The Tween Detectives - Oct. Prep Month

October 6th, 2017 - Protagonist Profile

Oct. 06: - Protagonist Profile ▼

Expand the profile on your protagonist. Include detailed information such as name, age, physical attributes, occupation, education, culture, religion, family, relationship status, personality, likes, dislikes, strengths, weakness, motivations and desires. Use Google Images to find an image of your character. The point of this exercise is for you to get to know your character inside and out before you write your novel. If you don't know your character, how can you expect it of your readers? Flesh out your pre-story character in detail. Keep in mind that your protagonist will grow in some way during your story. For more serious character profilers, here is an optional, very extensive template: "Character Interview / Profile Sheet"

CHARACTER INTERVIEW / PROFILE

Name: Rebecca Wingate

Background
Birthday: August 27th, 2007
Place of birth: Middletown, KS
Parents: Thomas and Helen
What was important to the people who raised her: That she be herself. They don’t like her fascination with ghost. But they don’t try to stop her either.
Siblings: Carol and Patrick
Economic/social status growing up: They aren’t rich, but they aren’t poor either. About halfway between the two.
Ethnic background: She is white
Places lived: Only Middletown so far
Current address and phone number: 5302 W sixth St. Phone number unknown
Education: She has just started the fifth grade
Favorite subject in school: everything. She’s very smart
Special training: None
Jobs: Has babysit some, but not much because of her age
Salary: average pay for a babysitter
Travel: Not too much outside of Middletown. But there are ghosts all over the world

Friends: Her best friends are Nora Lancing, Brandon Grande, and Jasper Atkinson
How do people view this character: That depends on if you are a phony ghost or not. They don’t like her. But almost everyone else does.
Lives with: her parents and her older brothe and sister
Fights with: the other Tween Detectives
Spends time with: Of course, she spends most of her time with the other Tween detectives
Wishes to spend time with: Other tweens her age.
Who depends on her and why: The other Tween Detectives.
What people does she most admire: Scooby Doo and the gang.
Enemies: Any phony ghost
Dating, marriage: She’s starting to like boys. But not old enough to date just yet.
Children: Maybe someday she will have some children.
Relationship with God: Her family isn’t really all that religious. They believe in God. But they don’t think they have to go to church to prove it.

Overall outlook on life: a very happy, easy going young girl
Does this character like herself: Yes, she does.
What, if anything, would he like to change about her life: Nothing, nothing at all.
What personal demons haunt him: None, she doesn’t have any personal demons yet.
Is she lying to herself about something: Not that anyone knows of.
Optimistic/pessimistic: Optimistic most of the time. Unless it’s a phony ghost, then it’s pessimistic.
Real/feigned: real
Morality level: Unknown
Confidence level: At least a ten if not a lot more
Typical day: If she’s not in school, eating, or sleeping, she solving a mystery

Physical appearance
Body type: skinny with a little fat
Posture: good for her age
Head shape: slightly egg shaped
Eyes: Hazel
Nose: kind of big, but not too big
Mouth: small
Hair: light brown
Skin: white
Tattoos/piercings/scars: body art, ears pierced, and a few childhood scars.
Voice: average for her age
What people notice first: How smart she is, but that she doesn’t flaunt it.
Clothing: Doesn’t like dress. Mostly wears blue jeans and slacks
How would she describe herself: Not very pretty, but not ugly either. About average for her age.
Health/disabilities/handicaps: No health problems.

Characteristics
Personality type (choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholy): sanguine
Strongest/weakest character traits: she loves a good mystery, but she wants it solved too fast.
How can the flip side of his strong point be a weakness: mystery involving phony ghost can be very dangerous.
How much self-control and self-discipline does he have: She can get mad pretty easily. But she controls herself most of the time.
What makes her irrationally angry: When someone read an end to a mystery before reading it through to the end.
What makes her cry: a very sad movie, television show, etc.
Fears: None, she is fearless.
Talents: She’s usually the one who figures out who the phony ghost is and what they are really up to.
What people like best about him:

