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The Author’s Kingdom #9

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The Author’s kingdom is a series of articles written by Author Robin John Morgan, as part of the Christmas event for 2016. Through the articles, Robin is sharing his point of view of the books and some of the secrets that create a much greater depth to the story.

 

The sightless centre

From the start of Book Two, one character has been a constant feature at the side of Robbie and Runestone, who without realising has become as important as some of the major characters, and yet this slightly melancholy and hard working part of the Specialists has at times been overlooked.

I speak of course of Sapphire.

Daughter of the mighty Tor and bird talking Melanie, she was destined to be the centre of the Table of Knowledge to succeed her Grandmother Gwendolyn, shortly after her birth. Merlin pronounced she had been rejected as a centre due to her lack of ability, and just when everything appeared to have been agreed, she was snatched with her mother and brother by the Dark One, and frozen in time hidden in the Realm of Sleep.

When Sapphire awoke, life had changed; she was a thousand years into her future, and hidden on the Isle of Lewis just below the famous waiting stones of Callanish. This would be home until her sixteenth birthday, when she would be packed up with her older brother, and shipped across the ocean to a safe haven provided by the family of the boatman who visited the island with their supplies. Separated from her mother and given the instruction to teach two orphaned children, Sapphire had little choice but to try and live her isolated life the best she could, not always aware of the truth of the world in which she lived. Her only real enjoyment came with the letters from her mother that talked of hooded men and circles of power, and for the time being it was enough to help her pass the time with wild fantasies of a world she thought she would never see, until that was, she received a letter telling her she would be leaving the safe house, and being collected by her mother and travel to join with the Hooded Man returned.

Just the above is a lot to deal with, and considering how young she was when she was taken by the Dark One, it is a miracle that Sapphire survived without some serious mental defect. Talk about trauma, and we think our own lives are difficult, and most of this was just on the first few pages that introduced Sapphire to Heirs to the Kingdom.

As she enters the books, it is clear that sapphire is very feminine, she is soft and gentle, very kind and very well educated in literature, maths and the affairs of court to the king. She comes across as a little timid and easily embarrassed, and suffers from bouts of self-doubt, and to be honest very little changes in those characteristics as she weaves into the story besides Runestone and Robbie.

From the point of view of her creator, I find Sapphire to actually be a very deep and emotional character, and I really do enjoy building her slowly up on a parallel to the other characters. I will add at this point with the seventh book being such a recent release to this event, I do have to hold back a little so as not to give spoilers, except to say, I have always considered Sapphire to be an essential part of the plot.

When we first meet her stood on the quayside waving to her mother, I am sure no one understood her relevance to the story, and as she journeyed across the waters to the coast of Northern England to meet her Aunt Una, it was clear that Sapphire was at heart quite a romantic and her notions of the Hooded Man had run a little wild with her fantasies. Sapphire honestly believed that she was in love with the Hooded Man, the only problem there was that Robbie was not even aware that she existed at that point, and there was also the minor fly in the ointment that he was and had been in love with Runestone for a very long time.

Alone with her dreams in a remote part of the coast and out of contact with the rest of the world, Sapphire had imagined she would be the one to win Robbie’s heart, and so to find out he was taken, and taken by the person who had also taken control of all the tables and prevented her from becoming the centre of a circle, must have been a crushing blow for her. From the moment she had been freed from the Hidden Realm she had been protected with her family under a veil of secrecy, and now suddenly she is on the mainland and away from her protections, and her introduction to the new world is she is hunted from the moment she lands by the Dark One, who has picked up her trail and is on route to capture her again. It was quite a dramatic entrance for Sapphire with her brother and mother as they ride like the wind to get to the safety of a circle of stones.

Sapphire up until that point has only ever talked of her powers to come, and yet here on horseback in the driving rain, she is suddenly called upon by Runestone to help protect the members of the group. Filled with terror Sapphire faced her first of many moments of bravery, as Runestone connects with her telepathically and floods her with the power of the Green Circle in order for her to aid her family. It is actually a very important if not terrifying moment for Sapphire who is riddled with self-doubt, and she is consumed and overwhelmed by the power and ends up exhausted and collapsed as she arrives at the circle.

That is all in the first few chapters of Sapphire’s introduction to the book, and my intention behind it was to show the readers that even though she had not become the centre of the circle of knowledge, which had been a place occupied by Bridget and inherited by Gwendolyn previously, Sapphire still had the ability when called upon to open a circle. It’s an important moment that points the way towards her future, for although at that point she feels she has been denied her destiny, we learn as the books progress that she does have a destiny that is far beyond what was first expected of her. In essence I was laying the groundwork for future events that would be vital to the plot of Book Six and Seven, and so began a long line of hints that showed you a little more of Sapphire as the pages turned.

Later in the book she strikes up a friendship with Keith, the son of Lee Sherman an important character in Book Three, and here I took her thoughts and feelings which had been aimed at Robbie, and allowed her to transfer them to Keith. As the days progress and Keith gives her more attention her feelings appear to grow, and she gives him a lot of attention in return, which if you step back for a moment and consider, from Keith’s point of view it is the best thing that has ever happened to him. If you read the first descriptions of Sapphire, you will find that she is described almost identically to Runestone. Sapphire and Rune have a similar look, similar figure, same sapphire blue eyes, she is in every way Runestone like, except she has long auburn hair, not the fiery red with golden strands that Runestone has. It is a deliberate act on my part, after all Sapphire should be the centre, and so in my mind I made as like her own centre as I possibly could, which for Keith a rough and tumble woodsman is a massive bonus. She likes the attention and transfers her image of Robbie onto him, and let’s be honest, Keith will never attract a girlfriend better looking than Sapphire, they finally partner up and everything in the camp is happy, or is it?

Sapphire has greater abilities than she realises, something the shrewd Runestone is very aware of, and she begins to instruct Sapphire in the control of her gifts.  In many ways I think it is apparent that Sapphire is a little bit relieved not to have fulfilled her destiny as the centre of a circle, she has many doubts that actually interfere with her progress, and as a result her true ability does not become clear until early on in Book Five, and even then she doubts herself so much, she actually prevents herself embracing her true nature.

I actually have always seen Sapphire as stronger than most people realise, but there again I am writing this, so I don’t need to show you the full side of her until I feel it is her time in the story, but occasionally I have given you a glimpse of what is to come, for example when Robbie is shot and falls to his near death in the wild river in Scotland, the one person who should be the strongest momentarily falls apart, Runestone goes into melt down, and what happens? This is the first peek at what Sapphire can be, without even thinking she dives into the rapids and goes in search of Robbie and almost drowns herself in the process, but it is her hidden abilities that come to the surface and help her. In the cave she loses herself and drifts in and out of consciousness, and yet she manages to keep Robbie going and it does save his life. There is moment my wife will never forgive, and I am afraid I have soiled her opinion of Sapphire forever, because when Robbie drifts in his half-conscious state and asks for Runestone, Sapphire (Who is Runestone like) leans over and kisses him softly. Believing it to be Rune, Robbie drifts back into sleep blissfully unaware of what has transpired and my wife will never forgive either myself for writing it or Sapphire as a result. (Giggles)

In my own defence this was yet another hint at how like Rune she is in the hope that some of you would start to see that actually Sapphire was a lot braver and stronger than she realised, and actually she did have the power and strength to control a table. Ok so it would be another four books before you see her destiny, but I think this was the first clear hint at her future task.

Once I had the second book finished, which to be honest was still a huge part of actually setting up the series, I had the time to sit back and focus on book three, which in my mind is where the story really starts to get going. It is in the third book that you really start to see the characters open up and reveal who they really are, and again for Sapphire this is an important book. It was not always easy I had to keep her a prominent figure in the book, but I also wanted to play her down a little and just keep her a familiar figure. It felt like a very fine balancing act as I worked out each part of her story and slipped in little clues as to what her final direction would be.

In Book Three as the Specialists enter the dark brooding castle of the Dark One, here we see that Sapphire has an important role besides Keith as she works slightly up front of Robbie and Runestone as a protective guard. Again this is an important aspect of her position within the Specialists as it shows the growing confidence that Runestone has in her. At one point she slides down the wall exhausted after fighting the Smoggarts, and she says. “Whoever said be true to yourself is an idiot, I have just faced myself two dozen times and won.” Like many things in HTTK it at first appears like an insignificant comment, but again from my point of view as I wrote it, this is another sign that sapphire is growing in confidence and is starting to understand who she is becoming. Again in Book Three I give another cryptic hint in the form of the pendant that Runestone gives to her during the ceremony of the passing out of talismans. Sapphire receives a butterfly, which in universal symbolism is the symbol of the passing of information. Butterflies carry the words of those who send them, as Runestone presents her with the talisman she tells her. “Carry my power with you always, and know you are close to my heart.” We now know that actually at this point Runestone has already created a table of power for Sapphire, and it is hidden within the talisman she has just p[resented her with. I like this part as it actually shows that not only is Sapphire about to fully understand who she is, it also shows that Runestone is well aware of what is set for Sapphire and is already at work preparing for her, a point which is actually vital to the end of Book Six.

At the start of the fourth book I took a little time out to work out a few of the advanced details for future books. I had up until then been working on what was just a basic rough outline of what was to come, and in the case of Sapphire, I knew I had to start preparing the readers with a little more information so that they began to understand there was something important to come. It was not the easiest task because actually as some of the readers now know, there is a direct link between Sapphire helping Merlin transport Jade and Robbie into the Hidden Realm to collect Runestone who is trapped there, and Book Seven. At this point before writing four, I had to fully work out the details of what would become the Bridge of Sequana, I had already dropped a hint in the form of cryptic mentions of it, but at this point I really had to focus on the detail and then try to replicate it without giving it away.

In order to do this I brought in the aide of Rhiannon, who after all is high Fae, and is aware of most deep Fae magic, she is also one of the most important ingredients to the equation, she is a queen of Fae. By placing Merlin, Rhiannon and Sapphire together and then pulling in the use of great power, it is obvious that what is really happening is not lost on the very perceptive Rhiannon. Rhiannon says nothing, but she is aware that actually Merlin is wakening up parts of Sapphire that she is not aware of, and through this action Merlin forces her true powers through all her self-doubt and brings them to the surface. In book seven you will a better explanation of this as given by Iona, so I will leave it there and you can read it at some future point.

There are unresolved issues within Sapphire and when Runestone returns she becomes aware of the big changes going on inside her. As a way of helping her, Runestone takes her back to Callanish and awakens the sole of her father who is buried on the isle in the centre of the old stone circle, this really is the first part of the unleashing of Sapphire as a centre. During the powerful session which also starts to show Keith the true powers of a centre, Sapphire meets her father and begins to understand her past and the events that have led her to be over one thousand years into her future. She begins to see that she has far more than first expected and she has the chance to ask her father questions and more importantly tell him how she feels and say goodbye. It is a massively important moment in the life of Sapphire, and from this her powers begin to rise and show themselves.

At the start of book five the dreams begin, and Runestone sidesteps a little and allows her grandmother to take some control. Opal already has an idea of the direction of Sapphire, after all Opal has been sneaking about and observing things she shouldn’t for a very long time, and it is Opal who is in contact with Runestone who takes the lead and starts to explain to Sapphire where her new direction will lie. For poor Sapphire this becomes very confusing and she just cannot understand why she has been chosen, she had finally given up all notions of becoming a centre, when Opal announces she will be the centre of the circle of sight.

