The Storyteller // Flash-fiction // Unexpected Fairy tales

I've most likely totally missed the point of this competition, but thought I would give it a try. If nothing else I've got a head start on where my next book, after Amelia Black 2, might go. Or might not. That's a weird and wild thought which is currently too far in the future right now... 


So yes, Anna Meade (@ruanna3 through Twitter, seemingly lovely lass I started following recently), has laid down the challenge of an unexpected fairytale. It should contain 350 words max. With the deadline only hours away as of publishing this blog post I thought I would contribute something I've been pondering for a long time now. So my wonderful readers, a tale simply called The Storyteller...

Claudius sat down in the bus shelter. It was a bright day. It was a new day. Much like it was the day it happened to him. His eyes had seen many things; the world had changed so much. He rarely would look in a mirror, but only needed to see the countless wrinkles in his hands to know.

Now was the time to pass it on.

            “Mommy, mommy, when’s the bus arriving?” He looked up to see a woman and a little girl, no older than seven, sit down beside him. He politely smiled at them both.

            “It’ll be here soon, dear, now sit down,” said the mother.

            “Oh, okay.” The little girl swayed her head, then looked towards Claudius and boldly said, “Hello!”

            “Hello there,” said Claudius.

            “That’s a big beard!” said the girl.

Claudius could do nothing but laugh, “Yes, it is.”

            “Penny! That’s very rude. I’m so sorry, sir.”

            “It’s no trouble at all, honestly,” he said. Little Penny edged closer towards Claudius, becoming curiouser and curiouser. Claudius held tightly to the ivory head of his walking stick.

            “What do you do?”

            “Me? It’s a secret,” he replied, giving a knowing wink.

            “Secrets? I like secrets, I’ll keep it, I promise!” she jumped up and down and gave a charming smile.

            “You have to promise.”

            “I promise! I promise.”

            “Okay,” he whispered. “I’m a storyteller.” The little girl and the mother looked baffled, never hearing such a wild title before.

            “What’s a storyteller?” asked Penny.

            “A father, a brother, a wizard, a hero, a villain, an adventurer and above all a dreamer. Someone who can see hundreds of lives yet live just one. Someone who can spark a revolution. All with a little imagination.”

            “Wow!” said Penny.

Claudius brought out his golden pocket watch. The time was 1.05pm. “I don’t have much time but if your mother allows it I’ll tell you a story. I warn you though, once told it can never be untold. Once I’m done you must tell it to others.”

“Yes, yes!”

“Are you paying attention? Good. Now, once upon a time...” 

Amelia Black in The Looking Glass & The Lucky Seven Game

I mentioned in one of my last blog posts that a chapter extract of The Unseen Chronicles of Amelia Black would be featured in the first issue of Dublin based children's literature magazine, The Looking Glass. Well after days of waiting eagerly by the door, the jolly postman finally delivered me a copy - as displayed in the photo above of course.

It's a great read and seeing all the other talented writers featured does make one feel ever so slightly intimidated.  Huge thanks to Elena and Joanne for featuring the work of Gill and I in it. If you want to support the publication definitely pay their Facebook page a visit over here :: https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Looking-Glass-Magazine/120504311392360

The Lucky Seven Game

Now, if you follow other writer blogs about you'll have noticed this doing the rounds. My next book is only a few months away - potential illustrations and couple more edits pending - and thought it would be fun to give the first extract from A Boy Named Hogg. So here it is...seven lines, from the seventh line, from page seven of the new book.

“Hello, I’d like to be your friend.”

“Hehe! Awk, you are just too sweet,” said the stranger, softly. Sebastian suddenly felt at ease, giggling more happily and more innocently than he ever had done before in his all too brief lifespan.

A thunderous crash came suddenly from the other room, and William and Rosie were shouting once again. Sebastian wasn’t fazed, in the slightest. His attention was still fixated on this mysterious stranger in his living room. 

As you can see that reveals pretty much nothing, but as the months go on I'll filter bits and pieces of the plot and some sort of launch plan. I'm starting to become really excited by it, and I hope when it's published you will too.

More to come.

A.G.R.

The Unseen Chronicles of Amelia Black now available in No Alibis bookshop!

Sitting proudly next to Herge's Tintin books. If that isn't a dream realised I don't know what is...

After putting it off for god knows how long, I finally worked up the nerve to pop into one of Belfast's leading independent bookshops, No Alibis and enquire about stocking the book in their glorious little emporium. As you can probably tell by the photo above it was a success! So yes, as of today the book is on sale in No Alibis for the same price as it is on LULU.com at £6.99.

