Steve Rossiter (Fan Fiction Competition – Writing Damian Stories)

Steve Rossiter has two stories in Possessing Freedom. He also runs The Australian Literature Review (www.auslit.net) and Writing Teen Novels (www.writingteennovels.com).

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How would you describe a few of the important elements of Damian’s personality and personal background?

Damian (discussed further in my interview about my Possessing Freedom stories), begins as a competent clinical psychiatry intern, albeit one who is forward in expressing concerns about the welfare of the patient to whom he is assigned (Alice: the POV character for two of the twelve stories). When unexplained occurrences become a catalyst for Damian to get more emotionally involved with Alice, his willingness to break the rules to pursue what he believes to be right comes out.

Damian is book-smart. His Achille’s heel may be his vulnerability to act on righting wrongs by coming to the defense of others, even when doing so impacts on him personally. This could also be considered a personal strength. Readers’ opinions may differ on the appropriate level of virtue and practicality.

What is an aspect of Damian’s life preceding the main timeline of Possessing Freedom you would like to see explored in fan fiction stories, and why?

Given Damian’s willingness to go out an limb for others, a significant incident from Damian’s earlier years which instilled this tendency in him would be a good tie-in to the book which reveals more depth to Damian’s character.

Damian’s childhood pet cat, Shadow, is discussed in story 4, which may or may not have a supernatural connection. This could be interesting to explore in fan fiction and, if there is a supernatural connection, to uncover more about what kind of supernatural connection Shadow has, perhaps what attracted Damian and Shadow to one another, and how non-human animals fit into the overall supernatural scheme of things.

Exploring why Damian studied psychology and why he got into clinical psychiatry as a profession would reveal to readers a deeper insight into Damian’s personality and personal background.

Who is a character from the stories in Possessing Freedom told from Damian’s POV you would like to see featured in fan fiction stories, and why?

Dr Bryant would be an interesting character to explore further. It has been said that a good villain believes themselves to be doing good. Dr Bryant is not a clear-cut villain deliberately opposing Damian or Alice. He is something of a villain in the sense that his actions pose problems for Alice, and, by extension, for Damian. Readers may not blame Dr Bryant for not believing in the supernatural, but Dr Bryant’s professional manner has a lot of room for improvement and this, combined with his position of authority and responsibility, creates problems. Part of what would make Dr Bryant an interesting POV character is that he is not all good or all bad, and there is a strong theme of intentions versus consequences (amongst other possible themes) which could be explored in many different ways.

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