Young Writers Society

Max Blackwood and his twin, Lyssa, return to their childhood home after fifteen years to catch up with their two best friends. Upon their return to Blackwood Manor, Max, Lyssa and their friends discover that the darkness they thought they'd defeated when they were twelve has returned--and it's threatening not just Max and Lyssa's parents and their family, but the entire town.



When Max and Lyssa heard their older sister was moving back into their childhood home with her kids, they were furious. However, she reassured her twin siblings everything was fine; their grandmother still managed the Blackwood Manor and resided in the guesthouse.

However, when grandmother Blackwood winds up unexpectedly dead one night, Max and Lyssa are forced to return home and face their fears. Memories long buried resurface of a fateful night that forced the twins and their parents to leave Blackwood Manor seemingly forever.

Something has returned to town from their childhood --and it's threatening not just the town, but Max and Lyssa's twin niece and nephew. Max and Lyssa must battle the demons that haunt their past. But, not everything is at it seems in Blackwood Manor; something lurks in the basement that should never have been re-awoken.




Characters:
- F - Alyssa Blackwood - 27 - Human/Witch - Max's twin sister.
- M - Maxwell "Max" Blackwood - 27 - Human/Witch - Lyssa's twin brother.
- F - Jaelle "Jae" Hunter - 28 - Human - Lyssa and Max's best friend.
- M - Lucas "Luke" Morgan - 27 - Human? - Lyssa and Max's best friend.
- F - Lorraine Blackwood - 51 - Human/Witch - Max and Lyssa's mother.
- M - Bryce Blackwood - 54 - Human - Max and Lyssa's brother.
- F - Blair Blackwood - 12 - Human/Witch - Aishe's son, Brynn's sister.
- M - Brynn Blackwood - 12 - Human/Witch - Aishe's son, Blair's brother.
- F - Aishe Blackwood - 32 - Human/Witch - Max and Lyssa's older sister.
- M - Bael - looks late 20s, early 30s - Demon - the Ancient Evil Max & Alyssa "defeated" when they were 12.
- F - Grandma Florica Blackwood - 88 - Human/Witch - Max and Lyssa's grandma, Lorraine's mother.

Oakheart is a small town in south west Western Australia. It's close to the ocean, lush, green and rather pretty. It's also protected by magic and a haven for the supernatural. There are around nine founding families, and all of them are Witch Covens. The most prominent families are the Blackwoods, the Woodvines and two others.


The Covens chose Oakheart because it was sitting on intersecting ley lines--a powerful source of magic, if you can tap into it--and there were portals to Beyond. They also chose it because it was a pretty little village and they wanted to take care of it.



Witches are people (usually women) born with magic; they usually inherit specific skills or types of magic according to their family lines. Witch twins are especially special to witches and rather rare. The Blackwood Coven is famous for them.


There are Nine Covens, as listed below;

The Blackwood Coven
The Woodvine Coven
The Callaghan Coven
The Ashworth Coven
The Hargrave Coven
The Oakley Coven
The Thorne Coven
The Westbrook Coven
The Devereux Coven





Marrying into a coven as a woman usually means taking the groom's name. Marrying into a coven as a man means you usually take the bride's name. For example, Bryce married into the Blackwood family and took his wife's last name, as all men have done when marrying a Blackwood woman. Bryce was previously a Woodvine.



A familiar is an animal companion to a witch. It can be anything from a cat or toad to a bird or snake. They are important--and essential--to witches as they help to act as a point of focus during spellwork. Magic can be stored in them and they can be transformed from animal to human to beyond and back, as long as the witch can maintain their concentration. Sometimes a familiar is a type of faerie creature or a shifter trapped in animal form, but those instances are rare, and few and far between. Apart from helping to focus a witch during spellwork, a familiar can be used to steal things, check locations from afar and as a messenger, among other things.

Many different supernatural beings live in Oakheart. Faeries, shifters and vampires are just a few of them. They usually keep to and police themselves, although they have been known to cause trouble with the human authorities and the witch covens. These incidents are usually easily and swiftly delt with--by handing the troublemaker back to their people.

