The World According to... Boring John

(Another writing exercise.)

Okay our man Nick Daws is at it again. This time I have to answer 20 questions about an unknown character, in my case she's an attractive woman in black (aged mid-20s, I guess).

She's a beautiful woman, actually, but I don't think that disqualifies her from this exercise.

So, according to Nick, "This [exercise] enables the student to build up a profile of the person in the picture... The completed questionnaire will provide the basis for a fictional character which could then be used..." however one wants :-)

Questions.

(Erm, I do hope this counts as 'fair use'.)

Okay, questions (with my answers):

1. What is their name

Miranda

2. Hold old is she?

27

3. Where does she live?

Hmm, tricky. Bath, she lives in Bath. She looks quite posh, far too posh to be a Northern Lass!

4. Is she married?

Nope.

5. Does she have children?

No. Though, despite her squeaky-clean appearance, there was that little 'scare' she had whilst studying History at Bristol University. Obviously, the scare had nothing to do with studying at Bristol, it just occurred at that time. No, the scare was to do with Daniel, a friend of a friend.

They'd had unprotected sex, several times, and she'd got pregnant.

Of course she had to had 'to terminate'. It would have ruined her career, and she wasn't even seeing Daniel.

She doesn't regret this, though she does wonder sometimes what the child would have been like.

No, she likes her freedom. There will be plenty of time for babies when she's older. Much older.

6. Does she have a job? If so, what?

Well I'd be lying if I told you that she wasn't a model, because that's clearly what this woman - Miranda - is, a model.

But okay, let's stretch the brain cells a little; let's do a spot of meditation; let's tap into the Creative Mind, so to speak.

Yes, she's a chimney sweep.

No!

(Do they even still have chimney sweeps?)

Seriously. (30 seconds elapse.)

She runs her own graphic design business, that's what she does. And the fact that she looks like a model certainly doesn't harm her chances of getting those engineering brochure-type jobs.

7. What are her interests and hobbies?

Blimey!

Well she certainly likes to wear the best clothes. She looks immaculately turned out (insert suitable designer names here) whether she's working or not.

Other things she likes to do in her spare time:

Reading - chick-lit, inspiring biographies and autobiographies

Learning German

Skiing (in the winter)

Deep-sea Diving (any other time)

Interior decorating and design (she started on her own flat, and liked it so much that she volunteered to help several of her female friends too)

Cooking, and eating fine food

Going to the gym (naturally)

Hmm, I'm not inspired with this question. Come back to me, later, okay!

8 What is her ambition?

Easy. Grow her business so much that she can hand it over to others so she can either open up her own restaurant, or actually convert her hobby into a interior design business

9. What is her best quality?

Determination.

10. What is her worst quality?

Impatience, with men as well as with people she works with who are not as determined or thorough and professional as she is.

11. What does she most like?

She likes to see kindness in others

12. What does she most dislike?

Greediness, especially when it's unnecessary (Ed - is it ever necessary?)

13. How does she speak

She has a calm, slightly deeper than usual voice with the faintest tinge of a West Country accent (if you strain hard and know what to listen for)

14. How does she move?

She moves very gracefully indeed. Distractingly so to all of the engineers that happen to see her entering their building. She has a lovely upright posture, and the confidence of beauty mixed with talent and youth comes through.

15. What is her greatest fear?

Growing old

16. What does she most regret?

She turned down a design-opportunity for a company that later hit the big time. She would have realised her ambitions from that one contract.

17. What does the like to eat and drink

(Oh, I'm struggling here to come up with a whole range of food-stuffs. I'm going to pretend she likes to eat the same stuff as me. Mainly vegetarian food, with the odd bit of meat and fish. Flexitarian, I think the word is. Organic, wholesome, locally produced yada yada yada.)

18. Where do they like to go on holiday?

The most expensive skiing resorts she can afford. (Insert swanky ski gaff when I can be bothered to research it.)

And...

Picturesque towns in Germany and Austria, like Marburg. She likes to walk, and drink good wine, and of course sprechen sie the Deutsch.

(Now if only she could meet a German who didn't like to eat meat all the time, who loved skiing but also had big ambitions in life. Ahhh.)

19. What would she do if she won a big lottery prize?

Well, she'd want to start one of her two businesses (see above). But Miranda is one of those rare individuals who likes to think of others before herself, especially when it matters.

So does unselfishness matter when it comes to parking your car, or opening the door for others, or even not contacting friends quite as often as they'd like - no!

Or does unselfishness really matter when you win the lottery - you bet!

Miranda would make sure that all her close friends and family had what they most wanted in life, if she could afford it that is.

(List of stuff she'd buy for Mum, Dad, brother Paul and his wife/daughter go here. Strange item of clothing for best friend Dorothy (aka Dot) etc. etc.)

20. What one word best sums up her personality
Glowing.

--

Right.

Finished.

Interesting exercise. Think I might well do the same for someone I actually know, and see what her reaction is. One word answer: snarling!

Hee hee.