WIP SPOTLIGHT: The Inhumans

September 16, 2018

This is it, folks: the moment you’ve all been waiting for.

There was a blog post foreshadowing it. I’ve been meaning to put a page up about it. But still, you haven’t the faintest idea what exactly it is.

Never fear: your curiosities will be put to rest. It’s time for:


also let’s not point out my poor naming skills, shall we?

Yes, it’s about time you heard about my current Work-In-Progress, otherwise known as the Reason I Lose Sleep At Night.

Honestly, I’m kind of freaking out. Only two people (besides me) have any idea what this book is about. Which means . . . you are one of the FIRST PEOPLE EVER to hear about The Inhumans! *chocolate party*

But, because backstory always makes everything more interesting:
(SPOILERS FOR "MURDER, SHE WROTE" AND "HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE")

So, if you will, turn back time to August of last year (that’s 2017, for any of you from the future). My family had just finished reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and my brother and I were on a major Murder, She Wrote bingeing spree. (Both are excellent, by the way. 10/10 recommend) And yes, both these points are relevant.

There are many differences about this book and this TV show, but they have exactly one thing in common: there is a murder, or at least an attempted murder. This is also important.

One day, I sat down and watched an episode of Murder, She Wrote that the rest of my family had seen, but I hadn’t. It was called Lone Witness. In case you’re not familiar with the episode, here’s a brief summary: a teenage boy named Tommy witnesses the murder of his crush, and the murderer begins to hunt him down. It’s a great episode (TWO CHARACTERS ARE WRITERS!!!!!) but I couldn’t help wondering: wouldn’t Tommy be a little paranoid after these events?


I believe it was the same week that I watched the movie The Half-Blood Prince. Now, I am a firm believer that the book is always better than the movie, and this applies to the sixth Harry Potter movie. However, the movie did something that I sorely wish the book did: they gave us some scenes from Draco Malfoy’s perspective.

I used to hate Draco Malfoy. He was a pretentious little jerk who clearly thought himself superior. But the sixth movie made me pity him. I mean, come on, he had to kill a mentor figure! And he was a conflicted character! (Yes, I’m a sucker for those.) And - the important part - he couldn’t kill Dumbledore.

And then one night, those two pieces mashed together in my head: a boy who was hunted, and a boy reluctant to kill his target.

Thus, The Inhumans was born. *rousing applause*
“So, Nicole,” you’re probably asking, “what the heck is this book even about?”

Well. *rubs hands together* I’ve prepared this little synopsis for you just for this occasion:

Three months ago, Ben Evans was hunted down by a hooded figure. His life was threatened four times. Then, his attacker vanished.
Now, with summer just beginning, Ben’s eager-to-please cousin Shannon tells him that she saw his attacker in her home town, Monsoon. Desperate to find the person who changed his life, Ben embarks on an almost impossible mission: find someone that he’s never actually seen before. He reluctantly teams up with Shannon, the only one who’s seen him. 
But what Ben doesn’t realize is that there’s more to this attacker than meets the eye. Before he can comprehend what’s happening, he and Shannon are thrust into an underground society of people who may not be completely human.
And Ben might just be one of them. 

This is a rough synopsis for a rough draft (that I’m just NOW outlining, my word), so this is subject to change. In fact, everything from here on out is subject to change.

It’s mainly told in dual perspectives, although that might change to three. I don’t know.

Oh yeah. And this is a trilogy. Because APPARENTLY ONE BOOK JUST WASN'T ENOUGH.
So. On to the most important part of any story: characters.

Some people will make aesthetics about their characters and post them here. I almost did that. Then I decided to just do bullet points because to me that’s easier on the eyes. Also, after each character, I’ll put a little snippet about them!

Ben Evans:
  • Main character 
  • Was hunted by someone he never saw for four weeks straight
  • Wants to go into forensics
  • Likes country music (I don’t understand why, though.....)
  • Is hopefully smarter than the average protagonist
  • MOST LIKELY TO obsess over stupid wrongdoings for 48 years
  • Has an EXCELLENT character arc that isn’t wrapped up until book 3

Shannon Anderson: 
  • Probably the subject of many Matrix references
  • Pretty much the second main character
  • Loves to watch sunrises
  • Wants to please everyone
  • MOST LIKELY TO do something stupid to please her friends
  • Also has a character arc that . . . is wrapped up in book 2. (Yeah, I need to fix that.

