Meet My Main Character: Ethan
(Excerpted from my WordPress Site, SB James: Doing the Write Thing)
Virtually anyone who has been following my blog will probably know a bit about my series. Now, you are going to be introduced to the title character of The Inventor’s Son:
1) What is the name of your character? Ethan Phillip Stanwood. Is he fictional or a historic person? Yes, he is a fictitious character.
2) When and where is the story set? The Inventor’s Son begins in the Victorian London that we are mostly familiar with, only there are a few differences. It is a world that easily could have been if witches, werewolves and vampires, Devoids, psychics and even the occasional rogue jinn or lamia really inhabited the Earth. The series begins in April of 1890, and on the Monday after Easter Sunday, Ethan Stanwood’s father Marcus leaves for a meeting, never to return. Ethan is then tasked with bringing his father’s most important prototype back to him, only Marcus does not trust that the information of his whereabouts may not fall into villainous hands, so he sets up clues and riddles that he feels only his young son Ethan will be able to solve…
3) What should we know about him? Several things. Ethan is a young pre-teen when the story begins, and aside from that, he has been sheltered and isolated for his entire life. The idea of having to leave the safety of his grandmother’s house and their backyard shed where Marcus works on his miraculous inventions both thrills and terrifies Ethan.
When the series starts, Ethan does not blame his father for keeping him so close to him. Ethan is a sickly boy, and his weak constitution weighs a great deal on all his actions. He knows deep down that he will never attend regular school, and perhaps may never live to adulthood, as many children of his day did not do.
Of course, there is also another reason he is most likely kept out of school, one that is not as obvious on the outside. Ethan inherited magical powers, and in this world, both females and males refer to themselves as witches. There are solitary practitioners, but many witches belong to covens, just like congregations in church or temple. Ethan’s grandmother is a prominent member of the Order of the Crystal Star, and his great grandfather is the Head Priest. Therefore, though it is not addressed quite as much in book 1 as in later books, Ethan is destined to inherit this position once his grandmother is gone, as his mother had died on the night he was born.
4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his life? His main conflict is that his father left London and now he must as well. Murderous individuals are already out to catch Ethan and get the prototype. He fears he is not strong enough to continually outrun such madmen, and he does not want anyone else to be hurt or killed in the crossfire either.
5) What is the personal goal of the character? Ethan would do just about anything to live up to the task his father gave him. He also would love to return triumphant to London and resume his quiet life at his father’s side. These things are all he knows, aside from illness and weakness and silent despair.
6) What is the title of the novel, and where can we find out more? The Inventor’s Son: The Beginning is a great place to get a taste of the world of The Inventor’s Son series.
Virtually anyone who has been following my blog will probably know a bit about my series. Now, you are going to be introduced to the title character of The Inventor’s Son:
1) What is the name of your character? Ethan Phillip Stanwood. Is he fictional or a historic person? Yes, he is a fictitious character.
2) When and where is the story set? The Inventor’s Son begins in the Victorian London that we are mostly familiar with, only there are a few differences. It is a world that easily could have been if witches, werewolves and vampires, Devoids, psychics and even the occasional rogue jinn or lamia really inhabited the Earth. The series begins in April of 1890, and on the Monday after Easter Sunday, Ethan Stanwood’s father Marcus leaves for a meeting, never to return. Ethan is then tasked with bringing his father’s most important prototype back to him, only Marcus does not trust that the information of his whereabouts may not fall into villainous hands, so he sets up clues and riddles that he feels only his young son Ethan will be able to solve…
3) What should we know about him? Several things. Ethan is a young pre-teen when the story begins, and aside from that, he has been sheltered and isolated for his entire life. The idea of having to leave the safety of his grandmother’s house and their backyard shed where Marcus works on his miraculous inventions both thrills and terrifies Ethan.
When the series starts, Ethan does not blame his father for keeping him so close to him. Ethan is a sickly boy, and his weak constitution weighs a great deal on all his actions. He knows deep down that he will never attend regular school, and perhaps may never live to adulthood, as many children of his day did not do.
Of course, there is also another reason he is most likely kept out of school, one that is not as obvious on the outside. Ethan inherited magical powers, and in this world, both females and males refer to themselves as witches. There are solitary practitioners, but many witches belong to covens, just like congregations in church or temple. Ethan’s grandmother is a prominent member of the Order of the Crystal Star, and his great grandfather is the Head Priest. Therefore, though it is not addressed quite as much in book 1 as in later books, Ethan is destined to inherit this position once his grandmother is gone, as his mother had died on the night he was born.
4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his life? His main conflict is that his father left London and now he must as well. Murderous individuals are already out to catch Ethan and get the prototype. He fears he is not strong enough to continually outrun such madmen, and he does not want anyone else to be hurt or killed in the crossfire either.
5) What is the personal goal of the character? Ethan would do just about anything to live up to the task his father gave him. He also would love to return triumphant to London and resume his quiet life at his father’s side. These things are all he knows, aside from illness and weakness and silent despair.
6) What is the title of the novel, and where can we find out more? The Inventor’s Son: The Beginning is a great place to get a taste of the world of The Inventor’s Son series.
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