At this point it is worth just taking a moment to contemplate the whole picture. Here is a girl who has pretty much lived her life in isolation, at the age of 16 and just when she was starting to learn about who she was, she was taken from her mother to a strange remote place and given the task of education two orphans. She is alone lost and very lonely living a very sheltered life. Suddenly out of the blue her mother arrives and brings her to the mainland to meet all of her family, and the infamous Hooded Man, a figure she has fantasised about. Within days of arriving on the mainland she is in the thick of a war, and is teamed up with the Specialists where she encounters Cutters, and the Dark One, a figure she is aware is hunting her to kill her. She becomes involved with Keith and for a short time she manages to stabilise her life as best as can be expected considering the circumstances. Out of the blue the two orphans she has educated turn out to be the future king and his sister, and she was not even aware of it, and Sapphire starts to understand that this has all been part of some elaborate plan set for her by her Grandmother, who just happens to have been one of the most powerful seers of the Fae. Towards the end of Book Five Sapphire finds herself alone at the farm of Rafe’s parents, suddenly she is separated from all the chaos she has faced since she had arrived at Loxley, and she finally has the time alone to actually think and process everything that has happened. I thought about this time a great deal, and I think in my mind it was clear that this would be the turning point where Sapphire began to understand that her whole life up until that point had been manipulated by others.

As her powers which have now been unlocked within her start to grow, Sapphire starts to feel it is time to take back the control of her own life, but for her who has been sheltered for so long; it is not as easy as she thinks. Her powers have awoken her gift of sight, so as she comes to terms with who she is becoming she is haunted by a dream of a young bohemian boat girl. She does not fully understand the significance of the dreams, and it feels like just one more aspect of her life preventing her from deciding what she wants and who she wants to be. This is an important moment where Sapphire has to face herself and make some harsh decisions, and these decisions are vitally important to the relevance of her future, and so with the aid of Opal her process of change begins, although it is suddenly interrupted when out of nowhere she is awoken by Opal and cast out of the circle of protection and told to immediately go to Robbie’s aid.

Talk about confusing?

At the end of Book Six sapphire finally faces her destiny and accepts the mantle of Centre to the Circle of Sight. She is very nervous and apprehensive, and Opal is very intense as she appears to be distracted by a rhyme that sapphire for some unexplained reason cannot get out of her head, it is clear this will become a very important aspect of Book Seven, but again here I have to hold back a little to allow those of you who have not yet read the book catch up. Book Seven will force sapphire to finally accept her destiny, and it will also show her the way in which she chooses to live her life, and it is not what many expect. The gift of sight is a bonus and a curse, and as it intensifies, Sapphire has little choice but to accept it and deal with it, and in doing so finally we see the true courage and power of the real Sapphire.

I personally have thoroughly enjoyed her journey to date, she has been a very detailed and intense character to write, and I must add it has not always been an easy task, as I could only show the readers small parts of her at a time, I have done a lot of editing along the way to ensure she developed at the right speed for the readers. There is far more to her than first appears, and that has actually been part of the joy of writing her character. Books Seven and Eight will finally show you her true self, as she grows in power and understanding, and you will see her find her place in this world, and in the world of the Fae of the Earth, because finally she will travel to Florae to fully understand her future role as a teacher to the future Queen of Fae, but that is yet to come and the only hint I am prepared to give. Will she ever truly find a settled place where she can feel at one with her surroundings?

Well even I am not completely sure as I am scripting out yet more of her for the final book, I think she will have to endure great hardship before that can happen just to make it a reward worth waiting for. The one thing I do know is that she is far more important to HTTK that all of you may first have guessed, and that begins with Book Seven, so I will now take a back seat and allow all of you to catch me up as I put together the final book of the series, and in the mean time I wish you all well and hope this has again opened up a window that has given you yet more insight into Heirs to the Kingdom.

The Author’s Kingdom #8

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The Authors Kingdom is the Author, Robin John Morgan’s point of view that reveals an insight into his writing of Heirs to the Kingdom. It forms part of the Christmas Event for 2016.

 

The sinister edge of everything

When I first started to seriously plan the first book in the series, I asked myself the question, Is Mason Knox a God fearing man?

I realise it may at first to be an odd sort of question considering who Mason is and what he doing to the country as it recovers, but it felt like a very important question at the time, simply because I was dividing up the loyalties of the people to create the areas that would eventually become Woodland and Stone loving, and I knew that any surviving churches would have some say with the people.

The answer to the question was obviously no he is not, I mean how could he be, considering who is mother is? so I asked a second question. Could he bribe or influence the church to support him?

This is a far more interesting question, especially considering the state of the country at that time. I looked at the scenario I was creating, with the Cutters inflicting pain and death and stealing the harvested crops of those who could not defend themselves, and it was abundantly clear that Mason was storing up as much as possible behind his walls and swords. So here was the man who had everything, and he controlled everything, and in this scenario I think it would be pretty clear that to support Mason at that time, would indeed benefit those individuals.

It was clear to me that after a chaotic event such as the Red Death, people would seek out answers as to why the world went the way it did, I was under no illusion that there would be members of every faith that pronounced this as Gods will, after all there are certainly enough passages in all religious writings to show how God would punish the evil. It is a modern day phenomenon that after all disasters and community crisis, churches that have been almost empty for months, suddenly find themselves filled to the rafters as lapsed worshipers seek some form of spiritual guidance and answers, and in my mind the Red Death would be no different.

Ok so I have had a little bashing in the last nine years, and I have even been called anti-Christian, but actually this is so far from the truth, and my defence has always been, I have done my best to show a balanced representation of how I feel the church would evolve after a post-apocalyptic crisis. I am after all a people watcher, and obviously I have used the Christian Church as my example simply because firstly, Mason has been raised in what up until recently has been a predominately Christian country in which he has had to blend in for 100’s of years, and secondly, I have been involved with it and have spoken at great lengths to members of this faith throughout my life time. I would say also that when I talk of Christians, I am not talking about “The Church,” to me they are very separate indeed, as I see the Church as the organised political wing of Christianity, and Christians as the many diverse individuals who believe in the faith, and in my mind mainly due to my own experiences, they are indeed two very separate machines.

The Christian Church is simply wonderful material for a writer, it has a rich and at times highly questionable history, and really if you take the time to look at the broader picture of the Roman Catholic, Church of England, Baptist, Methodist and even Latter Day Saints side of the organised parts of the Church, there is a whole list of drama’s and scandals on which a writer can build a working profile. I asked myself would men who want wealth and power be drawn to the church, well yes of course they would, these kinds of people have filtered into every walk of life in the past to seize control and make personal gains, and so I had no problems lining the hierarchy of my surviving church with such people. I would add at this point that Mason has these kind of people all around him, they are in his Marshals, Captains of his Cutters, part of his military and so forth, and so it makes great sense that they would also be in the church. This was never a personal attack on belief, if anything it is my own attack on capitalists and greed as individuals, for the world today is riddled with them and I despise every one of them.

I once knew a Reverend who was to be honest one of nicest and kindest individuals that I have ever known. He was pretty unorthodox in his approach to the way he ran his church, he was very much a reformer, and I can tell you he was not popular with the old crowd. He died not that long ago, and I was so sad to hear it, because I genuinely really admired the work he did with his wife, I have some wonderful memories of his time at my local church, and the happiness and joy he created as he filled his church with young people and children.

The old crowd hated him, he disturbed their out dated ideas and routine in the church, and after a year they conspired and found a way to get rid of him, it is of these people, the control freaks and monopolisers of the church that I speak about when I write of Brother Argus and the First Church Council. Even though I was young at the time, it was easy to see how he threatened their control and the comfort they felt controlling the local church. I saw with my own eyes the pure vile and evil of these people, and it was a harsh eye opening in my youth to confront such prejudice and two faced hypocrisy. At the end of the day it all boiled down to a power play for control of the church, they won by underhanded means, but their church emptied and the collections slipped back to normal, in a way at the time it felt poetic.

I think it is very important to make the distinction between how I feel about people like this, and how I feel about people of faith, and within the plot line of this series, which I hope is as accurate and true to life as it can be for a work of fantasy, I would like to think that I have struck a good balance that highlights the difference between those who truly believe in their faith, the those who see it as a convenient position of power for personal gain and control of the people. Historically the Church has always played its part in politics and the control of their local areas, today they are not as influential which I feel is a good thing, but take the country into the kind of scenario I have created, and I think you will see some traits of old resurface, especially in a leaderless society.

It has been my aim throughout all of HTTK to show the accurate picture of division within the Christian faith, because it is an important political element to the plot. As the story has progressed and the Church has been woven through it, I show the side of Christianity I have seen in the form of Sister Mary, Father Warren and John Stevens, and I have pitted them against their opposing numbers, which again I have seen in life, such as Bishop Holmes, Brother Argus or the Brethren. I think it is evident, that good people do good things, and corrupt people corrupt everything, and I have shown this not only within the church, you see it in the midst of the army of Mason and at times within the Woodland forces, especially in the south where there is very much a sense of distrust amongst certain groups. Silas and his jealousy of the Outlaws for example.

One thing I do know, and has been something I have watched all my life is the scramble for power at every level of life, and so I think it is a natural element of every organisation, and no matter how hard you may want to believe that all within the church or any religion for that matter are pious, the simple fact is hypocrisy will show its hand far more often than not. When you pit the faith of one against another you will always get sparks of prejudice, and history is riddled with it within the church. The witch burnings, the crusades, the slaughter of native Americans and even the Irish conflict are examples of how certain aspects of the Christian church in the past has exerted it’s power, and even in today’s climate we see a great deal of war that has become embroiled with religious conflict within what should be a modern civilised world. I think it takes little to get emotions high and then factions clash and all text about peace and love get pushed to the side as the texts of fire and brimstone are wheeled out for battle.

The Church has always played a very important role in the affairs of state, none more so than in the monarchy. Lord Loxley mainly due to his teachings from Leenard is wise enough to know that without the Church he will never convince the people to support him. I think is also a relevant point that Mason has been more aware of, as he began very early on garnering support with the recovering church, and as the books begin it is already very obvious he has been hard at work behind the scenes laying the foundation for his own coronation.

Most of this comes down to a single point of great interest in relation to HTTK; can the church tolerate a Pagan King? This really is the centre of everything, because had Leenard provided paperwork for an heir to the throne that was a recognised Christian, would Lord Loxley really be having the fight he has to convince the church to support him? I think not. I am well aware that under the constructional laws of this land, the King or Queen become the immediate head of the Church of England. No Catholic is allowed under constitutional law to be seated on the English throne, so really any prejudice that is aimed at Lord Loxley in not so much about the fact he supports a Pagan faith, but more about the point that he supports a king assumed to be Pagan, I would imagine Argus and co would hate him equally as much if he was trying to place a Catholic, Muslim or Buddhist on the throne too. It is a rather wonderful mess and absolute gold for a writer as the web of deceit and intrigue widens out.

Historically the church has always used its very significant power to control the masses, and I think it is for this reason Mason would have looked to the church. He built them a new stone headquarters at Hull. He repaired and expanded the Cathedral at Lincoln, and funded Argus after the fall of the Church Council, in order to ensure that the church continues to publicly support him and convince the people to side with Mason as King, and not this so called Pagan pretender offered by Lord Loxley. As Mason is attracted to the church and its power, so are others for exactly the same reasons, and I would say if you look hard enough, you will see some of these kinds of people in positions of power in the church, local and national government and industry today, they are the ones who enforce the rules, yet they themselves do not live by them.

