Julia's Stary writing camp portfolio

Week two: Character design

Step one: Design the background of the protagonist

Beatrice 'Betti' Elbe: is the second-youngest child of Helene Elbe and Alistair, who walked out on the family when Betti was eight. Growing up, Betti was overweight with no explanation as to why. She was often bullied because of her weight, but befriended Joanna, Oliver, Nick and Oleg in school. Betti grew up in a working-class family, raised primarily by her mother. She was never well-off, but it was a stable living for Betti. One she admits she took for granted after the Nazi's invaded Poland.

As the Nazi's took over Poland as an extension of Germany, Betti shed a lot of her old naivety and slowly believed that anything was possible, coming from the Nazi's. She and Oleg were suspicious of the labour camps when relatives who were sent there were not heard from again. Betti takes comfort in her singing, and becomes well-known for it. This love for music is partially what inspires her to survive the war.

Oleg Rosenau: Betti's friend and love interest. Oleg's family grew up close to Betti's. His mother and infant died when he was three, as a result of a botched home-birth. He met Betti in primary school (elementary for American readers), standing up for her when other children were picking on her. He has been protective of Betti ever since and feels compelled to look after her safety the most inside the Ghetto.

Joanna: Betti's best girl-friend. Joanna was the first friend Betti made in school, and often confides in Betti, her deepest secrets. Joanna is regarded as being uncommonly pretty to SS men 'for a Jew', being both blond, blue-eyed and fair, with a petite figure. Joanna dreams of being an architect, with her boyfriend Oliver as her personal builder.

Charlotte 'Lotte' Elbe: Betti's older sister. Lotte is kind, perceptive and at the beginning, the ideal sister. Lotte grew up alongside Betti, her twin brother Helmuth and their younger brother Alexei. She once had dreams of being a dress-maker, but ends up working in a uniform factory once living in the Ghetto.

Helmuth Elbe: Betti's older brother. Helmuth isn't often present, due to his job, but is optimistic, creative and honest. Helmuth was the first of Betti's family to get a job after their father abandoned the family. First, delivering newspapers, right up to working in construction.

Alexei Elbe: Betti's younger brother. Alexei was best friends with Nick's sister Alice (implied to have had a crush on her) and mourns her disappearance, spending most of his time in solitude. He used to be a typical, thirteen year-old, until Alice disappears. After which, he becomes greatly cynical.

Helene Elbe: Betti's mother. A traditionalist at heart, Helene only ever calls her children by their Christian names, I.E: Beatrice, Charlotte, Helmuth, etc. Helene, like Betti, enjoyed music and singing; she had aspirations of opening a school for music, until she met her husband, Alistair. They were in love for a short time, until Alistair grew tired of family life and wanted to advance his career. Helene has since, supported her four children on her own and worked to provide for them.

Betti's personality

Betti was previously known to be sweet and innocent, but somewhat naïve to the corruption around her. Before the story begins, she has shed a lot of her naivety, and sheds even more as the story progresses. Each time she thinks 'it cannot get worse than this' and then reaches the next step in her survival, she learns each time, how deeply cruel and evil her captors are. Although she tries to stay hopeful and treats those around her with kindness, it gets harder and harder to do so. Especially when each gesture takes part of her own strength away. 

Betti's appearance

Betti's appearance has two stages within the story. At the beginning, Betti is short  to medium-height, standing at five-foot six, overweight or 'plump' as others put it. She has shoulder-length, wavy-brown hair, brown eyes, a fair complexion, petite facial features slender hands. As the story progresses, Betti loses a significant amount of weight (her PCOS, unrecognized at the time, being altered as the result of a procedure), has her head shaven inside the camps, and almost changes beyond recognition. Betti gains weight again, but knows she will never be as 'plump' as she was before.