Little People characters and research
By Kathryn Sparrow
Several characters in Devil’s Bargain including Winthrop’s (the villain) assistant, Erex, are little people. By this I mean people who have one of the number medical conditions that lead to dwarfism. This fact is important to the story. When I wrote the book, it was a priority to me that I describe these characters in an accurate and respectful manner. I didn’t want to use any clichés.
To learn more about how little people refer to themselves, I searched the internet and I found: Little People of America https://www.lpaonline.org/. This turned out to be a great resource for me allowing me to feel confident that the descriptions I was using were reasonable.
Erex is one of my favorite characters in the story. He is Winthrop’s right-hand man and the main contact Seth has with Winthrop. He is an optimist who is happy to do his job. He is often doing and saying things that surprise Seth as unexpected. Seth doesn’t understand how someone like Erex could be so committed to someone like Winthrop.
A male voice called out from behind him. “Seth Griffin?”
“That’s me.” Seth didn’t know what he expected, but it wasn’t the little person approaching him. He wore a pinstriped, three-piece suit tailored to his three-foot-tall form. His belly had a slight paunch, and his thick, brown hair had been slicked back with a touch of gel that glinted in the light. A golden chain across his vest hinted at a pocket watch or some other ornamental jewelry.
“Mr. Winthrop is waiting. This way.” The man headed to the elevators, his short legs covering more ground than Seth expected. He found himself taking long strides, using his full five-foot-eleven-inch height to keep up.
Something in the way the man said waiting made Seth’s palms moisten and goose bumps dot his arms. He checked his watch. It was only 6:50 P.M., ten minutes early.