Interests and favorites
Political leaning: her parents are democrats. She hasn’t decided yet. But she will probably be a democrat too.
Collections: Every Nancy Drew book every written, especially the ones when she was a kid. Also every scooby doo episode.
Food, drink: She loves a lot of different kinds of food. But her favorite is pizza. And her drink of choice is Root Beer.
Music: She likes all kind of music. From easy listening to hard rock.
Books: She loves to read a good mystery. Even if she has read it a million times before.
Movies: All kinds of movies too. Not the animated ones as much. After all, she’s a Tween now. She’s not a child anymore. Most of all, she loves mysteries.
Sports, recreation: Not really into sports.
Did she play in school: No, she didn’t.
Color: Pink
Best way to spend a weekend: reading a mystery or even better, solving one.
A great gift for this person: anything to do with mystery. Whether it’s a book or a movie, she doesn’t care.
Pets: They have a big dog and two cats.
Vehicles: Not sure what kind of car they have. But it’s a big red one.
What large possessions does she own (car, home, furnishings, boat, etc.) and which does he like best: Her collection of novels and DVDs.

Typical expressions
When happy: she smiles at you
When angry: Rebecca lets you know it
When frustrated: Also lets you know it
When sad: an upside down smile

Idiosyncrasies: None that she knows of
Laughs or jeers at: She loves a good joke
Ways to cheer up this person: giving her a mystery to read, solve
Ways to annoy this person: her brother and sister pretty much ignores her. And that annoys her.
Hopes and dreams: to keep unmasking the phony ghost
How does she see herself accomplishing these dreams: by continuing to unmask the phony ghosts
What’s the worst thing she’s ever done to someone and why: Except for a little teasing or a prank now and then she really hasn’t done anything bad yet.
Greatest success: every time she unmask a phony ghost
Biggest trauma: when she can’t figure out what the phony ghost is really up to.
Most embarrassing thing that ever happened to her: there have been several. But it’s always the same. She got the mystery all wrong. They solved it. But she was wrong about who was behind it.
What does she care about most in the world: solving mysteries involving ghost
Does he have a secret: Not that anyone knows of.
If she could do one thing and succeed at it, what would it be: to punch every phony ghost in the face.
She is the kind of person who: is willing to help a friend in need if she can.
What do you love most about this character: that she doesn’t give up until she solves the mystery.
Why will the reader sympathize with this person right away: Because I’m not treating them as children. They aren’t children. They’re Tweens.
How is the character ordinary or extraordinary: a little extraordinary because of the mysteries that she helps solves.
How is his situation ordinary or extraordinary: extraordinary because of what is going on with all the missing visitors.

Core Need: none that anyone knows of.
Corresponding psychological maneuver (delusions, obsessions, compulsions, addictions, denials, hysterical ailments, hypochondria, illnesses, behaviors harming the self, behavior harming others, manias, and phobias): nothing. At least no one thinks that there is.
Anecdote (defining moment): Can’t think of anything at the moment.
History: She was never very good in history. At least not unless it concerns a ghost.

CHARACTER INTERVIEW / PROFILE

Name: Nora Lancing

Background
Birthday: March 17th, 2006
Place of birth: Middletown KS
Parents: Victor and Nancy
What was important to the people who raised her: They want her to be a normal little girl. But she can’t be that if she’s always running around after phony ghosts.
Siblings: sister thirteen is Karen and sister sixteen is Connie
Economic/social status growing up: her family isn’t rich. But they are a little richer than the Wingates are.
Ethnic background: black
Places lived: just Middletown so far
Current address and phone number: 2614 W fifth St Terr. He phone number is also unknown.
Education: She is in the six grade
Favorite subject in school: History is her favorite, especially if it involves ghost.
Special training: nothing special, but she is a quick learner
Jobs: also has done some babysitting
Salary: the same that Rebecca got, probably
Travel: Some outside of Middletown when it comes to ghosts. But not too often.

Friends: her best friends include Rebecca Wingate, Brandon Grande, and Jasper Atkinson
How do people view this character: most who know her like her
Lives with: both her parents and two older sisters.
Fights with: her sisters. Sometimes with her parents too when it comes to phony ghosts
Spends time with: Mostly the other Tween Detectives.
Wishes to spend time with: a boyfriend.
Who depends on her and why: The other Tween Detectives, especially when it comes to the history of a ghost or ghosts.
What people does she most admire: her big sisters. She idolizes them.
Enemies: Like Rebecca, it’s phony ghosts
Dating, marriage: Interested in dating. But not old enough to do it except for group outings, school dances, or parent/sister involvement.
Children: Not sure if she wants children.
Relationship with God: Also, not very religious. But they are Baptist.

