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Julien Leblanc; First time's always the hardest.
Topic Started: Mar 16 2018, 06:07 PM (317 Views)
Endellion
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Name: Julien Leblanc
Gender: Male
Age: 17
Grade: Senior
School: George Hunter High School
Hobbies and Interests: Video games, TV and classic films, music (preference for rock and 80s pop), card games, and exercise

Appearance: Julien is fairly tall, standing at 5'10" and weighing 166 pounds, with a slim figure, toned arms and legs and a strong core. He has slightly curly blonde hair done up into a ponytail that sits at shoulder-length when worn down, and blue eyes, with a scar across the bridge of his nose and left eyebrow. He is Caucasian, of French-American descent, and his skin is lightly tanned. He has an oval-shaped face and defined features, with a thin nose, round eyes and thin lips.

His wardrobe is plain, consisting mostly of flannel or T-shirts, jeans and skate shoes, with hiking boots worn . He dons jackets when he wants to cover up, and always has a pair of rimless glasses on for aesthetic purposes. On the day of the abduction, Julien wears a black varsity jacket and blue jeans with fingerless black climbing gloves, a white T-shirt and black Converse.

Biography: Julien Leblanc was born in April 13th, 2000 to Claire and Adrian Leblanc. His mother worked with Child Protective Services, and his father was a computer technician specialising in diagnostics and repairs. She was on unpaid maternity leave at the time of his birth, but they had few monetary concerns due to having saved up in the intervening months, Julien being the only child they had to provide for and his father's job being fairly lucrative.

When the maternity leave ended and Claire had to return to work, they made a habit of hiring sitters to look after him when neither of them could be present. He was raised attentively, but the lack of prolonged contact with his parents fostered a detachment in him as he grew up. He didn't take well to the social nature of elementary school, being more reserved than many of his peers and choosing instead to study. It set a pattern for his future academic pursuits, but his withdrawal and apparent aversion to interaction with others drew the attention of his parents.

Middle school went in much the same way for him as elementary school had. He remained relatively uninteresting and glided below the radar of those who might pick on him, showing a preference for English classes and anything that relied particularly on writing. Having often asked for a console as a present, he received a Sony handheld with several games on one of his birthdays. He took to it quickly, liking the ability to take it with him wherever he went and not having to stay in one place to play, and he prefers role-playing games for something lasting to immerse himself in.

As Julien grew and they reached the points in their careers where they were afforded the ability to work from home more, his parents began to spend more time attempting to involve themselves in his life and reinforce bridges they believed that they could have better built. Claire made a habit of dedicating some of her free time to playing games of chance, watching films and hearing him out as he made an effort to talk about whatever was on his mind at the time, stifled as it was by the difficulties he had quickly articulating his thoughts, and Adrian began to share parts of his music collection with him.

His taste in card games favours blackjack and poker in particular; individual rounds don't tend to take especially long unless there are many players, but playing well still requires focus on the game, qualities he finds to be suited to him. Julien isn't biased against playing for money, although he is aware that people tend to take it notably more seriously when money changing hands is involved and makes a point of paying his dues as and when necessary.

Julien prefers rock and 80s pop bands when it comes to music, tending to fill playlists with them and listen while running. He favours the likes of Radiohead and Wham most, citing their instrumental focus and feeling that the singers work well with the rest of the band as his reasons for showing preference. In regards to movies, his preference leans away from the contemporary. Classic films, Westerns especially, line most of his collection with few exceptions. His choices in literature are more introspective fare. All of them serve to help him unwind and find reprieve from his stress.

When he made his way into George Hunter High, taking French and literature as his electives, it was a markedly different experience for him. Not being a sociable person, he adapted poorly to the new environment which he entered. The attempt he made to fly beneath the radar was successful, but had the side-effect of isolating him from his peers and exacerbating his stress as he became rueful over the experiences he perceived to be passing him by and was gradually led into a malaise and increasing frustration. It did not noticeably affect his academic performance, as he still generally manages Bs and As, straight or not, in his classes to the present day, but bled through into other aspects of his life.

