Dragons, Vegetarians, and Bluebeard fantasies, by Enid Richemont

By -
 My latest small book with Franklin Watts came out around ten days ago. It's the story of a dragon who's fooled by a princess into attacking his own reflection in a deep pool. He does this because he can't bear to accept that there may be another dragon who might be even better than himself at laying waste the countryside, barbecuing knights and capturing (preferable blonde and subservient) princesses, like the ones pictured in his reference book, to be his slaves.

I first came up with this story for a Kingfisher anthology called: "Don't Kiss the Frog" - a more sophisticated version, so a much more grown-up presentation. Visually, I love both versions. Interesting to see that in both, the dragon has come out scarlet, maybe because he breathes out flames? I love the elegant typography in the older version, which I've shown here. And for the vegetarians among you, you'll be pleased to learn that the dragon was converted, and currently lives on his five-a-day (or on whatever the princess can forage for him.) He and the princess also run their own airport - DRAGON AIR, anyone? No free meals on board, and you'll have to wrap up warmly, but better than Ryanair...

Lately I've been re-reading Ian McEwan's novel: SATURDAY, written at the time of the Iraq war, and still relevant. Among other questions it raises is the difficult one: if a dictator is persecuting his own people, as well as threatening world peace, is it morally justifiable to attack him and, obviously his country? The main protagonist is a neurological surgeon, who's had first-hand dealings with one of Saddam's victims, and the main action takes place against the anti-war demonstrations in London, which I remember well, and which I supported (my husband, a wise and knowedgeable man) did not. At the beginning, though, I have to confess the joy we felt at seeing Saddam's statue topple - a man who'd used torture and poison gas against so many people - maybe the West was right? Of course it wasn't that simple, as we've all now learnt to our cost.

 McEwan's writing is slow, detailed, and, at times, requiring great concentration, which I don't always have, being sometimes, plotwise, a bit like the child who keeps demanding: Are we there yet? without ever bothering to look out of the window and appreciate what's happening now. There's a lengthy scene in SATURDAY, in which the protagonist's state of mind is directly related to his game of squash with a colleague, and I don't play squash, so found myself, guiltily, skipping.

 Which brings me, quite illogically, to Angela Carter, a very different writer who always makes me shiver, and via a very circuitous route, to Gransnet, an online forum for grandparents (I am one). Mostly, discussions are related to family and children, but they can also become interestingly political, and even more interestingly, weird. Someone had a friend who'd had her house 'spiritually cleansed' after unhappy events, so the discussions moved moved from whether this was profitable nonsense, or could buildings in some mysterious way hold a memory of the past, and this led me - because I have a nasty imagination - to Bluebeard and his many murdered wives, their remnants kept inside the forbidden room. This, in turn, led me into so many possible stories, so now I have to research Bluebeard, and also made me wonder why a room mightn't hold memories of happy events, too - lovemaking, maybe a birth, maybe a particularly fun party - but the dark side, as Angela Carter knew so well, is always what grabs people.

"DOUBLE DRAGONS", part of the 'Reading Champion' series, is now available on Amazon and also via Franklin Watts at Hachette: http://www.hachettechildrens.co.uk

 
 




 

  



Comments

Umberto Tosi said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
28 September 2018 at 13:28
Umberto Tosi said…
What a delightful posting, full of strange loops, from dragons, to Saddam, to the dark magic of Angela Carter! Thank you. If you're exploring bluebeard, I recommend the most-readable, insightful "Medea's Folly: Women, Relationships and the Search for Intimacy," by Jungian psychologist Tanya Wilkinson.
28 September 2018 at 13:31
Enid Richemont said…
Oh thank you, Umberto. I will look for 'Medea's Folly' - sounds fascinaing.
28 September 2018 at 13:59
Post a Comment

Popular posts

A Few Discreet Words About Caesar's Penis--Reb MacRath

By -
Image
Veni, vidi...Wiki! Not long ago I had the all-time greatest Great Idea: one, born of total ignorance, that nearly tanked a novel. As you may have guessed from my opening line, my subject is Julius Caesar. But you might not have guessed from the title that my Great Idea entailed his being reborn as a penis. Don't laugh, please, I beg you. I saw no way around this, even though showing JC as a 'dick' might lead some to think that I've written a spoof. In fact, it's a serious thriller. Without giving the plot away, I can say this: I needed JC's ghost, today, remembering his nights with Cleopatra on her fabled golden barge. There  was the heart of my book--a ghost trying for 2000 years to relive that lost boogie with Liz. And I'd begun to run with this when my memory corrected me: Mark Anthony, not JC, was on the barge with Cleo. And this was after JC's death. What the hell was I to do, lacking the good sense to check memory's 'facts
Read more