So if you haven't yet got a copy of the book and happen to live in the Belfast area please support your local retailers and grab a copy. Or if you don't want to, that's okay too! Bit hurtful, but I guess I'll get over it...ahem, anyway, at least pop down to this glorious bookshop, located on Botanic Avenue near Queen's University, and show your support! http://www.noalibis.com/

Quick line of other topics of interest while I'm here...

• My next book, A Boy Named Hogg is still on course for a Summer release. Can't really discuss too much yet but as always watch this space. 
• The Unseen Chronicles of Amelia Black recently featured in a new Dublin based Children's literature magazine, The Looking Glass. If you're in a position to purchase a copy, please do! Once I get mine I'll post a few photos of it on the blog! Support the lovely ladies putting it together at their Facebook page here ::  http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Looking-Glass-Magazine/120504311392360
• Thanks for the lovely comments on Twitter and Facebook regarding my lovely Flash Fiction piece, Quentin and the Picnic. 

That's it for today from the mindless ramblings of myself. Thanks for reading. 

A.G.R.

Quentin and the Picnic // National Flash-Fiction Day

So the build up and celebration of National Flash-Fiction Day has begun in my glorious homeland of Northern Ireland - go "Like" it on Facebook here. I'll concede right now it's something I'm genuinely awful at. However, it just so happens I have a little children's book I've been playing about with for the past wee while, in between redrafting A Boy Named Hogg and writing The Unseen Trials of Amelia Black. So in the spirit of it all I'm going to put the whole thing in its current draft online for all to read along with a teaser illustration by the lovely Elissa Elwick.

If this ever sees the light of day as an actual children's book, there's a good chance some of the text will have changed and the illustrations would be much more expansive and hopefully present itself as a beautifully crafted wee book. For now though, if you have a little one curious, peering over the laptop/tablet screen, by all means sit them on your lap and entertain them with the jolly little tale of when a mouse, a robot boy made of tin and a kind, furry, monster, who's not really a monster called Quentin Muldoon went on a picnic...

There once was this monster,

This kind, furry, monster,

Who’s not quite a monster,

Named Quentin Muldoon.

And one day this monster,

This kind, furry, monster,

Who’s not quite a monster

Named Quentin Muldoon...

WENT ON A PICNIC!

But that day, that monster,

Named Quentin

Was lost,

So lost it seemed,

He stepped right on a house!

And who lived in this house?

Who was it indeed?

It’s was Mouse having biscuits,

And drinking some tea.

But that Mouse with a house

Welcomed Quentin with glee,

He whispered, “Don’t panic.”

“I know where to be.”

They travelled far...

They travelled wide...

They travelled...thin?

They also travelled within...

And while travelling within,

They met Mouse’s friend,

A curious little thing...

A boy robot made of tin.

Nervously he asked, “Can I come too?”

“Of course!” cried the mouse.

“We have plenty for you!”

“But where should we go?” Quentin did ask.

“A beach,

Or a park or

A very large ark?”

“Best not,” Mouse said it was so.

“One’s rather busy, and one’s full of bark.

And since when was the last time,

Did you glance at an ark?”

“Well, what about this graveyard?” declared Quentin Muldoon

“But don’t it have ghosts and horrid ghouls too?”

“Don’t fear,” said Mouse. “They can’t hurt you!”

“Okay,” said the boy robot made of tin.

“I trust you more than my great granny’s bin.”

So that kind, furry, monster named Quentin Muldoon

And that Mouse with a house

And the boy robot made of tin

Sat in a peaceful graveyard

For their picnic din din!

What did they eat?

Oh, all sorts of treats!

Some cheese for Mouse,

Goats, Stilton and Brie.

Some oil for robot boy,

He drank mer-ri-ly.

And what about dear Quentin, you may well say...

He had marshmallows with chips,

And orange juice coloured blue.

Why blue you ask?

Frankly I haven’t a clue.

Then look what popped up,

A ghost and a ghoul.

They both said, “Hello,

Any ecto-plasmic gruel?”

“I dare say we don’t,” said Mouse with a sigh.

“But next time we visit we’ll be sure to say hi.”

Quentin brought out his watch,

And said “It’s time we must go.”

So they waved their waves, and gave good to their byes,

Mouse went to his house, and the tin boy went back within.

While Quentin Muldoon flew up into the air,

With a huge big grin!

THE END

Senseless rambling at 2am...

