4. what seemingly insignificant memories stuck with your character?
While John doesn’t have a lot of memories from his early childhood or of his time in foster care before he was taken in by his foster family, he does remember the first few days at the Mannings’ house very vividly. Some might blame it on how overwhelmed he was, while he’d claim that he knew from the start that they’d not let him down for once, after all the heartbreak he’d already gone through at that point. He still remembers being welcomed by the kids already in the family and how scared he’d been but they figured out quickly that he liked to draw and paint and it was a safe bet to get him out of his shell. On the second day, his older sister went looking for him when he hid away in his room and wordlessly pushed a few sheets of paper and a box of colored pencils towards him and sat down on the floor with him to draw for what felt like hours, until he was comfortable enough to join her. It might seem insignificant to some but to him, it’s a memory that stuck and will live within him forever, considering it meant so much at the time.
13. what is a secret your character has never told anyone?
John wears his heart on his sleeve, so he’s not exactly the secretive kind. What he never told anyone though, is that he started looking for his biological parents a while ago - so far without success - but he feels guilt about it. Both because he waited so long to do it and because he considers his adoptive family his real family and doesn’t want to disappoint or hurt them - even if they’d probably understand his choice completely. It’s something he keeps close to his chest and doesn’t share in the slightest. So far he hasn’t told anyone at all.
19. what did your character want to be as a kid and did they succeed?
Having been interested in art for as long as he can remember, John always wanted to be an artist. A renowned one at that, and he was well on his way before tragedy struck. His accident he had in his twenties threw him back a lot and he was never able to fully bounce back from it in regards to his artistic abilities. It made him settle ultimately, for something he was also interested in doing but John had never wanted to be on the other side of the art business, where he’d be the one selling other artists’ works rather than his own. He’s not unhappy, he’s still thriving and grew into his profession with time but his dream of becoming a full-time painter was one he had to retire after all. Now, he paints and sketches for no one but himself, apart from the occasional pieces that he does put up for sale.
