The angsty emo – because every book needs one.
Name: I named Dominic after Dominic Monaghan. There. I said it. Phew. For those of you who don’t know who Dominic Monaghan is – you heathens – he played Merry in the Lord of the Rings. And I’ve already admitted to you that I had a crush on Orlando Bloom when I was eight, so why not tell the world that I also had a crush on Dominic Monaghan? Fuck it, let’s do this. Furthermore, I named a character after him. A character that would go on to be one of the biggest players in my 24-book series. Oops… fuck it. So there you go. And his surname? Well, how much more common can you get with Johnson?
Appearance: Originally, Dominic had ‘toffee’ coloured hair and blue eyes. Yes, you heard that right. Dominic – tanned, dark-haired, green-eyed Dominic Johnson – was originally pale with toffee coloured hair and blue eyes. The change came about in the second redraft (2011) when I had grown out of my crush of Dominic Monaghan (I hadn’t, I still love him) and moved onto ‘scene boys’. Alternative boys were my weakness when I was sixteen. Tattoos, piercings, dyed black hair, band t-shirts, skinny jeans – le cream*. Unfortunately, Dominic got stuck in this period and I’ve only added to it recently because the books are set in 2011-2013 when this fashion was common. I gave him a tongue bar, lip rings, gauge piercings in his ears, a big swept black fringe – not dyed but natural – and beautiful green eyes that make all the girls and guys swoon. He’s always been tall but he was once very skinny. This changed over the years since I kept him as a horse rider, and most competing riders aren’t skinny; their muscles centred on their upper arms and thighs. So while Dominic is still as angsty and emo as he was in the 2011 redraft, I did give him a few more attributes so he wasn’t a complete stereotype.
It wasn’t only Dominic’s dress sense and style that changed. In the most recent drafts, the colour of Dominic’s skin and his entire heritage changed. If he was going to have black hair naturally, he couldn’t realistically be just ‘English’. After much research, considering his name, his hair colour and the soft tanned skin I imagined for Dominic now, I settled on him being French Muslim. Already his mother was called Julianne and his younger brother Tobias. His father, Andrew is still British but Julianne comes from France and a Muslim family. There are still discrepancies and other things in his backstory and heritage I need to consider, but I’m happy with Dominic’s final outcome.
Personality: Oh wow – believe it or not, Dominic could act a lot like Sam. Awkward. Come the second redraft, and Dominic coming out as bisexual, his personality, obviously, changed a lot. He became quieter, calmer and if anything, more angsty. Given his backstory which developed in this redraft, it’s no wonder. Chuck in his insomnia and you’ve got one hell of a character – he’s like the Boss Level Angst character. However, he’s always been a reader – though doesn’t have much enjoyment of poetry these days (lol) – and he’s always been into heavy music. He’s simply more balanced out these days but there are plenty of references to his earlier character in flashbacks and in the insults Sam and Will enjoy teasing him with.
Skills: As I said above, Dominic has always been a horse rider. This dates back further than the first draft in 2008 and to when I used to play with these characters when they were dolls, under my bunk-bed in my bedroom when I was seven or eight. Back when Hillside Academy was Apple Tree Farm horse riding school and all the Main 8 were horse riders (Sam on a horse, jokes). Only Dominic and Erika stayed horse riders and this is a fact that hasn’t wavered throughout any of the redrafts.
Dominic has also always been a musician and always played his dad’s guitar. Music is what sets Dominic’s soul alight, even more so than Three-Day Eventing. But he has picked up piano playing over the years too, something I added for a very specific reason which I can’t discuss…
Influences: As I’ve mentioned, Dominic was named after Dominic Monaghan, so that would be his initial influence. But over the years, Dominic’s appearance has been influenced by several musicians I adored throughout my ‘scene era’ in my mid-teens. For instance, the lead singer of Escape the Fate, Craig Mabbit was an influence at one point. Not only that, some of the boys I knew throughout my teens also influenced Dominic’s appearance. But never his personality.
No, Dominic’s personality has always been unique to himself. His empathy, his devotion, his kindness and loving nature is all Dominic’s. I’ve never met anyone like him but I’m sure boys like him do exist; if only so my sixteen year old self can be satisfied that it wasn’t all just a fantasy.
Friendships: Dominic has always been friends with Sam; best friends, in fact. I never fail to mention the oddity of this strange pairing throughout the books; something even the two characters can never understand. But they’re best friends and I believe, balance each other out. Dominic has also always been a Main 8; though, like Sam, Erika and Anna, he used to be a year older than Tom, Elivia, Emily and Will. Don’t ask me why.
As for Tom, this is a recent development to the second redraft (2011) when Dominic came out as bisexual and Tom as gay. They fell rapidly in love with each other; a pairing that doesn’t need to be questioned. They both love the same bands, the same films and books, and support one another. They’re also in the same band together. These two were meant for each other.
And then there’s Erika. Dominic has always known Erika pre-HSA, as they both come from London. They’ve always had a particularly fraught, difficult relationship, for reasons I can’t divulge. But they’re best friends. They pull each other back from the edge and know one another in a way no one else ever could. They were there for each other in the dark times and that’s a bond between friends that no amount of rewrites could ever change.
Storyline: I can’t tell you anything about Dominic’s original storyline without spoiling several plots to my current series so here’s a little excerpt from the 2008 edition of Hillside Academy. It’ll be very brief as Dominic’s storyline is one of the most secretive.
“I don’t think you’re broken,” Dom said.
“You have to say that, you’re my best friend,” Erika said, staring up into his deep blue eyes.
“No, it’s because I know you. Before HSA, before everything that happened in London with our families. I know you, Erika. And you’re not broken. You’re just hurting.”
“I’m breaking in two,” Erika cried.
“No. I’ve got you.” Dom hugged her. Long and hard. She sobbed onto his shoulder until she could sob no more. Then he held her by the shoulders and looked down into her teary eyes. “You’re my best friend, E.”
“And you’re mine.”
“Forever?”
“Forever.”
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Dominic Johnson Copyright © 2008 Jodie May Mullen
(I do not own the images above. All rights remain with the original artist)