Need help for a character’s little sibling: boy or girl?

Writers' Corner
1

Hi Writer Berries!

I am currently writing a roleplay with four of my friends, and I’m in the process of crafting my character’s backstory. The other four characters in the roleplay have some sort of connection, but my main character is more distant than them, in her primary encounter with them, she was meeting them for the first time and in generally secluded from the community (more details soon). I’m going to try to find a small way to tie her family into everything else that is going on, probably with this little sibling I mentioned in the thread title :slight_smile:

So, her name is Glenna, and she is 19 years old. Full name Glenna Maeve Raenn (I invented the surname, it took me foreeever, I kept going back and forth XD).

She has a twin brother named Ezra Matthieu Raenn. They are very close.

Glenna’s personality: shy, giving, but bold in the face of danger, can be internally impatient but is almost always patient with people, introverted, works best on her own, a trusting twin, generous, honest, generally peaceful, good at a making plans, crafty, good with nature, makes mistakes but moves forward, etc.

Ezra’s personality: bold, brash, kind, tough for his sister but can be vulnerable, sweet, protective, loyal, a trusting twin, etc.

Glenna’s appearance:
Hair: long dark brown, almost always worn in a long loose braid over her shoulder
Eyes: green
Skin tone: fairly pale
Height: average, maybe slightly on the tall side.

Ezra’s appearance:
Hair: dark brown (same shade as Glenna’s)
Eyes: blue
Skin tone: fairly pale
Height: one or two inches taller than Glenna

Glenna’s abilities:
-She sort of feels/reacts to other people’s pain (“sometimes a blessing, but more often a curse”)
-She can move or crack stones with her bare hands, (in the same way that Ezra is with ice)

Ezra’s abilities:
-He can move or crack ice with his bare hands and make a thin sheet of ice by pressing his hand to something. (in the same way that Glenna is with stone)

~ They have a younger sibling who is 8 or 9 years old, who I cannot decide should be a girl or a boy. If she is a girl, her name is Callie Aurora Raenn. If he is a boy, his name is Kai Everett Raenn. I do not know his/her appearance yet, that will depend on the gender.

Callie/Kai’s abilities:
-making flowers/plants grow (in the same way Glenna and Ezra are with stones and ice, respectively)

Important backstory
Glenna and Ezra’s parents (Marina and Nolan): left when Glenna and Ezra were just 4 or 5 years old to join the enemy (yepppp) and the kids got sent to live with <family member/friend/relation that maybe connects to the other characters somehow?> then when Glenna & Ezra are 10 or 11, their parents (still with the enemy) have another baby (that is Callie/Kai) but end up abandoning him/her when he/she is only 2 or 3 to live with <another family member? I want this one to tie into the other character’s relations slightly somehow.>

~ 2 or 3 years prior, Glenna and Ezra moved out from the home of the caretakers who raised them, to a spacey cave in the woods that they made into a home. They didn’t dislike the caregivers, they were just ready to be independent and hone their nature skills in their favorite place, the woods.

They recently found out that they have a little sibling (I don’t know how yet, maybe they find a birth certificate or something somehow), and Ezra has just left a few months ago to go out searching for them. Maybe Glenna went with him in the first place, but something happened, and that is what she’s living alone at this point in the story.

~ In the next part of the story I have to write, Glenna returns to her home cave and finds Ezra has returned, without their sibling. I don’t know what will happen next, but when they finally find their sibling, they will bring them home and have their own special little family. I can imagine Glenna and Ezra being amazing big siblings and nurturing and teaching their little sibling (whose nature power is making flowers and plants grow and the such). I can imagine Glenna doting on a little sister, and Ezra being the only boy (well, young man) in the family, and doting on his little sister. I can also imagine Ezra doting on a little brother, and Glenna being the only girl (young woman) in the family but of course also doting on a little brother.

I know this is so much text for a little question (so sorry!!!), but I didn’t know how to give enough context to help you help me make this very random decision, I don’t have any other good way to decide: should Glenna and Ezra’s little sibling be a girl or a boy? Callie or Kai?

I considered making Callie and Kai a pair of twins but it just felt wrong, I only wanted one set of twins and one perfect little addition to the family.

So, Callie or Kai? Even just random info on the story would be nice.

Please let me know if there’s any other info that would help you make a distinction!!

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! It’s okay if you have no idea how to help, this isn’t super important and I was just wondering what people would think.

-Julia

2

Definitely think it should be a little brother and Kai Everett sounds perfect. I love that Kai’s skills are somewhat opposing to Glenna and Ezra. Theirs are quite harsh and destructive… involve manipulating and/or breaking down hard, cold substances… stone and ice. Kai has a “softer” skill and involves giving life to things/ making more abundance, I ultimately see his skill as more powerful in the end. Kai may or may not be trusting/trustworthy in their little group and I see future conflict in this regard.

3

**First of all, this is just my opinion, so no pressure and either name is good, it’s your choice :wink:
I think definitely Callie Aurora, it just sounds more fitting. Kai Everett is not a bad name, in fact it is wonderful, it’s just Kai is way too tied to the meaning ocean for me and it sounds like he would have different powers like air powers or fire powers or something, his name sounds harsher(not in a bad way ;)). But that is just my first impression of the name, I can definitely see him with those powers as that character if I think about it. Callie Aurora just flows naturally with plant/flora powers to me. Aurora is tied to a flower image and Callie is very colorful, while Kai and Everett to me are bluish gray. Callie Aurora sounds more springy also, whereas Kai Everett sounds more frosty and wintry.

4

Thanks a lot for your opinions! I didn’t even know their power when I first came up with the names and the characters, I actually came up with it on the spot yesterday, so I wasn’t really trying to match it with the name, in fact I think it would be cool if the name didn’t match, but it is cool if it does as well, at least it’s not super important to me.

Also, just so you know, [name_f]Glenna[/name_f] and [name_u]Ezra[/name_u]’s abilities/powers are very subtle and they don’t much control these specific elements as much as they can communicate with them and understand them, and not abuse them. ([name_u]Ezra[/name_u]’s ice power is VERY far away from something like [name_f]Elsa[/name_f]’s.) Their connections with nature are more like [name_f]Moana[/name_f]’s connection with water. Same for [name_f]Callie[/name_f]/[name_u]Kai[/name_u]’s plant abilities. This is why I try to refer to them as abilities, instead of powers.

And I wasn’t planning for [name_u]Kai[/name_u] (or [name_f]Callie[/name_f], no idea) to betray, it is definitely possible, but I think they’re going to be a very tight-knit and loving family since they do NOT know or trust their parents (there will be some sort of interaction later on, with the enemy) and all rely on each other very well.

I wasn’t even sure any of this would make any sense :sweat_smile: but thanks sm!

5

I’d go for a little brother because it’s refreshig to see a boy with flower abillities, a girl with flower abillities is more common.

6

I agree with @Johannaa, [name_u]Kai[/name_u] [name_u]Everett[/name_u] is growing on me. [name_u]Bay[/name_u] [name_u]Everett[/name_u] would be my first choice but I am actually really liking [name_u]Kai[/name_u] now that I reconsider it!

7

I’m voting for boy!