Magazine Artwork
The People’s Friend Magazine
D.C. Thomson & Co Ltd.
Kicking The Habit
A short story by author Alison Carter.
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Illustration by Gerard Fay.
……The butler lowered his head for a moment and raised it again. He was standing with his hands behind his back, every detail of his uniform neat and every muscle of his face motionless. Rachel had read about English butlers in novels and knew that this was normal. She wondered if Stansfield would always stand like this, and if she could bear it…..
THE ILLUSTRATION BRIEF
SUMMARY
(Period: 1892) Parisian Rachel inherits her late grandfather’s estate in England. Along with the estate comes butler James, and sparks immediately fly between them.
CHARACTERS
Rachel: late 20s, dress, jacket, wears her hair down, feisty.
James: early 30s, butler’s uniform, stoic in nature.
THE SCENE
We see Rachel and James in the manor house – any room will do. The most important thing is mood, so place them as you see fit. I quite like the idea of Rachel holding a glass of red wine, as it’s fitting her character.
Mood: Awkward attraction
Season: February