Julien enjoys science and math the most, though he takes care to try and see that his results stay relatively even across the board, and his least favourite subject is history. He enjoys putting what he learns to good use, and doesn't believe that learning about the distant pasts of others is just something to know and not a thing that will prove relevant in his life, though he does show some interest when it comes to more modern times to avoid being ignorant about them.

Julien took to running and climbing during his time in high school, first as a counterbalance to the sedentary tendencies he had developed and later because he found that being in good shape led to him feeling better about himself and began working to maintain what he had established. He keeps to designated climbing spots outside for the most part, though began to deviate from them somewhat as he gained experience with it.

His schedule typically involves running in the early morning, playing games or making use of Netflix in the evening and climbing on the weekends, but he can and has deviated from it to spend time with his parents or if schoolwork requires it.

An accident during one of his trips to the outskirts of the city resulted in him being concussed, having a nasal fracture and a cut to his eyebrow which required stitches. His parents took a much more direct interest in his well-being after that, with no small amount of chastisement for getting himself injured in such a manner as he recovered from it. He didn't do anything particularly adventurous during that time so that he could placate his parents and let the injuries to his face heal correctly. After they had, Julien took to wearing glasses to hide the fairly prominent scar that it had left.

When he leaves high school, he plans to attend the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga and has considered aiming to graduate with a degree in computer science. He's undecided on the matter of what he may do past that point, however, and even if he may choose that vocation. He intends to dedicate himself to whatever he chooses, but is unsure whether to follow his father's career choice or opt for something different.

The difficulties he faces in expressing his feelings on a matter to others are a stumbling block for him. While he believes it to be too little, too late, he has begun taking measures to socialise more and broaden his horizons to set some of his regrets over ill-spent time to rest so that he may better move on. Julien isn't particularly selective when it comes to who he makes an effort to start building bridges with, lacking the biases and opinions that his peers have formed and intending simply to rectify his being a habitual loner during most of his time at high school.

The knowledge that he's trying to interject himself into something that others have had several years' time to do, and who may not be welcoming to the idea of having more friends than they do if they don't simply begin to harass him for trying, his uncertainty about what he plans to do with his future and resentment induced by the perception that he neglected the present while working towards securing it have left him stressed, and high-strung when it comes to discussing plans for after he finishes high school. Julien takes steps to excise his stress by immersing himself in his hobbies, but to limited success.

He doesn't make a habit of actively contributing his opinions in conversations and leading them, preferring to listen rather than speak so that he can respond to people and is afforded some time to construct an appropriate response to what they say. Julien does have opinions on a variety of subjects, even if he considers many of them poorly formulated, and is happy to debate with others about them and become more informed if possible. It is idle and highly personal conversation where he is lacking, being of the opinion that his day-to-day life is much too uninteresting to hold the attention of others and being too concerned with the possibility of others looking down on him or using his worries as leverage against him to confide about personal matters.

Advantages: Julien is in good physical condition and intelligent enough to make rationally thought-out decisions, which should leave him in good stead in regard to some of the tribulations of the game. His thoughtful nature will also be helpful in some situations that he may otherwise attempt to navigate blindly.
Disadvantages: Julien's introversion will be a hurdle in the way of making any potential allies on the island, as will his lack of experience with socialising and getting into the good graces of others. His repressed frustrations may also hinder him and actively worsen situations if they surface when he is exposed to the extreme duress that comes with the game.
Edited by Endellion, Apr 6 2018, 10:27 AM.
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Hey Endellion, I'll be looking at Julien today! He's off to a good start, but is temporarily DENIED pending a few edits.

Quote:
 
card games, and exercise


I'd like a little more detail on Julien's general appearance. How long is his hair when worn down? What is his facial shape, and what do his features look like? Also, a small detail, but I'm curious about why he's wearing woolen gloves when the abduction is planned to take place in late spring or early summer; it's quite warm in Tennessee by that point in the year. Is this just a quirk of his fashion sense?

