• Barnaby Taylor
  • Book Shelf
  • Twitter
  • Amazon
  • Goodreads
  • Facebook

BARNABY TAYLOR

  • Introducing Bacharach McCarthy

    August 4th, 2014

    IMG_2142

    Bacharach McCarthy also lived a lonely life. He was tall and athletic-looking, capable of lifting heavy things, and took a keen interest in how the world worked but none of these attributes ever made a real difference to his adult life.

    Bacharach left school and went to work for a small manufacturing company that produced the world-famous Universal Drain Righter©. This handy-sounding device is a small twist of metal that you attach to any antipodean plughole to re-right the direction that the water swirls as you empty a bath.

    For eight hours a day and six hours of overtime on Saturday, Bacharach McCarthy placed a piece of metal into a groove, pressed a large red button and then laid the now twisted metal onto a conveyor belt for packing.

    In all this time, he spoke to no one. And no one spoke to him. But when the shifts were over, Bacharach raced home, wolfed down a pot of noodles, logged onto HeroVerse™ and turned once more into Bewilder Bird.

    Online, Bacharach felt completely free and was able to express himself in ways that he couldn’t in reality. He could behave in any way that he wanted to, but still he chose to be as silent in HeroVerse™ as he was in real life. He just preferred it this way.

    If you want to find out more Bacharach McCarthy then please feel free to click here.

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • Dr Don’t Know’s Submarine

    August 3rd, 2014

    IMG_1494

    Extraordinary stories about extraordinary heroes normally need extraordinary villains with extraordinary gadgets and extraordinary widgets and extraordinary deeds, facilitated by mind-numbingly extraordinary technology.

    All this sounds extraordinarily exciting but this story is slightly different, so I need to tone down expectations by rewriting the paragraph you have just finished reading. How about this?

    Stories about heroes normally need villains with gadgets and widgets and deeds, facilitated by technology.

    That sounds more like it. There is not much about this story that is extraordinary; its heroes, villains, super or otherwise. However, all is not lost.

    Dr Don’t Know does have a global crime network. He also has a large submarine that he uses as his secret base but none of this is quite as glamorous as it sounds. Let me explain.

    Global crime networks expand and contract over the life of a supervillain and Dr Don’t Know’s network had experienced a downturn in recent years. Profits have been down for a while now and this is why he has a submarine.

    During the good times, Dr Don’t Know rented office space in many of the major cities around the world. He also had penthouse apartments and hotels suites on permanent stand-by, just in case the crimes he was working on necessitated an overnight stay somewhere.

    Legions and legions of uniformed staff manned these offices and apartments and suites, ready to serve his every criminal whim.

    However, all of this renting and hiring and manning and possible overnight-staying was incredibly expensive. When the crime times were good, Dr Don’t Know felt justified in spending this kind of money but once the crime times were not quite so good, Dr Don’t Know’s army of accountants, in the last thing they did for their boss before they were all fired, reviewed Dr Don’t Know’s income and expenditure and concluded that he was paying too much for too much and needed to start cutting back.

    So, all of the office space and penthouse apartments and hotel suites were given up, as were the legions of uniformed staff manning them. Realising that he had to base himself somewhere in order to remain both at large and in business, Dr Don’t Know bought a second-hand submarine called Dr Don’t Know’s Submarine.

    Straight away, I am sure you will agree that this is a terrible name for anything, let alone the sub-aquatic headquarters of an international master criminal down on his luck. However, in a spirit of team building that he has since come to regret on a daily basis, Dr Don’t Know ran a competition amongst the few employees he had left to name the vessel. The winning name was drawn from a hat.

    Dr Don’t Know’s Submarine is a terrible name for the vessel but things could have been a whole lot worse if one of the other entries had been picked instead. Imagine if the submarine had been called Float Float or Crime Swim? What about Giant Swimming Flying Thing? Sea Sky 33? Dr Don’t Know’s Evil Underwater Submarine and Criminal Hidden Hideout Machine?

    Dr Don’t Know’s Submarine constantly patrolled the waters of the world, hoping to avoid detection by staying partially submerged for hours at a time.

    According to its operating manual, Dr Don’t Know’s Submarine can also fly short distances and be driven the wrong way down a motorway but no one, Dr Don’t Know included, has been brave enough to put this to the test.

    To find out more about Dr Don’t Know and his submarine click here. You can also follow Dr Don’t Know on Twitter but don’t expect him to say much.

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • Troublebots are Always Trouble

    August 2nd, 2014

    IMG_0539

    Troublebots were always trouble. They stood the tallish side of average and would look reasonably alright from a distance, were it not for the fact that they were usually scratched and dented.

