Netflix recently released the film ‘Enola Holmes,’ based on the first book in a popular series by Nancy Springer. The eponymous heroine is the younger sister of famous detective Sherlock Holmes and doesn’t appear in the original Arthur Conan Doyle works (which is the subject of much controversy which I’m not going to delve into here!) so she has been written specifically to add another dimension to the Holmes saga many of us love.
I haven’t read the books but I did watch the film and, although parts of it were flawed, I thought it was a great story for young women and men to enjoy. Plus, it has Helena Bonham Carter in it as the bad ass mum so, you know, I’m sold. When I was watching the film I quite liked the idea that the iconic character of Sherlock Holmes could have this hidden side to his life but that the character of Enola was completely her own person with her own story to tell. So, of course, I had a think about who else might have some interesting siblings with a story to tell and, if there weren’t any legal issues, this is the list I would like to submit… Willy Wonka Yes, I know I’m discussing a Roald Dahl character again but I won’t feel bad about it. The possibilities with this one are endless! There could be a brother who despises chocolate and sweet things and has built a factory dedicated to chopping vegetables or a sister who is even more committed to chocolate than Wonka and has made an entire planet out of the stuff. I also quite like the idea that there could be a few Wonka siblings traversing the universe searching for the best sweet treat it has to offer. Basically, if this ever happens one of them has to be called Wilma Wonka. James Bond The most famous spy of all time hasn’t been without controversy and it’s completely justified, so much so that some believe the next iteration of the character on screen should be female. I think a sister to this character could be really interesting as she could challenge the sexist history that Bond is famous for. All I ask is that she ties her hair back when she’s fighting and isn’t given some weird backstory that a man hurt her once and that’s the only way she could be become a hardened killer. Ursula Any Disney fan will know of this wicked sea witch and if you don’t think she has one of the best songs in the Disney back catalogue, you’re wrong. There’s been a trend in recent years to reinterpret famous Disney villains and I think Ursula would be perfect for this. I’m imagining her and her glamourous older sister painting Atlantis red with their debauchery before something happens that turns her into the witch we all love to hate. Mary Poppins Mary Poppins was a key feature in my childhood (my mother is convinced this film is why I’m a feminist after she caught me marching around the living, aged two ,shouting ‘Votes for Women!’) so I have a lot of love for Mary. She’s a bit of an elusive character and so I think giving her a sibling would open a new world of fun. I can see her with a brother who is also practically perfect in every way or a younger sister that’s still trying to learn the ropes. Either way, I want a film adaptation and I want some catchy songs. Dracula As it’s spooky season I thought I should include this guy! This would require some reworking of the story but why shouldn’t Dracula have a sibling to share that big old house with? I quite like the idea of a ‘What We Do in the Shadows’ type film with him and a vast number of siblings who don’t really get on but who else is going to put up with them for eternity?
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It’s been two weeks since ‘The Arben Bridge’ was released on Kindle and I am so very grateful for the response so far. Admittedly I am yet to sell millions of copies but those that have read the book and given feedback have been overwhelmingly supportive. I’m currently attempting to format the paperback so hopefully that will be on its way very soon!
I must be honest, trying to think of new ideas for blog posts is something I am struggling with. I want to stay current and interesting as well as promote the book without being super contrived which is really hard! For someone who works in marketing and likes to think they have a way with words, selling myself has never been my forte. However, while scrolling my various social media apps trying to think of a new topic I thought some of you may be interested in how I developed the city of Miraylia as it’s so central to the plot. Don’t worry, there won’t be any spoilers! Firstly, I’d really like to tell you how I came up with the name but I’m afraid I can’t remember! I spent a lot of time putting random bits of words together to make new words and using Google translate to look for these words in other languages, too. Like a lot of the book I tended to just make decisions that felt right to me, which is what made the whole writing experience so enjoyable in all honesty, and one day I said ‘Miraylia’ and it stuck. I also think it looks ‘pretty’ as a word and I struggle to write stories when I’m not absolutely certain that a name fits in with the piece (don’t even get me started on how long it took to name the characters…) Anyway, as the book is a fantasy fiction and somewhat of a tribute to the mythologies of Wales and its language I also wanted something that I felt could fit into this language. Whether Welsh speakers agree or not is another thing! In terms of its look this was surprisingly clear very early on. The initial idea for the book was the result of a dream I had; I saw a row of guards lined up on an ancient bridge all seemingly disappearing into thin air (if anyone would like to tell me what trauma this relates to, please feel free) and, I don’t know about you, but I often get a ‘feeling’ from dreams and this one was giving definite bohemian vibes. When I first started writing my characters and plot lines, despite not having visited these cities, I thought that the buildings of Budapest, Barcelona and other famous European cities would be a perfect fit and so I started trawling through Pinterest straight away. I wanted this city to have windy cobbled streets, multicoloured buildings, vibrant markets and all the romantic imagery of a European city from yesteryear. I also wanted the reader to imagine that the city had the potential to be a sight for the supernatural and these types of cities have always evoked a sense of fairy-tale magic to me. I was later lucky enough to visit both Barcelona and Budapest as well as Vienna and as soon as I began to explore I knew I had been on the money. I can’t say I know anything about architecture but I fell in love with almost every building I passed in these cities; even the Aldis in Vienna are a work of art. A close friend of mine who has read the book said she also pictured Edinburgh and I think the paved streets and old timey buildings would be a perfect fit in Miraylia. I found creating a fictional city not only fun but completely liberating; I allowed myself to create a place that I’d like to live in and there were no rules in how it looked or functioned unless I enforced them. I cannot speak for other writers but I do think that when you’re creating something you have to put a piece of yourself into it otherwise you won’t know how it works or feel passionate about it and if you’re not passionate how in the hell are you going to keep writing about it? For example, even though I haven’t marked out a map of the city and named every residence or shop in Miraylia if you were to ask me if X or Y existed there I would be able to give you an answer with absolute certainty. |
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