I. Introduction
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Mythic Times is a genre-defying darkly comic urban fantasy. It is a story told in three parts that ventures into realms mundane and familiar, as well as those imagined and magical. It weaves together folklore, science and legends of many world cultures: threads that reach back into the past hundreds of years; and which also point to the future.
This is not just a story.
This is not just entertainment.
This is a myth, crafted to be complex and amusing, intriguing and mystifying.
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II. Book the First
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The first book, Last Knight, begins the telling. This is where the myth first emerges, like the first spring shoot sprouting from the snow, tender and green: a thing slender in its infancy but with an intricate nature.
This book initially began its life as a short story. Out of several short stories the author was writing this one in particular seemed to grow out of its bonds, much like a certain well-known wolf monster, until one day the author found this short story standing over him, immense, and looming just a little. The story then went on to inform the author that it was not content being a mere short story and had therefore decided it would become a novel. The author really had very little choice in the matter.
So Last Knight came about.
It is a tale of courage mostly, and what measures are needed in order to find it. At its heart it is a coming-of-age story. It is narrated by two sundered friends: one who is transported to realms beyond our own; and the one who was left behind.
Complemented with shades of Native American folklore and soothing hues of Nightmarish Horror, Last Knight’s primary colours are myths Egyptian and Norse, as well as the Romantic Chivalrous legends of western Europe. Painted on a canvas of fairy magic, it’s a renaissance Arthurian allegory in the impressionist style accentuated by baroque motifs of heroism- all of which has been refitted, reformatted and refurbished for post-modern times.
For the most part Last Knight was inspired by all the wonderful and beguiling tales spun by Neil Gaiman. Also into the mix are the influences of Douglas Coupland and Michael Ondaatje.
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III. Book the Second
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The second story in the trilogy is called Tomorrow Mourning. This story takes up the threads of the first book and follows the natural course of events to find the characters five years later. It is written in part as a modern detective story; but the clues lead the characters to investigate themselves more than anything.
The author never actually intended to write any sequels to the first book, had never intended a trilogy. But in the dark, deep places of his mind things lurked, and bred, while mysterious shapes were coalescing and merging.
Then all at once the story sprung its trap and the author was stuck. The only way out was to write the damn thing!
While the first story dealt with what needs to be taken up in life, book two deals more with all the things that need to be left behind. It is a story about revenge and lost love. It reflects the ways in which people lose themselves by becoming trapped by their beliefs. How grief can tie us down. How hope can drive us mad.
It is the quixotic quest of a knight who longs to find his purpose and duty.
The sumptuous main course of this book is composed of myths Sumerian, Aztec and Greek, peppered lightly with a flavourful blend of Atlantean spices, with just a hint of Haitian Voodoo. For dessert there is an exquisite Icelandic Dragon drizzled with senility and garnished with a sprig of paranoia. Included with the repast is either a Biblical Flood soup or an Icelandic Raven salad. For only an additional ten pages you can have a triangular cup of our Bottomless Bermuda Coffee.
Within the pages of Tomorrow Mourning the mythos truly begins to unfold. If the first book was the budding of the plant, this is the blooming of its first flower; and each petal is a separate facet, alive and prodigious. The heart of the flower is revealed, complex and organic.
The writing of Tomorrow Mourning was inspired most by the books written by Chuck Palahniuk and Anne Michaels.
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IV. Book the Third
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The third book is called Two Days’ Son. In it the myth unravels to its natural conclusion (which is really only a grander beginning) and finishes the arc of the main characters who were introduced in book one.
This is not a generational book. It does, however, take place in the distant future (if such a thing really does exist) which is not exactly post-apocalyptic as it is post-post-apocalyptic (if such a thing makes any sense).
This story developed at a far greater pace than book two, which doesn’t seem to make any sense at all, in any plane of existence. This rapid progress is largely due to the fact that the story, in a very sneaky way that stories can sometimes be, was actually coming to life without the author even realizing it. This only goes to prove the age-old adage that stories are greedy, selfish things and think only of themselves. Cloaked in the appearance of being a completely unrelated story, Book Three bided its time until its plans had ripened and then- only then- did it reveal its true self to the author, who, it must be said, was taken completely off his guard (which more or less served him right).
Cyberpunk defines the style if not wholly in content. It is the tale of a young boy orphaned in a mad world who craves, as all youths do, to find the path to greatness. His search for a mentor brings him to meet an unexpected guide who takes him on many adventures in order to teach him.
The story is driven by a Japanese-manufactured Shinto-powered engine fueled by a potent blend of premium alchemical gold. This brave new V2300 model comes equipped with state of the art Genie’s Lamp spark plugs and powerful Vedic Hindu pistons. Utilizing futuristic computer science this baby can reach 300 years-per-paragraph in just under 500 pages with enough torque to send a Gypsy into space.
This third book wraps up the myth which began in the first and opened up in the second. To conclude the analogy created earlier, this story takes into account not only the blossoming flower, but also the branch on which it grows; and then draws back further to take in the entire tree, which stands even as Yggdrasil stands: deep-rooted, unshakeable, far-reaching.
Two Days’ Son was inspired by the works of William Gibson, Jeff Noon and M. T. Anderson.
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V. Conclusion
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One of the strongest impulses we as humans have is to tell stories.
To imagine.
To dream.
The stories we learn in our youth -and all throughout our lives if we do not fall victim to the deadening effects of the money-driven modern world- help to illuminate for us the importance of certain values. Like honour. And honesty. Loyalty. Courage. Fidelity.
Like any good mythic tale, this story is meant to teach as much as anything else.
In no way does it preach any apperceived truths. All it is meant to do is illuminate the things we feel to be true in ourselves. To light a lamp in the gloom of our minds. To put up a gust of wind for your sail to catch.
Mythic Times is designed as a myth, a fable for modern readers.
There is much that is very old found inside its frame. The gods and monsters present in the stories were once present in stories shared and spoken by vibrant, living cultures in ancient times. Some of them still are.
It is a basic quality of Truth that it is very easy to find, but very difficult to see. Or maybe it’s the other way round: very easy to see, but very hard to find. Doesn’t matter. One way or the other. The point is that we can all identify things that seem to be wise. We know what is good for us, and what is not.
But we often forget the reasons why we should seek those things that are good for us.
We know we should eat better, get more exercise, learn more, stress out less.
But we can’t always keep in mind what it would be like to attain these things, what we want.
Stories remind us. They show us what it means to be strong.
They give us role models. They guide us.
They inspire.
Just like taping up pictures of body builders in your personal gym will inspire you to burn off those love handles. Just like leafing through any fashion magazine will inspire you to upgrade your wardrobe. Just like going to the beach will inspire you to get cosmetic surgery of at least three different types.
Stories help us to become better people. They give us heroes and saviors, messiahs and messengers.
They mediate for us, bridging the desires of the heart with the wisdom of the mind.
Myths are the umbilical cord of the soul.
They drive the Truth home for us (though usually taking the scenic route and occasionally taking a detour here or there). They give us the incentive to leave behind those things that we cling to in order to brave finding what will make us strong. And so, newly awakened to ourselves for that brief moment, we remember our sense of destiny. We can detect all the reasons there are to chase our dreams. We are reminded why it is needful to go crashing through the dark wood looking for hidden caves and unicorns.
Not to find them, no; but only to conduct the search.
For only in that search can we find ourselves.
Usually in a hidden cave.
Which we’re brought to by a unicorn.
But only once we’ve given up hope entirely of ever finding any of the above.
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