    Each Troublebot had two eyes, a dial where the nose should be and a small round hole for a mouth. Variations do exist within this format, and you couldn’t be sure that the distance between the eyes is exactly the same on each head, or that each mouth was die-cut exactly in the centre of each face.

    The upper body was square-like and hollow, with enough room inside for all of the various pistons, wheels, wires, switches, motors and circuit boards required to keep the Troublebot working.

    There was also a rectangular grille on each Troublebot’s chest and if you looked through the flimsy bars, you could see their badly-soldered inner circuitry sparking, shorting and generally threatening to give up.

    The limbs of a Troublebot were designed with action in mind. Unfortunately, the measurements used for the prototype were very slightly out, and this mismeasurement was most noticeable in the slight limp caused by the right leg being ever-so-slightly longer than the left.

    The left arm looked normal enough for a humanoid and ended in a metallic hand. The right arm ended with a bewildering array of random tools attached to it instead of fingers. These tools included useful ones like screwdrivers, mini-saws, sharp knives, small-bore guns, digital cameras, half-size samurai swords, and blow-torches.

    Less useful tools that have been found at the end of a Troublebot’s arm include sporks, pencil sharpeners, miniature golf clubs, thermometers, toffee hammers, fountain pens, litter grabbers, flag guns that say ‘Bang’, analogue remote control systems, small kites on short strings, spirit-levels, kaleidoscopes, sextants, mascara brushes, wooden spoons, egg toppers, paper clips, microphones, Clingfilm dispensers, radio aerials, small fizzy sweet dispensers and a ruminator (whatever that is).

    If you want to find out more about Troublebots then click here.

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • ‘Who is ordinary and who isn’t ordinary?’

    August 1st, 2014

    IMG_0701

    Who is ordinary and who isn’t ordinary? Who decides who is extraordinary and who isn’t extraordinary? Perhaps these questions make more sense when we consider the possibility that the central character of this adventure could easily have been someone else.

    For example, we could be reading about the adventures of a small ingenious boy called Dunstable Johnson who is very handy in tight situations. Or, we could all be thrilling to the adventures of a swashbuckling amateur wrestler called Erica ‘Neck Brace’ Larkin. Erica investigates local mysteries in between wrestling bouts. This is just for starters.

    The battle to rescue Falcon Boy and Bewilder Bird from the clutches of the evil Dr Don’t Know and, by doing so, save the world from apparent destruction could have centred around the players and coaching staff of Wolseley Street F.C, an U12s amateur football team.

    Football has all the hallmarks of great adventure as players grapple with triumph and adversity as they seek to win a championship or avoid being relegated. There is plenty of drama in an adventure like this.

    If you don’t like stories about footballers, then what about a rather nifty and exciting robot called Rocky Random? Rocky has a propulsion unit in his boots and can cross oceans if necessary. He is handy to know in a global emergency.

    No? How about Eucalyptus McKenzie, the cartoon koala bear and government agent? The adventures of Eucalyptus McKenzie are yet to be written but I am pretty sure that this isn’t the last we will hear about this daring koala bear.

    For more thoughts on who is ordinary and who isn’t ordinary click here. If you want to follow someone who is both ordinary and extraordinary then why not click here?

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • The Blanket of Space and Time

    July 31st, 2014

    cropped-img_0628.jpg

    One of the pressures of publishing and then blogging about publishing and then sharing the blogging about publishing is the never-ending need for new things to publish and to blog about and to share.

    I boldly proclaimed the other day that I am currently working on Volume II in the Falcon Boy series, The Brothers Revoltable Travelling Circus and Other Crazy Fun with Special Guests. Progress has slowed slightly in the last week but I still hope to have a working draft finished by the end of the Summer.

    I also have a working draft of Volume III which is tentatively entitled The Blanket of Space and Time. Following the adventures in the second volume, Falcon Boy and Bewilder Bird yet again find themselves needing to redefine their roles in relation to a world that doesn’t really truly need them as much as they think that it ought to.

    The story isn’t fully developed yet but so far Falcon Boy has started offering his services as a magician in a bid to remain in the public eye. However, during his first (and probably last) performance a newly learned and barely rehearsed trick goes very badly wrong and Falcon Boy manages to transport Panic Town into an alternate reality by accidentally ripping a small tear in the Blanket of Space and Time.

