The Author’s Kingdom is a series of articles, where the Author explains his perception of Heirs to the Kingdom. It is written to cover the festive season of Christmas 2016.
The Face Behind the Evil.
When I first wrote The Bowman of Loxley, I made the decision at the very start that I would intentionally side-line the major villain. One or two at the time commented on this act and thought that it was a strange thing to do, after all in many books and almost all films; you get to see the bad guy long before he enters the fight. With Mason Knox I wanted something a little different, and so I made the choice that I would only refer to his acts of evil, rather than show him doing them.
My second choice for him was to choose a logo for his brutal Cutters that would stamp a hallmark on his reputation, almost like branding, and so whenever you saw or heard any mention of this specific crest, you would feel the evil that was in progress. To add to the intrigue, I made his crest similar to that of a king, I chose the dragon, which long ago had been the crest of all kings, it is only since the time of Richard the first, that a lion was depicted as the kings crest, before that all true kings, and especially the one true king had the crest of a golden dragon. I liked the idea of Mason’s hand being covered in the blood of the innocent, and so for him I picked out a dragon that was long and slender with short legs (Almost Japanese) and coloured it blood red. From that moment on I used the phrase the snake with legs and wings, and those who opposed him referred to him as Snake, I think it paints a very specific picture of a creature that slithers and writhes to get what it wants.
The psychology and the symbolism of it made for a great way to identify the evil of the man, and it was behind this crest that I hid my bad guy, well out of sight until the moment of confrontation. His face would only appear in the very last chapter of the book, and that gave me the space to paint a full picture of his deeds and wrong doings throughout the 24 chapters that came before his face. I think it worked really well, as I was able then to show the face of his son (William/Billy) as a bright happy blue eyed boy, and in a way without realising it I created yet more mystery about who this greedy and cold hearted villain really was.
Throughout the book we see the deeds of the Cutters and hear of the maiming and slaughter they create as they moved slowly into the north to seek out Loxley and York. There is rumour of orphanages and factories that treat the workers like slaves, using them as they will and killing them for no reason at all, and all the time Billy is happy and joking and dare I say even likeable, it was a wonderful way to cast a shadow across the book, as the readers tried to work out if this guy really was as horrible as everyone said. Hiding his face left the reader in suspense, because there really was no way to fully gauge the man until he appeared in the book, and for that moment, everyone had to wait to the last chapter.
It took a long time to write the scene in the cathedral, I had floor plans and maps, and had to watch every move each member of the story made as I carefully noted things down to ensure I kept the pace fast enough to thrill, but the tension ready to break at any moment. I had chess pieces on a large board that I marked out with the floor plan, and as I wrote each line I moved the pieces. The balcony was chosen for Robbie’s stand for one reason only, I wanted him to see only Mason’s back as he approached the high altar. When Mason finally turned, he was hidden behind the clergy who were performing the crowning ceremony, and then I added in Robbie’s frustrations as he spoke to Rune of how he could not see him to get a clear shot.
It was difficult to write it, as I had to make every arrow count, but in the back of mind the words “Sacred Ground” thumped through it. Neither Runestone nor her sisters of the circle could kill in this sacred place, something I had not revealed yet, their arrows could only wound, which is why at the moment of crisis, Robbie asks Rune to create a wind and lift the crown. Rowan, Martin and Alice provide the deadly shots that take out the vicars around Mason, and then finally after waiting for 24 chapters, his eyes meet Robbie’s, and for a moment there are gasps. It was great stuff to write, every reader was convinced Mason could not possibly have long curly blonde hair, but he did, he was almost the double of Billy, only a great deal older with the same pale cold blue eyes. Here was the villain finally unmasked in the light of day, and it fuelled even more speculation about him, and just to add yet more suspense, he got away and Robbie failed to kill him. Every member of the readers group expected him to die, and that was the twist that caught out every reader, the hero failed and the villain got away.
Just to add a little more shock, Robbie shoots his last arrow and instead of hitting Mason, his wife Zandra leaps in front of the arrow and is instantly killed. The shock was intense, how could the hero of the book kill an innocent woman? Out of all the vile and evil people gathered there that day, Robbie kills the only one who did not deserve to die, I have to admit I enjoyed watching the ripples of surprise as they emitted out of those first early readers, it was great fun and it just inspired me to look for yet more twists to really up the pace for the second book.
In the final moment of the book we see Mason sat with his son as he casually announces to him that his mother is dead. The reaction for Billy is equally as cold, and this I think goes right to the heart of the story, for it is here we realise that Billy no longer regarded Zandra (The mother that gave him up) as anyone significant. This was my first moment to set the stage for future books where the love of Jess, who he considered his mum, would come into play at the heart of the plot.
When it came to book two, I had already shown the readers the villain, and so at first I placed him in the very opening of the first chapter. It is here we see Mason as he ridicules the Bishop, and you get your first glimpse of how calculating Mason can be. He laughs out loud as he suggests hiring a woodsman, and it is here you can get your first glimpse of how Mason uses the church as one of his pawns. His anger at Robbie is there to be seen, and suddenly we see how his anger rises very quickly and the sadistic side of him is revealed. A little later in the book we read of the retaliation as entire villages around Kingsdown are slaughtered and butchered by his Cutters to pay for the actions of Robbie.
