#7 Wouldn't it be Nice + Folklore Redux pt 5

 Happy Blog Day Everyone

After last week's momentary blip, we're back to our normal Wednesday update, and with it, another brand new comic, speaking of...

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz 

Readers of my short stories will have encountered this typical Brennan and Riz example before (most notably Ghosts on the Moor, the 3rd story in the first short story collection).

Would Brennan actually follow through on that threat? Only time will tell...

I will apologise for the even poorer colouring then normal, I tried to make it look like you were viewing the pair through a windscreen but it failed...spectacularly. You don't learn without trying I guess.

Now let's move on to the main performance...

Folklore Redux pt 5

These following stories are from the latest two Harvey Duckman Presents anthologies (not the two that were just rebranded specials). One is more interesting to talk about for reasons you'll discover, the other is about plumbers...You'll see, let's start with that one first:

The Rat in the Drain- Confession, this story isn't based on any folklore whatsoever. Instead of leaving this as the shortest entry in my entire folklore exploration series, I'll share a look at how this story even came into being.

Few of you would have been aware that Harvey Duckman had a few specials under its belt, where all the stories within its pages shared a common element (most notably Christmas and Pirates), most others are free form anything goes type stuff. Then I hear talk that the next special will be...Plumbers. I can tell you that many an eyebrow was raised upon hearing this, as well as checking to see if the date was April 1st.

It was real of course, and as someone who had been in every Harvey Duckman at that point, I know that I had to rise to the challenge. The question was though, how could I do it?

Instinctively, there wasn't much of a connection between the pair and plumbing, and I didn't think a story of Brennan unclogging his drains by pulling out Riz fur was that much of a winner. The answer to this was to bring in a plumber who has need of Brennan and Riz's specialist abilities. The title came about when I realised the comedy value of having Riz having to go into the pipes. He'll probably not forgive that in a hurry!

Rat in the Drain was published as part of Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 9, get yours here!

The Knight and the Fae- This story has its origins in a very different place. I was approached by an individual to see if I had a story to submit to a paranormal romance anthology. I suck at writing romance in general  so paranormal romance had no hope. Nevertheless, I attempted something but ultimately withheld it from that anthology as I knew for certain that what I wrote would not have been what was intended. It's quite hard to write romances for the central pair as 1) Brennan X Valarie is pretty much a thing, and 2) Riz is peculiar with romance. Not to mention that writing a story from Riz’s perspective is fraught with its own dangers. So, I had two options, either write about different characters in the Brennan and Riz universe or tell a story in a story that dealt with paranormal romance.

I tried both of them. The former would have been the first solo story for Doctor Lauren Ashton, but it never seemed to pan out (and she was too married to the job it turned out). The latter was definitely more successful, as I took advantage of a seam of folklore that I'd been itching to explore, Fairies.

I can heat you shouting from here:

"Peter! You'd already been writing about Faries! Haven't you been mining their folklore already!"

Well, there's always more folklore. This time, I was looking at more the foolish mortals who fell for the Fae and went with them to their Fairy kingdoms. There's been a lot of stories in this regard, and almost all of them don't end well. Like the guy who was instructed to never get off his horse once he'd left the magical kingdom. He returns home to find that, while for him an hour or so had passed, a hundred years had passed in the mortal realms. He got off his horse and turned to dust as he aged to match his surroundings. I twisted this as I introduced the concept of Fairy Knights (something that was meant to appear in A Boy and A Rat, but was left on the cutting room floor).

This is a sign for things to come for the next full length Brennan and Riz novel, as I have plenty of fae folklore to dive into, such as Fairy Rings and a full exploration of the Seeley and Unseeley Councils. I also couldn't just leave it as Brennan learning the tale, no, I dragged Valarie and Riz into it, each offering a different take on the ending of the tale...

Another fun fact about this story was it was a late submission to Harvey Duckman, replacing a completely different story that got moved up to an upcoming volume of the anthology. Why was it moved? Because it fit the theme better of the aforementioned Volume. What was it about? Well, you'll just have to wait and see won't you...

This story appeared in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 10, get your copy here!

That's all for this week, join me next week where I finally get into the nitty gritty about the first Brennan and Riz novel, A Boy and A Rat. If you want to join in the fun, check out this link to order your copy.

Till then, keep writing.

Peter James Martin.

#6 Do as I say, not as I do + Folklore Redux pt 4

 Happy Blog Day Everyone!

What's that? It's not Wednesday? 

...

Well I decided to be spontaneous!

What? I've only done it today so the Valentines comic I drew would go out on Valentines day?

...

Scandalous lies and slander! You can perish the thought that this was why I've pushed the schedule ahead, but since it is Valentines...have a comic!

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

This is the first appearance of Luna outside of my #vss365 on twitter (#vss365 stands for very short stories and there is fantastic authors working within that space). I haven't fully worked out I'd she'll join in the written stories yet. Either way she'll be around here, having some fun.

Folklore Redux Pt 4

Ahoy mateys! Let's start this edition off with a piratey tale!