    In this new reality Panic Town has been colonised by a flock of filthy Garbage Birds and once again it is down to the ever-resourceful Ellis to save the day from these foul fowls. In case you were wondering:

    Garbage Birds are a species unique to weird worlds and bizarre situations. They are madly made from of all kinds of different pieces of garbage and tend to stand about as high as a small horse. Each and every Garbage Bird is freakily unique; one might have a carrot for a nose and another might have the end of a mop. Some Garbage Birds have plastic bags for wings and others have dirty blankets or wee-stained sheets. Some walk on claws made from coat-hangers and others have the legs of chairs as legs. It has been reported but not yet confirmed that one of these creatures was once seen with a metal bucket for a head, two wings torn from a ripped anorak, with a bamboo cane for one leg, a big doll’s leg for the other and a beak made from a whisk and a serving spoon. Whatever they look like, and as you can imagine, the combinations are endless, Garbage Birds are the baddest of the baddest of the baddest of the baddest news.

    The plan is for plenty more alternate-reality action including alternate versions of our two superheroes and Panic Town’s favourite pop band Doodah becoming a gloomy, whiny guitar band called The Woebetides. This is all for the future. Until then you can gain a better understanding of Falcon Boy and his world here. You can also follow him on Twitter here.

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • The Fall and Rise of Pearly Stockwell?

    July 30th, 2014

    IMG_0408

    ‘Those sandals are a scandal, sir’, said Pearly to the busker. ‘And there is no call for a live performance this early in the morning without the proper permits and permissions.’

    The adventures of a supercilious six-year old child detective who solves crimes with the help of the three Gordy boys, Wanderley, Windy and Wes, (who call themselves the Interesting Twins) first came to my attention via the Pearly Stockwell and the Interesting Twins Wonder Detective Comic Book Super Series, a reasonably unsuccessful series of black and white comics published by the extremely obscure IT Publishing.

    As you will know if you have read the series, Pearly moves to Fallstown following a commuter train tragedy that killed her parents. Fallstown is a small place in the middle of nowhere that is somehow a perpetual magnet for all minds and matters criminally oriented. Pearly doesn’t have much to bring to her new home apart from the fortune she inherited from her parents and her big city ways.

    Appalled by an unfortunate incident which resulted in her suitcase being mistakenly switched, Pearly takes it upon herself to establish a detective agency by placing an advertisement in the Fallstown Provider looking for like-minded individuals.

    ‘Experience not essential but you must have a belief in truth, justice and an aching desire to find out things’

    Her advertisement is answered by the Interesting Twins and the rest is history.

    The comics only ran for a single series before the paying public decided that Pearly’s big city ways were just too much for them. For completists everywhere here is the full list of published titles:

    1. Pearly Stockwell and the Letter from the Past

    2. The Octopus and His Evil Plans for Pearly Stockwell

    3. The Lost Treasure of Fallstown

    4. Pearly Saves the Seaside

    5. Windy Wins the Deadliest Race of his Little Life

    6. Pearly and the Merchant Bankers

    7. Pearly and the Missing Magic Ring

    8. Here Comes the Interesting Twins to Save the Day

    9. Pearly Meets the Ghostly Angler

    10. We Really Hope You Can, Pearly Stockwell!

    11. Pearly Stockwell and the Letter that Was Hidden But Everyone Could Really See

    12. When Toyshops Attack

    13. Pearly and the Harvest Moon

    14. Pearly Stockwell and the Fate of the Fête

    15. Pearly Breaks a Leg

    16. The Circus has Lost a Clown

    17. Pearly Lose the Plot, Or Does She?

    18. Pearly Squares the Magic Circle

    The comic book series was turned into an audio book series and if you scour the thrift shops or look online you might still be able to find the recordings somewhere.

    There has been a very recent upsurge in interest in Pearly Stockwell and her adventures and I even read a rumour somewhere that there might be plans for reviving the series. There does also seem to be some very recent online activity.

    Currently these are only rumours but they do also extend as far as tentative suggestions about a screenplay also being produced. I will look into this and if I hear any more on this topic I will let you know.

    Until then, beware The Octopus and his ‘his eight mean legs of greed, theft, evil, selfishness, anger, violence, meanness and insanity’.

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • Wonder Woman Done Right

    July 29th, 2014

    capebuster's avatarCure For Kryptonite

    wonder_woman

    There’s a good chance that by now you’ve seen the teaser image of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman. And if you’re anything like me, you may have nearly spit out your morning coffee the first time you saw the picture.

    Yep, this version of Wonder Woman is coffee-spitting good, and it’s making me even more excited for Batman v. Superman.  Our favorite Amazonian princess is finally getting some time to shine on the big screen and her character design is outstanding! The boots, the bracelets, the weapons… Everything about her costume just works. The pieces all come together to make an incredible ensemble.

