Beautiful People // September Edition

After a far-too-long break from writing, I am back at it! Kind of. I'm linking up with Beautiful People this month as I focus on my newest novel, The Scars We Choose. This book has a special place in my heart because 1) I love psychology and 2) this book is from the perspective of a nurse. I've always wanted to write a medical type story since I'm a total medical geek. TSWC is going to be one of the heaviest, most emotional books I've ever written, which makes me nervous (because I'm normally a happy person, y'all). To help me with that, I'm going to try writing this story by hand, because that always makes me take my time and put more emotion into my work.

This month I'm focusing on my kind-of-main character, Alexander (or Alex) Lucas. He was active duty in the marines until he was diagnosed with PTSD. Now he's at Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda.

1. How did you come up with this character?
I've always wanted to write a novel about PTSD and I've always wanted to write about the present day military. So I joined the two ideas together. I just brainstormed about what the most relatable character would be and Alex popped into my head.

2. Have they ever been starving? Why? And what did they eat to break the fast?
While Alex has never been legitimately starving, the closest he came to it was on a mission where he went two days without food. He ate the first edible thing he came across -- instant food packets that you mix with water.

3. Do they have a talent or skill that they're proud of? 
Alex can burp the alphabet. He's quite proud of it.
On a more accomplished level, he was the best sniper in his unit.

4. List 3 things that would make them lose their temper.
a) seeing someone disrespect the flag or the military fills Alex with a rage that he didn't know he had
b) bullies -- especially when they prey on the weak ones who can't fight back
c) people who don't fulfill their duties

5. What is their favorite type of weather? Least favorite? 
Alex used to leave the heat, but hates it ever since Iraq because it brings back too many memories. His favorite weather now is when it's numbing cold and snowy.

6. What is their Hogwarts house and/or MBTI personality?
His MBTI personality is ISTJ - Introvert, Sensing, Thinking, Judging. One of the major characteristcs of this type is a strong devotion to duty. They say people with this personality type excel in the military, which is exactly what Alex did.

7. Are they more likely to worry about present problems, or freak out about the unknown future?
Alex can't really think about the future or the present. He's stuck in the past, replaying what happened over and over again. The prospect of any type of future scares Alex, because of what he's seen and done. He doesn't think he'll ever be able to get over the past.



8. What is their favorite thing to drink?
Ever since high school, Alex makes himself a kale smoothie every morning. He tosses some almond milk, kale, protein powder, celery, and one raw egg into the blender. He claims it's delicious, but no one believes him.

9. What is their favorite color? Least favorite?
Alex absolutely hates yellow. He says it's obnoxiously bright. What he doesn't say is that the color reminds him of his best friend in Iraq, who had a canary yellow shirt. His favorite color is olive green, like the color of an army truck.

10. What is a book that changed their life?
A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis. Alex's nurse, Ellie, recommended the book to him. She read the book after her brother's death, so Alex decided maybe it would help him. It did. He bought a copy and wore the spine of the book out.



Anyone else doing Beautiful People? Who is excited for NaNoWriMo?

Emily
xoxo