What does Julien like about video games? Is there a particular genre that he enjoys? I have similar questions about the rest of his hobbies; what do they do for him, and what draws him to specific genres or aspects? How much time does he devote to each of these hobbies?

Now the big thing: what's up with Julien's mental state? What I see right now is that he maintains a generally withdrawn demeanor up until his teen years, which isn't too unusual, and then he takes a hard swerve into what appears to be an incident of self-harm, which of course should be very concerning to his parents, teachers, and medical professionals (especially with Julien's mom being a CPS worker). At the moment, I don't feel like I have a good grasp of the root of Julien's issues; is it a personality thing, or is it some sort of disorder? Is he developing anger issues? I'd like a description of the actual incident where Julien apparently headbutted something hard enough to break his nose and require stitches, and what his parents and any other authority figures did about it.

Why has Julien decided to go into tech work like his dad, since he doesn't seem to have much of an interest in it? Does he intend to go straight into the workforce, or is he going to pursue any sort of higher education (technical school, college, etc.)?

Make those edits and post back here once you have, and I'll give Julien another look! Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.
"Art enriches the community, Steve, no less than a pulsing fire hose, or a fireman beating down a blazing door. So what if we're drawing a nude man? So what if all we ever draw is a nude man, or the same nude man over and over in all sorts of provocative positions? Context, not content! Process, not subject! Don't be so gauche, Steve, it's beneath you."
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Endellion
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The requested edits have been made.


  • I changed the explanation for the accident that led to him wearing glasses. Upon reflection what I had originally opted for was rather poorly thought out, so the change should be more sensible.
  • Elaborated on why he would be wearing gloves, and the ones he has on at the time of the abduction.
  • Added some details to his general appearance as was requested.
  • Corrected an omission I made regarding the question of his future choice in career.
Edited by Endellion, Apr 5 2018, 04:39 PM.
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Alright, we're looking better, but there are still a few things that need to be expanded upon.

Julien's hobbies besides video games and exercising still aren't really touched upon besides mentioning that he does them. What kinds of literature, music, and film does he like, and why? Also, what sort of climbing does he do and where (indoor courses vs. designated climbing spots outdoors, etc.)? If he's gotten pretty skilled at navigating a particular type of terrain, that could be included in his advantages.

Is Julien a complete loner at school? Are there any specific people or groups that he prefers to socialize with when he makes the attempt? You mention his grades, but what classes does he like and dislike?

Since the issue of bottled-up frustration is still in Julien's disadvantages, I'd like to see that described more in his biography. What frustrates him and why? Does he cope with that kind of stress through his existing hobbies, or does he still lack an outlet for it?

Post in here again once you've addressed those things, and we'll give it another go!
"Art enriches the community, Steve, no less than a pulsing fire hose, or a fireman beating down a blazing door. So what if we're drawing a nude man? So what if all we ever draw is a nude man, or the same nude man over and over in all sorts of provocative positions? Context, not content! Process, not subject! Don't be so gauche, Steve, it's beneath you."
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Endellion
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  • Expanded upon why he enjoys the things that he does, and his particular tastes when it comes to his hobbies.
  • Added an explanation of where he stands socially and his preferred/disliked classes.
  • Added an explanation of his frustrations and the causes of them.
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One last thing: you've covered his other hobbies pretty well now, but Julien's interest in card games is still only mentioned in passing. Expand on that bit and he should be good to go!
"Art enriches the community, Steve, no less than a pulsing fire hose, or a fireman beating down a blazing door. So what if we're drawing a nude man? So what if all we ever draw is a nude man, or the same nude man over and over in all sorts of provocative positions? Context, not content! Process, not subject! Don't be so gauche, Steve, it's beneath you."
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Endellion
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I've expanded on that aspect of his hobbies as requested.
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APPROVED
"Art enriches the community, Steve, no less than a pulsing fire hose, or a fireman beating down a blazing door. So what if we're drawing a nude man? So what if all we ever draw is a nude man, or the same nude man over and over in all sorts of provocative positions? Context, not content! Process, not subject! Don't be so gauche, Steve, it's beneath you."
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