Like a lot of my characters, Mr. Henckel began as a collection of weird and contradictory traits that somehow fit together in my mind.  He had this formal way of speaking and a kind of self-assured strangeness, but then he also would tell these long and lurid confessions about his past and sweat profusely as he did it.  He was a great pianist, but he often fell asleep while he played the piano and began to snore, which understandably got in the way of his peforming career.  As I continued to work with Mr. Henckel, he took on a kind of childlike sweetness, which I think is what Finny is attracted to in my book – how unhidden his feelings are.  But his childlike qualities also led to some mistakes in judgment...

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