I'm currently working on a story that is similar to the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, in that it takes characters from various fiction and puts them into one story. In this case: I'm taking characters from different horror movies, from the Exorcist to Rosemary's Baby, and creating a story around it. Aaron is an outcast at school, too intelligent for his own good and finds joy in making others feel bad about themselves. His mother, Rosemary (Rosemary's Baby), is on the verge of losing their house and his sister, Nancy (Nightmare on Elm Street), is annoyed and leaves the home in a fuss. Aaron is suspended from school after an argument and is brought back home, but on the car ride, he witnesses a shop lift and tries to stop it, only to be quickly gunned down. He wakes up three weeks later in limbo as a poltergeist who is greeted by the Grim Reaper (Based on the Seventh Seal's Death), who notices his spiritual power, allowing him to become a poltergeist, which is neither dead nor alive. The Grim Reaper wonders why, and claims Aaron can be of use, and in return, he gets to live again. It just so happens that an evil spirit, Pazuzu (The Exorcist), has escaped from Hell, allowing other demons, spirits, and monsters to also escape, and is assembling an army by possessing an organized criminal family into doing his bidding. After fighting Pazuzu, who manages to escape, Aaron is resurrected with new spiritual powers, such as leaving his body to become a poltergeist, possession, and some psychic powers. The series follows Aaron fighting baddies from many horror movies. Over the course of the series, Aaron finds out he is actually the son of the devil, originally named Damien (The Omen), but managed to escape his father's influence by Rosemary. Aaron meets many people who become recurring allies and forms "The Agency" which is the collective term for a group of paranormal investigators, which includes a neurosurgeon, Dr. West (Re-Animator), an ostracized teenage girl who comes from a long line of witches, Carrie (Carrie), and paranormal detective Sam Spade (The Maltese Falcon). You may know that the Maltese Falcon is not a horror, but instead is a crime film. I have characters from film noir too, and name the gangsters in the film after Godfather characters. Now that I gave you the premise, I was hoping that you guys can suggest characters to use. Each story is like a completely new episode and it follows a monster of the week format so any idea is a good idea. Current List Damien (The Omen) Death (Seventh Seal) Pazuzu (The Exorcist) Rosemary (Rosemary's Baby) Sam Spade (The Maltese Falcon) Dr. West (Re-Animator) Carrie (Carrie) Sara (The Conqueror Worm) Tessio (Godfather) Torgo (Manos: The Hand of Fate)
Write a person, not a caricature. The story concept isn't important. How you write it is everything. Writing realistic characters the reader can identify with is a major part of the challenge. It's also something that can't be summed up in a few words. Characters grow. And like real people, they are complicated.
Would I be mistaken to add value to the concept of my book? I find both concept and character design as valuable as the other and go hand in hand if at equal measures(?)
Since I'm already using established characters, I based as much of their personality on their movie counterpart. For example, Rosemary said in the ending of the movie that she'll teach the son of the devil, Adrian, to be more Human and not an evil Antichrist. I made Aaron (who is also Adrian btw) to be lawful evil in a sense. Where he has a sense of devilish intent in what he acts like - trying to make others feel bad to laugh at them, alluding to his family history. However, his foster father and Rosemary are very good parents, possibly a bit of a pushover, who have trained Aaron to be a fine gentleman, whether because they are terrified of his true self coming out or because they treat him like a real son. Thanks for the reply.
Admittedly, I feel like I'm introducing the series as a "rule of cool" type book with a moral that is there, but not entirely constructed upon. I'm way more substance over style and if I feel like my book is poorly morale then I probably won't even let it leave my sketchbook.
All and all, I think the plot is interesting, and this novel would rely more on plot development than character development (without dimissing character development entirely, of course). I wonder if you can make these characters yours by further developing their characteristics in accordence to the plot. Though not your original characters, you would be adding a bit of yourself into them. I wondered.