I see all organised religion today as divisive, and I think it shows in the writing. Religion preaches tolerance and compassion, and it is very evident in the world today that some people honestly believe in those ethics and live their life accordingly. On the other side of the coin, if you look at the internal squabbling in recent times over women vicars and bishops, and more recently gay marriage, the divisions are also clearly seen, and they are very deep indeed. On a more personal level, if you talk religion, or better yet compare religions with others, you very soon see the divisions between individuals, and this from my point of view has allowed me to open up a debate within all parties in the story to create much greater depth. Robbie takes what he has read in the small book given him by Sister Mary and found a great deal that matches in with his own belief system, and yet Sapphire who has suffered at the hands of the church hates them with good reason, although even she was touched by the kindness of Bishop Stevens. It is this wonderful set of contradictions that play well into the story line and it does give me great latitude to play people off against each other, be they Christian against Pagan or Christian against Christian.

Religion can be a mine field and I do tread carefully when writing, after all my aim is not to offend, but to provide interesting dialogue, but I do find I have a wonderful wealth of information on which to base my characters and their belief system. In book Seven you see yet another great example of the divisions created by religion when even Jett Amber, possibly one of Robbie’s loyalist supporters, speaks out publicly her objections to Robbie’s support of part of the church. It’s a wonderful heady mix that helps add yet more life to this tale, and it is my hope that it does keep the plot alive and bubbling.

I think it is safe to say that Mason probably enjoys watching the church fight internally for the controlling power of the people. To a degree it serves his purpose well, as all he has to do is sit back and wait for one to emerge with all the power, who he can then manipulate via their own greed to give him what he wants. After all he is the one holding all the best cards as he has the best equipped force, and all the reserve supplies to push the country forward into something more inclined to his view of the world. I have a three way conflict in so much as I have Mason, the church and Lord Loxley, and as the story has evolved there has been a good amount of doubt and uncertainty on all sides, which has allowed me to play out a scenario that does indeed hold tension at times. I have always felt this was good for the reader, and it has embroiled them in what possibly is one of the oldest conflicts of mankind. Historically none of these groups can be perceived as thoroughly good; all of them have a somewhat jaded history, be it the crimes and greed of the Christian faith, the rape and pillage of the Saxons, and even the Celts as they spread out from Europe long before biblical times, committed some horrendous acts against their enemies.

My aim has always been within the plot to show that not everyone is nice, and some people try very hard to do the right thing, I think this is a clear example of mankind, we are all saints and sinners and no one is perfect. As much as the old hippie inside me wants peace in the world, I fear it will never be so, it’s a great shame as we have the technology and the intelligence to actually create a far better world than we have today, hence my unrest and lack of faith in mankind at times. Sadly part of the human condition for some is greed and control, and I think no matter how far the human race goes, even if some apocalyptic incident happened, we would still be the primitive war mongering tribes we have always been. I think in the world today we may wear suits and act like we are responsible humans, but always simmering just below the surface is the primitive being we have always been, and all it takes for that side of humanity to emerge is one big chaotic event. Heirs to the Kingdom is for me a chance to lift up the false charade and take a peek at why lies underneath, and whereas sometimes it’s not really that bad, occasionally it does make all of us a little uncomfortable.

So in conclusion I will simply say this, I am a writer, and from my experience of writing and reading over my lifetime, I have found at times being uncomfortable makes for good thinking and the questioning of ourselves, and that is not always a bad thing.

As always, I love questions, because that begins good conversations that broadens the minds of both parties, and all of you are welcome at any point to message me and ask them, so until my next piece, I bid you all happy ponderings.

 

The Author’s Kingdom #7

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The Author’s Kingdom is a series of articles by Author Robin John Morgan that provides some deeper detail and understanding of his writing. This event has been written and planned for Christmas 2016

 

The Cycle of Life.

There is something quite special to the relationship between a person who works with the land and the natural world that surrounds them. Having spent most of my life working with plant life, I feel a lot more in tune with the world, than say some of my friends and acquaintances that work in offices and factories.

Even now, whilst I am no longer working as a professional in horticulture, and I sit at a desk most days to write, I still take out time to walk within the natural surroundings of my home. The strong urge to reconnect is never far away, and I can only go for so long before I feel the urgent need to work in the soil or walk beneath the trees. It is often hard to explain this to others who live a more material life within the built up areas of town or in the city. I feel that it is within this part of the person that I am that I have created the woodland peoples and the realm that they live in.

There is something about working outdoors and being part of the circle of creation of life that has a deep impact on you, and in many ways your senses changed and become more in tune with Nature. I have found after most of my life working with plants within each season that I feel the changes in the weather and the atmosphere as they build. People laugh when I tell them I can smell snow or rain coming, but I do notice those slight subtle changes. It is probably odd to say it, but the smell of the earth changes as you work through the seasons, and there is a very real difference between the damp earth of autumn and the earth of high summer.

Basing my Woodland dwellers in this cycle of a working life that is dependent upon the life cycle of life, not only gives me the chance to express a great of the joy I take from the wilderness, but I have also used it as a vehicle in which I can share some of these precious moments of my year with the readership. There is no coincidence that Robbie and Rowan react as they do to the world around them as I add small details to the background of my writing to let you know what is going on in the British wilderness at that specific time of year.

I started the books on New Year’s Day as a deliberate act so that as I progressed through the books I could introduce the circle of the year’s events and some of the tasks involved in the life cycle of the plant and tree life around the characters. It really pays to visit the British countryside and witness the life that the people there live, it is very similar to the way in which Loxley functions, and it is a very important part of our living heritage. Many towns and villages still celebrate many of what are now the old country traditions, and you would be surprised at just how many people get involved and celebrate. We are indeed a country that was built around Christian worship, and yet I am never surprised to see that a great deal of our Celtic and Saxon country based traditions are still upheld and celebrated, be it corn dollies in Somerset or well dressing in Buxton.

In many ways it is nice to know that around the country there are small pockets of people that work very hard to keep alive important skills and traditions. All of us have visited craft shows organised around our larger towns where we get to see just a small selection of a few of the living skills we hold on to, and it is important we see them, but it always appear to be the same old skills of wood turning or hand pottery throwing, yet in my travels over the past forty years I have delighted in finding that there are people keeping these important crafts alive such as spinning wool and cottons by hand and traditional weaving, even glass blowing has had a resurge over the years. What is even more important is that these skills that have been passed down from an age where they were essential to the survival of the community are now being taught to our young, and this is all happening quietly behind the scenes of modern life.

There is no coincidence that I started my series by mentioning how those who flocked to the countryside were saved by the country folk who had the skills but were too old to carry them out on a larger scale. I was questioned by a few in the early days of HTTK as to whether or not this would be a likely scenario, but if you look at the plain facts of younger people fleeing in terror from the crumbling cities, it is abundantly clear to me that the influx of extra youth into rural communities would serve to greatly enhance the survival rate of all of them.

I have always tried to encourage the people around me to look at these skills and learn them, my children have benefited greatly from both myself and my wife taking time out of our routines to teach them these skills. My children see this as fun family orientated activities, but it serves the important tradition of helping to keep these traditions alive, and it also has the added benefit of allowing me the personal experiences that enable some of my writing from a point of knowledge. We have made our own arrow heads, started fires without matches, learned to identify all the wild foods that are actually very nutritious and safe to eat. As you can imagine the kids love our wild rambles outdoors, as I always point some form of food they much as we walk, and even though they are not aware of it, I am preserving some very important ancient skills that sadly were once common knowledge.  

As with all things within the writing community, every experience helps to enhance the writing and although most readers probably do not realise it, HTTK is riddled with some really important ancient skills that are the reason we survived through the pre modern times. Ok so maybe we will not have some major apocalyptic event, I mean it’s not like I am planning one any time soon, but the thing here is we do really know the fate of the world? When I look back at my youth and then compare it to just the last five years of my life, I think it is very noticeable how the weather has become more and more extreme round the globe, even here in the UK we are seeing flooding and freak weather we have not witnessed before. It matters not if this caused by global warming or not, the fact is that the world as we know it at the moment is very unpredictable, and so the scenario I have painted or something similar could very well happen, and I feel that is even more an important point to consider. Learning a few of the skills of our past may be the very thing that gets us through some major future event, and that is why I feel it’s important to share the information or make people aware, which is one of the many purposes that HTTK also serves as a hidden layer between the pages. Ok so we don’t all have to become arran clad folk singers, who spend our days weaving and carving, although I must admit I think the influence of my father has given me a bit of a desire to get into wood work, which I need to find more time to practice more, but let’s be honest being more connected with anything remotely natural is not exactly a bad thing.

I cannot mention nature, country living without the influence of Pagan ways on my woodland dwelling folk. Earth Faith, which I created as a slightly enhanced version of what is traditional Paganism. I have had the privilege of being around Pagan’s for a very long time, and I do have a very deep understanding of their beliefs, many of which I share. HTTK does contain a huge amount of pagan ritual and beliefs due mainly to the fact that the faith is based to work within the wheel of the year and it is a very seasonal linked faith. When I wrote the very first draft of the Bowman of Loxley with a readers beta group, a great deal of the questions I got were Pagan based. The Beta group asked if it was actually feasible that a woodsman type belief would actually resurge across the country as depicted in the introduction of the book. I think they were surprised to learn that actually in this country there are far more Pagans than people realise, it is a faith that has been growing steadily since the 1950’s and I have been a large part of it. Unlike most mainstream religions Pagan tend to be quite secretive about their beliefs, which mainly is due to the stigma placed on it by both the Christian and Islam faiths. Devil worshiper is a tag often placed on Pagan, and even in this modern time, the slightest hint of anything remotely Satan based is still something very much shunned and frowned upon. The sad thing is that Satan or the devil is a Christian creation, and no self-respecting Pagan would support such nonsense, but mainly due to the fact that for almost two thousand years the Church has demonised Pagans, it is still a very sore point with modern pagans today, and society frowns due to a huge lack of understanding of the Pagan faith.

From my own observations and involvement with Pagan belief, I see it as a kind of spiritual environmentalism, which considering who my lead female character was going to be revealed as works perfectly into the woodland community. From my own point of reference and my knowledge of the lifestyle that surrounds plant life, I do not feel that there is a great stretch of the imagination to understand that people who turn to country ways in order to survive would embrace a Pagan based faith. I have always felt that people would tend to embrace what was around them, and Pagan tradition and lifestyles do still predominately get practiced on a higher scale in more rural areas today. It did help create a good backdrop on which to work in the politics of some of the Christian faith, after all we have over a thousand years of historical rivalry between the two, so from a writing point of view it does give me a good vehicle for a lack of understanding between the two factions. Although it was never planned or scripted, I have found from my conversations with readers of HTTK that it has actually broadened peoples understanding of the faith, which cannot be such a bad thing as knowledge breeds acceptance, so I take that as a plus for the books.

In HTTK I have taken the workings of the rural community, added a more earth based faith, and introduced what are basically the living skills of the medieval era, spliced with a small amount of modern technology. In my mind this was always a natural direction to take considering the scenario I had created, but I have to admit that from the initial scripting, to what has evolved in the books to date I am happy to find that the story almost feels timeless. I have had quite a few people comment that suddenly during the reading they stopped to think, and realised this is a story set in the future, and yet it would also fit snuggly into modern or even medieval times. It is hard for to me comment as at times I become so immersed in the story as I write that even I lose track of the date, although I will add at this point I do actually keep a calendar of 2038-40, to which I add each event as it is written just so I am aware of the actual date and the season. It is important that I keep this kind of record of events as it allows me to place my horticultural knowledge in its correct time frame, which is why I can write about the aconite popping through the snow or the honeysuckle creeping through the hedgerows of green.

