This morning I unearthed my blue pinstriped vest. One of the buttons is loose (it is a hand-me-down) but I have never bothered to fix it. It is one of my favorite articles of clothing, I can wear it with pants or with one of my school girl skirts and it will always look dashing. (At least in my mind.) This vest is my Tobias vest. I wear it and the silly musician I write about is just that much easier to access.
The vest is not the first article of clothing to "be" a character for me. For years I kept a pair of worn through shoes because they were Daphne's. I always have a green polo shirt somewhere for Blair. One shapeless, gigantic green sweater I wear around the house (it is really too beat up for anything else) when it is cold out inspired Sammy MacJay. Every pair of ballet shoes that wander into my life are Ryan. My closet is, in many ways, my character database. I do not NEED these clothes to write, but when I want that extra nearness and understanding I take them out.
Some things are characters that are not born yet. I have kept a blue and white stage-Victorian dress in my closet for years. I have written many things I like while wearing it, but never enough to know exactly who is wearing the dress. Similarly, I have a "Von Trap" sailor dress that keeps calling to me, then changing its mind.
I do not turn into my characters, mystically, by putting these items on. It just helps to know I am wearing something they would chose to wear. What sort of person wears a vest with a loose button and doesn't give a damn? Tobias. He probably could mend it, if he really wanted to, but he has much better things to do. Besides, it adds to his rag-shag appearance and therefor helps bring in some coin.
Anyways, I was just thinking about this as I get ready for work and thought I would post about it here.
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