Faeries are an interesting people; long-lived, practically immortal and inherently magical. They usually stay in the Faerie Realm, but sometimes they slip through the Veil and interact with humans or witches. Humans are usually unaware of the faerie's presence, but witches can usually see through their glamour. There are rare cases of humans being able to See the Fair Folk, but those humans don't usually live very long. Faeries are secretive and sly, despite the lore saying they can't lie. They probably can, and do so with flair. They also apparently have a penchant for stealing children or those with skills the Fae cannot possess. There are many, many stories and legends about the Fair Folk, but take them with a grain of salt. Not all legends are true.

Shifters are pretty common; long-lived with the ability to change shapes. There are several different types of shifters; weres (those born or bitten with the ability to change shape, usually into a wolf during a full moon), shifters (those born with the ability to change shape, usually not wolves but a range of other animals) and shifters known as Skinwalkers. These particular shifters are usually found in North America and are often Native American. They gain their abilities to shapeshift through a variety of means; non-European witchcraft, murder or magic. They use the skin of an animal to transform and are usually male.

Vampires are less common than shifters but just as long-lived. They're essentially immortal, immune to sunlight, garlic, holy water crucifixes, they certainly don't sparkle and the like, though a stake to the heart will keep them down for a little while. Vampires are not truly undead, but they do drink blood and have a variety of skills and abilities. They're fast, deadly and ruthless when provoked, but often experience emotions and other senses in an extreme, and can be protective or possessive of someone or something they like or love. Vampires usually live in groups known as covens or houses, or on their own as solitary creatures. They often have a small group of humans that know what they are and are willing to serve as the vampire's meal; these are usually known as a "seethe". If there's one thing you don't want to mess with, it's a vampire. Then again, having the protection of one can be very handy.

There are a variety of other supernatural beings, some of which are incredibly nasty, and they come from a range of backgrounds; from minotaurs and leshin (or leshy) to ghosts and goblins. Be wary when outside at night in Oakheart; you may encounter something you wish you hadn't seen.



Celestials are known by most as angels. They are a group of heavenly beings, usually with wings, unbound by any religion or or mythology that possess extrasensory abilities, enhanced strength and a grace unparalleled. They often appear as winged humans, but they may also possess a human much like an Infernal does, or they may appear as a glowing cloud of light. There are some who forsake their angelic ways and decide to "fall" to earth; these are known as Fallen Angels. Although still as strong as their Celestial brethren, a Fallen is a little weaker as they've been cut off from the source of their powers.

Be wary of Celestials; though they appear to be kind and pure of heart, they're not always so nice.


Infernals are known by most as demons or devils. They are a group of hellish beasts, usually with red or amber eyes, unbound by any religion or mythology that possess enchanced strength, extrasensory abilities and unparalleled cruelty. They most often appear as regular humans, sometimes with wings but usually without, and most often possess a human instead of gaining their own body, or they may appear as a dark cloud of blackness with glowing eyes. Some Infernals decide to rise above their demonic ways and try to attone for their sins to gain entry to heaven while others may decide to stay on earth and try to live a normal human life.

Be wary of Infernals; they may appear to be harmless but they are anything but.



Nephilim--or half-angels--are the children born of an angel and a human. They are extremely rare and believed to possibly be stronger than their angelic parent, possessing some angelic abilities. Half-demons are much the same, except that one of their parents was a demon or a demon-possessed human; they are also extremely rare and believed to possibly be stronger than their demonic parent, possessing some demonic abilities. Occasionally, an angel and a demon may have a child together, but this is almost entirely unheard of.

Oakheart is a town of about 1,200 people. It is a coastal town close to an inlet and river system, and is surrounded by lush, green bushland and is overall very pretty. It's rather spread out and has street names that include Blackwood, Oakley and Thorne, among others. There is a beautiful large oak tree near the centre of town, apparently planted by the founding families when they arrived in Oakheart.


Blackwood Manor is situated at one end of Blackwood Avenue, one of the main streets of Oakheart. It is a large, gothic-style manor house built of local stone and karri wood, and appears to be rather foreboding. There are several buildings surrounding it; a stables, a barn, a garage, a couple of guest houses and its own private graveyard.