There are days I sit back and ponder just why the hell I spend so much time sat at my desk adding all this stuff to the story in ever increasing layers, and then I get a message or someone I meet who has read the books comments on a particular aspect of the story, and it is during these moments of seeing the enthusiasm of a reader that all of it makes sense and it brings me a great feeling of satisfaction. I really do enjoy the feedback I get and the chances to explain something in deeper detail, and I always encourage questions, and so as I pull this next instalment of The Authors Kingdom to a close I will say that I am here and even though I have written a lot for this event already, I am happy to work out a piece that explains any aspect of the Kingdom, all you need do is message me, and I will write something to provide my view of it for you. It matters not whether I have one, or one million readers, as long as it is required from one of you, I am happy to keep writing it, and I am very grateful to all of you for the love and support you have shown my work, as always my thanks to you all.

 

 

 

 

The Author’s Kingdom #5

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The Author’s Kingdom is a series of articles by Author Robin John Morgan, as he explains some of his reasoning behind how he writes the Heirs to the Kingdom series, as part of the Christmas event for 2016.

The problem with calling a series Heirs to the Kingdom, and making it about the lines of the future, is that eventually someone has to die to make way for the next generation.

There have been many times when a reader has asked me. “Oh why did you have to kill so and so?” Feeling the emotion of their words makes it difficult to simply answer, “because it was their time to go.” Like all other aspects of HTTK there is always a well thought out reason behind the writing, I am not after all George R R Martin, and the removal of a character is never an unfeeling moment within the writing process. Timing is important, actually timing is everything, but to the reader lost in the pages, I know that there is never a good time to take a character forever.

From a personal point of view, I have never believed that death is the end, and I still to this day remember my physics classes from school. ‘Energy does not die, it merely changes its state and continues in another form.’  It is as much my own personal spiritual philosophy as much as it is the basics of science, and with that in mind I have followed my belief and written it into HTTK.

In the early days, I pointed the way with Gwendolyn and Opal, and then I began and followed each character and walked them through the reasons they had to leave, and what follows is my reasoning behind each of them. I love that many of the readers have become as involved with these people as I have in their creation, and the fact that you see them as real, is without doubt the finest compliment I have ever been paid, and so I thank all of you.

ERIC. (Book One)                                                              

Eric was a hard choice, because in my first draft he was never meant to meet his end so early. I had actually created a character to be killed in the silliness that was Harry. He was deliberately written in a comic piece, and never meant to live, but as his popularity soared and I saw the benefit of keeping him, I am sorry to say poor Little Eric became my next target. I will add that he would have gone in book two though, so his demise was a little earlier than expected, but he died for the very same reason.

Eric was always meant to be the one thing that brought everyone together and created a deep bond between the fractured and suffering members of the group. He was young and inexperienced, but dedicated, and that alone gave a privileged within the Specialists who wanted to take him under their wing. I did write a piece in the early days where the Specialists got to see the mass slaughtered people as the Cutters moved north, and Eric’s death was meant to be the thing that cemented them all together at the end of what was a harrowing time. Because I brought his death forward a little, I changed parts towards the end of Book One, and then later wrote a more detailed piece that was added during the journey to save Alice, and that became what I call the mound of red flowers on the edge of Scotland, after the burial of an entire town is butchered by the Cutters.

The Death of Eric in Book One does work so much better and Harry lived, which has actually been to the benefit of HTTK, as Harry has provided some wonderful and interesting moments. Eric’s death as a sacrifice and then the honour showed to him by his comrades I think is some of my best writing, as it really does add weight to the Specialists at a time when I was still trying to paint the basic picture of HTTK before adding in all the detail, so if I am honest, it was a good change that did indeed improve the story.

Hog (Anthony Ashford) Book Two

Hog was a much easier decision in the scheme of things, which probably sounds colder than it is intended, but when writing these books, none of you will understand the pressure I feel at times when it is time for a character to depart. In my mind Hog was an important yet simple loss, you see Hog was James’s younger, simplistic, if not stronger brother. After the death of their parents James (Fish) put his own life on hold to ensure the safety of his brother, but he was destined to be at the side of Amethyst. It was quite a simple decision, you see had Hog lived, James no matter how much he loved Amethyst would never have consented to marry her and move to Avalon and abandon his younger brother. It really was that simple, and so Hog was written out allowing for James to brood and recover from the death of his brother before the introduction of Amethyst into the Specialists. I felt a three book gap would serve as a good period of mourning, and so at the end of five and eventually in book six James finds his happiness besides Amethyst and moved to serve as the Queens consort in the crystal castle in the Mirrored Lake. In a way I think it helped cement the plot, as James deserved to find happiness, and even if Hog had remained at his side, it would still have meant him leaving the Specialists as they made their way back to Loxley, and so the outcome would have been the same. Hog on the stair protecting Runestone made for a far more honourable exit for him, so I think it all worked very well in the end.

Hilda Pickles (Mum to Maggs) Book Two

Most people forget about Hilda, she is the feisty yet very caring older mother of Maggs. She wears pink wellingtons with flowers painted on, puts water bottles under her pigs at night, and cares deeply for all animals and people in the world. It is a shame that few remember her passing, because I loved writing her and was actually quite fond of her, but in all honesty there was no more really to write about Honey Hill at that point. Even though I had considered a return to Honey Hill at some point, during the writing of Book Two it had not been scripted yet as I wanted to see where the story was going naturally, and so I took Hilda out defending her animals from the Cutters in one last act of bravery. However for those of you who have read Book Seven, you will know I decided to add a little tribute to her in honour of her memory.

Martin Reef Book Three.

Once again with Martin I had reached a point where Big John was becoming the principle character of the group close to Robbie and Runestone. Shortly before the writing of Book Three I wrote the piece. “Life from a Crushed Rose.” The story of Rose and Sinclair, and so once I began writing the third book I already knew there would be losses within it. During the book the group separates and each takes their own route up to the top of the castle of the Raven to meet in the final battle, and it started to become clear that I had a few too many running round the castle, and so I gave a great deal of thought to thinning out the group a little.  Hard as it is to maybe understand, Martin was still a minor role that had not be as developed and I had no extra plans for him, whereas I had already pencilled in the partnership of Bear with Big John, and so in the final scene of the fight in the castle Martin is killed by the Dark One. In many ways, I think Martin accurately illustrates the sacrifice solders make every day, and I think there are times when we need to understand this point. Today we have great freedoms due to the sacrifice of many men and women like Martin during the world wars we have suffered in the past. I am absolutely anti-war (Yes even though I write this stuff) and yet I recognise the bravery and dedication our service men show every day, I think in my way Martin is my voice showing this and also showing how simply soldiers pay the highest price along with their families. All of us should feel the pain and the anger Lord Loxley felt, because maybe then we would speak out more against the horrors caused by wars, and petition for more peace.

Mac Book Three.

Ok I am just going to say this once, Mac was based on the characteristics of a group of three individuals who made my life at School a living hell, and so yes, from day one I wrote a character I was never going to like. Mac does serve as an important vehicle, in so much as his mother Una has to show some great strength in future parts of the story, and I have also found that I have gained great strength out of some pretty painful times. Una has given up the life of her other child to save her mother, and puts her focus on raising Mac, who in turn, turns against her and betrays everyone. It was easy to write him as I knew his death was imminent, and I must say I did enjoy those moments where Alice vented her frustrations at him and humiliated him. I also think there is a lesson to be learned from Mac, in so much as he did have a choice, and yet he chose the path of power and domination, which resulted in his life ending on the end of Violet feathered arrow. He could have walked a different path, he chose no too, and that was his undoing.

Lee Sherman. Book Three

I think it was clear from the start that Lee was the last of a generation, and I think it made very simple deduction that he would not last long, he was old and he was ill and he just wanted one more moment of action like he had experienced in his youth with Jake. I really enjoyed writing him into the story and I think he played his role very well indeed.

Rose and Sinclair Book Three

In book five I added the whole piece I had written prior to book three to explain the loss of Rose and the reasons behind it as she made way for Grace. Read the chapter Life from a crushed Rose.

Robert Lox Book Four.

Knowing Robert had to go was never going to be easy to write, and to be honest I wrote his death several times and did not really like any of them. None of them carried the weight of his position and loss as I wanted them too, and so after some frustration instead of writing his death, I slipped in a few lines and then focused on the consequence’s from the point of view of Robbie, Runestone and Jess, and to be honest I think it gave great weight to start of the book. Once again the difficulties of writing these parts often has a positive effect, and Robert’s death inspired one part of the story where Steph talks with Robbie as he heads home from the moors. I really enjoyed putting this small part together for the book, and I think Steph pays Robert a mighty tribute with her words. I think I have said it hundreds of times since, “This series is called HEIRS to the Kingdom” Simply put Robbie is the heir, and so Robert had to go.

Scarlet of Caerleon. Book Four

Once again Scarlet was always going to have to step down in order to make way for her daughter Jett Amber. In the chapter “The Coming of Queens” I paint the first real picture of what is to come with Jett. It is through her grief that you see how much training she had been given, and in a way that chapter was my little tribute to the power that was Scarlet of Caerleon. I have never really decided if there should be an after task for Scarlet, but I have referred to her legacy and skills in working out future events in advance to prepare the defences of Loxley, and once again this shows her the greatest of respect, not just from myself, but from those who worked around her.

Ruby Book Four

Ok some of you still have not forgiven me this one. Put as simply as I can, Ruby can walk onto any battlefield and wipe out the whole army opposed to Robbie in a matter of blindingly white seconds. As long as Ruby lived, there was no longer a need to continue writing HTTK, sadly as much as I loved her  and loved writing her, she had to go so the story could progress, and I had the time and space to fill in all the blanks I had created. I always had a backup plan for Ruby, some of which you will see in Book Seven.

Mordred Book Four

Mordred was not so much killed as dragged screaming from the sword, and disposed of by Rhiannon in some unknown outer reach were the Dark One will never find him again, and that is probably a good thing. There was a very good reason for adding Mordred, and simply put, it was Raven Merle for Book Seven.

Alexandrite Book Five.

The death of Ally was simply a huge shock for everyone. She was a healer, weapon less and one of the gentlest members of the Specialists, and that makes her death so much harder to take. Life is never simple and we do not always get things our own way, and book five shows this to the Specialists in a brutal fashion. It’s the horror of war that the innocent must suffer, and this is another example of how evil war can be. There is no justification for her death, no reason she deserved to die, like so many in this world, she was in the wrong place at the wrong time, she pushed Gaynor out of the way in a selfless manner to save her, and in doing so it cost her her life. Nothing I write will ever make that right, and I certainly will never try.

Leenard/Merlin Book Five.

Did Merlin die, or cover his tracks, there are answers in later books (Smiles)

Deaths that were not Deaths.

Mason Knox Book two.

I love the this moment in Book Two where Mason and Robbie meet. It took a lot longer to write than you would ever think, and I think it was worth it. The joke was it was not his death, or at least I never intended him to stay dead, the clue here is in the next book with Mordred. It was always clear in my mind that if the Dark One can bring back Mordred, most readers would work out she would do it again with Mason. It’s all about the life tied to the Raven, and there will be much more on this subject in the final book.

Jade Opal Book Two.

Ok so Jade did not die, ( be honest we all panicked a little) but she would have if it had not been for the intervention of Runestone. What a horrible choice to have to make, and as you see it causes both Jade and Runestone immense pain. Life is about pain, and one of the reasons I added it was, firstly to actually show you what Una had done to save her mother, and secondly without death, we would not understand the value of life. It is an important lesson for Runestone as she makes the transition from young girl to women, and also as the force of Life within nature, she also needs to understand the worth of the life she gives. I think Runestone learns from this the value of the gift of Eve, and in doing so, she takes life sparingly and only with great reverence. It was a hard lesson, but possibly the most important one she will ever learn.