A writer's guide to Christmas newsletters - Roz Morris

By Roz Morris aka @Roz_Morris . Blog: Nail Your Novel -
Image
Let me confess: I'm a fan of round-robin christmas letters.  It's fashionable to diss them in the UK, but I disagree. Even if the missive is smug and airbrushed and claims the golden offspring can split the atom, it’s more meaningful than a card that only says 'from Nina and Frederik'.      But since I approve of Christmas newsletters, that means I must compose one. And I don't know what to put. I spent this year writing, rewriting, talking to other writers and, er, working out what to write next. Sure, there was adventure and atom-splitting, but it happened on the page and in my head.      And that's my update. One paragraph. How can I spread it out?      When in doubt, study the requirements of the genre. Boasting     Christmas letters need boasting, with bells on. Your friends will report a mighty throng of promotions, bonuses, and other unceasing achievements. Traditionally published authors can name-drop with the i
Read more

Margery Allingham and ... knitting? Casting on a summer’s mystery -- by Julia Jones

By -
Image
The Watchtower from the Saltings  (Photo Tom Barr)  How to connect a 1940s naval watchtower on the Tollesbury marshes, a brilliant Scottish knitwear designer and my all-time favourite novelist?   The investigation led me along the single-track lanes south-east from Tollesbury, heading towards the end of the old railway line to Tollesbury Pier. I began to get goosebumps as I remembered coming here before. Once on a long walk with my dog, when I was never quite sure where we were trespassing but was determined to explore anyway.  That was when I first saw the six-sided building, stark and guarded against the weather. Then I saw it again in my imagination: ‘It’s a t-tower,’ said David. Xanthe loved the way he said it with a shiver of excitement in his voice. ‘It’s in the m-middle of a f-field and it looks right down the r-river.’ ‘And when it was wartime the Navy built it so they could keep a lookout against invaders,’ added Kieran. ‘Then p-zow they’d press a button and the whole
Read more

Irresistably Drawn to the Faustian Pact: Griselda Heppel Channels her Inner Witch for World Book Day 2024.

By -
Image
Happy Easter! Griselda Heppel channelling her inner  Maggie Smith as Professor MacGonagall from Harry Potter. World Book Day has been and gone and I can now reveal my costume, having kept you in suspense for a whole month. I know. Lucky me, I found this splendid Professor MacGonagall outfit online and have been channelling my inner Maggie Smith ever since (soon to move on to the Dowager Countess What is a weekend? Grantham from Downton Abbey ). I was pleasantly surprised by how comfortable it was and reckon these Hogwarts wizards and witches know a thing or two about Practical Wear for Muggle Workshops (Spells, Charms and the Magic of Books Part 1, for instance). I’ve never before given author talks on each of my books all in one day (including two separate ones on The Fall of a Sparrow ) and I did wonder if I’d end up muddling all 3 of them (oops) or conking out altogether. Fortunately the stories are each so different in theme and background, and the Christ Church Cathedral Schoo
Read more

This one wild and precious life... reviewed by Katherine Roberts

By -
Image
You know that feeling of finding some coins down the back of the sofa? I was clearing out a drawer recently and came across an unused £10 National Book Token from ages ago... so long ago, in fact, that it had expired. "Ah well," I thought, "it was obviously a gift at the time, so easy come easy go..." and then I discovered that you can actually renew one of these tokens if it has expired. So I sent the details online to National Book Tokens, along with a photo of my expired card, and they emailed me a replacement. I could probably have spent this online too, but decided to enter into the spirit of olde-worlde book shopping and buy my gift-book from a local independent bookseller. I also decided it should be non-fiction, and so I chose the wonderful Arcturus Books in Totnes. Turned out I pretty much wanted to buy everything in the shop, but my token (being rather devalued over the 15 years or so it spent in my drawer) would only buy one book. In the end, I allowed th
Read more