Protaganist Procrastination

Well I couldn't just start writing this story without setting some sort of anchor for the readership to follow. I knew that Superman or super villain, the majority of readers should be on his "side" and see a large part of the world filtered through his lense. But I wasn't writing a book with clearly drawn moral lines. There is no "light" or "dark" in my world. So, trying to mold a likable character to root for became something set off to the side and forgotten.

It wasn't until rereading Gaiman's Lucifer collection that I discovered my protagonist. Within the complicated moral structure of angels, demons and mortals the readers of Lucifer are introduced, breifly, to Meleos. He is a book collector of the rare and occult variety. And it is he who gives birth to the self-aware tarot deck known as the Basanos in Gaiman's universe. I was drawn to his reclusive life and his love for hoarding rare works of writing. However, I did not have need for a supernatural angel with godlike powers to breathe life into inanimate objects. Therefore, after a few hours of flipping through my bookshelf and DVDs I stumbled upon the missing element of my unnamed protagonist.

In a short watched anime called Read or Die exists a secret agent/librarian named Yomiko Readman. She is an introverted bibliophile who, while fighting for her life, is often more concerned for the safety of her books than herself. This was the humorous and more down-to-earth element missing from Meleos' personality. Where he is drawn to the occult and dark powers within books, she actually loves and respects her collection.

For my protagonist, I want him to be a fanatic collector. One who seeks rarity and historical importance from the books he hoardes. But I also want him to love and respect each page not out of greed or selfishness, but out of respect for the art itself. Respect for the creation. A fanaticism comparable with an animal rights activist sans the violence. This is my protagonist.

Now he just needs a name.