I realise there are other deaths around the edges, Sebastian being one who made room for his younger brother Bear, although as you see Bear does have another brother in Brett. Brett is older than Bear and should rule next, but in book five he gets crushed, and as it stands he will never recover enough to rule properly, and so he has side stepped his position for later when Bear takes his place.

Treen lost her father in Book Five, something she had to do to fully understand her role in life in the future. It was also important she was seen to be doing something against Mason, so when the time does come, she will be able to return to her home in Morbihan and take her father’s place.

Bess the dog was the sole focus of Woody in Books four and five, and as a result Woody was remaining isolated. In Book Six he takes on a task that will greatly affect his future, and as he recovers from the death of his beloved dog, he will find his inner courage to move forward and finally step out of the shadow of his sheltered life.

As you now see, losing a character is not a discriminate thing, it is well thought out long before the event happens, and it is something I do take seriously as I am sure most writers do. I honestly believe life is the single most precious thing we have, and I feel it should be valued far more than it is in this modern world today. I take a lot of care when writing these losses and try in some way to honour the life given. I know that the readers who have become deeply involved with the characters feel the loss as much as they would any one they may know, and I hope you can see, I try to show the very same level of respect and sensitivity whenever I take a character from the books.

The Author’s Kingdom #1

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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.

Creating Loxley and the Woodland Realm.

For those of you who do not know me, the woodland of the UK is a precious and very important place in my life. From the age of five I have had the luxury of being able to slip over the fence and walk in amongst the trees, and it is a place to which I hold great affinity. For me personally the tree is massively important, I see it as the symbol of life itself and the true form to which I identify the natural world.

When I first began to write Heirs to the Kingdom I was told not to title the first book “The Bowman of Loxley,” because people would think it was just another Robin Hood story, which for those of you who have read it, you know it most certainly is not.

This story is indeed inspired by a few of my favourite stories from childhood, firstly my love of King Arthur and Merlin, combined with the tales of Robin Hood, but more than that is also my love of books such as Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe  and the Swiss Family Robinson. All of these books at an early age inspired me so much; they left a mark on me that even to this day has never left me. As I passed into my teenage days, I was captivated by books like Day of the Triffids, and the Crysalids, War of the Worlds and the Three Musketeers. I guess I got hooked on post-apocalyptic tales and anything that had great comradery as well as survival topics. 

I still love all things that involve living an alternative life within nature, going off grid, and leaving the modern world behind me. I find the modern world at times to be quite tiresome. I see it as a world that values possession’s and money more than humanity and compassion, and with the addition of social media, it does feel at times like all people want these days is to be validated for actually doing very little, I mean let’s be honest, posting 1000 selfies is hardly an achievement. I cannot deny there have been moments when I have sat and watched the world and thought maybe mankind should end tomorrow before we ruin everything on this planet, or just feel the urge to build a tree house and go live alone in the woodland, where I would be surprisingly happy alone.

Of course that then leads me into thinking about what would happen if a massive disaster wiped most of us out, could modern people honestly survive, have we salvaged enough of the arts and crafts skills and growing techniques of the past to really make it?  It was at moments of thought like this in my youth that I began to play out different scenarios in my head. It is actually a brilliant topic of thought, and with some time you can really look at a million different combinations of how life after destruction would look, and Kingdom is just one of many.

Add to that the end of one of my favourite books, King Arthur, which clearly states he will return one day to save us all, which has been a popular theme throughout all the mythology of history, and you can pretty much see where HTTK began. My ponderings of all the above were eventually going to splice at some point, which was actually around the early 1980’s.

When I first began to look at how I would set up the world I have now created, I hadn’t really decided on what had actually caused the end of modern mankind. I started at the heart of all of things and so selected a farm, as I knew the remote location and ability to produce food would be vastly important. It was also clear to me just by looking at modern news broadcasts, if we ever really do have a massive disaster on this planet, cities would be the last place you would want to be. I know from my horticultural experience that most crops are sown between January and March depending on which crops they are, and so it was clear to me to have any chance of making this plausible, the tragic event whatever it would become, had to take place from April onwards.

So I had a farm and with a little research, I found some old records from Loxley on the border of Derbyshire and Yorkshire, which showed that in the 1600’s an archaeological dig unearthed 14 dwellings which were close together and dated back to the Early Medieval period. The lord of the time who conducted the dig, said he had found evidence that this was the actual home of Robert of Barnsdale, the young son of a local who shot his neighbour’s dog, for killing some of his sheep with a long bow. He was fined a penny by the Barnsdale Magistrate, but did not pay it as he absconded into the large bordering Sherwood Forest and was branded an outlaw. Old maps show that Sherwood Forest was much larger than it is today, in fact not only did it cover most of Nottingham; it spread across a great deal of Derbyshire as well. The whole area of Barnsdale was in later days divided into small hamlets, of which the one in that area was named Loxley as it still is today. It was perfect, and so now I had a farm and 14 houses to build my story around, and from that point on with more research and a lot of creative license, I created what the readers now know to be the Stockade.

I started initially with a family tree; I put the head of the Lox household Jake at the top, added his wife, and then began to work on his three sons and their family. Jake was the land owner, and the eldest son had to be the parent of Robbie, who at that point in my mind was still a very young boy. That gave me the occupants of the farm, which was a big operation, so then I added a few staff, of which Ann Kirk and Agatha Patterdale both worked for Jake and lived in two of the 14 houses, later this was to change and they became business owners and tenants of Jake. Alf Smith came next, followed by the Appleton family, and slowly the circle of people expanded, at which point I came up with my reason for the introduction of Runestone, via her mother moving in and setting up Trinkets and Trousers, the shop that sold jewellery and clothing.

I wrote the part of the meeting between Robbie and Runestone at her gate in the very early days, but it wasn’t until I started the fifth book I decided to dig out the very small piece I had noted down in the early 1980’s and give it a full make over to update it to fit better within what had become the evolving storyline.

The actual idea of the Stockade came in 2005, not long before I began the massive task of arranging all the notes which would come a year later. It occurred to me that at some point Robbie would need to be pushed into the limelight, and even though all my notes to that point had him as a 12 year old and Runestone as a 11 year old, I knew to make the story have a more believable factor, it had to have a lead character that could actually take the people forward. It was at this time, I decided Jake had to leave the story and make way for his son Robert, who would eventually pass the title on to his heir, so story the evolved behind the scenes with the death of old Jake Lox and Robbie aged to almost 18 years of age literally overnight.

It made sense that if the country was falling apart and you had a large property filled with fields of food, you would be open to raids from those of a more violent nature, and so Jake being a smart man, began to erect a wall from the vast forests of pine and fir that surrounded him. I was clear it would be hard and gruelling work, and it was obvious to me that a man like Jake would offer to support others around him. Having lived there all his life, he would be well known in the area, and I thought he would be the type of man to gather those in need together on his property to protect them, but also he would need the extra help. So by the time he began his wall of tree trunks, there would have been no shortage of willing hands. All this was carefully worked into the background via small short stories, which eventually lead to the accident with Jake that ultimately caused his demise. Even though I was creating this story, I pretty much used Heirs to the Kingdom as a working title, and so I was always aware this would be a tale that slowly reduced the cast to those final few remaining heirs. I suppose in one way, I always considered the point that once  I reached those final few, I could then create another continuing tale of those who came later, although I will say at this point, this is not something I have worked on to date.

As I planned and day dreamed in my spare time, I found myself really getting into the idea of setting up my own farm commune, it was a powerful idea that really inspired me. I laugh a little as I think back now, I worked in horticulture at a large Garden Centre at the time, and there were many hours of long laborious tasks to do, especially in early spring. On all those times alone in a greenhouse I would let my mind wander as I pricked out seedlings or potted hundreds of plants up, it was some of my happiest times alone in the greenhouse’s working on planting up hanging baskets or lining out the floors with thousands of fresh new seedlings. It was the kind of work where you just got on with it, because the routine was such that you worked on auto pilot, and that was wonderful as it allowed my thoughts to wander. Every night I made notes in a scruffy old pad, and in many ways this was just a way to distract my constantly busy mind as this imaginary village set on the moors got more and more elaborate. I can honestly say, I never once considered what I was doing, it was just a way to control the endless internal dialogue of my busy mind, and it was never meant to be published.

In April 1993, I got the flu. I had watched how we had lost members of staff at work to sick leave, and had just taken up the slack with the other members of our team to cope, but this flu was pretty different and we struggled for a few weeks with low staff numbers that left me exhausted. One Sunday night after a long day and feeling really tired, I prepared for work and then went to bed. To my surprise I woke up on Wednesday morning feeling really rough. My partner at the time told me of how I turned almost white as I burned with a fever for two days, and she was greatly relieved to see me awake, even if I was coughing and sneezing like a mad man. Once recovered and back in work, I was amazed at how I had slept for two days without even being aware of it, I understood that this flu had just hit me out of nowhere, and I think that was the moment when I realised how susceptible we are to virus infections. It was during the months that followed that I began to read of the great flu epidemic that wiped out millions, and I understood I had found my way to explain how Loxley had become such an isolated place. This was the time when the Red Death entered my thoughts, just as always I took fact and blended it with a little fiction, and then worked out the stages at which the virus would spread and incubate to create a scenario that could be applied to my now fast growing village of people and notes. The picture was beginning to widen as my virus swept across the country and finally I had a great backdrop for my small community. Possibly the oddest thing was when I did eventually start to write HTTK, the Red Death was just a loose definition even though I had a good amount of notes on it. The detail came later and was included at the start of book five, and written from the point of view of looking back at the events of that time.

I am not sure where twenty twelve really came from; I know I wrote it on my file in 1989 in red marker pen. It could have been something I read, I really do not know, but for some unexplained reason that was a date fixed in my mind, and I never really felt a need to change it, as this was not something I had ever thought of publishing. Parts of my notes were extensive family trees with dates, that went right back to the times of King Arthur, I literally listed ever fictitious member of the family and who they married and who their children were, I giggle now when I look at it and think “How Obsessed was I back then?” The time line it provides has been an incredible tool as I wrote through the series of books, so even though I think of myself at times as being quite bonkers, it has served me very well, and is the most used tool in my note stack. Shortly after I published the first version of HTTK I realised it was 2009, and only three years short of the actual fictional event. I think with hindsight maybe I should have changed it, the problem was once I started working on the story, the task of changing the time line and then changing the manuscripts to fit the amended dates was simply too mammoth to carry out, and so it has remained as originally written.

With a reason for world change, a good community growing daily, and my lead characters aged and in place with a fictitious history behind them from distant mythical tales, I had most of my imaginary world in place. Between 2000 and 2005 I spent a lot of time filling in gaps, I looked at the world through slightly destructive eyes, as I pulled it apart to see what would last and what would fall. I hit the books and studied the growth rates of plants, the destructive powers of earthquakes, how the weather could bring damage and chaos, and I devoured books on plagues, Virus’s, HIV, Mad Cows disease, Chicken Flu etc.. I am sure my local library saw me as some wild villain looking to kill off the planet.

I added religion in the form of a slightly altered and updated Pagan based faith, I looked into alternative energy, natural fuels, and ancient weapons, and as I learned more, I pencilled it in between the lines. By 2006 I had a huge mountain of notes all scribbled on pads and crammed into my old metal filing cabinet, it was a mess, and so I decided that I would finally start to sort it all out.

