As it turns out, the man who has that name is one and not the other.
If the decision had been left up to his old classmates at Shepparton High School who voted him ‘most likely to become a model’ at their valedictory in 2014, however, he would have been the latter.
Alas, Mr Belcastro was called to the keyboard, not the catwalk.
And now, he calls readers into his wordy world of fantasy and adventure with his debut novel, The Call of Magic.
Mr Belcastro says The Call of Magic is centred around siblings Isla and Leif and their journey to re-surface magic in a world seemingly free of the ancient craft for many years.
“Along that journey, they’re faced with formidable foes and quests that test their resolve, strength and determination,” he said.
“At its core, however, it’s a story about the unyielding bond between siblings.”
Mr Belcastro, who is inspired by the countless stories he’s read since childhood, including A Song of Ice and Fire, The Lord of the Rings and The Witcher, said he had been a writer most of his life.
“I started in primary school, where I won a few awards for it, and continued into high school,” he said.
The Call of Magic is his first published work. Bringing it to life was a labour of love that spanned a decade.
“It was a long journey, but worth it,” Mr Belcastro said.
“I started writing a version all the way back in 2014.
“Crafting a narrative is certainly challenging. Especially when you’ve no clue on how to structure one that’s engaging and doesn’t ramble, uses a gripping prose and ticks all the boxes.”
He wrote a few other stories before, after and while writing The Call of Magic, which he said helped him refine his skills, emphasising that it took time, patience and a lot of rejection from publishers to get to publication.
He said he experienced a whirlpool of emotions once it was completed, but the biggest was doubt.
“I was anxious that it wasn’t up to scratch, that I’d missed an important detail, or that I had conflicting narratives, although I’d gone over it innumerable times with a fine-tooth comb,” Mr Belcastro said.
“When it was accepted, though, I can say that it was one of the happiest moments of my life, alongside getting engaged to my amazing fiancée, Michela.”
When he finally held a printed copy of his book after the 10-year journey, he said the feeling was indescribable.
“I can’t even attempt to put it into words. Absolutely surreal. It still is,” Mr Belcastro said.
“I have to pinch myself every now and again when I see it on my bookshelf alongside Sir Terry Pratchett and Tolkien.”
The Call of Magic is a stand-alone story, not slated for a series; however, Mr Belcastro said he had many more stories to tell from inside the universe he had created.
“I’ve also created a compendium containing all the lore and history of my world that’s sitting over 200,000 words and continues to grow,” he said.
Having already written and edited an indirect sequel to The Call of Magic in the same universe, titled Honour Bound, Mr Belcastro is not limiting himself to that genre either.
He has also written a historical romance, Raven’s Masquerade, which is being reviewed by a different publisher, who specialises in that genre.
The author has recently relocated to Melbourne after spending his entire life in the Goulburn Valley since being born at GV Health on a Tuesday afternoon in 1996.
He is the youngest of two siblings and one of many cousins belonging to the Greek and Italian Belcastro and Sakogiannis families, who immigrated to Australia in the 1960s and early ’70s and remain residents of Shepparton.
The Call of Magic is available worldwide from online booksellers and will soon be available from bricks-and-mortar book stores as well, including Collins Booksellers in Shepparton.
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