Overall outlook on life: She likes herself and those around her
Does this character like himself: I just answered that question above
What, if anything, would she like to change about her life: Nothing, she likes it just the way that it is.
What personal demons haunt her: she is always having bad dreams about the ghosts Not the phony ones, but the real ones. She’s not afraid of them, unless it’s in her dreams
Is she lying to herself about something: Not that anyone knows of, including herself
Optimistic/pessimistic: very optimistic about life, but pessimistic about phony ghosts
Real/feigned: real
Morality level: the moral of this story is that the bad guys never win
Confidence level: at least a ten but probably a lot higher.
Typical day: If she’s not in school, eating, or sleeping, she out solving mysteries.


Physical appearance
Body type: extremely tall and skinny
Posture: good
Head shape: round but a little oblong
Eyes: light blue
Nose: a little bit big for her age
Mouth: about average
Hair: long and blonde
Skin: dark black
Tattoos/piercings/scars: Earrings, but nothing else
Voice: Her voice is normal for her age.
What people notice first: her development or her backside
Clothing: Like Rebecca she doesn’t like dresses and dresses in blue jeans or slacks
How would she describe herself: Not too bad for her age.
Health/disabilities/handicaps: No health problems.

Characteristics
Personality type (choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholy): sanguine
Strongest/weakest character traits: knowing history of ghost is her strongest. Finding that history is her weakness
How can the flip side of her strong point be a weakness: ghost are real. But finding out all about them can be very hard to do.
How much self-control and self-discipline does he have: she has a lot of self-control and discipline.
What makes her irrationally angry: How phony ghost keep showing up in Middletown and using real ghost to do whatever it is that they are going to do illegally. The real ghosts don’t like it. And neither do The Tween detectives.
What makes her cry: a sad program. It doesn’t matter if it’s a movie, television show, a book, etc.
Fears: No fears. Nora is fearless
Talents: She doesn’t really have any special talents. But if there is any information about a ghost, she’s the one that they go to.
What people like best about her: they like everything about her.

Interests and favorites
Political leaning: Nora’s parents are also democrats.
Collections: Her collection of Nancy Drew and Scooby Doo isn’t as big as Rebecca’s is. But it’s still pretty big. And it keeps on growing.
Food, drink: She also likes a lot of different foods. But her favorite is cheeseburgers. And her drink of choice is Dr Pepper.
Music: Nora doesn’t like Country music, Jazz, blues, or classical. But every other kind of music there is she likes.
Books: Like Rebecca, Nora also likes to read. But it’s not just mysteries. She also likes Science Fiction, horror, Action/Adventure, and romance novels.
Movies: Comedy most of all. But Nora also like mysteries. She likes to solve them before the movie hero does. And most of the times she does.
Sports, recreation: doesn’t like sports.
Did she play in school: never played it in school
Color: yellow
Best way to spend a weekend: reading or solving a mystery
A great gift for this person: anything to do with mystery.
Pets: none at this time.
Vehicles: they have three. All different kinds.
What large possessions does he own (car, home, furnishings, boat, etc.) and which does he like best: her collection of Nancy Drew novels and Scooby Doo DVDs.

Typical expressions
When happy: always smiling
When angry: red in the face
When frustrated: she’s not afraid to speak her mind either.
When sad: it shows on her face

Idiosyncrasies: Not that she knows of
Laughs or jeers at: She can lose control of her laughter if she’s not careful. Once she starts laughing sometimes she can’t stop.
Ways to cheer up this person: let her solve a real mystery beside ghosts. She loves solving ghost mysteries. But she’s more interested in what the phony ghost are doing than unmasking them.
Ways to annoy this person: her big sisters are always trying to annoy her, and vice versa.
Hopes and dreams: the biggest dream that she has she’s the first tween to go into Space and solve a ghost mystery.
How does he see himself accomplishing these dreams: She probably can’t. At least not as a Tween.
What’s the worst thing he’s ever done to someone and why: Nothing, so far.
Greatest success: helping to solve ghost mysteries.
Biggest trauma: Also when she can’t solve them.
Most embarrassing thing that ever happened to her: She really hasn’t done anything too embarrassing yet.
What does she care about most in the world: solving mysteries about ghosts
Does she have a secret: Not that anyone knows of
If he could do one thing and succeed at it, what would it be: Know everything about every ghost on earth
She is the kind of person who: helps others if she can.
What do you love most about this character: Her personality. She’s always upbeat and lively.
Why will the reader sympathize with this person right away: because I don’t treat these Tweens as children. I treat them as Tweens because that’s who they are.
How is the character ordinary or extraordinary: Ordinary are the real ghost. And extraordinary are the phony ones.
How is his situation ordinary or extraordinary: because the phony ghost think that just because they are children they can stop them. That not only makes them stupid, but extraordinary too.