Before Christmas of 2005 I bought a second hand computer, it was a little old and needed a good cleaning out, but it worked and had a word processor which was all I really wanted. After a few updates and a more advanced copy of Windows installing, it was ready to use. On New Year’s Day I switched on the computer and opened the top draw of the filing cabinet and began to type up all the hand written notes creating files to store them in as I went. It took almost a year to actually type it all up and file it where I could find it quickly, it did not help that once I began, I also started to make more additions as the process was very creative and the size of the task doubled. Eventually the task was done, my battered and slightly out of date computer became my first real vehicle for writing properly, and although I typed with only two fingers at the time, I rapidly became a very fast and efficient typist, something that has not changed much today, as I rarely use more than three fingers. Even though I have since added a more up to date desktop and laptop computers for editing on to more advanced and up to date programs, that first computer became my only writing computer for HTTK, sadly I got the first six and half of book seven out of it before it burned out in 2014, but it served me very well, and in honour of my wonderfully battered PC, I replaced it with a second hand computer, just to keep that familiar feel. I very much like the idea of using old technology for writing this story on, and I have always felt that somewhere in Harry’s shed is and old PC just waiting for him to find it and tinker with it to get it going again, and maybe one day, Blades will use it to write her side of the story of what it was like growing up with Mad Harry as her father, and becoming the first new recruit of the Specialists.

Finally with the task completed which also involved many small back stories from the past, I had enough material to seriously start. What had begun as a day dream was now a whole race of woodland dwelling people, who lived a sustainable life on the land, and worked hard to survive in peace. I had the Stockade protected by the land owner, the food, the salvaged technology to assist and a whole bag of interesting character profiles to introduce into the story as and when I needed them. The woodland Realm had finally taken on its true shape.

In May 2007 with a computer filled with neatly ordered notes, I began to write, “Loxley is a town set deep in the wild moor,” and I was off… Above my desk was a map of my Loxley, a family tree that spanned four feet by three feet, and in my mind was a picture of snow on a farm house that had a huge industrial greenhouse set away from the back door. Beside it was a barn that rang to the sound of steel, and in the distance behind the now bare rows of apple trees, you could just make out the distant silhouette of a tall wooden wall. Behind me was the long driveway that lead to the hawthorn clad lane, and that took you through the crisp white snow to the cold empty street of fourteen houses, where only a few occupants had risen to start the cold wintery day. Years of scribbling notes, and filing suddenly came alive as I took the best part of twenty years’ worth of work, and just as Eve did so long ago, I breathed life into it, and set it free to grow and evolve. This was going to be my kingdom and a world I would love to walk in.

It felt like an extraordinary feeling as I wrote. I combined all those wonderful moments of my childhood alone in the woodland, and every little dirt path I ran along became a road in my story, all the hidden paths I knew between the trees became the routes taken by my Specialists. The steep embankments I struggled up were the same ones my hero climbed to hunt or look out across the now deserted tree filled landscape, and all those trees I loved to climb, which are still some of my all-time favourite trees, became the prominent trees of my story. Each and every step my characters took, I could see as clear as watching video in my mind, and it all became the foundation on which I would build a story.

It probably sounds quite selfish, but at the time it was my story, I guarded it and kept it to myself, literally no other living soul knew about it, not even my parents. It was precious and special and just for me, and at that time I had absolutely no intention at all of sharing it. That was to come a little later when quite by accident I mentioned I had written something to an employee, but that is not a tale for here, the result is now known, I eventually submitted under pressure to share it, and as a result and after a lot of convincing, reluctantly I published it.

From my own point of view, I have not really considered what being a writer really is, I suppose it is something that I have naturally fallen into. I look at the world today and see the wealth of writers that are around, and whereas I use to see them as these untouchable people, I think I now understand that like myself they too have this internal desire to express the chaos of their minds in a written form. There is a deep satisfaction in the process of starting from scratch, and then slowly layering together all the facts and building up a world that even though is make believe, its feels as realistic as the one we live in. I have given many hours to the kingdom and it has proven to be one of the most rewarding experiences of my life, especially considering that today others may walk within it. There is no doubt that isolation plays a big role in writing, and also I think putting yourself in any form in front of the world can breed some insecurity, and yet I think finally after ten years of none stop work I can say it has all been worthwhile.

Over the following articles I will start to pull apart my word and show you some of the deeper aspects of it, and I hope that again for you as a reader of this work, it will provide yet deeper illumination.

Pondering as a Writer.

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I am often asked why I started later in life to write, and it’s a good question that I am not sure I always answer correctly.

One of the benefits of being a writer is that I get to ponder a great many things. Whilst working on Heirs to the Kingdom, I have had a very broad canvass on which to throw my thoughts and speculate, and then using a little creative licence, I have had the opportunity to create elements of life and living in a completely manufactured world and scenario.

When I first began to write, I had to decide whether or not this world I created for my characters was going to appear real (As in based on the world today) or imaginary. I chose to use a world created on the basis of the real world today, and to some that may have appeared limiting, after all, a completely imaginary and fabricated world would have given me greater scope for something utterly fantastical. In a fabricated world I could have expanded my imagination to its limits, and I have to confess I do have a strong desire to write something completely manufactured at some point.

But here is the crux of the deal, this world actually presents as equally as wide a canvass to write about. I understand that may appear odd at first, but if you read the kind of books I do, then very quickly you will understand that this current world in which we live has so many mysteries and riddles that we cannot solve, that it provides a doorway into which we can take our imagination and expand out many different scenarios and theories.

Take for instance subjects such as Ghosts, Magic, Witches, Faith, ESP, Alternative Medicine, Meditation, The Bermuda Triangle, UFO’s, History, and dare I even mention Archaeology?

It’s a curious list, and yet in these times of our so called modern advancement in science, we still have many unanswered questions about the validity of many things. Science says if it cannot be proven then it cannot be accepted, and yet every single item within the scientific community that we all accept as fact, is but a theory until someone comes along to disprove it.

For a writer that is simply a loaded gun waiting to be fired, we can wander inside our minds and expand anything using the theory of its true until proved otherwise as raw material just waiting to be given a basis for reality, and I personally have been delighted to do exactly that.

I was once visited by the husband of a reader who wanted to purchase the latest book, and as we sat chatting as it turned out he was an old friend from work, he asked me. “How do you do it?” Meaning how the guy he once worked with could, (who he had no idea was a secret writer,) create this world of fantasy that his wife had become quite involved with. I could clearly see his confusion as he tried to join what are the two very different natures of me, one being a dedicated horticulturalist, and the other being the writer I had become. In his mind it was clear that these two very different personalities did not entirely gel, but as I explained, if you look at the world there are so many questions and contradictions, it surprise me more people do not see them and ask questions of them. I am not sure he was convinced, but the fact is, that if you look hard and deeply at most things, I am sure you will find a thread on which you can weave a tale.

Look at History? Let’s be honest here, the one thing we know is fact about our history books is that history is always written by the victor. The guys that lose do not get too much of a say in what goes down in our history books, I look to my own life for the best examples. Simply looking at what was taught in school during the 1970’s and what has emerged today shows me that a great deal of what I was taught is falsehoods and lies. The victor chooses what will be written, and to a certain degree hides what they would prefer kept in the dark. Not sure you agree, well let’s look at say Native American history, or even the slave trade, both have now been proven to contain many false hoods to hide certain acts of evil, and comparing what we know today with what I was taught in school forty years ago, the facts are now very different indeed. Creative license was most certainly a contributing factor to our so called books of historical facts, and I think in a way it is a flaw in mankind to try and present them in a better light than maybe they deserve.

Look at the battle of Hastings? We all know the story of the glorious victory of William the Conqueror and how he faked a retreat to lure Harold off his hill, and then turned on him and his mighty warriors beat down the Saxons to victory and the crown of England, we have the Bayeux Tapestry to prove it was all true.

Ok well firstly it was made at the court of William (The Victor) so I have some doubt as to how exact it is. Secondly what it fails to show is the fact that Harold had spent most of the weeks prior in the north beating back the Vikings, whom he routed from Britain and pushed back into the sea. Harold then got word of William, and made a hasty long journey back towards the south in order to meet him in battle. The day of the battle, Harold’s men were tired from an exhausting march south, and had Harold chosen to wait and rest his men before taking on William, history could have told an entirely different story. These kinds of missing facts and contradictions within history are gold to a writer, they create loop holes in which we can slip in and spin a creative yarn.

Another of my personal favourite topics is archaeology. I know right, people always look at me and have that, “he is well beyond reality look.” OK I get that, but do some research and you find all sorts of wonderful tools to fuel a writer’s imagination. I grew up being taught Stonehenge was approximately four thousand years before Christ in age. Today it is now being touted that it could well be dated as being somewhere around fifteen thousand years BC; I mean how delightfully thrilling is that? We just took a giant step backwards in time of 11 thousand years, which can only mean that we have been around far longer than first thought and we have been building stuff long before it was believed we could, Yay the pre-iron age men.

Speaking of the Iron Age, just when exactly was that? If your search engines are right, and they say they are, the Iron Age has been dated to somewhere around 1200 to 600 BC, in the UK it is closer to the 600 BC as it took many years for the techniques to travel to this land. Hmm ponderous this thought, so I ask the question, how come at this moment in our time are the very same people who dated this age, finding Celtic metal and gold artefacts that date back to around 3000 BC in the UK? Another thing that always confused me at me school was, how come Rome was this glorious city made of marble with amazing buildings, and yet the history books tell us when the Romans arrive here (Britain) we were all in mud huts and unable to create anything? Rome grew to its glorious heights, as the history books prove, because they paid the Celts to guard the northern boarders of Italy, which basically places Celts on their door step for a very long time before Rome grew to power, are you seriously telling me all they learned was how to make wine and fight, I think not? You see what I mean, loop holes everywhere, and for me as a writer, the real world is providing me with some fantastic information to exploit.

As a writer I see my job as the creator of a vehicle that will open up a scenario that will legitimately allow the reader to use their imagination, and be transported into a life that can feel as real as their day to day life. I write thick books that can take anywhere between 4 to 11 days to read depending on the reader. I spend several years working away behind the scenes to create each book, I work every day on some kind of scenario be it research, writing, editing, talking to others, or simply pondering. I look at life and people and what we know, and then I rip it apart and rebuild it in a way that I hope will fascinate and make you think. I lob in real life mixed with fantasy, I take the human and mix it up with faith, magic, and all the other none proven things in this world, and when I work at it for long enough, I create something so extremely different that it actually makes some kind of sense, and hopefully it entertains. It is a wonderful thing to do, and it gives me the greatest of pleasure, and even though I sit here alone with my thoughts and will never meet the people who share my words and my world, simply knowing they have derived some form of pleasure is more than enough to keep me searching for more.

Heirs to the Kingdom is a full and complex tale based on life, and embroidered with many loop holes that I have exploited to create my own tapestry. It does feel very real at times and occasionally a little fantastical, which I adore. I have embedded many little pearls of wisdom, and some philosophy for good measure and given it all a thoroughly good shake up to mix it well. I hope it is indeed something that will delight anyone who reads it, it has certainly been a truly wonderful thing to create. I do get asked a great deal why I gave up working in horticulture after 35 years, and the simple truth is, my mind wandered elsewhere and it gave me a huge amount of joy.

And that folks, Is why I chose to become a full time writer.

 

 

Truce for Christmas.

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This is a very special time of year for families, it matters not what your faith may be, because a vast part of the world has been swept into the hustle that is Christmas. For many it is a time of peace and quiet, as the shops close and most of the countries take a pause, to allow those of faith to celebrate their own unique customs and rituals that represent their own ideas of family and their celebration of it.

