Tenor
Group: Slytherin
Posts: 107
Member No.: 27
Joined: 9-June 06
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About the story
Title: 14 Shaker Way
Person (1st, 2nd, 3rd): 1st (Nathan is the narrator)
Genre: Action/Fantasy/Drama/Young Adult
Rating: 12+
Warnings: A bit of language, a couple scenes of violence, but nothing too bad
Summary:
Nathan Shakespeare's got it all: he's popular, athletic, handsome, and his girlfriend is the most popular girl at Eleanor Roosevelt High School. But when Nathan discovers that he is a magus, the entire course of his life changes, and when he learns that he must battle the Dark Power for control of the magical world, Nathan knows that he will never be able to be just one of the guys. Will he survive the battle, or will his young age and inexperience condemn him?
The basics
Name: Nathan Shakespeare
Nickname: SHAKESPEARE!!! (random jocks call out his name in hallways of the school)
Birtdate (include how old they are in the story): November 1 (he's 14-15 during the story)
Birthplace: Los Angeles, CA
Work/Schooling: High school freshman
Family:
Mother: Callista -- professional event planner
Father: John -- film producer
Siblings: India (18), Gavin (15-16)
Extended Family: Joshua Verity (maternal grandfather and magus) -- deceased
Home: A sprawling mansion in Encino, CA (a suburb of Los Angeles)
About the character (paragraph answers will help determine what needs work)
Appearance: Very tall for his age -- 6' 1", wavy dark brown hair, handsome, athletic build
Quirks: Bad student, great with words, sarcastic, tends to run his mouth and get himself into trouble
Special Skills: magic, levitation, balancing the tip of his pen on the tip of his finger, basketball
Anti-Skills: impulsive, biased against nerdy people, judgmental (sometimes), impatient
Romantic Interests: Kristen Chambers, Julia Bishop
Personality: outgoing, funny, sarcastic, confrontational, aggressive, sometimes sweet, sometimes boorish
Enemies/rivals:
Gavin Shakespeare -- Gavin is an intellectual snob, but he also gives Nathan a hard time about being a slacker. He also rats out Nathan to their parents whenever Nathan gets in trouble. Gavin is very nerdy, but he's also got a strength to his character which Nathan realizes sometimes later. But they've butted heads all their lives because they're so different
Andy Mathers -- an old enemy from grade school -- Andy represents everything Nathan detests. Andy is smug, self-important, snobbish and insensitive; Andy and Gavin are friendly but not close
The Dark Power -- a mystery character and the ultimate evil. The big mystery is for Nathan to discover the identity of the Dark Power, as he is the only one with the ability to identify who it is
U.S. President Anthony Scelera -- allied with the Dark Power. He has bewitched the population to do his bidding, and seems to be robbing the people of their free will
Dr. Marshall Aldridge -- colleague and friend of Scelera; he is a psychotherapist, but he is also a dark magus who is commissioned to capture Nathan and bring him to Scelera; he is manipulative and tries to poison Nathan against David and Jack and the other magi
Friends:
Colby Bruce -- Nathan's best friend; they play basketball and surf together and have been extremely close all their lives
Zach Young -- part of Nathan's inner circle of popular jock friends; Zach is a comedian and does impressions of the teachers; he also finds out about Nathan's magical abilities, whereas their other friends don't; Zach keeps Nathan's secret and they become very close friends as a result
David Matthiason -- former principal of Nathan's school, and the leader of the group of magi (the Council of the Fourfold Ring) who are sworn to rush to Nathan's side when he comes fully into his magical abilities; he is wise, kind but tough as well
Jack Bianchi -- Nathan's English teacher; his job as a member of the Council of the Fourfold Ring is to protect Nathan at school from Aldridge and Mrs. Foxe, the new principal. Foxe isn't a mage, but she is a collaborator with dark magi. Jack is gruff and moody and secretive, but deep down he truly cares for Nathan, though he'd never admit it. Nathan learns about some of Jack's troubled past later in the story
Julia Bishop -- Nathan's second girlfriend; a mage, her parents are members of the Council, and Julia ends up helping to train Nathan for battle. She's very nerdy, like Gavin and Andy, but she's also funny and a little wild, and because of that, Nathan starts to set aside his old biases against nerdy people. When they start dating, they cause a huge scandal among his popular friends
Hobbies: basketball, surfing, magic tricks, hanging out with his buddies and going to horror movies
Understanding the character
What is his/her goal in life?
Nathan wants to be just like everyone else, but popular. He wants to go to the best parties, date the prettiest girl, be on the Varsity basketball team and never be associated with nerds like Gavin. But when magic enters into his life, Nathan is determined to fulfill his role as the Fourfold Ring and take his new identity seriously. The challenge is that he risks losing his reputation and his popularity, and he's not so sure he can give that up.
Would the character change for someone they liked?
He would probably complain first, but deep down, he would feel duty-bound to change if need be. Even for Gavin.
What do they appreciate most in life?
He appreciates respect most, plus love, family and friends. When he loses most of his friends and the loyalty of his father, Nathan is devastated, but he is determined to find happiness where he can, among the magi.
What would the character say about himself/herself?
He would first brag about his assets, but then he'd laugh and say he was kidding. Nathan is actually pretty humble and hates drama, so he'd just say that just wants to be happy.
What is the purpose of your OC (why are they in the story?)?
Nathan's purpose is to stand up for free will and for peace. As he embraces his role as a magus and as the Fourfold Ring, he sees that he is in a unique role to bring about peace. All the same, he feels the pressure and doesn't mask his fear of that role. He's not so sure he can do this, especially after his violent showdown with President Scelera.
An actual quote from the story which sums up the character (optional):
"Even back in grade school, Kristen was always standing up for the underdog. She was mildness and sweetness personified, at least most days. I wanted to date her, but I was too chicken to ask her out. Plus, I wasn’t allowed to date unless I got a 3.0. At that rate, I might be celibate the rest of my life. I imagined myself sitting in a church pew, watching Gavin marry the cyborg of his perverted fantasies—always a groomsman and never a groom. I really had to start studying."
A brief history of the character leading up to the start of the story (optional):
Nathan is one of those kids who is very smart and is a terrible student. All throughout grade school, he got C's and D's, but spent hours and hours hanging out with his buddies. As a child, Nathan was very close to his grandfather, Joshua Verity, not knowing that his grandpa's storybook was actually a magical Book of Shadows. Nathan always loved hearing his grandpa's wild magical tales, but he never knew they were real until later on. He also didn't know his magic tricks were real magic until he learned that he's a magus. As the story opens, Nathan is making a new round of promises to his parents that he'll do well in school, but by the end of the first week, he's already falling behind, as usual.
Nathan has a trouble relationship with his father. John is never around because of work, and when he is home, he ignores Nathan for the most part. This blows up later in the story, and his conflict with his father becomes a central episode which impacts his ability to fulfill his magical destiny.
That's it! So tell me what you think of Nathan, and if you have any questions about him. Thanks!
:twins:
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Nathan Shakespeare, OC for publication?