Core Need: nothing that I know of
Corresponding psychological maneuver (delusions, obsessions, compulsions, addictions, denials, hysterical ailments, hypochondria, illnesses, behaviors harming the self, behavior harming others, manias, and phobias): also, nothing that I know of.
Anecdote (defining moment): can’t think of anything at the moment.
History: She’s a history fanatic, especially when it comes to ghosts.

CHARACTER INTERVIEW / PROFILE

Name: Brandon Grande

Background
Birthday: May 7th, 2006
Place of birth: Middletown KS
Parents: Gregory and Angela
What was important to the people who raised him: that he be a normal kid. Only he’s not a kid anymore. He’s a Tween.
Siblings: his obnoxious sister Windy and his brother Frank
Economic/social status growing up: very well off, but not rich
Ethnic background: white
Places lived: just Middletown so far
Current address and phone number: 2518 W 8th st. phone number is unknown
Education: he is also in the fifth grade
Favorite subject in school: computer scinece
Special training: none, but there’s nothing he doesn’t know about computers.
Jobs: Helps to repair computers
Salary: doesn’t get paid for it
Travel: some travel because of all the ghost on Earth. But not too much. Most of their ghost solving is right there in Middletown.

Friends: Rebecca Wingate, Nora Lancing, and Jasper Atkinson
How do people view this character: They like him a lot. At least most of them seem to.
Lives with: parents, a little sister, and an older brother
Fights with: little sister because she’s always wanting to hang around him, them.
Spends time with: other Tweens his own age, especially girls
Wishes to spend time with: a girlfriend he doesn’t have yet.
Who depends on him and why: The other Tweens Detectives because of his computer skills.
What people does he most admire: Of course, his parents. But also the other Tween Detectives.
Enemies: Like the others, it the phony ghosts
Dating, marriage: Not dating yet.
Children: Doesn’t know about children yet. He has plenty of time to think about that when he gets older.
Relationship with God: his family is very religious. Only he isn’t. he believes in God. But not going to church

Overall outlook on life: Shy but easygoing
Does this character like himself: Yes, he does most of the time.
What, if anything, would he like to change about his life: Not getting caught doing what he does with the computer.
What personal demons haunt him: There are no personal demons.
Is he lying to himself about something: Not that anyone is aware of
Optimistic/pessimistic: both optimistic and pessimistic when it comes to phony ghost and stopping them
Real/feigned: real
Morality level: none that he knows of
Confidence level: very confident about himself
Typical day: going to school half the day, and solving mysteries the other half.

Physical appearance
Body type: a little heavy, but not fat
Posture: good
Head shape: round and slightly oval
Eyes: light green
Nose: a little big
Mouth: small for his age
Hair: blonde
Skin: pale tan
Tattoos/piercings/scars: a few scars from when he was a child
Voice: average for his age
What people notice first: his big smile. He’s always smiling
Clothing: Mostly blue jeans.
How would he describe himself: okay looking
Health/disabilities/handicaps: no health problems than anyone knows about

Characteristics
Personality type (choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholy): sanguine
Strongest/weakest character traits: his compuer skills is also his weakest trait.
How can the flip side of his strong point be a weakness: I just answered that question above
How much self-control and self-discipline does he have: Brandon likes being in control of himself. He doesn’t like to fight. But he will if he has to do it.
What makes him irrationally angry: when someone doesn’t listen to him when he has something to say.
What makes him cry: Nothing, he’s a guy. And guys don’t cry. At least not when someone else is around.
Fears: No, fears. He’s fearless too.
Talents: his skill with the computers.
What people like best about him: He’s willing to help them when he can.