Maxwell "Max" Blackwood


Age: 27.
Gender: Male.
Race: Human Witch.
Sexual Orientation: Gay, so very gay.
Appearance: Black hair, grey-green eyes, pale skin, average height (5'7ish/170cms) and average build, very handsome/attractive.
Personality:

Alyssa "Lyssa" Blackwood


Age: 27.
Gender: Female.
Race: Human Witch.
Sexual Orientation: Pan.
Appearance: Black hair, grey-green eyes, pale skin, shorter than her twin (5'5ish/165cms) and average build, very pretty.
Personality:

Jaelle "Jae" Hunter


Age: 28.
Gender: Female.
Race: Human.
Sexual Orientation: Lesbian/Gay, so gay.
Appearance: Dark brownish hair, brown eyes, darkish skin, around the same height as Lyssa (5'5ish/165cms) and average build, very pretty. Of Australian Aboriginal descent.
Personality:

Lucas "Luke" Morgan


Age: 27.
Gender: Male.
Race: Human/Fae-halfing.
Sexual Orientation: Asexual.
Appearance: Dark brown hair, blue eyes, tanned skin, average build, very handsome.
Personality:

Aishe Blackwood


Age: 32.
Gender: Female.
Race: Human Witch.
Sexual Orientation: Straight, maybe bi-curious.
Appearance: Black hair, grey-green eyes, pale skin, taller than her twin siblings (5'7ish/165cms) and average build, very pretty.
Personality:

Grandma Florica Blackwood


Age: 88.
Gender: Female.
Race: Human Witch.
Sexual Orientation: Straight.
Appearance: Grey-white hair, pale grey-green eyes, pale skin, wrinkles, y'know, the usual elderly lady stuff. Kinda soft, still rather fit for an 88 yr old, also pretty for an 88 yr old, average build.
Personality:

Brynn & Blair Blackwood


Age: 12.
Gender: Brynn; Male - Blair; Female.
Race: Human Witch.
Sexual Orientation: N/A.
Appearance: Both twins inherited their father's dark eyes and brownish-blonde hair. Blair's is a little dark than Brynn's. Both twins are about 147cms/4'8 in height. Very pretty children.
Personality: Cheeky, adorable brats the pair of 'em.

Mr & Mrs (Bryce & Lorriane) Blackwood


Age: 54 (Bryce) & 51 (Lorriane).
Gender: Bryce; Male - Lorriane; Female.
Race: Human Witch.
Sexual Orientation: Straight.
Appearance: pretty much like the picture
Personality:

Bael the Infernal (Also Known as Magnus Sinclair.)


Age: Appears to be late 20s, maybe early 30s when in human form. Real Age Unknown.
Gender: Male.
Race: Infernal.
Sexual Orientation: Everything and anything. He's a demon, what can he say? He likes what he likes.
Appearance: Dark red hair, pale skin, dark reddish-brown eyes (easily mistaken for just brown), slim and attractive, around 182cms/5'9 in height. Appearance can be decieving, though.
Personality:

Marrying into a coven as a woman usually means taking the groom's name. Marrying into a coven as a man means you usually take the bride's name. For example, Bryce married into the Blackwood family and took his wife's last name, as all men have done when marrying a Blackwood woman. Bryce was previously a Woodvine.

I'm slightly confused by this, only because Woodvine and Blackwood are both covens (right?) Like, I guess my confusion is, if Bryce in this example already belongs to the Woodvine coven, why does he take the name of his bride? Like, if two people from two different covens get married, how do you decide who takes whose name?

@BlueAfrica It’s just a thing for the Blackwood Coven. Men marrying into specifically that Coven always take the Blackwood name, regardless of what Coven they came from before or if they’re a normal human. For all the other Covens, the usual name stuff applies.

Scar, you're always so good with the worldbuilding.

I'm also weirdly thrilled that this is taking place in WA, because WA is such a wild place where I feel like the supernatural can thrive without people taking much notice.

@StellaThomas ikr? And thanks! I love world building. Actually writing in said world is a little harder. I lose focus SO EASILY. And WA is a great place to toss in some supernatural elements. Heh, I love setting my urban fantasy stuff in the state I enjoy so much. It’s not something I see often; it’s usually Sydney or Melbourne or Adelaide and it makes me sad to see the lack of WA representation!