It is a time I think, most of us consider as a time of peace and goodwill to all, and so it is very unlikely that many of us would be thinking of war. Sadly today there are parts of the world caught in conflict, and even though many of those involved will be placed somewhere on guard and watching, far away from their loved ones, in the backs of the minds of those individuals, there may be doubts as to why on this time more than most, men would want to fight and kill each other.

I am very much opposed to war, as those of you who know me will agree, it is a belief that runs deep within me that most ordinary simple men do not want to leave home and have to kill others. Many feel the pressures and are forced into enlisting, a great many feel a sense of duty, but if you were to ask them all how they feel deep down inside, I think you would find that they simply would much rather find a better way to resolve the conflicts they have been caught up in.

This year more than any other, I find it to be a poignant fact, as we celebrate an event that is 100 years old and highlights my point perfectly. I refer to the celebrated Christmas Truce of 1914, where enemies for a short while walked out onto the battlefield, and stood as the men they truly were, and wished each other Merry Christmas.

 

Christmas Truce 1914

Soldiers meet in a temporary peace for Christmas

It is a fact of history that the Pope had called out on December 7th 1914 for there to be a ceasefire, but those in charge on all sides of the war refused to make any form of official agreement, and they ordered the troops to stay alert and be combat ready. I love the fact that all along those cold miserable front lines of France, groups of both German and English soldiers defied their officials as they sang carols and hymns across the no mans land together, and eventually walked unarmed out onto the battlefield where they stood face to face, and wished each other Merry Christmas.

It stands I feel, as testament to the character of ordinary men, and reinforces my view that there is always another way to resolve a conflict, as long as the simple man makes a stand for what is morally the right thing to do. War is never about ordinary people, they are just the casualties that become swept up into the conflict, war is about the greed and lust for power of the individual, who drives that power to force an issue and embroils the others around them.

There are many cases in history that show us that there were men on all sides who took a stand against those who ruled them, but I don’t think the message here can be given a greater significance, than the simple act of those simple soldiers 100 years ago. Mankind has come so far in this world, and yet we still stumble and fall into conflicts that kill, maim, and wound men, women, and children across the planet. Most people shy away from doing something about it, they fear the system and so remain silent, so maybe it is the time to stand up and use the one weapon we all have and use it, and that is simply our voice. Speak out against the wars and injustice, and think more about peaceful solutions, and then voice those thoughts to others. Time and time again it has been proven that when we all speak up with one clear voice, those who lead eventually listen, and maybe 100 years after such an act of peace and goodwill, we too should take a stand as simple ordinary people, and say with a loud clear voice enough is enough.

World war one and two wiped out a generation of young men, and killed countless women and children, because as we know, regardless of what NATO or the UN may say, civilians die in vast numbers in all combat situations, as they get caught in the middle, just look at the media of 2014 and it clearly shows the despair created from the loss of loved ones.

The human race has the intelligence and the technology to wipe out poverty and world hunger, we have the capabilities to provide everyone with a home and a stable lifestyle, and yet even though today many will remember the unofficial truce of 1914, sadly despite all our advances, as humans we have learned little. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could learn from one hundred years ago today, and decide that from now on, the best way to honour those soldiers who as enemies, met and wished each a Merry Christmas, would be to do likewise? There is far too much hate in the world and it is bringing the world down, maybe we should learn and sit with our enemies and try for once to find a peaceful solution. Tolerance should walk beside us, and a smile should be our greeting, not bayonets or bullets.

Whatever your faith may be, and wherever you are on this planet today, I wish you a time of peace and safety, beyond today and into the coming New Year. RJM.

Soldiers meet on the battle field in France 1914

Soldiers meet on the battle field in France 1914

A Modern Metropolis

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I was born in Cheadle, Cheshire, moved age one to Farnworth in Bolton, and then when my parents separated at the age of four, I came to Hyde.

It’s sad really that Hyde is famous for the sadness and pain of the moors murders and Dr Shipman in the rest of this country, because actually Hyde was once such a beautiful place. I say was, because today I think it has been allowed to die, and as this is the place I consider to be my home town after 45 years of living here, I have seen so many changes that it feels heart breaking to walk around, and see the destruction and neglect brought upon us by a Metropolitan Council.

You see, back when I was a lad, Hyde was run by its own local council, my grandfather ran as a liberal candidate for it at one time, like many of the other locals, because it was run and maintained by local people who saw it as an act of local duty and pride, sadly that too is a thing of the past.

Hyde was a country dwellers place in the early days, it was run by the gentry, and it was a thriving market town, which actually boasted the biggest market in the area. I remember well the busy Saturdays, I think in many ways it was the hustle and bustle of those wonderful Saturdays that at the middle of my life in Horticulture brought me onto the markets myself as a trader. My mum in my youth worked right at the top of the long market street, in a store called the Economy Store, I loved the place, it was the second shop down at the top of the hill, and it sold everything under the sun to help clean the house or fix it up, and all at reasonable prices. I remember standing out on the wide pavement as a boy and looking down the hill that was crawling with thousands of people, as they hurriedly did their weeks shopping before heading home for their Saturday meal. Hyde was so beautiful, Market Street was lined with trees that ran all the way down to the town hall and the market, where the trees were bigger and lush and filled your eyes with clouds of deep green foliage. I look at it now and despair.

The beauty of this town was inspiring, never in my life had I seen such beautiful buildings. We paid the rates on Greenfeild Street where there was the most magnificent building with tall Roman pillars. It felt like walking into an old Roman forum, and my brothers and myself would fantasise about gladiators and the Roman Legion. The post office, and the theatre, were massive and architecturally stunning, the fire station was opposite and we would run up and look through the large glass windows and wave at the firemen. The town hall contained the police station, and we shuddered with nerves as we passed, even though we had done nothing at all wrong, but the site of the old architecture was enough to bother us. The Town Hall was a beautiful and impressive building, today it still stands but looks a little Jaded due to lack of care. The Library was my Mecca, I visited it every week and devoured as many books as I could, it is still the one place in Hyde I love the most for all the happy memories I have of it, but that is soon to end.  

Then came the merger into Tameside, a metropolitan borough, and out went the old local council and the people who cared, to be replaced with what I can only describe as career politicians. Since that time I have watched it fall brick by brick as it was uncared for and unloved by those who enjoyed the power and status as they moved everything slowly to the centre of Tameside, and their jewel in their crown Ashton.

There is no more Roman Forum, the fire station is a mile away up a side street, the beautiful Old Post Office was closed and moved to a new modern building with no charm. The theatre is empty and dilapidated, and the market has gone and been replaced with a glass roofed enclosure filled with expensive shops and cubicles no one can afford, governed by a company in Liverpool. Half the shops inside are empty, and the cubicles are being removed because no one can realistically afford to pay the high business rates and rents. The same can be said for Market St, you no longer see the sea of people walking up and down, and all the shops are take a ways and shabby. There are very few trees on the market, and even less market stalls, we did have free parking until Tameside wanted to sell the land, so they started to charge a stupid fee and that left it empty, so they told us no one uses it and demolished it to build a KFC, yet another part of American heritage added to our country, as we wipe away ours.

We do have large superstores, but that is why we have no local shops, Hyde had so much diversity to offer, and the narrow minded profit thinking of the Metropolitan Council wiped it away, we do have young women’s fashion, Agos and take a ways, stood next to nail salons and estate agents, the bedding shop has gone, so has the kitchen supplies, Old Mr Brooke the tool shop has gone along with the gardening shop and the many other small unique traders, and we have endless charity shops on discounted rates, and we have also lost the lights at Christmas.

We moan the destruction of youths, and yet like us older ones they have been robbed, gone are the disco’s and boys clubs, where are the meeting places we all attended? They have been wiped away in the so called needed cuts, yet there is always money for demolition and new buildings, they can find the cash to improve their offices. They call it progress; I call it heartbreak, narrow vision and greed.

The council at Ashton do not care about us, they sleep at night in their posh homes safe in their fat cat lives, they will not lose a nights sleep knowing that our Library will be moved so the building can be sold, one of the last beautiful buildings of Hyde and a shining remainder of what our town was once like under the caring hands of those who lived here. They deny it will be sold, but we have been here before, and everyone knows what their agenda is. The grammar school is going, the college moved to Ashton, and Hyde is a sad reflection of what it once was, and there will be no lights this Christmas. I remember the lights as a lad, they were magical as they lined the whole of the long Market Street and all of the market, strung across the road in many colours, they were so bright in the dark evening as we gazed down the street in wonder. The shop owners would decorate trees and put them in brackets above their shops to add to the beauty, it made Christmas feel so special, it just feels like another dark winters eve now, its hard to believe it is a week before Christmas, there is so little to show it.

I hear all the time that Britain is losing its identity, well I am not surprised. How can we maintain any sense of who we are, when the places we live have been asset stripped and sold off by the pound? The very thing we held pride in has been ripped away from us by local councillors who care for nothing but their own vanity, they tell us they care when they need our votes, but if they get in, the last thing they do is what we want, they are cold and self serving with no idea of value, they are wrapped up in their arrogance and see us as nothing but underlings to rule over. They are the reason Britain has fallen, and they are the ones who have destroyed our identity, and then they sit around griping how people are disenchanted by politics, hell can you blame us? We have been lied to far too many times and listened to your spin as you side step our questions and divert our answers, your lack of openness and honesty has appalled us to the point where we are weary and worn out trying to understand why it is you do not fight with us to improve the places we call home.

Hyde has died, the green has gone and been built on, the beauty was sold or torn down and replaced with ugly, what little that is left we fear will be taken; even the park has less for our children to admire. It’s so sad, because the people who live here really care about the place, and they like me are as heartbroken.

Where did the hope go, we had such high ones? Progress for the sake of progress does not bring attraction, it brings destruction, and replaces heritage with limited life. My Grandfather ran for the local council not for power or prestige, he felt it was his duty as a proud member of the town, I shudder to think what he would say if he was still here. It is called a modern metropolis, and it’s brash and dirty, and for too long now it has swept the land changing the face of the places we live, to the point where we recognise nothing. It is yet another sad reflection on the world today, where progress is built on greed, with no regard for need.

 

The Eleventh Hour. (100 years on)

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Posted at 11am: 11th November 2014: 100 years after the end of World War One

 

11 hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. we will remember them.

11 hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. we will remember them.

On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day, of the eleventh month we will remember them. It is a saying that has resounded deeply within me for all of my life, and it is a good thing, because that one simple line carries the hopes and dreams of every man, woman, and child that lost their lives as part of one of the many conflicts that has scarred the life of mankind.

Today once again we mark the moment of the ending of World War One, later named the “Great War” and we stand together in silence as we remember that horrendous event that took the lives of so many of our young, and we remember them, and every life lost in conflicts around the globe since.

Think about that… Every life lost around the globe in conflicts since

Today it is 2014, exactly 100 years since the first world war. A war that witnessed the scenes of carnage and slaughter on a scale unprecedented in the modern era. Whole towns of our youngest stood together terrified and in many cases unable to talk or move, as they waited for the whistles that would take them over the walls of the trenches into a landscape of terror and carnage no one person should ever have to witness, to be cut down and trampled into the mud within the first one hundred yards of their defensive line.

They died for us… yes you sat reading this on your computer, phone or tablet. They believed in honour, they understood respect, and more than anything else, they alone made a choice based on their belief that we all should be given the right to be free. I often wonder as they felt the cold grip of death touch them, if they felt that the sacrifice they made felt like it was worth it?