Interests and favorites
Political leaning: his parents are political. He doesn’t know what they are. But he thinks that they are democrats.
Collections: Every Hardy Boys novel there is and all the Scooby Doo DVDs
Food, drink: Pizza and hamburgers are his favorite. So, is cherry pepsi.
Music: likes all kinds of music, especially rock.
Books: he has read every Hardy Boys novel at least a million times each. If he’s not solving mysteries, he’s reading.
Movies: He loves Science Fiction, Action Adventures, and of course, mysteries.
Sports, recreation: He likes watching sports. But he’s not that much of a fan of it.
Did he play in school: no, he hasn’t
Color: red
Best way to spend a weekend: solving mysteries, of course.
A great gift for this person: any type of book or DVD that he likes.
Pets: a couple of small dogs
Vehicles: two cars, make and model unknown
What large possessions does he own (car, home, furnishings, boat, etc.) and which does he like best: his collection of novels and DVDs

Typical expressions
When happy: a big smile
When angry: an angry look
When frustrated: face begins to get red
When sad: he drops his head to cover sadness

Idiosyncrasies: None, that I know of
Laughs or jeers at: He likes to laugh
Ways to cheer up this person: make him laugh or give him a mystery to solve.
Ways to annoy this person: talking about anything other than ghost or computers
Hopes and dreams: his dream is to help all ghost advance into heaven.
How does he see himself accomplishing these dreams: That he hasn’t figured out yet
What’s the worst thing he’s ever done to someone and why: pushed in little sister down or said he didn’t love her just to get rid of her. Things like that.
Greatest success: every phony ghost he unmasks
Biggest trauma: not being the one that unmask them. It all depends on who solves the mystery first. Sometimes it him. But usually it isn’t.
Most embarrassing thing that ever happened to him: walked in on his parents at the wrong time.
What does he care about most in the world: solving mysteries like the others
Does he have a secret: Not that we know of. If he is he’s very good at keeping it a secret.
If he could do one thing and succeed at it, what would it be: help the poor with is computer skills
He is the kind of person who: wants to help you if he can
What do you love most about this character: his computer skills
Why will the reader sympathize with this person right away: He’s also very smart. Not as much when it comes to school, but when it comes to computers he’s all but an expert.
How is the character ordinary or extraordinary: Brandon is ordinary except when he’s doing something with a computer or solving a mystery. Then he’s extraordinary.
How is his situation ordinary or extraordinary: because of what’s really going on with the missing visitors.

Core Need: Nothing that I can think of
Corresponding psychological maneuver (delusions, obsessions, compulsions, addictions, denials, hysterical ailments, hypochondria, illnesses, behaviors harming the self, behavior harming others, manias, and phobias): He’s addicted to his computer. But other than that he’s normal.
Anecdote (defining moment): He can’t think of anything at the moment
History: He’s never been very good with history

CHARACTER INTERVIEW / PROFILE

Name: Jasper Atkinson

Background
Birthday: September 15th, 2005
Place of birth: Middletown KS
Parents: Andrew and Florence
What was important to the people who raised him: That he was born healthy. And he was
Siblings: his younger brother is Bruce. And his older one is Victor.
Economic/social status growing up: wealther than all the others. But still not rich.
Ethnic background: light skinned black
Places lived: only Middletown so far
Current address and phone number: 2712 W 6th, Terr. Phone number is unknown
Education: he has started the sixth grade
Favorite subject in school: math
Special training: Nothing special, but he is the best at finding clues. If there is a clue to be found, it’s usually him that finds it.
Jobs: No jobs yet. But he has talked about getting a paper route numerous times
Salary: He gets an allowance each week. But that’s not really a salary, now is it?
Travel: quite a bit around the world. Mostly because of the ghost out there.

Friends: Rebecca Wingate, Nora Lancing, and Brandon Grande
How do people view this character: Most who get to know him like him.
Lives with: his parents and his two brothers.
Fights with: mostly his younger brother. He’s almost as big of a pest than Windy is
Spends time with: the other Tween Detectives
Wishes to spend time with: a girlfriend
Who depends on him and why: of course, it’s the other Tween Detectives
What people does he most admire: his family and the other Tween Detectives
Enemies: Like the others, phony ghosts
Dating, marriage: starting to date some. But so far just school dances and group outings.
Children: he likes children. So, he will probably have at least one or two of his own someday.
Relationship with God: His father is a minister. And so are his two uncles. So, they are very religious.

Overall outlook on life: Jasper just want to help wherever he can.
Does this character like himself: Yes, he does. Very much
What, if anything, would he like to change about his life: nothing, nothing at all wrong with him.
What personal demons haunt him: Yes, he does have a personal demon he needs to deal with.
Is he lying to himself about something: No, not to himself
Optimistic/pessimistic: Like the others it’s both. It’s also both for the same reasons
Real/feigned: real
Morality level: the moral of any story is that the good guys win and the bad guys lose.
Confidence level: very confident about himself
Typical day: If he’s not in school, eating or sleeping he’s solving mysteries.