I know I helped you with your extended blurb (so whoops) but I see no mention of magic in either it or your original blurb. Do your MCs know they’re witches or is that something that’s unknown to them but is known to their family? I think it’d be cool to explore it if they didn’t know (all they knew is they defeated something evil as kids, which is faint in their memories, as an example)

So Max is a witch right? That’s raaaare, right? I know we talked about twins and the magic that is potential in that OH MAYBE what if Max is a familiar OH WHAT IF THE TWINS ARE EACH OTHER’S FAMILIARS??? Okay ill stop now lol

So the thing Max and Lyssa defeated when they were a kid was an Infernal? I wonder, how strong are Infernals? Like, can they actually be defeated by a group of kid witches? (well I mean obviously not you but you get what I mean) what IF one of the kids was taken over by a Celestial??? I’m getting like a Supernatural vibe here but there’s so much to explore and it’s making me excited to write it

Okay so re-reading the blurb, I think I have much of the same issues that we had when writing it: it seems like there are just so many ideas at play here. Like, you have witches and magic, which isn’t even mentioned in the blurb; you have someone dying in the family; you have the older sister moving back in; you have the demon coming back (or the bad thing); you have the twin things; you have the parents possibly not being a part of the coven, which we talked about, and there’s even more to explore! I think, out of everything, I like the idea of twin witches being special the most. What if the reason why the bad guy comes back is because of the new twins in town?? And then Max and Lyssa have to give into themselves being witches. It gives me a Charmed/Supernatural/IT crossover vibe, like maybe Max and Lyssa didn’t know they were witches and they have to go back to that because they have to defeat Pennywise the big bad from their childhood. I also say Supernatural because what if the Infernal isn’t the only thing after the twins?? What if a Celestial is after them as well?? Like a Lucifer and Michael situation just actually reading this has gotten me EXCITED SCAR IM SO EXCITED

Chapter list updated!

@Omnom Okay, lemme read this HUGE BLOCK OF TEXT OKAY. And I'll try to answer as much as I can......

Do they know they're witches; I've been waffling back and forth on this and I'm still not decided. I'm leaning more towards "yes, they know but they're not actively practicing" or something but idk for sure yet. I guess we'll see how it works out. (The prologue may give the impression they already know but they are kids there so who knows for sure?)

Male witches being rare; ehhh, not so much. More so the twin witch thing, I'm thinking? The twin thing is rare, and I think it might mainly be the Blackwoods that throw them if that makes sense? Also, familiars and the twins be each others' familiars? LOL NO. But familiars, maybe. Idk yet. Haven't really decided, but if/when I do, I should probaaaably add that to the info lol.

The thing Max & Lyssa defeated; YEP that's definitely an infernal. And a rather nasty one, too. If I'm recalling my original ideas from when I was first plotting this in my head.... This infernal is either a prince or king of hell/the underworlds. And he is NASTYYYYY. As for the celestial thing you mentioned. MaYBeeeeee? Idk yet. I hadn't planned for that happening, but it's totally a possibility. And yay, I'm glad you're getting the Supernatural vibe. There is DEFINITELY a lot to explore in this world. I 100% fully endorse fanfic of this, too, lol. XD

Re: so many ideas. Yeaaaah, there's a lot and I'm not sure how to fix the blurb, but eh. It works for now. And there's more I wanted to include but then it might get too messy and convoluted and idk. Maybe I should rewrite this. Either way, the blurb is just the gist of the story, not the story itself, lol.

I think, out of everything, I like the idea of twin witches being special the most. What if the reason why the bad guy comes back is because of the new twins in town??

YES, ME TOO. And yes, that's pretty much EXACTLY why it's back, though at this point the infernal is still trapped in the sigil in the basement, lol. So I'm aiming for it to escape at some point in the first handful of chapters. Just gotta figure out how it all happens.... Hm....

It gives me a Charmed/Supernatural/IT crossover vibe

HAHAHA I love that it gives you this vibe. I like it. Especially the Charmed/Supernatural thing. That's, like, really accurate. So perfect. <3

I also say Supernatural because what if the Infernal isn’t the only thing after the twins?? What if a Celestial is after them as well?? Like a Lucifer and Michael situation just actually reading this has gotten me EXCITED SCAR IM SO EXCITED

XD Yeah, I'm tempted to throw some Infernal vs. Celestial action in, but I may save that for a potential sequel....

Did I say sequel? I meant, uh... Nevermind. >.>

AND I AM ALSO GLAD YOU ARE EXCITED BECAUSE I'M EXCITED TO WRITE THIS BABY, YEAH!