Well, this is the list of confirmed characters so far. Damien Woodhouse (Omen) - Damien wakes up in limbo in the first chapter after trying to prevent an armed robbery. The grim reaper greets him and senses the over-dominating spiritual energy which allows Damien to be a poltergeist (a rare paranormal being). The grim reaper and Damien make a deal for Damien to return to his body and in return Damien will fight escaped evils of Hell. Nancy Woodhouse (Nightmare on Elm Street) - The secondary protagonist. She is suppose to embody the "final girl" trope. She's been having nightmares that keep her awake, causing her to become an insomniac, which makes her cranky. Although she is disrespectful to her family at times, they are the most important people to her and will put her life on the line in order to save Damien. Rosemary Woodhouse (Rosemary's Baby) - When she was younger, she was raped by Satan as part of a ritual done by Neo Nazi devil worshipers. Unable to abort it, she devoted her life to teach Damien to use his powers for the good of humanity by not letting him know of his true background. Warlock (???) - The cult leader who summoned the Antichrist in Rosemary. I forgot which movie it was where the satanist or Neo Nazi leader was titled "Warlock". Warlock is the big bad of season 2, when Damien begins the Agency. I'm thinking about replacing him with Roman from Rosemary's Baby or Imhotep from the Mummy films. I'll probably have him summon some kind of Cthulhu horror at some point. Grim Reaper (Seventh Seal) - Unlike a skeleton in a robe, this Grim Reaper is a face of a pale, skeletal-looking man who is shrouded in a black cloak that seems to blend into shadows. The Grim Reaper is Damien's spiritual adviser. Robert Freeling (Poltergeist) and Ben Huss (Night of the Living Dead) - Robert is Nancy's boyfriend. He is suppose to be the all-American "hero guy" even though he isn't the protagonist. Ben Huss is smart and resourceful, but shy and quiet. He's also the token black guy. lol Margot Shelby (Decoy) - A complete monster. Based on a woman from my life who stole from my family. She is the femme fatale, or a parody of it. She looks like Cruella de Ville. She steals from the Woodhouse household after moving into Damien's room when he is comatose for three weeks. Sam Spade (The Maltese Falcon) - The most lawful character. An occult detective who comes to the Woodhouse household after Rosemary discovers her safe has been raided. Sam Spade is able to see Damien (who is a spirit) and performs a "seance" which allows Damien to possess Spade. Possessions are rare and can only occur in two ways: the possessee allows you to take over them, or you cause them to go into submission where they lose control of their body, either through fear or harm, for example. Pazuzu (The Exorcist) - The Big Bad of the first "season". Its because of this evil demon that a portal to hell has opened, allowing for other demons to leave and join Pazuzu's army. When Damien defeats Pazuzu at the end of the season, Damien closes it. At one point, Nancy is killed, causing Damien to fall in a long depresssion. The Grim Reaper refuses to bring Nancy back to life, so Damien ends up reopening the portal to disturb the balance of nature and death, causing the Grim Reaper to end up becoming the next "Big Bad", although that is planned for Season 4. Tessio (Godfather) - The gangster Pazuzu possesses. While possessed, he starts a rebellion against the current don of the Chicago Outfit by convincing his underlings to help him out. Mark Mc Cluskey (Godfather) - A corrupt police officer working for Tessio. Was Sam Spade's partner during the Margot case, but ended up abducting him when Spade got too close to learning the truth of him and Tessio. Torgo (Manos: Hand of Fate) - The Woodhouse's charitable groundskeeper who performs tasks for the Woodhouse family for free. Torgo is blamed for stealing from them by Margot. Torgo reveals himself as Damien's appointed overwatcher, who has been trying to make him join the Cult of Satan. Dr. West (Re-Animator) - A neurosurgeon who was ostracized from the medical community for performing partial brain transplants on different animals, causing insane, chimeric creatures. He performs it on his assistant, Dr. Phibes, using the brain of an infamous gangster named Sonny, known for his anger. Dr. Phibes (The Abominable Dr. Phibes) - Although he feels disgraced at first, Dr. Phibes begins to enjoy his new body and demands that Dr. West builds him a new one. Dr. West realizes that Dr. Phibes is being controlled by Sonny's thoughts. Unnamed Gangster - I don't know which gangster I'll choose to play this part, but basically its one of Tessio's underlings who runs off to Louisiana from Chicago. He is discovered by the Don and is drowned in a tar pit, which just so happens to be cursed by a black magic practicing Bokor, named Murder. Murder (White Zombie) - A pale Haitian Louisiana voodoo and black magic practicing sorcerer. Zombies are true to their voodoo origin, not just mindless flesh-eaters, but magically-dominated slaves. Since this is a universe based on movie mythology, zombies can turn people into zombies as well. Carrie White (Carrie) - Carrie's character does not appear for a while. She is introduced in the Agency arc, when Damien drops out of school to form the spiritual investigator group (season 2). She is an ostracized high school senior who is Damien's age. She is contacted by an ancestor, a witch killed in Salem Witch Hunt, who tells her about her witch bloodline and powers. The Witch, Sara (The Conqueror Worm) wants Carrie to kill the kids who made fun of her, who happen to be the descendants of the people that executed Sara. Sara White (The Conqueror Worm) - An executed Witch during the Salem Witch Hunts. She has characteristics of the Blair Witch and Freddie Kruger. - - - - I'm thinking about replacing Sam Spade and Margot Shelby for a horror character. Does anyone know any? Also, I'm trying to look for a good candidate for Damien's "dad". His dad is going to be a gang banger from the 70's who fights Skinheads. He is in a gang called the "Longhairs". He is suppose to be a gentleman and seduces Rosemary. I originally intended for him to be John Robie from To Catch a Thief. His personality might change if the character is different, but I want to retain the whole "nice girl likes a bad guy".
