Jack Stamper as a character. January 18, 2023

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 If you want your readers to root for your action heroes, you have to make them likable and relatable.

When I first conceived the idea for Jack Stamper, I felt like I had to include my love of hard rock and alternative music in his stories, by having him be singer/guitarist in an alternative metal band, but as it progressed, I realized that will also give the character an attribute to like about him, and one people can relate to. 

One of the things I was ridiculed in school for was my taste in music. People would sing songs I despised and say members of my favorite bands were dead, especially after MTV started saying rock music was dead and stopped playing videos. Because I spent the majority of the days in the remedial class where they would turn the TV on and watch pop, hip-hop, and country videos, and change the channel if a rock video came on, saying it was trash, making me feel out of place. More importantly, they should not have been watching TV anyway, because they were in school. A lot of times, my friends would not stick up for me when that happened, but I moved on and it did decrease during my tenure at Oakland High School, and it has stopped now that they have matured. In addition, it can be part of Jack's character growth, and establish his relationships and chemestry with his allies and enemies.

That said, the members of his band, The Spectres, are his main group of sidekicks, and here they are. Brad Marsh is Jack's lifelong best friend, the result of their parents also being best friends, plays drums, percussion, and sings co-vocals.  Basketball player Ben Dawson, plays bass guitar and sings co-vocals, while his twin brother, Drew Dawson, who also plays basketball, plays co-rhythm and lead guitar, banjo, sitar, and sings co-vocals. Their neighbor who lives across the street, hunter Lee Daniels, plays keyboard, piano, synthesizer, accordion, and keytar, and rounding it out is Taylor Foreman, a skateboarder who is their multi-instrumentalist, mainly third guitar, saxophone, mandolin, trumpet, harmonica, and flute. 

There are a few other characters I don't have time to mention that will help them out on various instruments, mostly the Twin Crown Princesses of Atlanta, and their group of handmaidens, and their cowboy friend, but I will blog about them another time. With everything said, if you want to get to know them, likely feel like you can hear their music, even if you are only reading about it, you have to read The Penitent Warrior. It is only $1.99, on any Barnes & Noble Nook reader, so don't hesitate, and let me know who your favorite character is.

Sincerely,

Ethan Parke.

My mom and I discovered this website and saw it was the best place to start a blog and see it will help me gain readers interested in the action fantasy thrillers I write.

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