Scott Spotson
asked
Alexis Grove:
Nick is such an amazing character, someone who continually has to decide which path to take in the advent of drastic forces enveloping the world that he lives in. Who or what was your inspiration for Nick? Did you base him on someone you know, or was he someone you created solely from the demands of this story?
Alexis Grove
A concept I had when planning False Idols was that people who consider nuances and multiple points of view and seek fair outcomes -- i.e., nice guys -- get slowed down trying to weigh all the different factors they're considering and lose the initiative to people who are guided to fast certainty by narrow-minded provincialism and self interest.
So I wanted a character with the apparent insight and empathy to be a powerfully good protagonist but who was tragically unable to take up that mantle due to indecisiveness. That's Nick. To explain the apparent contradiction between him being super intelligent, athletic, and handsome yet friendless and ineffective, I gave him deep insecurity due to his pained relationship with his parents and more immediately because of his rejection by his peers after his surgery.
Nick's obvious mirror image is antagonist Laura.
After I created Nick and Laura I decided I needed a strongly decisive second protagonist because, you know, somebody's gotta get something done. Hence, Sarah.
Nick's more specific traits and experiences are inspired by a number of people (including myself) that I've observed being unable to decide what they want or to get their way. Whether they had a great idea but got overruled by someone who was willing to yell louder, or whether they were too torn between competing loyalties to take a strong stand, or whether they were just not full of gumption at a certain critical moment, they all failed because of hesitation and thoughtfulness and compassion to do/say/decide/get something they should have. We've all been there some times. Nick's there most of the time.
That's the Nick of book one. In a way, the entire trilogy tracks the arc of Nick figuring out who he is and what he stands for and finally -- maybe tragically late, but finally -- asserting himself. If you keep reading the series, you'll notice very significant changes in this character. You'll definitely know what I mean when you read it.
So I wanted a character with the apparent insight and empathy to be a powerfully good protagonist but who was tragically unable to take up that mantle due to indecisiveness. That's Nick. To explain the apparent contradiction between him being super intelligent, athletic, and handsome yet friendless and ineffective, I gave him deep insecurity due to his pained relationship with his parents and more immediately because of his rejection by his peers after his surgery.
Nick's obvious mirror image is antagonist Laura.
After I created Nick and Laura I decided I needed a strongly decisive second protagonist because, you know, somebody's gotta get something done. Hence, Sarah.
Nick's more specific traits and experiences are inspired by a number of people (including myself) that I've observed being unable to decide what they want or to get their way. Whether they had a great idea but got overruled by someone who was willing to yell louder, or whether they were too torn between competing loyalties to take a strong stand, or whether they were just not full of gumption at a certain critical moment, they all failed because of hesitation and thoughtfulness and compassion to do/say/decide/get something they should have. We've all been there some times. Nick's there most of the time.
That's the Nick of book one. In a way, the entire trilogy tracks the arc of Nick figuring out who he is and what he stands for and finally -- maybe tragically late, but finally -- asserting himself. If you keep reading the series, you'll notice very significant changes in this character. You'll definitely know what I mean when you read it.
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