oh, damn, erika. Well. Yes.

Did you ever have anyone in these little groups who was new to the chair and basically so prickly that they ran over peoples' toes with it whenever they got a smug or pitying look or even a sideways glance?

That would have been me, circa 1972 or thereabouts...

Anyone up for a section one, chapter one "CS" beta?

Me! If you send right away. I have to run in about 15.

What are some things to keep in mind about writing people with money? Because I need to start, and I'm getting fricking Dynasty/ Dallas images, or Bush, or Thurston Howell. And well, yuck.

Well, it depends on if they are new money or old money. The old money folks I know have nice things (A big victorian summer house on an island, for example), but also have crap stuff around (Like old, worn out wicker furniture at that summer house) and behave just like regular folks--maybe even LESS interested in signs of wealth than regular folks. For example, the probably the richest person I know had a rug in their living room which was woven on looms specially built for them because the room was large, but they would never have mentioned it, and it was carefully woven to match the older rugs in the house.

Folks with new money might be more inclined to show what they've got, driving fancy cars, having a house that was done by a designer, etc. They might also be more aware of their social position and more wanting to cement it by joining the right clubs and whatnot.

People with old money are often brought up to be very cautious in spending it. They're not going to be picking up everybody's check at the restaurant, for instance. (At least, not in New England.) They're also not going to tell you that they're one of THOSE Forbeses, Vanderbilts, and so on.

I did actually meet millionaires once but they were European and in tech so probably not very typical. Huh, probably somewhere in between...I'll give somebody a climber daughter-in-law to pick on, though. I know more about people that try to live like they have money, but they don't.

Erika, I went to school with moneyed people. Some of it old money like Betsy is describing, but some of it quite new and gauche.

The key thing that shows money, in my mind, is the pursuit of high-quality (or high-name) items without an inverse devaluation of something else in the budget. (Among young people who have money, it's the pursuit of high-quality/name without any understanding that most people buy their socks at Target.)

A not-rich woman might have an excellent suit and cheap shoes. Although not all rich people invest in both shoes and suit, they're more likely to, and more likely to match the quality of one to the other, rather than splurge on the one and scrimp on the other.

Right. An old-money woman may be wearing thirty-year-old shoes, but they'll be hand-made. Stuff may be incredibly scruffy, but it started out its life expensive.

Terry Pratchett has something on this re: Captain Vimes marrying the richest woman in the city. Vimes is thinking that the rich are the only ones who can afford to be poor. The rich buy their shoes every five years or so because they can afford to buy stuff that will last, while the poor can only afford crap.