The Rat Who Served on the Flying Dutchman- When I learned that my publisher was planing a pirate themed special, I quickly got to thinking of how I could get Brennan and Riz in on the act. There's plenty of tales about the sea, whether it'll be the denizens that lurk in it, or a ship that sails on it...Yes, I quickly honed in on the angle I wanted.

I used it as an excuse to take the tiniest peek at Riz’s history, something which I do plan to do again, hopefully in the near future. 

The oldest written mention of the Flying Dutchman is from the late 18th Century and it gives the impression that the ship was well known amongst Dutch sailors of the time. The ship was seen as a portent, often of bad weather in the early forms of the tale. Later stories expanded the burgeoning myth by adding parts about the crew, giving rise to the idea that those aboard were being punished. One feature that came into play with my own story was that it was said that if they made contact with another boat, they'd pass along messages to those on land, which of course, the inciting incident.

Like the Christmas special before it, the pirate special was given the rebranded-treatment and became Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 11 (get your copy here!)

The Kuchisake-onna in Teesside- I've had Brennan and Riz visit other countries but what if I brought the folklore to them? This is where this story comes in. The Kuchisake-onna is a figure from Japanese urban legends, a malevolent spirit wearing a face cloth to hide the lower part of her face. The legend plays out thusly: the spirit will appear before an unfortunate victim, or two. She'll ask them a simple question.

"Am I pretty?" Or words to that effect. If the person answers no, she stabs them with a pair of scissors. You answer yes, then she takes her face mask off to show you her lovely scar that runs from cheek to cheek, giving her a ghoulish visage. She'd ask again:

"Am I pretty?" Regardless of the answer here you're not long for this world as she will kill you with those scissors. 

Getting her into the story wasn't difficult given that I took advantage of the fact that this was written with A Boy and A Rat in the rear view mirror. Yes, for the first time (the American Trilogy doesn't really count, not like this), continuity became a thing as Gallows appeared to spread his fun. Only problem was that A Boy and A Rat didn't make its release date (I'll talk about that another time), thus this became Gallows first published appearance.

Want to see how Brennan and Riz dealt with this scary tourist? Then you'll find the story in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 (get your copy here!)

That'll do for this week, join me next week as we deal with the last two stories that were released as part of the Harvey Duckman Presents series.

Till then,

Keep on writing!

#5 A Joke Amongst Friends + Folklore Redux pt 3

 Happy Blog Day Everyone!

As usual let's start off with the weekly strip!

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

Issue #5 - A Joke Amongst Friends

Yes, that's a centaur, at least my attempt at one! Maybe one day they'll get a look in during a Brennan and Riz escapade...

Speaking of the pair...

Folklore Redux pt 3

Last week we started our venture into the American Trilogy, and this week, we're going to end it, so let's dive right in!

The Atahsaia in the Cave- This adventure sees our duo sent further west at the behest of another client Alice knows, and its all to deal with a Atahsaia which is a creature from Native American folklore, specifically from the Zuni tribe. Its a cannibalistic monster humanoid in appearance, but definitely not in stature. This story actually went through some revisions, ad originally it was just Brennan and Riz alone with the creature but it lacked the spark of other stories so I added in the third character, allowing for better dialogue. This story appeared in the 6th volume of Harvey Duckman Presents, get yours here!

The Jogah in the Desert- Being the last part of the American Trilogy, I wanted to have a bit of fun, and what better way to do that than to bring back Valarie for her third (published) short story appearance. Her purpose in the story? Ensure a swift delivery for some precious cargo, and to provide ample material for arguments with Riz. Then the Jogah get in on the act. Like the Atahsaia before them, the Jogah came from Native American folklore, notably from the Iroquois people. They share many "little people" traits seen across the world (some that will make their way to Brennan and Riz’s case files someday). One of their key aspects is drumming, with stories talking about hearing the sound but seeing no one around to make it.  Oh, and their usually invisible, yeah that's kind of important. I snuck a small homage to J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit for the climax of this story, with how Brennan gets the gang out of this jam, much to Riz’s chargin! This story was in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 7, get yours here!

Thats it for this week. Join me next week as our look at the folklore continues with a visit from a Japanese urban legend, and an adventure on the high seas!

Till then,

Keep on writing!

#4 Strange Friends + Folklore Redux pt 2

 Happy Blog Day Everyone!

Let's start this off with the weekly strip:

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

To those wondering, yes, that is the Mothman...or at least, my version of him.

His inclusion here was borne out of the myriad documentaries and books I've read on him this past month. I'd love to say this cryptid might appear in a future Brennan and Riz short story but I've no plans for him at the moment. He is the perfect example of modern folklore though, with the first reports on him kicking off in the late 1960s (if I'm remembering things properly).

Speaking of folklore and short stories...

Folklore Redux pt 2 

Let's kick off part 2 with a seasonal tale:

The Black Eyed Children Who Stole Christmas- I mentioned above about modern folklore, and this one is based on another one, the black eyed children. The basic myth is the sighting of children with pitch black eyes, the stories often revolve around the children turning up and knocking on doors, asking to be let in. The person behind the door doesn't let them in, feeling uneasy with what's going on.

