So, February 1 is Spunky Old Broads Day. Which ushers in Spunky Old Broads Month. What better occasion would there be to focus on character Margaret Schmidt from my new novel “Benefits?”

I’ve posted a number of working biographies of characters before, to show part of the writer’s process. Margaret Schmidt is no different. Like Ben, Jake, Karen and a few other characters in the book, Ben’s mom Margaret is a returnee. She first appeared in my debut novel “Benediction.”

So — I already had somewhat of a bio going for this Spunky Old Broad when I began “Benefits.” Like with the other returning characters, I added to my greater understanding of who this woman is, and so now have a revised bio. Here is the working biography of Margaret I used as a guide when writing the book:

MARGARET KANNER SCHMIDT

Sex: Female Age: 78.  Height and Weight: 5-4, 130.

Skin: white, silver hair. Pale blue eyes.  A German look. Even slightly Slav.

Posture: She’s an older lady, slightly stooped though she tries her best to be regal.

Appearance: She’s a very good-looking older woman, looks rich even though she is no longer: “handsome”

Defects: she has a mole “beauty mark” on her right cheek.

Heredity: German. Northern European.

Sociological:

Class: Upper middle class now, was probably more upper class when she was a child. But they’ve lost most of their money and position in the ensuing years.

Occupation: Retired Business Executive.

Education: College Degree in Business. It would be from a small and expensive liberal arts college – perhaps a traditional women’s university, east coast. Radcliffe or Bryn Mawr or Wellesley. Which she still refers to, as that is unusual for a Midwesterner.

Home Life: She lives in an old mansion overlooking Lake Michigan in Milwaukee. Race/Nationality: German.

Place in Community: Junior league, but not an avid member. More when she was younger. Plays piano, gave community recitals when younger. Dabbles now.

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Politics: Rockefeller Republican – now says she is an Independent, because the party is not the same.

Amusements, hobbies: She has a greenhouse in MKE, where, oddly, she collects cactus. She used to drive to the southwest and steal plants from the open desert, which is a crime. She’s lonely, sometimes she goes to the movies, alone, at night, and feels wicked.

Sex Life, Moral Standards: She’s straight, (or so she thinks) but she’s also a divorcee and older. So, she hasn’t had sex in years, but she did have boyfriends after the divorce. But not for a few years now. She still flirts with men, including Jake, which drives Ben insane.

Her personal premise: She wants to keep control, but feels this is slipping out of her grasp. So, controlling. And failing at it, or only partially succeeding.

Frustrations and Disappointments:

She often still feels she failed at marriage. She’s unsure as to her success as a parent, and overcompensates in the grandparent area. So even though she doesn’t really know the story with Logan, just the fact of him being around is an excuse for her to spoil this child. 

Temperament: Mercurial. More often agreeable than not, but she does have her moments, particularly at the extreme ends of the day, either late night or early morning, not the best times for her.

Attitude toward life: she’s closer to the end of her life, and she doesn’t understand what she’s missed and why she still hasn’t found the “secret to life, or to happiness.”

Complexes: Afraid of spiders, is a clean freak, who might even start cleaning the home of people who are hosting here, i.e., Ben and Jake.

Abilities: Playing the piano. She likes to ride a bike and is actually good at this, for a 78-year-old woman. She can access apps on a smart phone. 

Qualities: She can cook fairly decently. She’s made great progress at acceptance of Ben as gay, and of the relationship between him and Jake. She’s more and more comfortable with it. 

IQ: very high.

I used a lot of the bio; a lot I did not use. (Such as her propensity with piano, and her green thumb.) There will likely be another installment of this series so Margaret will be around for more. Who knows, maybe there’s a piano recital in her future? Wouldn’t that be “spunky?”