The Proust Questionnaire is one of the most famous series of questions asked in interviews and used for self-reflection. According to Vanity Fair, “The Proust Questionnaire has its origins in a parlor game popularized (though not devised)
by Marcel Proust, the French essayist and novelist, who believed that, in answering these questions, an individual reveals his or her true nature.“ Proust Your Protagonist is a series that interviews authors writing from the POV of their lead characters to answer the Proust Questionnaire.

Here is the basic Proust Questionnaire told from the point of view of Calderis, the Chief Enforcer of Elarion, in Kari Lee Townsend’s fantasy cozy mystery, The Well-Laid Trap (follow-up to The Well-Kept Secret).

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What is your idea of perfect happiness?

A world in balance. Duty fulfilled without sacrifice of the heart. Silence that means peace, not vigilance.

What is your greatest fear?

That I will be forced to choose, and that choosing will destroy what I am sworn to protect.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

Control. I mistake restraint for righteousness.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Cowardice dressed as principle.

Which living person do you most admire?

Lyra Wells, because she stands in the fracture between realms and refuses to back down.

What is your greatest extravagance?

Hope. I afford it rarely, and it costs me dearly.

What is your current state of mind?

Alert. Divided. Unquiet.

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

Obedience.

On what occasion do you lie?

When truth would become a weapon in the wrong hands.

What do you most dislike about your appearance?

That it reveals too much of what I am meant to conceal.

Which living person do you most despise?

Cowards who harm those who are weaker.

What is the quality you most like in a man?

Honor that endures when no one is watching.

What is the quality you most like in a woman?

Courage that does not ask for approval.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

“It is not safe.”
“It is not time.”

What or who is the greatest love of your life?

Peace between realms, and the woman who believes there can be.

When and where were you happiest?

Training to be an enforcer before I understood the cost of keeping peace.

Which talent would you most like to have?

Mind reading because women are confusing.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I would learn to relax and have fun…just a little.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

Becoming Chief Enforcer and keeping the realm I love safe.

If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

My grandfather, so I could raise my father to be more compassionate and forgiving.

Where would you most like to live?

At the threshold between worlds, where watchfulness still matters.

What is your most treasured possession?

A vow kept when breaking it would have been easier.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Knowing the right course and lacking the courage to take it.

What is your favorite occupation?

Guarding. Protecting. Enforcing.

What is your most marked characteristic?

Stillness.

What do you most value in your friends?

Loyalty.

Who are your favorite writers?

Historians who write the truth.

Who is your hero of fiction?

The peace keepers.

Which historical figure do you most identify with?

Marcus Aurelius because he was a ruler who did not want to rule, a man who believed strength was found in restraint, and who understood that guarding a world often meant being misunderstood by it.

Who are your heroes in real life?

Those who rebuild after the danger fades.

What are your favorite names?

Names that carry echoes and endure.

What is it that you most dislike?

Waste of life, of trust, and of time.

What is your greatest regret?

Waiting too long to speak from the heart.

How would you like to die?

Knowing the balance I kept between realms held.

What is your motto?

Stand fast. Choose wisely. Protect what cannot protect itself.

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Kari Lee Townsend’s The Well-Laid Trap releases tomorrow, January 20, 2026! You can purchase the eBook here and the print book from from a variety of booksellers online.

Townsend has a wide presence on the web so you can follow her and learn about her upcoming books!

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