I'm currently sitting in front of my computer screen, in the dead of night, collecting a trolley full of thoughts. None of them particular exciting I must admit, no new stories, no rewrites, no new film to gush on and on about. Just bits and bobs really. It is a Monday night after all. If all the exciting thoughts were collected on a Monday, the rest of the week would seem somewhat dull in comparison. Anyway I digress...

I was just doing my usual rounds of the interwebs before I retired to bed to continue reading more of George R R Martin's epic fantasy saga, A Song of Ice and Fire, when I stumbled across this wonderful video on Youtube...

Now obviously if Star Trek and/or Wars etc isn't your cup of tea, the idea of space travel might seem like a bit of a wet blanket. Frankly speaking the sheer idea of exploring the stars above utterly terrifies me as much as it insanely excites me. But the video makes a good point, when did the human race stop being ambitious? Stop...dreaming. Stop wondering what 'tomorrow' might bring us. Yeah sure technology is more prettier, faster, efficient. Hell, we've got a third generation iPad coming round the corner! I'm able to catch reruns of Neighbours on demand when I bloody well want! I can send e-mails from my phone! Thanks to the magic of the Kindle I've more books now than I'll read in a lifetime! It's the stuff my dad would've replied to as, "the mind boggles."

Yet tomorrow shouldn't be about making life easier. Tomorrow should be about pushing the boundaries. In 1969 NASA landed men on the moon for the first ever time. Landed on the f*cking moon!! How is it in 2012 that idea seems as equally insane as it might have been to H.G. Wells when he first published War of the Worlds in 1898?! Yes there's something of a mix up in the world finances but will we ever have a world leader with that kind of vision for the future? Be nice to see it in my lifetime. Sadly it ain't easy being that idealistic, no matter how hard you try to be. And yes, at 2am in the morning I don't really know where this senseless ramble is going either...

I'll end on this though. One of the greatest pieces of life advice I ever received was during my journalism training in 2010, when I got the chance to work at the Belfast Press Association. The editor told me two simple things which have really stuck with me. The first simply, "Be ambitious. Aim as high as possible no matter how silly it might seem to others." The second was particularly poetic, "Be open minded about everything. If you don't you'll be a cynical asshole by the time you're 30."

Time for bed...

BBC ARTS EXTRA INTERVIEW + QUICK BOOK UPDATES

I actually have things to put on this blog! Wow, good times. So last week I was just shooting out the door to meet my dear friend Heather McGarrigle (check her blog too! http://thepatchworkquill.blogspot.com/) for a spot of lunch in The Potted Hen in Belfast - great meal it was too - when, out of the blue, I got a phone call from a lovely lady at the BBC named Ruth Sanderson asking me down to talk about e-publishing and Amelia Black on the show, Arts Extra. Bricking it though I was, it was a tremendous experience and the kind words from both Ruth and the host of the show, Marie, really gave me a confidence boost in regards to my work.

So would like to say a huge thanks to them for having me, when far more knowledgeable sorts probably should have been asked. The snippet from the show itself is embedded at the top, and the main theme centres around Ewan Morrison's (also featured on the show) article he did the day previously for The Guardian which is featured here :: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/jan/30/self-e-publishing-bubble-ewan-morrison

Quick update on book related stuff while I'm here...

• My second book titled A Boy Named Hogg is now in its third drafting phase and progressing quite nicely. Aiming for a June/July release.
• The Unseen Trials of Amelia Black has officially begun. Been so much fun returning to it again, after a year away from it.
• Also possibly have a wee children's picture book story in the works involving a mouse with a house, a boy robot made of tin and a kind gentle monster, who's not really a monster named Quinten. It's not far off completion but I'm currently not 100% what I will do with it.

New year, Oh The Places You'll Go...

I realise how bloody awful I am at posting on this blog, compared to my dearly beloved film blog. Just never really know what to type here. Determined to make an effort this year though with random ramblings, photography plus updates and press bits on my books. Plenty of exciting stuff to come this year in terms of writing.

Plans for 2012? Besides attempting to make a living from this gig, June will hopefully see the release of my second book currently titled, A Boy Named Hogg. While I polish that, I can confirm the sequel to The Unseen Chronicles of Amelia Black is in the early stages and with a prayer may see the light before the end of 2012. And maybe my first venture into children's picture books. Maybe...

For now though I'll leave this first post of 2012 with some cause of optimism. A video from Burning Man festival 2011 of all of Dr Seuss' beautiful poem, Oh The Places You'll Go as told by the eclectic performers and attendees. Truly heartwarming and inspiring.

TTFN (Ta ta for now...)

A.G.R.