Elly Moore:
  • Doesn’t come in until halfway through book 1
  • A strong girl - but don’t worry! She’s feminine too!
  • Likes to knit 
  • Is fiercely loyal to a fault
  • MOST LIKELY TO boss everyone around on a group project
  • MIGHT have a character arc???? I don’t know, and I would explain, but SPOILERS. 

Askari Ø
  • And yes, the ø is significant but I can’t say because SPOILERS 
  • In fact I can’t tell you practically anything about Askari because SPOILERS
  • But he is the “reluctant assassin” 
  • Also he’s based off of Draco Malfoy. And don’t try to read into that, because he’s so COMPLETELY DIFFERENT
  • He’s also my favorite character #noregrets

I was so close to putting a villain profile in here, but I didn’t because SPOILERS. But I’m trying not to make him the idiotic bad guy you see in Marvel movies. (Yep, that’s right, I’m talking to you, Mr. Dark Elf and Ant-Man Suit Maker.)



——————————————————————————-
So, yeah! That’s my story.

I don’t know if it’s the One I Will Publish or not, but for right now I’m going to act as though it is. And I don’t know if I will go traditional or indie as of yet. Everything’s up in the air right now.

Anyways, if you read this whole thing, congratulations! I hope this was fun to read.

-Nicole

How are you WIPs going? What inspired them? Do you have any conflicted characters in them? Let’s talk!

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18 comments

  1. This sounds INCREDIBLE, Nicole! I’m currently in love with conflicted characters too, so the more stories involving them, the better...and all your characters sound AWESOME! I can’t wait to read this. ^_^

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    Replies
    1. Thank you so much, Faith!! Haha, yes, conflicted characters are the best, aren’t they? <3

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  2. This sounds incredible! I need it on my shelf now please and thank you. XD

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, Ivie! :) (but it’s not ready for that yet - you do not want to see the HORROR that is the first draft.....XD)

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  3. Oh my word, Nicole, I NEED THIS BOOK NOW! the plot is amazing + so unique, and the characters sound awesome (esp. Ben bc #forensics, xD).

    CANNOT wait to read this! <3 <3

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    Replies
    1. THANK YOU ALLISON!! I know, forensics is awesome! (If writing doesn’t work out - forensics is open!)

      Thank you! <333

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  4. This sounds so epic! I can't wait to hear more about it in the future, and those snippets were AMAZING.

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  5. This sounds really amazing!!

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  6. Sooo, this is the infamous WIP! Sounds interesting, and your snippets are really good so far!

    Catherine <3

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    Replies
    1. Yup, here it is, at long last! Thanks, Catherine! <3

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  7. Is it bad that I've never heard of WIP before now? -.- Wow, sheltered am I. :P and also I can't read it because I haven't read any HP books yet aghhhhhh. Eh, you have plenty other posts I can read. xP

    Lilian | greenteawithbooks.wordpress.com

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    Replies
    1. Don’t worry - I only learned what it is a few months ago! That was when I started blogging, and man, I was so completely LOST in the terminology.

      Haha, true, but there's only spoilers in the Origin Story part. But YOU SHOULD READ THEM!!!!

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  8. (I just thought I would comment on this, since this was your WIP for Camp NaNo)
    Your story sounds amazing. :) Also your not alone in basing your characters on other characters (Phoenix is based on Newt Scamander, which is sort of obvious I suppose considering his *cough* face claim *cough cough*) Also I love that your story has a sort of thriller/murder mystery feel while still being Fantasy. :D
    -Quinley

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    Replies
    1. (Haha, yeah, it’s been a WIP for a VERY long time.)
      Aw, thanks, Quinley! (Wait, seriously? I LOVE PHOENIX ALREADY.) Thank you! That was kind of what I was going for. :)

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Welcome to the comment section! I love hearing what you guys think and seeing you guys talk. Just remember to keep it clean, and as always, check back for my replies! <3
-Nicole