Every Day I Write The Book #4: Creating JC

My friend Keaton had a huge vendetta against the show, "The Odd Couple". To this day, I could never figure out why. The dynamic that the show used has become a staple of television; that dynamic being the mismatched pair of kindred souls just trying to make it day to day without tearing each other to pieces. I guess, by proxy, he should hate Failing Upward, but indeed, he loves the writing and look of it, so...yeah.

The first sketch of JC. Art by Iris Febres.

If you recall, in an earlier post, I mentioned that Failing Upward was based on my friendship with a person who lived very far away. She became the catalyst for who JC would eventually become. This person, was someone who I considered a friend, certainly, but also had this snarky disposition that I had a fascination with. Every so often, she'd shoot me down for a stupid comment I'd make or just kind of poke fun at my lack of "real world" experience. Yet, somehow, we managed to be pretty close for about a year or so. I think it was the fact that we trusted each other and I also think that trust was amplified by the distance between us.

But, while she was the catalyst, I don't think she was what made JC an interesting character. See, at first, JC was a bit too mean, just as Cody was a bit to stupid. They were these kind of ...oh...how do I put it...assholes? Seriously, I look back at some of these original drafts of the pilot and I can't believe some of the things they were saying to each other. JC, especially in the earlier draft. Cody always kind of walked the line of likable/unlikable, but JC is supposed to be this reminder that the real world IS indeed a thing and not a myth adults make to scare you into getting a job. Instead, she was so terribly undefined, that she became kind of mean for no-reason whatsoever. The only reason she hated Cody was because he WAS Cody. Let me tell you, that is no way to ever write a character. It makes you wonder how the character of JC existed before she knew Cody.

So, I went back in and retooled things. I think the single most important thing I did was start putting more of myself into her. I know that sounds vein, but a lot of the time, it's the best thing a writer can do, especially when it comes to these kinds of slice of life stories, It's a great way to motivate your character with mistakes and lessons you've made. Don't get me wrong, there are BAD ways to make yourself into a character. We have loads of fan fiction on the internet to prove that. However, if you can take your personality and stretch and split it into new forms of life, then you have yourself an original character.

To me, at least, JC is the part of me that strives to work hard to attain something in life without any help from others. She's strong, independent, albeit a bit naive about her own limitations. Despite that, she shoots for the stars at any chance she can get. More often than not, she'll hit the roof, but come right back up at the next opportunity. The newer and improved version is also kind of knit from my own cynical view of the world (whereas Cody's viewpoint is much brighter). For years, I had always tried to be very open minded about the world around me, but there was always that hint of sourness that would come out every now and then. And I think that's where the initial makeover started.

Early redesigns for JC. Art by Steven Ray Brown.

Another change started when I met the voice actress who plays JC, Casey Haller. I had met Casey at her old job in a comic book store and when we started to become good friends, I really began to write JC with Casey in mind. She became a bit more deadpan, a bit more aggressive with her thoughts, and I think the best part is that she brought a more sophisticated intelligence along to JC. Anytime I talk to Casey, she always has all these facts to back up her opinions or thoughts on any subject of any scale. I like to think she just kind of perfected JC.

JC's cynical attitude is in full swing, due to her living at home with her family, which consists of 10 brothers and a pair of parents. While I'm not sure why I made all the siblings boys, it might be cause my dad had a similar family, sans a girl,  I can tell you why there are so many of them. I grew up where I had friends with big families, my previously mentioned friend Keaton had a bunch of siblings and I always fascinated by the dynamic of large families. How they work, what they talk about, how they deal with age gaps. I think JC coming home and having to deal with all this, will provide some great character moments in terms of compassion and understanding, despite her bitterness.

I think my favorite moments that I've written with JC is when she's happy. Doing scenes where JC is truly at peace or even writing her music blog are just a blast. It's a chance for me to make her a multi-faceted character. Speaking of the music aspect,  that was another thing that was greatly affected by my life. I'm a huge music junkie and even the titles of the episodes are named after some of my favorite songs. JC's approach to music reviewing is still kind of a work in progress, but it's also just a giant part of her character that will be explored in later episodes.

JC's design was always fun to mess around with. I still think the best picture Iris ever drew of her was the first one. I love the halter top look for her and her punk-ish demeanor. The only thing that really changed when it came to Steven was her hair. We had a short talk about whether or not we wanted to change it from kind of long in the back, to an almost anime style spikey-explosion. I think the latter was a step in the right direction.

So, that's all I've got about JC. I might do one on the secondary characters, but it might be a while before you see that.

Good Riddance,

- Gary