Nimue and I attended Weekend at the Asylum last year in Lincoln. (One of the best steampunk events I have ever been a guest at!) One of the high points was meeting a splendid bloke by the name of Jonathan Green (he was at a table near ours). Being new to the English steampunk scene, I was not yet aware of exactly who this was I was chatting with so very casually. (Likewise Robert Rankin... but that's another story. As well I didn't know who he was at the time or I would have been far less articulate!) Right... back to our story. Talked with the esteemed Mr Green, showed him some of the art and generally schmoozed. The second time I visited his table (he was very approachable and flawlessly polite, all the things a gentleman of letters should be!) I looked down at the books stacked before him and realised that this was a widely published and prolific writer. Before leaving I purchased from him the first three books in Pax Britannia: Ulysses Quicksilver series. I had a feeling that this would be a portentous meeting (and so, as it turned out, it was).
After we recovered from the weekend, I began reading Pax Britannia. Dead. Freaking. Brilliant. (Don't take my word for it, Google it. Read a few reviews.) I started stalking Mr Green (in a gentlemanly and platonic sort of way, naturally). He is everywhere and he has done everything (and very, very well indeed). I contacted him and praised Pax Britannia, and asked if he might be interested in working on something together. As it happened, he was!
He pitched two projects to me within the hour, and I picked, what would later become Clemency Slaughter. Within a day... it was written! (And unsurprisingly, sinister, stylish and deucedly clever.) I provided some drawings, a sample illustration and a finished cover. We then (OK, Jon really; he is better with the words and knows more publishers on this side of the pond) started sending queries off to large, posh publishers. The replies came back, that though THEY (the editors) loved it, they were pretty sure that YOU would not be ready for such a book, as it does not fit tidily into a pre-established category.
At last, Jon contacted Ian Whates at NewCon Press. Ian was very interested and wanted to see the book published (still does!) but had not done a graphic novel style book before, and the book would have to be run through Kickstarter, with NewCon to publish at successful completion of the Kickstarter campaign.
Here, now, we get to the good part. This campaign is taking place... at this very moment! There are lots of incentives (including signed copies of Hopeless, Maine and Pax Britannia. The chance to attend a posh London book launch, original art from me, and cunning skull-ish jewellery (based on one of the designs I did for the art from the book).
You can be a part of this! Pre-order the book, and help unleash Clemency Slaughter on an unsuspecting world! Art for the project is in my gallery, and the Kickstarter campaign (including wonderful footage of Jon in a creepy London cemetery) can be found here.
Hope to see you at the launch or hear from you soon!
Love and dark unnamed things,
Tom
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