    Personally, I think this costume does justice (no pun intended) to Wonder Woman’s true essence. It has hints of the classic comic book design, while still fitting in with Zack Snyder’s gritty universe. Gadot is not overly sexualized in this costume, but she still maintains an aura of that…

    View original post 144 more words

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • A Fairly Hopeless Hero

    July 29th, 2014

    Here’s the first in a new series of AV promotional tasters for A Fairly Hopeless Hero …

     

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • The Brothers Revoltable Travelling Circus and Other Crazy Fun with Special Guests

    July 29th, 2014

    IMG_0148

    As my About.me indicates – as does any other profile I have recently updated – I am currently working on Volumes II and III of Falcon Boy: A Fairly Hopeless Hero. Volume II is tentatively titled The Brothers Revoltable Travelling Circus and Other Crazy Fun with Special Guests and tells the tale of what happens when an evil circus owner comes to Panic Town intent on much harm and mischief.

    I am currently 13,000 words into the second draft and already I can see new possibilities for Falcon Boy and his sidekick Bewilder Bird as they struggle once again to establish their relevance to a world that doesn’t really need them. The challenge is to make sure the two superheroes stay central to the story even though neither of them are really capable of being the kind of agents for change that they wish they were.

    All worlds, narrative or otherwise, change all of the time and the world of Falcon Boy is no exception. I will keep you updated as the project develops.

    In the meantime you can gain a better understanding of Falcon Boy and his world here. You can also follow him on Twitter here.

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
  • Welcome to the Queue

    July 28th, 2014

    You are too late. Nothing works anymore. The world has gone wrong. The planet still spins in space but forlornly now, sullen, lopsided; different somehow.

    Everything is broken.

    Buildings. Streets. Trains. Aeroplanes. Elevators. Bicycles. Radios. Washing machines. Traffic lights. Percolators. Skylines. Exit lights. Frying pans. Pavements. Alarm clocks. Egg timers. Boats. Chandeliers. Lawnmowers. Aquariums. Fax machines. Easter eggs. Personal organisers. Microwaves. Trumpets. Newspapers. Riding schools. Candelabras. Curling tongs. Football boots.

    Headphones. Shoe laces. Tin foil. Fountain pens. Picture frames. Step ladders. Garden furniture. Swimming pools. Beach huts. Kettles. Handkerchiefs. Record players.

    Jigsaw puzzles. Curling tongs. Waste paper baskets. Oven gloves. Paint brushes. Perfume bottles. Standard lamps. Printing presses. Immersion heaters. Car boot sales. Drum sticks. Room dividers. Stair rods.

    Journals. Diaries. Dictionaries. Letters. Cards for all occasions. Notes. Novels. Plays. Scripts. Emails. Submissions.

    Hobbies. Habits. Fads. Fashions.

    Movements. Waves. Histories. Cultures.

    Desires. Ambitions. Ideas.

    Questions?

    All the whole world does now is queue. Whole countries united in their queuing. Continents. The whole world. As far as the eye can see. Visible from space.

    No one can remember a time before the Queue. Only the Queue. Now. And nothing else. Forever.

    But no one cares. All they care about is the Queue. There is nothing else to care about. Only the Queue.

    What a way to live your life. Being born. Growing up. Dying. All in the Queue. A life defined by waiting in line. Life after life after life. One after the other. Everyone in the Queue.

    Forever. All you will ever know. Nothing more. Only the Queue.

    The world is really rubbish now. Really rubbish.

    Really, really rubbish.

    So what has gone wrong?

    Dr Don’t Know is what has gone wrong.

    Dr Don’t Know?

    The world’s greatest supervillain.

    The world’s last supervillain.

    Last?

    Well, he won, didn’t he? His evil plan succeeded. And now the world looks the way he has always wanted it to.

    His evil plan?

    You had better come with me.

    For more on Dr Don’t Know and his evil plan click here. He is also on Twitter and is happy to answer any questions you might have …

    Share this:

    • Tweet
    • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
    • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
    • Share on Tumblr
    Like Loading…
←Previous Page
1 … 48 49 50 51
Next Page→

Blog at WordPress.com.

 

Loading Comments...
 

    • Subscribe Subscribed
      • BARNABY TAYLOR
      • Join 1,762 other subscribers
      • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
      • BARNABY TAYLOR
      • Subscribe Subscribed
      • Sign up
      • Log in
      • Report this content
      • View site in Reader
      • Manage subscriptions
      • Collapse this bar
    %d