Do you think as they lay there covered in blood dying in the mud, as the world around them screamed with the fear and the explosions of that moment of horror, they were comforted to know that the world that came after would be a better place, where man had learned enough to ensure something so terrible would never happen again?

I have taken part in many remembrance events in my life; I stood silently watching the faces of those old soldiers who carry that same haunted expression as the bugle sounds. I have witnessed the tears, as the memory of those times returns, and those individual moments of lost friends and heartbreak return again to the minds of those men who came back from war, forever changed, after seeing the horrors of combat. Ask any of them stood there proud that they played a part in something which was supposed to build a better world, if they want more conflicts in the world, I have, and I have never met any that want another world war, or war of any kind, what they want is for their sacrifice to have meant something.

The fact that there was a second world war, a Korean war, a Vietnam, or any of the many that has followed must feel like the biggest smack in the face to them, because they all agree on one single thing, they wanted their war to be the last.

I have never met a single parent who wants their children to die, and yet today we are still sending our young sons to face an enemy chosen by our governments, I cannot help but feel we have learned nothing in 100 years. We gather once a year and tell our young to wear the poppy of pride, and shed a tear for those who have fallen, and yet the list of those who die for us grows ever longer, it feels insulting to those who gave up everything, and has started to feel more like a pageant, than what it should be, a true and honest mark of respect, for the sacrifice those brave young men have made for our sakes. It should stand for more than just the assembly of officials with their political motivations, who gather around a stone monument and lay a wreath before it, in a routine show of mock gratitude, because until our leaders chose to walk the path of peace, their actions are false, and I feel strongly they disgrace the sacrifice made by those brave few.

We have learned nothing… our leaders have chosen ambition and capital gains above everything, and our freedoms as people have been slowly subverted. We do not live in a changed world, we are still surrounded by conflict, and where we do not fight, we sell our arms to the highest bidder. We arm factions and call them friends, who later become our enemies, and then we arm another faction to kill them and call them friend, only to once again label them enemy at a later date. We praise the capital we raise and spend yet more to create more aggressive weapons, and all the while those who died to create a better world lie silently sleeping unaware that to the leaders of this world, their sacrifice taught them nothing… its disgraceful and disrespectful.

In the UK today we have a government with debuts, who blame the benefit culture of the previous government for the woes of this land. We sneer at those who live on handouts from the state, yet no one mentions the debts we have piled up to create more weapons and troops to fight in Iraq or Afghanistan, wars that costs us millions every hour and have done so for the last decade. There is no coincidence that the rich sit quietly enjoying the profits of a campaign that brings in oil revenues and fat cheques from trade in those lands. We blame the poor, we let them suffer, and poverty is a crime in the UK.

We must honour the fallen; reintroduce the concept of respect, for it has dwindled greatly since 1914. If we cannot learn from them, we are doomed to a world of yet more pain and suffering, where parents bury their young, and are marked by grief for the rest of their lives. Those who survived are less in number every year, and soon there will be a time where we no longer have them amongst us, and so we should act now and tell those in charge that enough is enough, take the money of war and build a better land, where those fallen hero’s see the dreams and hopes they carried with their rifles into war are cherished and brought to fruition.

They came from a time where life had value, we need to turn back the clock and remember theirs, and hand back the value it held for them, for they gave it freely and it meant something.

And with the going down of the sun, we must remember them.

The Cemetery of the lost in France.

The Cemetery of the lost in France.

 

 

A Slice of A Life.

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I often get asked what my series of stories Heirs to the Kingdom is really about, especially when confronted with a potential new reader, and in many ways the answer can be so complex I am not always certain I can give a direct answer.

The problem I think is actually a very simple one, and that is that there are two real ways to describe the books to another person. The first answer and the most simplest being that of the many stories I have read since youth, I have found many tales end with the rumour that the hero is not really dead and will return one day when the world needs them. It is true of King Arthur and Robin Hood and many more folk tales from our ancient past, I love the idea of this, and I think it is theme that runs through life, we even see it in religions, especially Christianity where we are told one day Christ will return to save us all, and so with that in mind, I chose to return a king, but as in all things there is a twist.

Rather than bring back the one true king to a Britain tore apart after a deadly virus wipes out the larger majority of the population, I looked to a hidden heir. I took the blood line of those heroes of old and zipped through time to the year of 2038 and presented their heir to confront the injustice that was rising in the land in hope that the blood in the veins of the heir would have what it takes to match the honour and courage of those ancients, and fight for was right and moral. Ok so I throw in a lot more just to spice things up, and I give all the characters their own personalities and doubts and worries to boot just to keep it all paced and interesting. In a nut shell I have a reminder of a glorious past mixed with the difficulties of life after a world torn apart; it feels to me like a good recipe for fantasy and adventure.

For anyone who wants a deep and inclusive read, I think and hope it works, but as for myself, the series is far deeper and more interwoven, after all this is me writing the kind of book I want to read, and I think it is quite safe to say, I can be somewhat rebellious and complicated, so what does HTTK represent to me?

In the easiest possible terms HTTK is a Slice of a Life.

Confusing I know, but that is how I see it, and it is for myself the reason I have always wanted to write it all down. Not only is it a slice of life taken from a struggling community who are doing their best to avoid what is seen as their inevitable destruction at the hands of the tyrant Mason Knox, it is and here is the important bit, the experience of my own life of experience’s and observations.

Recently I published the fourth book in the series entitled Queen of the Violet Isle, and at the start of the book I write the equation of Runestone Sapphire, (The lead heroine character of the story). It is a simple theory of a symbol which represents Life, Circle, Line. It is a main theme of the books and also has been the main theme of my life as this simple equation which I have tailored into the theme of the books is how I see what is important in my life. Ok so it does not fit everyone, but don’t forget I am the author and have the joy of knowing I can do anything I want as this is my story.

 

Life: I have questioned and pondered life for most of my own, which I think is not that unusual as most of the world has at some point probably asked why are we here, and what is the purpose of life? We all do it, and I certainly have done it a great deal. I love nothing better than to watch the world and talk to others about what they feel is the answer and even what they feel should be the answer. We are all basically carbon based life forms made of stardust, and whether or not you believe there is some unseen entity who brought it all together, or you believe in the big bang theory is actually irrelevant as all of us hold some unique personal insight deep within us that guides us in an almost spiritual way through life. I have read much on religious feelings on this and the science, and in my own way which is possibly influenced by Tolkien or even Wyndham, I thought it would be a wonderful fantasy to create my own, and so I began to write a tale that would run behind the story of HTTK that recreated the world in a completely different way to the way in which we all perceive the world today. I added mystery and hidden meanings within the story, and layered my ideas of multiple powerful spirits beings known as the Ruling Council within the story. It was a most delightful experience as I got to play with a few Celtic legends and myths, and in doing so I slipped in some of my own beliefs about the world and what comes after. It is all done I hope in a quite subtle way, but it does slip right into the fantasy deep end, and I hope create thought and discussion amongst those who eventually read the series. I will add at this point I do not like blatant direction in writing; hence I weave it slowly through the series of books and wait to see who picks up on it.

Another strongly held feeling of my own is how very precious and important life is. For myself, I feel all life is of the greatest value, unlike much of the world at the moment which is being swallowed by greed, oppression, and conflict. It pains me that the value of a life has become less as I have aged, and it is something that I find really hard to come to terms with, something I know is reflected in my writing, especially with my lead male hero. I actually like that even though he has to take life; he feels the pain of it and does not take it with such ease. I understand survival, and as a vegetarian of almost 35 years, I know if I was thrown into a world wide disaster, I would have no choice but to take life in order to survive and protect those around me, but I can say without any doubt, I would not do it quickly or easily, and having done it, I would never feel at ease or comfortable doing it. 

It is a mark of the human being and the arrogance of mankind that life is defined in terms of their lives. In my world life is everything, and everything is dependant upon each other in order to survive. One of the strongest themes that marks myself as the author and is strewn throughout my story is that of Balance. I feel very deeply that we have lost control of the balance of life as we put what man wants for greed far ahead of all other living things. My life which shows a certain theme of defending life especially that of animals and nature, and it is clear where my mind is on the world today. I have dedicated my whole working life to the preservation of life, either by protecting it via campaigns, or as a horticulturalist creating new life from seeds cuttings and various other techniques, often at the expense of being seen as a crack pot or old hippie tree hugger, for deep within me is that love of this our most precious gift and surprisingly it was never scripted to be any of the stories, it just flowed naturally out as I wrote.

Circle: The circle is such a wonderful symbol, and I love symbolism, so it was only natural I would use it within my stories. The circle is represented in my books mainly via the connections of Runestone Sapphire and her tables of power, and this is not a chance addition to the story. I thought for a very long time about it, years actually. Circles are something every single human being on earth has in common, for we form them naturally around us without thought or consideration. I speak of those bonds we make through life with everyone we meet and know, and if you want to see a glowing example jump over to Google plus and set up a profile, you will soon see those circles forming as you sort through who is who, and who is most important to you. From the moment we are born we are placed into a circle of our own life, be it, immediate family, extended family, in laws, friends, class mates, workmates, drinking buddies, we are surrounded by interlocking circles that defines our life and who we are. When I first scripted out HTTK is was the very first task I set myself so that I could create as a real a replication of life as possible. The books are littered with them, Specialists, Villagers, Lox family members, Fae, Cutters, Generals, as in life you could spend a week drawing the circles and adding them to charts to show how they are all interlinked in one way or another, and it is my hope by defining these circles, again I create a realistic and life like story which will appear almost as real as the readers own life and draw them deeper into the tale.

Line: Have you ever sat and thought very deeply about how you ended up here reading this on your computer? The simple fact is that most people haven’t, they just take for granted the fact that they exist. I use a line within HTTK that states “Look to the past, for it will guide you in the future” and it is something I believe is deeply important to all of us, for we are at the end of the day the sum total of all that have walked before us. It is a glorious thing to behold when you take a moment and begin to understand the actions of every person that has led you to the point of who you are and where we come from. You can travel back thousands of years and be absolute in the knowledge that there is a relative there of yours somewhere. It is something that fascinates me as you begin to see how thousands of chance encounters brought about the partnerships through wars, and depressions, and times of great trials to result in what you see in the mirror everyday.  

My grandfather was at the Somme in 1914 during WW1 and got shot in the head. He was lucky as the German army found him on the battlefield and took him to hospital where he received treatment and was nursed back to health. Have you ever been asked the question if you could travel back in time in a time machine where would you go? I have and my answer would be this. I would go back to that hospital and find those who nursed my Grandfather to health, and I would thank them with all that I have, because my family could very easily have been ended at the moment when the bullet hit him. It was a one in one million chance that he lived, and thanks to the enemy he did, and came home at the end of the war having been a prisoner of the Germans and he created my father, and later on along I came with my brothers to grace the world, and who would have thought it, I became a writer.

Like my story there are threads of chance weaving throughout our own lives that stretch back for thousands of years, and whether or not you choose to accept it, they are deeply significant and important, and we should never forget them. Like the circles they define who we are from the moment we are born, and as a result they should be respected, as we are the living heirs carrying the bloodline of all who have stood before us, we are all heirs to a kingdom.

Life, Circle, Line is the sum total of everyone’s life history, it is your slice of life story and it is the reason why I write Heirs to the Kingdom, for hidden deeply within the circles and lines are my own personal history and the pride I feel in my family line and the circles I have walked through in my life to date. I wanted to write the kind of book that would appeal to me, and in doing so I wove myself through it to bring it to life. So if you ever feel the need to ask what is HTTK really about, well you now know.

 

Live well and honour those who came before you always.