This was my setting for book two, where Mason once again would strike and strike hard from the shadows, and although I slipped in small moments of him, they were seldom more than two pages like the moment he discovers Judith has run away, and his first reaction is to shoot the man who should have been on watch. It’s an instant reaction with no warning that even leaves Billy a little shaken and Lance is terrified by it. This shows the ruthlessness of the man mixed with a cold unemotional personality.
Later in book two we truly get to experience the brutality of the Cutters, on the motorway we see them looting the escaping villagers of the south, followed by an attempted rape of a young girl, which is halted by Runestone with her arrow. Once again we see that the Cutters feel that thier leader is invincible, and so they are free to do as they wish, this is the way Mason had planned to rule, he wanted to utterly dominate all of the people and control them with fear as he has already in his cities of stone. His Cutters are his preferred tool of use, and it all paints a very vivid picture of his ambitions, and even though I keep him out of the book as much as I can, the result of his actions is clearly seen, none more than the village of trees where everyone is slaughtered and hung from the branches as a warning to those who pass through. I had two books to show the kind of man Mason was at heart, as this would set a backdrop for the whole series of books. I must admit at times I gave a shudder as I wrote scenes, and I soon realised that writing the actions of the Cutters actually made me a little uncomfortable. I almost edited the attempted rape out as I was not sure if I was going too far, talking to the readers group who had read the first draft, gave me the assurance that I had not been too graphic, and had written it more to imply what was to come rather than actually write a graphic description. They convinced me it should be OK and so the scene stayed in the book.
Writing the first book with a readers group taught me a massive amount, and so when it came to preparing the end of book two, I already knew the value of a good twist in the story. Once again Robbie travels out to disrupt Mason’s plans at Liverpool. The set up for the last pages had to be at least as tense as the first book, I wanted it better and I felt confident I could do it.
Harry was brought in for heart breaking comedic additions, and slowly woven into the plot more as a distraction from what was coming. Just as Robbie finally reaches the top of the building where it is rumoured that Mason is holding up, Jade runs laughing into the road and bang!!! She is shot in the back, it is almost a repeat of Zandra, and the book takes a turn that was not expected. Rune leaves Robbie alone, something no one expects and as he shouts out at her for going through a wall, boom there is an explosion that rocks the building throwing him off his feet. The small frightened figure of Lance comes round the corner, and Lance faces his biggest fear, he is face to face with the Hooded Man. Once again this was just another way of building the tension and hiding Mason until the very last second. I spent quite some time working out what was to come, and it had to be woven into the Jade and Runestone scenario of the life for a life choice perfectly to create that seat hugging moment where Mason is revealed and looks up to see the angry eyes of Robbie.
Because of Book One, no one expects Mason to die, and this is where I go into reverse and the twist kicked in. The fight is long and drawn out as I cut back to a broken hearted Runestone, it is a bit of an emotional rollercoaster, but finally the moment comes where Mason loses his temper at the calm and collected Robbie, and pounds him with his sword. It’s a merciless attack and at first the concern goes to hoping Robbie can withstand it. It is just the two men alone in a fight to the death, and as I pull the action back and forth, I wanted to make the readers worry a little as I hoped there would be no way of predicting the outcome. Finally Mason’s goading of Robbie pays off, and he yells with rage and unleashes an onslaught at Mason that results in the killing of Mason Knox.
The cards are suddenly all up in the air at what is one of the most emotionally tense chapters I think I have written. The questions flow, how can Mason be dead? Will Billy replace him, or the Dark One? What really has happened to Billy with the black blade? Will Runestone ignore Una’s advice and tell Robbie of the life for life choice? As you start to ask the questions, the book ends and suddenly all the chips are in the air, and there really are no answers as the man who was the symbol of all things evil is suddenly no longer a part of the tale, once again he slips back into obscurity, but this time he is not coming back.
For those of you who have read further than Book Two, well you now know the answers. The thing is that in my own little way I wanted to show that the villain of a story does not necessarily have to be a main central character. By showing the results of the orders he has given, I was able to paint the full picture of the man without having him present, and I actually think having read through the books again in the run up to this series of articles, just implying what he is capable of and not showing him in person, actually creates a far more sinister figure than he would have been if I had written more of him into the books. Actually hiding his face creates a picture that each and every readers draws for themselves, and they have to use their own imagination, which let’s be honest is a lot more frightening, because it plays directly to the emotions of those who read it. In a way you create a personal sense of the man as viewed by yourself alone, and I actually think it was a much better way to present Mason.
To make the story far more interesting Mason did not appear in the third book, here I replaced him with his even more sinister mother, and not forgetting Billy who has been possessed by Mordred through the Black Blade. I knew this would confirm to all the readers that Mason was indeed gone forever, and yet the twist was, before you in the book was the resurrected soul of Morgana’s first child to prove she had the power to bring back the dead. No one noticed this fact in reference to Mason, and so by Book Four, I felt it was the right to bring him back looking a little younger and with more stamina than before, it made for very interesting writing and reading.
I won’t add more spoilers for those who have not discovered more of this tale, except to say that those first two books really do set up the character of the whole family of Knox. Through Mason, I paint the scene to allow myself to single out each character through the following editions, and open up their lives a lot more to show all of you the inner workings of this cold and brutal family. There is so much more to come, and even for those who have made it right through to the last page of book seven. I still have a lot more to write on this devious family who come from the heart of a Saxony tribe. I still think I have a shock or two that are unseen to come, and I can only hope that the first two books provided enough insight to draw you deeper into this brutal clan and have made you want to continue to the last page of the last book, because I can assure you, it will take that long to truly reveal the evil that lurks hidden from view.