Pokemon: Nexus by @Lordshenra

Genre: Adventure/Fanfic/Pokémon.

Chapters Reviewed: 3 chapters.

Update Schedule: Irregular.

"Being in my shadow doesn't work well for you. You chase your own dreams son." ~Izake, Saber's father

This story follows Saber, who dreams to be a Pokémon champion like his father. He goes around the region, traveling from town to town to collect medals. Along the way, he finds himself running into two members of Team Ragnarok many times. The book is still in its early stages.

I find this book to have a unique sense of style since it feels like it's following the exact format of the anime. Each chapter starts out with the narrator telling the reader a little blurb before the actual "episode" starts. It's actually kind of fitting that the writer called the chapters "episodes" rather than chapter to give it an anime-show-like feel.

Whenever script format is used, there is usually an annoyance with the narrator butting into storyline. This doesn't happen in Pokemon: Nexus. The narrator is only used in the beginning and the end of the story, which is effective as it's not distracting from the storyline. There is a fine line between the narrator and when the actual story starts, and that's good to see as it allows the reader to enjoy the story.

There is just one thing to be careful when following the anime format. If you read the summary I gave above, it almost sounds identical to the storyline in the anime. A common error when writing based off of the anime is copying the anime almost completely. Now, this book does have some details that sets it apart, but there are a few things I'd like to point out that can be improved upon.

The first thing is the characters. I will admit, I do love how supportive the Dad is in the book. He's a unique character that I wish we had more of in any Pokémon stories. That's not who I'm talking about. There are three characters I feel that have been copied and pasted right out of the anime. One of these characters is the protagonist himself, Saber. He seems very much like Ash Ketchum. Then again, many protagonists from fanfic seem to come off like that. That's not where the problems arises; it's the antagonists. Team Ragnarok is made up of two siblings: Zoey and Zak. They can be funny at times and are pathetic in battle. Any villain can be like this; however, they're too much like Jessie and James. These characters even have their own Team Ragnarok motto and are out to capture Sabor's Pokémon.

Zoey and Zak do have some qualities that set them apart from Jessie and James; however, they just feel a bit copied. I would love to see more character development from Saber, Zoey, and Zak than I their anime counterparts, and possibly a different goal for Team Ragnarok. It's a problem that can be fixed by making them more multidimensional, rather than just being there to steal Saber's Pokémon throughout the story.

The other thing that this story needs a bit of improvement on is in the detail. I've said this a hundreds of times before—and I'll probably be saying it until the day I stop reading—but I crave detail. The more detail a story has, the better. This is because detail allows the reader to see what is in the writer's mind.

Pokemon: Nexus does have more detail than some of the Pokéfic I've seen before. It describes what the characters look like, what they wear, and explains the new gadgets that are introduced in the story. While it has that, there's not much more to it. This book takes place in a new region, so no one knows what any of the towns look like, whether there are gym battles or contests trainers can participate in, or what the atmosphere is like. This book has potential being that it does introduce a new concept, but as to what that concept is—like are earning medals the exact same as earning badges or are they more like performances in the anime—I'm not exactly sure. I suggest reading a chapter underneath the Tips section called "It's All in the Detail" to understand why this is important and ways to improve the writing.

The writing isn't horrible. There are lots of great moments in the book. One of my favorite moments is when Saber is talking to his dad before he goes off on his journey. It's a very heartwarming scene. To make it even more so, the dad says the following:

"Don't ever forget that if you lose, it's not the end of the world. It opens to another opportunity to do better than before." (1:1 A Journey's beginning!)

I love reading books with a quotable moment. Even more so, I love when they come with a valuable lesson. There are moments that are like that in the book, and it's because of those moments that I know that there is potential in the story.

In regards to spelling and grammar, there could be a bit of improvement. It's not awful. There are moments that I don't even notice a single spelling mistake at all. That's good; however, in the first narration, there are a lot of capital I's replacing the lowercase l. While they look the same, it can be a bit distracting. A tip to any writer is to always go back to edit out any mistake that is found. It's always embarrassing when I have a reader comment "*all, not aII". No matter what, this will always happen, but it's always good to try and beat it by looking over previously written chapters to prevent this from happening.

One last thing I think would help improve this book is using scene breaks. A scene break (by definition) is a mark that separates two scenes. In writing, if there is a change of scenery, a time lapse, or there are different characters are being concentrated on in the story, a scene break should be used. This tells the reader, hey, I'm going to be moving onto something else. There are many moments when reading this story, I had a bit of trouble understanding what I was reading. Using scene breaks would be an easy solution for this.

I know that seems like there's a lot to be worked on; however, this story has some strong moments. My favorite is the relationship Saber has with his dad and aunt. Early on in the book, it is definite that Saber and his dad has a really close relationship with each other. That's heartwarming to see.

His aunt has this relationship too as it's stated that she's like a mom to Saber. While I dislike when writers "tell not show" in their writing, it makes sense when it's stated as his aunt, Professor Hawthorne, gives him two Pokémon to start his journey with before it's stated that she's his aunt. I was a bit confused at first as to why she was letting him have two, but hearing that statement, everything made sense. It made me so happy to read that his aunt stepped up to help Saber grow up since his mother wasn't around.

The battle scenes are also something that is well-written. Like I said before, there could be a few more details placed into them to help the reader visualize what happens, they're not horrible. Too many times, I'll read a Pokefic where the battle is quickly done with an attack or two. This book doesn't do that. There are multiple attacks that are used before the battle is officially over. It makes the entire scene entertaining to read, and it's evident that there was time spent into it as well.

Overall, I believe this book needs some work on, but there are some wonderful moments in it that does make it enjoyable to read.

I am so happy to say that @Lordshenra has agreed to do an interview to talk about more of his new book: Pokemon: Nexus

JunieWeather: Throughout the book, I've noticed you have a very unique writing style. Can you explain to me why you've decided to write Pokemon: Nexus in a format that resembles the anime?

LordShenra: Well, to try and explain this, I can't write short chapters at all and the moment I realized that every anime that I have watched has a break point to tell and show everyone what the episode is called.

Plus, I love anime.

JW: That's really interesting. What is your favorite thing about writing?

Shen: It helps me relax and relieve stress. Also, I can be creative and let my imagination run wild.

JW: I understand that. I'm glad that writing can be an outlet for you. What is the most challenging thing about writing Pokemon: Nexus?

Shen: The fillers, multiple characters to remember, pokemon, the typing...I could go on.

JW: That's very understandable. Do you have any favorite moments that you've written in the book so far? If so, what is it?

Shen: Right now, the father-son relationship Saber and Izake have.

JW: I love that part too. Is there anything you would like to share about your book?

Shen: Although I hate to give spoilers, I will only say this...Pokemon: Nexus will be adventurous, full of action and will have heart-warming stories from both sides.

JW: Thank you so much for your time. If you're looking for a book that fits the anime-like format, then Pokemon: Nexus may be the next book you may need to check out.