Folklore Redux
Diving into the main topic today, I realised last week that the last story I discussed in terms of the Folklore behind them was The Black Cat on the Prowl. By my reckoning, that means I'm behind by 12 Brennan and Riz short stories! I suppose that's what happens when I don't update the blog.
Anyway, without further ado, let's get cracking with the next 2 in chronological order from the Black Cat on the Prowl!
-Clockwork Knights in the Workshop-
So, this was the story that appeared in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 3 (get yours here). Truth be told there's not an awful lot to say here as it's not based on Folklore other then initial idea being sparked by a set of stairs heading down to nowhere in near by Stockton. The stairs were remnants of access to the trainline but it was blocked off with concrete at one point.
The clockwork Knights were the result of me wanting to expand the world that Brennan and Riz lived in, and the name, came from fond memories of a Sega Saturn game I used to play. What it lacked in folklore, it made up in fun banter as Valarie joined the boys in her first Harvey Duckman outing, and her second proper appearance in a Brennan and Riz short. This cemented her as a mainstay, which was good as I'd already written her into A Boy and A Rat by this point.
-The Wyrm in the Abbey-
Now, this one, that appeared in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 4 (get yours here), brings the folklore the last one lacked. Using the historic seaside town of Whitby as its backdrop, this tale saw our three heroes (yes, Valarie joined the boys again!) Face off against a Wyrm (basically a serpent like Dragon like the Lamberton Worm I talked about in an earlier blog post). The tale is based on the folklore surrounding the Whitby Wyrm, a beast that was said to have terrorised the town and the Abbey, demanding virgin sacrifices (as was the style at the time apparently). In the story, the creature was defeated by the cunning of a wandering Knight. Scarborough Council gifted the town a silver wyrm statue in honour of this story.
While I haven't seen the statue myself, I couldn't let a story like this pass me by. I didn't tweak much of the original tale, keeping it as something that actually happened in the past, framing this story as a follow up. The silver statue gets to play a part as well.
I'd be amiss to talk about this story and not mention the character borne out of it, Gwen. She is the perfect example of a character created to fulfil a certain story need but taking on a life of their own that warps the story around them. I ended up rewriting a lot of it because of her. She's certainly someone you'll see again, sooner or later.
Well, that'll do for now, join me next time where I'll waffle on for a bit about Brennan and Riz's 2nd Christmas tale, The Black Eyed Children That Stole Christmas (was part of the Harvey Duckman Presents Christmas special but is now part of this volume) and the first of the American Trilogy, Gators in the Sewer (as seen in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 5, available here).
Till then,
Keep on writing!
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