Physical appearance
Body type: Brandon is about average for his age
Posture: it’s good
Head shape: an almost perfect round circle
Eyes: black
Nose: small
Mouth: also pretty small
Hair: dark black
Skin: a pale black, almost white
Tattoos/piercings/scars: couple of scars from his childhood
Voice: his voice is pretty normal
What people notice first: how white he looks. In fact, most think that he is white at first.
Clothing: slacks and blue jeans
How would he describe himself: pretty nice looking for his age.
Health/disabilities/handicaps: No health problems

Characteristics
Personality type (choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholy): sanguine
Strongest/weakest character traits: his strongest is his clue finding skills. And his weakest is his fear.
How can the flip side of his strong point be a weakness: Most clues are hard to find. But if anyone can do it it’s him.
How much self-control and self-discipline does he have: He’s a lever headed guy who knows how to control himself. Does that mean he can’t get mad? Of course, not. He just know how to control it.
What makes him irrationally angry: What his fear is
What makes him cry: like most guys his age, he cries. But he doesn’t show it in front of the other guys.
Fears: Yes, he has a fear. Not about ghost, but about something else.
Talents: his clue finding skills
What people like best about him: He’s always happy

Interests and favorites
Political leaning: His family isn’t very political. He thinks that they vote. But he’s not sure who they vote for. Is it democrats or republicans?
Collections: He has about the same amount of Hardy Boys books and Scooby Doo DVDs as Brandon has.
Food, drink: True, his favorite is chicken. But he likes a lot of different kinds of food. And his favorite drink is Root Beer.
Music: mostly Rock. But he also likes jazz and Blues music
Books: he loves mysteries, especially the Hardy Boys. But he also likes Science Fiction and Action/Adventure.
Movies: What he likes in books he also likes in movies.
Sports, recreation: likes to watch the local teams. But he’s not all that interested in sports.
Did he play in school: No, he hasn’t. and he probably never will
Color: blue
Best way to spend a weekend: At the movies, reading a book, or solving a mystery
A great gift for this person: anything mystery related.
Pets: none, his father is allergic to them
Vehicles: two cars. Make and model unknown.
What large possessions does he own (car, home, furnishings, boat, etc.) and which does he like best: his Hardy Boys and Scooby Doo DVD collection

Typical expressions
When happy: he smiles a lot
When angry: his face turns red
When frustrated: clinches his fist
When sad: an upside down smile

Idiosyncrasies: None, that he knows of
Laughs or jeers at: he loves to laugh
Ways to cheer up this person: make him laugh or give him a mystery to solve
Ways to annoy this person: That’s his little brothers job to do.
Hopes and dreams: he has a lot hopes and dreams.
How does he see himself accomplishing these dreams: That he hasn’t figured out yet.
What’s the worst thing he’s ever done to someone and why: He’s gotten in a few fights over the years. He hasn’t hurt anyone too badly. But he has hurt them enough to get them sent to the hospital.
Greatest success: every phony ghost he helps to unmask
Biggest trauma: his fear that he needs to learn to overcome
Most embarrassing thing that ever happened to him: he was caught doing something good at a bad time by his mother.
What does he care about most in the world: mostly his friends, but his family too
Does he have a secret: Yes, he does And it’s about to be revealed. Not here, but in the novel.
If he could do one thing and succeed at it, what would it be: concur his fear
He is the kind of person who: wants to help. And usually he can. But not always.
What do you love most about this character: That he isn’t perfect.
Why will the reader sympathize with this person right away: Once they learn what the fear is, I think they will sympathize with him.
How is the character ordinary or extraordinary: He’s both.
How is his situation ordinary or extraordinary: It’s extraordinary because of his fear.

Core Need: can’t think of anything
Corresponding psychological maneuver (delusions, obsessions, compulsions, addictions, denials, hysterical ailments, hypochondria, illnesses, behaviors harming the self, behavior harming others, manias, and phobias): Here’s a hint. His fear does fall within this question.
Anecdote (defining moment): He can’t think of anything at the moment
History: Not much of a history person, unless it’s related to ghost. And even then he not that interested in it.