The Main Characters of Filling the Cracks (and How I Developed Them)

Amazon Affiliate Disclosure

Pauline J. Grabia participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program, and earns from qualifying purchases from links in this post.

Please subscribe to my email newsletter for updates on my website and blog and exclusive access to the Prologue of my novel, Filling the Cracks, posted a chapter at a time each Wednesday on my blog. You can do so in the form found in the footer of this page. Thank you!

On Wednesday, August 2, 2023, I will debut my novel Filling the Cracks on my blog here at paulinejgrabia.com. While I’m excited about it, I’m also nervous. There’s no way of telling how the story will be received, and I’m hopeful yet also cautious. Despite having moments of adventure, this story is character-driven instead of plot-driven. My focus in writing was on the development of the characters; they were important to me, and I spent time developing them both ‘on paper’ and in my head. In this post, they will be briefly introduced to you (I don’t want to give too much away before the first chapter is posted), and I’ll explain my process of creating them.

The Protagonists:

There are three main protagonists, and the story is told from their points of view:

1.     Beth Clark: Beth is the main protagonist from whose point of view most of the novel is presented. At age 12, she is a brilliant, somewhat precocious girl with a gentle, loving heart who is the victim of abuse in her home. She is a survivor who finds the capacity and empathy to love and care for her little brother and her friends despite her incredible suffering.

 I developed Beth based on my own childhood experiences, though her story is not my story and is fiction. I also read the accounts of other survivors of childhood abuse and amalgamated the backgrounds to create Beth. She is composed of many people’s pains and victories. Amusingly, I chose her name after listening to the song “Beth,” as performed by KISS, one of my least favorite hard rock/heavy metal bands, because it was often played in the background during my own experiences of abuse.

2.     Marg Jones: Marg is the neighbor of Beth Clark and the mother of Beth’s best friend. Through her interaction with her daughter’s friend and watching what happens in her neighborhood, she becomes aware of Beth and her little brother's abusive situation at home. Her empathy and compassion for the children lead her to take action to stop the abuse or, if that’s not possible, to get Beth and her brother removed from the home for their safety and well-being. Marg is one of the only adults in Beth’s life who sees the problem and does anything to solve it.

 Marg is based loosely on two women I encountered in my childhood. The first was a neighbor named Pia, who would stop me on my walk home from school and invite me into her home to feed me because she was always concerned about how underweight and hungry I appeared. She knew that my family lived on welfare for several years, and often there was a lack of nutritious food in my home. The second woman was my best friend’s mother growing up, Bea, and her generosity and kindness whenever I visited her home to spend time with my friend. As I grew up, very few adults were kind, observant, and compassionate, so I wanted to capture the spirit of those who were.

3.     Frank Jones: Frank is the third point of view character, husband of Marg Jones. Along with his wife, he observes the pain and privations of the Beth children’s lives, and instead of simply shaking his head and looking the other way, he acts to do something to help them—to pick them out of the cracks of the system through which Beth and her brother fell.

 Frank is based on Pia’s husband. He was always the quiet but supportive partner in her efforts to fatten me up and care for me when other adults ignored what they saw going on with me and did nothing at all. A little kindness and compassion go a very long way. Frank Jones’s name was given to him because Pia’s husband was Frank.

The Antagonists:

            There are three main antagonists. I didn’t present from their point of view, mainly because despite my creative nature, I couldn’t entirely place myself in their shoes and understand from their perspective how they could do what they do to Beth and her brother.

1.     Virgie Clark: Virgie is Beth’s mother, a single parent who is more concerned about her needs and desires than her children’s. For her convenience, she creates a home environment that is hostile and dangerous for Beth and her little brother and only contributes to the problem with her physical abuse and neglect of her children.

 Virgie is based on several women I’ve learned about on fictional television and true crime, as well as my mother and her behavior toward me growing up. I chose her name as an example of irony. There is nothing innocent or virginal about Virgie Clark.

2.     Gary Tremblay: Virgie Clark’s younger brother lives with her and her children and is a menace toward Beth and her brother.

 He is based on the male family member who abused me regularly for several years in the nineteen-seventies and early eighties. I won’t name this family member because I wish to protect innocent family members who would be hurt by such a revelation, not to protect the predator himself.

3.     Derek Hughes: I won’t reveal much about Hughes except to say that he is a character in a position where he could do much to help the Clark children but instead allows his carnal desires to interfere and prevent him from doing right.

Hughes is a combination, again, of several people I encountered growing up and in my research into other cases of childhood abuse—someone who has the power and opportunity to do something about the abuse does absolutely nothing because it doesn’t benefit them to do so. It is easier for them to look the other way and allow the vulnerable to fall through the cracks.

This preview into the main characters of my upcoming novel whets your appetite to learn more about them and the other characters. I hope it aids you in understanding my mental process when creating characters. I combine both personal experiences and research in their creation process.

Filling the Cracks will be posted, one chapter per week on Wednesdays, on my blog here at paulinejgrabia.com starting Wednesday, August 2, 2023. It will be posted over twenty-five weeks in addition to my regular weekly blog posts, which will continue each Sunday. Filling the Cracks deals with adult subject matter, including child physical and sexual abuse. I will post a weekly trigger warning to remind readers of that fact. Please read my novel each week and follow the story of Beth Clark as she navigates the perilous waters of her childhood, seeking help for her and her brother. Check out my website for more information about Filling the Blanks in the weeks before its debut.

Thank you for reading! If you have any questions or comments, please leave them in the comment section below. If you want to keep updated on my blog and what to expect in the coming weeks, please sign up for my monthly newsletter. Share this blog with your family and friends, and come back soon! God bless you richly.

Pauline

Related Posts: