interact with them!
Named Artie by the grandson, both of them would grow up together as siblings, and as the grandson treated Artie more and more as a fellow sibling, Artie would develop as such, being now just another member of the family.
However, life was not easy for this family, due to being immigrants of colour in the UK, they faced a lot of hardships with discrimination. Artie being a animal based Feltling without the ability to speak (due to never being built with a mouth), also faced their own hardships of being objectified and barely understood, and so mostly stuck with their family.
Whilst not tending to their family, Artie takes small jobs of babysitting for children and acting as a therapy and comfort toy, they take these jobs very seriously and are very proud of the work they do.
However, Artie still feels like they can still do more in life, but feels there isn't a lot of options for them due to the many hardships they have faced for what they are. They struggle to form any new connections that isn't their family due to previous experiences leading them to just get hurt. They are only a little mute stuffed animal after all, what else is there for one?
For the past months or so I've been working on some characters for a new story and worldbuilding project! Say hi to the Feltlings! Who are sentient stuffies and puppets that walk, talk, and get jobs like you!
I'll give a more detailed post on them eventually, but the characters shown and their basic descriptions are:
Barry Norman: A hardworking man in his 40s that was once a child star for a puppet show from the 80s, he now lives a mostly quiet and normal life as a office worker. He likes to grow plants, cook, and is just a regular (albeit very overworked and constantly stressed) guy!
Divi Devil: A feltling built in the shape of a demon. Divi was a ex convict that's been involved in a lot of criminal activity, but has now turned her life around and works as a mechanic. She loves metal music, horror films, and is your big sister now.
Candy the Ant: A young teen ant that was originally part of a brand of ant mascots for children. These ants were a tight knit community, but very conformist and Candy doesn't want to be seen as marketable and like anyone else, she wants to be herself! She is highly into alt fashions, art, and only wants to have friends that understand her.
Artie the Aardvark: A handsewn Aardvark plush who was initially made by a kindly old Ghanan lady's grandson as a present, but turned out to be a Feltling. They're a grumpy old Feltling and prefer to keep to themselves, but they care for their family and take their job as a babysitter and therapy toy seriously.
Ashti Baran: The human of the group. Ashti is a young Kurdish transfemme with a talent for textiling and tailoring and has dreams of being a fashion designer. However, Ashti deals with a lot of anxiety and finds most people scary to deal with, but has found most friendships in Feltlings who are less scary to her. She's had to deal with a lot but when she's at her most comfortable, she's just a ordinary girl who'd gladly talk to you about fabrics.
A goofy interaction with Barry and Artie based on a wonderful Wallace & Gromit scene xD
Artie, like Gromit, is a mute character and so most of their way of communication is through expressions and gestures, though Artie also makes use of E-FSL (English - Feltling Sign Language), or writing down on a notebook to communicate.
Thankfully, a slight gesture of patting Barry's shoulder communicates plenty here!
Miscelleanous traditional doodles of Barry Norman, one of the main characters for my Feltling setting! He's a ex child actor who was the star of a 80s children show that's now a office worker with a very Very normal life. :)
Some of these artworks are a bit old and still conceptual but they still work well I think! I'd say they're a good introduction to him! More about Barry under the cut!
Barry Norman was first conceptualised for a children's puppet TV show in the 80s. In it, he was a little girl of a different name who would dance and sing songs, read stories, and teach valuable lessons to any children watching. As sweet natured the show was, being born to literal stardom was rough on Barry, and he felt like he could never really be himself as every move of his was watched and leaving it was impossible due to it being the only thing he knew. Add to that he had many Kid Things to deal with, such as his education and general development. Eventually as ratings lowered, the show was cancelled, leaving a then still young Barry alone and without much else direction to take.
However, through support with some handlers that still stuck by him to care for him, Barry managed to continue on with life and his education. He decided to never return to the entertainment industry due to the trauma it inflicted and has since worked a variety of mundane and quieter jobs, the most recent of which being a office worker now that he's in his forties.
However, as much as Barry prefers the quieter life, there are still times he can't help but miss when he got to sing songs, preform for others, and read stories. He misses the fun he did have in performing and being able to make people happy through it, but he finds the thought of putting himself in any spotlight or being noticeable in any way to be terrifying, and he suppresses a lot of these aspects to live as 'normally' as one can, even if it is clearly suffocating for him.
Personality wise, Barry is a friendly and affable sort, often going out of his way to be helpful for others, but he is easily overworked and stressed. Add to him repressing a lot of aspects of himself to be as 'normal' and unnoticeable as possible, you get kind of a wreck of a man, though he does try his best.
A more minor character for my Feltling story, say hi to Robert! Who is your typical 'monster' puppet feltling.
He's basically your English uncle who hangs out in pubs, watches football (THE KICK BALL KIND NOT THE THROW ALMOND KIND!) and gets excited over explosions in movies. Not much to say about him really! He's just a silly lad.