There's of course different explanations behind them, ranging from demons to aliens. For this story, I kinda went with the former but not. I wove them into the world building I was doing (Riz certainly got a boost). I promise those story threads will be expanded on...at some point.

The other big factor in this story, and indeed, the one who makes it a Christmas story, is Santa...or more accurately, his legend. Sorry folks, no jolly fat man here, just a group of Seeley Fae keeping the legend alive.

The title is obviously referencing a certain famous Dr Seuss book and movie...

This story featured in Harvey Duckman Presents...Christmas special, which has been rebranded as Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 12. Get your copy here! 

The Gators in the Sewer- The first story in the American Trilogy, as I referred to it in my head. This marks the first time the characters visit somewhere not in the UK (aside from their brief jaunt to the Othed in the first Harvey Duckman anthology). Though it wasn't meant to be as before this story was written, I'd written a novella which had Alice essentially kidnapped the duo to tackle a case for her friend. That story ended up being put on hold (despite being completed) so I took the opening of it and used it here. I went back and edited the other story so they were used to beind abducted by their employer!

Anyway, the idea for the tale was actually a reader suggestion (he suggested the three ideas that became the American Trilogy, as we'll see next week). The first suggestion? Brennan and Riz in the sewers of New York City, tangling with the alligators under there. Now, everyone will have heard the stories, of people flushing baby alligators down the toilet when they got to big to be pets, leading to a number of them living in the sewers. It was all well and good but it posed a question of how was I to tie it into a story with Brennan and Riz? Getting them into the sewers wouldn't be a challenge, I've gotten them into weirder scraps, but I needed a better hook to link the Gators into the story. I think I outdid myself with the solution, one that I honestly can't remember how I came about...

To see what I'm talking about, get your copy here!

Useful Links

To get a copy of Brennan and Riz's first full length novel, click here!

To get their first short story collection, click here!

Join me next week as I dicuss the last two entries in the American Trilogy, till then,

Keep on writing!

#3 A Man Can Dream + Folklore Redux

The Comic Tales of Brennan and Riz

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!

A recap and issue #2!

 Last time on this blog...

(If you want the issue #2 in the Brennan and Riz webcomic, you'll find it at the bottom of this page)

Okay, last time I properly updated this blog (not counting the Brennan and Riz Pandemic Blues posts) was 2019. Needless to say, a lot has changed.

I briefly mentioned it last week but in July 2022, almost 4 years after it was started as part of Nanowrimo 2018, A Boy and A Rat released. Yes, the first novel about Brennan and Riz had finally shown itself to the world, and it was a different beast then when I handed it over to the publisher the first time.

I'll do another blog post detailing that experience in full, as this book didn't have a smooth journey.

Till then, I do want to share the awesome cover art that was made for this book, and I think you'll agree, Riz has never looked so good!

Buy your copy here!

What's that? The book 1 part? Oh! That's right, the book isn't a one off anymore! Well, actually it was never planned to be a one off (my nanowrimo entry for 2020 was the then planned sequel, the long night, where Brennan never caught a break...or a cup of tea), but yeah, this is now the first of a prequel series. I've begun work on book 2...which I'll also talk about soon...

Harvey Duckman Presents...

Last time we spoke, Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 4 had been released, as had the Christmas special, well, guess what? They’re now on Volume 12 and counting! Okay, so the last two volumes are just the two specials given swanky new covers and put where they should have always been, but it's still something to celebrate. Plus, Brennan and Riz have been along each step of the way with stories in each one (in fact Harvey Duckman Presents vols 5-7 form a loose trilogy where our heroes fly off to the United States!).

With more stories to talk about, expect a return of my folklore series as I delve into each story.

There's also a brand spanking new Harvey Duckman website for you to check out!

Other things

Have I don't anything else you ask? Well, maybe a couple of things like be part of other amazing anthologies with other brilliant authors.

This includes the likes of:

The Decagon Key (featuring Gabriel from my long languishing Daemon Soul series)

Hope is an Act of Rebellion (Valerie's first solo story!)

Main Presentation...

You're still here? Ah, you want this weeks comic strip don't you? Well, I suppose I did promise it...

Again, sorry about the quality!

Till next time, I bid you farewell!

Brennan and Riz: Now in Webcomic Form!

 The blog lives again!

Yes, after a very long time (I'm trying not to look at the date of the last one), I'm back, which means, Brennan and Riz are back!

In a new format!

#1 "Somethings Cost Extra"

First off, I apologise about the quality of the image, I currently don't have access to a scanner or a good paint program. So its hand coloured for the foreseeable future.

Secondly, these are designed just to be humorous out takes from the pairs life and as such, aren't meant to be taken seriously. They're light hearted are intended to entertain, to the best of my abilities of course.

I'll be uploading a new strip every Wednesday on here and over on twitter. I've already got the next few planned and if they prove popular, I can increase the frequency of when they drop.

There's more to talk about, like what's happened in the years since I last posted here (A Boy and A Rat came out! Go and buy it!), but I'll do a proper post in the next couple of days to fill in all the blanks.

So that's it for this time!

Keep writing!