| Author | Message | ||
     Johnny_mains (Johnny_mains) Username: Johnny_mains Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 86.31.118.252 |
Current project, hoping to have it edited and finished by Summer 2011. Didn't think that writing with someone would be a good idea, but it's lovely. As always with these things, looking to find a publisher... :D WHITBY by SCOTT HARRISON and JOHNNY MAINS Whitby, North Yorkshire. 1936. It has been nearly 40 years since journalist Raymond Peakes wrote his original piece on the great storm and the arrival of the Russian schooner ‘Demeter’ to the small fishing village in the dead of night. And now, all Peakes wants to do is forget the past and move on. But the dead just won’t stay buried. Once more, Raymond Peakes is forced to face the horror; to recount his tale of strange happenings and blackest deeds A tale that began with the arrival of the Demeter. Believing the ship to be cursed, the superstitious locals want it burned, before it can be sailed back to Varna. But a mysterious group calling themselves the Low Hall Brethren have other plans, staking claim to several undisclosed items rumoured to be hidden on board. As illness and death stalk the sleepy little town, Peakes begins to investigate claims of the dead walking the streets at night, unaware of the monster that has been preying upon the community, in order to slake his thirst for blood. Count Dracula. Halted in his seduction of Lucy Westenra by her friend Mina Harker, Dracula has turned his attention upon the inhabitants of Whitby, infecting the town with the ancient curse of the undead. As the community descends into hysteria, the church wants Whitby destroyed, purifying the land, making it free from evil. The town’s only hope is for Peakes to join forces with the shadowy Clerec Robueter, leader of the Low Hall Brethren, the only person who seems to know exactly what is going on and, more importantly, how this nightmare can be stopped. Set amongst the action of the infamous Dracula, but only containing its eponymous character, WHITBY is the story of a man who is willing to destroy himself in his quest to stop Dracula and his harbingers of un-death… —()— 'WHITBY is an exciting project to be involved in; it exploits a plot hole in the original novel and offers up a unique chance to tell the story of a town already blighted by superstition and what happens when a real supernatural force rips through the community. I’m really thrilled to be writing this with Scott Harrison, our writing styles match extremely well and it’s quite rather mental to be writing the secret history of Dracula without involving Van Helsing et al. A challenge indeed!'– JOHNNY MAINS. JOHNNY MAINS is the author of the collection With Deepest Sympathy (Obverse Books) and has edited Back from the Dead (Noose and Gibbet). He has written for SFX Magazine, contributes to The Paperback Fanatic and was project editor for The Pan Book of Horror Stories 2010 re-issue. His latest book Party Pieces: The Horror Fiction of Mary Danby will be published by Noose and Gibbet in February 2011. 'Ever since I was a child I’ve been fascinated by both the town of Whitby and Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula. It’s always been an ambition of mine to explore and expand upon the wonderfully chilling and erotic tapestry that Stoker created over a century ago – a world that’s as vibrantly real and relevant to today’s society as it was to those living in the late Victorian era. To be able to work on something like this with Johnny Mains, a man whose name is already synonymous with great horror fiction, is an absolute joy. Particularly as we share many of the same literary passions. It’s a pleasure to put pen to paper' – SCOTT HARRISON. SCOTT HARRISON is an author and playwright, whose stage plays have been performed both in the UK and the US. He has short stories appearing in forthcoming anthologies from Obverse Books and Dark Fiction, and has co-edited the collection Voices from the Past (H&H Books) with Lee Harris. He has written for HUB Magazine, contributes to Shiny Shelf, and held the post of writer-in-residence for The Dreaming Theatre Company for several years. He is also working on a solo Steampunk novel called Dark Engine. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 129.11.77.197 |
Hey, I'm the only gay in the village!! Get out of my native town!! | ||
| Johnny_mains (Johnny_mains) Username: Johnny_mains Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 86.31.118.252 |
You're more than welcome to have a long stick shoved up your arse Gary... :D | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 129.11.77.197 |
If you want any insight into some of the cunts who live in the town, let me know. I can offer you a few real world examples. Vampires are frankly too good for em. | ||
| Johnny_mains (Johnny_mains) Username: Johnny_mains Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 86.31.118.252 |
Have been to Whitby about ten times in the past, but any old quirks about the town as it was will be appreciated! | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 129.11.77.197 |
Was, when? I go back to 2007. Can you restage it just before the credit crunch? I'm a veritable font of wisdom on this period and can tell you where to get a cheap pint and the best fish n chips. I can also regale you merrily with a tale about the death of Kwik Save and how pensioners did fret that, without a cheap alternative to the Co-op, they would have nowhere to buy their cheap groceries (since Lidls is a taxi ride out of town). Oh, there's drama here, no question about that. We thrive on action and adventure. Someone spiked seagull food with purple dye one year and all the cars got covered in Porphyria poo. God, it's exciting. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 82.210.134.81 |
This idea has been into a film. I'm sure of it. Due for release soon. I saw something on Yahoo Entertainment news a while back. No kidding. | ||
| Johnny_mains (Johnny_mains) Username: Johnny_mains Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 86.31.118.252 |
Well, unless you can find that piece (all that's been on Yahoo is about Dracula the play) - I'd say keep your opinions to yourself, Frank. | ||
| Chris_morris (Chris_morris) Username: Chris_morris Registered: 04-2008 Posted From: 12.165.240.116 |
Maybe this is what Frank is referring to?: http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/news/19327 | ||
| Craig (Craig) Username: Craig Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 99.126.164.88 |
I always thought DEMETER was a fantastic idea for a movie - but it doesn't sound to me like Mains' novel, which also sounds pretty damn good. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Johnny - First off, mate, it wasn't an opinion, and it wasn't meant to be an attack. And the link Craig was talking about is probably what I read. Take it easy. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Now that I read the link (again), yes, it doesn't sound like the movie. Just an honest mistake. Wasn't trying to rain on anybody's parade. | ||
| Craig (Craig) Username: Craig Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 99.126.164.88 |
Frank, Frank, Frank... you're just always getting in trouble around here, aren't you?!... Probably 'cause of your crap taste in films, I bet.  | ||
| Mark_lynch (Mark_lynch) Username: Mark_lynch Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 217.171.129.75 |
GP Taylor's Shadowmancer is the only Whitby-based movie I'm aware of, and as to whether it'll ever happen or not, I dunno. Taylor - famously the priest who sold his Harley Davidson to self publish the book - has always struck me as a bit of a publicity hound, and her now seems to have become involved in a business 'helping' others publish their books. Hmm mmm. I like the sound of the novel, Johhny. Good luck with it. Anyone round these parts read Dacre Stoker's sequel to Dracula? | ||
| Johnny_mains (Johnny_mains) Username: Johnny_mains Registered: 04-2010 Posted From: 86.31.118.252 |
Fair enough Frank. Cheers Craig and Mark! Will be my first foray into writing novels from short stories, but I have someone to help with the load, so it'll be like writing a really, really long short story... :D |