Library of Characters: Yvonne

Hey! I’m A. Y. Daniels, better known as Vonnie. I’m a young writer that hopes to be published soon, if that is in God’s will. I write in various genres, mainly contemporary fiction and “Kingdom Fantasy” (with historical elements).
Today’s character is Genevieve from an unpublished work in progress called The Knights of Friel. I hope that this story and its sequels will be published in the future, but the Lord’s will is best. 🙂 I also blog about writing. You can find me on thejourneytowrite.wordpress.com. 😀

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Introduce your character to me—who is she? What story is she from?

Genevieve is my main female character. She’s from The Knights of Friel story. She’s tall, quiet, kind, and takes care of 4 adult guys and 4 younger teenagers (3 of which are boys…). She’s basically their maid, but on a sister level. 🙂

Give a synopsis of her past.

Genevieve is from the village just outside of the capital castle of Freil. She has 3 siblings: Barnabas (21), Simon (14), and Rachel (12). Her family lived a quiet life until Barnabas was chosen by King Quintin of Friel to join an elite group of knights. At the time, Genevieve was 7 years old, training to help her father and mother in tailoring. Since Barnabas was sent to live in the castle, the entire family moved into the outer castle courtyard.
Now Genevieve (16) and her family work to make clothes for those living in the castle, from royalty, nobility, and even down to the other middle-class families within the castle walls.

What gave/gives you inspiration for her?

Genevieve is inspired by a character in the first version of The Knights of Friel. That character’s name was Lucy. She was quiet but bold, sweet but capable, and sometimes took the leadership role.
Genevieve is a mature version of Lucy—less strong-willed. I’m learning to create humble girls, which is difficult with all the ideas from today’s culture. 🙂

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Genevive sucked in a breath and pulled her hands close.
The wheat isn’t the only thing that is being ground, she thought as she looked at her rough hands. But praise to the Lord Who has blessed me with hands to turn His provision for my family into that which we may consume. After some work, this will be a delicious sweet loaf in tonight’s stew.
An hour later Genevive collected the flour and navigated her way back to her home within the fortress. The grand walls of the inner bailey were filled with houses set aside for the middle class servants of the royalty and nobility that lived in the castle. Her parents worked as tailors for the royal family and
nobility themselves. But their most prized customers were the servants alongside them and the dear peasants outside of the fortress.

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How has her past shaped what she is now? What is that personality?

Her family life was very stable, and her father was constantly reading the Scriptures to his family.
Watching the wars of the other countries, and even Friel, Genevieve was saved when she was 8. When her family moved to the Castle, she was hoping for a smooth and relaxed life. It turned out to be just as difficult as the one she had before; her dad wasn’t going to spoil his children.
She’s grown up to be a confident, caretaking, and gracious young lady because of it. She knows how it’s like to live a hard life, but she also can cater to and be comfortable around wealthy nobility.

What are her strengths and weaknesses?

Genevieve is very thoughtful. She plans ahead, prepares for the worst, and hopes for the best.
She gets frustrated with dealing with the rowdy boys, who push each other to their limits of patience, kindness, and gentleness.

Give a few examples of how she needs to/will grow throughout the story. (Without spoilers😜)

Mostly, she needs to learn to see through the eyes of others. “Walk a mile in his shoes,” basically.
Working with knights from varied backgrounds, she’s learning that they see things differently. In a way she can’t and won’t.

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Now Genevive’s heart was pounding. Simon’s eyes were as wide as his mum’s fine china saucers, and Rachel–their little sister–was grinning and squealing. Genevive was taking the news more level-headedly.
“As the Lord and you wish, father,” Genevive answered, with both an excited and obedient smile. She knew that there would be great trial in serving the knights. But she would at the least be with her brother and other siblings. She found her greatest encouragement in knowing that the Lord would always be with her.

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What is her greatest struggle or fear?

Adapting to change, no matter how good the change is, doesn’t come easily to Genevieve. She has learned to accept that change is a part of life, but it’s still hard to understand certain changes, and adjust accordingly.
She is terrified of not being good enough. Not doing the right things, saying the right things, believing the right things, staying away from the worst things… They are valid concerns, but she can get frozen in fear. She doesn’t want to cause great hurt to others, or worse yet the eternal lose of their spirit in hell.

What is she most afraid of losing?

Although she is confident in most areas of her life, her salvation is still one place in which she struggles against the fear of loss. She can’t stand the thought of her life out of God’s hands. It hurts her to hear the lies of the religious leaders around her teaching the loss of salvation.

Character Appearance:

Hair: milky-chocolate-brown, to her waist, not thick or thin, coarse.
Eyes: Green-brown, parallel round shape.
Height: 5′ 5”… which stinks being amongst 5′ 9” – 6′ 0.73” guys. 😛
Other?
She likes long green dresses, with the pretty fawn-colored belts. She typically wears dingy-white dresses though, since they’re cheaper. Often, they aren’t the dresses like most people imagine of the medieval era. She wears a simple dress (almost mennonite style) in various light shades of various colors (minus purple).