Book Info:
Title: Midnight Riders
Author: Pete Clark
Publisher: J. Ellington Ashton Press
“Gather ‘round people and you shall hear
about a bunch of bullshit that is clear.
Of riders and horses and monsters too;
your parents lied - they can still get you.
Hardly anyone who was there is alive
to dispel the rumor, uncover the lies,
but there was more than one man who rode that day
and more than just Redcoats who got in their way.”
Along the way, Longfellow lost something in his translation it seems.
Everyone has heard of the French and Indian War and the American Revolution. However, they have not heard about them this way! The American founding fathers had a lot more to deal with at the end of the 18th century than tariffs and tea; avoiding hurled trees from Wendigos and gargoyles falling from the sky took a lot of patience. How is Samuel Prescott supposed to hunt the leader of the Rippers when the British keep infringing upon the colonists’ rights?
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Boone
was sure he heard Revere scream as the zombie Forbes charged at them. On his
way, Forbes took a nice hearty bite out of an off duty soldier who happened to
be nearby. “Grullarrk,” the soldier said clearly before falling to the ground.
Forbes
Zombie was fast. A hell of a lot faster than Forbes was in real life. How the heck did that work out, Boone
wondered. Oh well. He unslung his double-barreled reverse musket, an invention
of Revere; the guy was good for something,
thought Boone as he fired and turned his former commanding officer’s head into
a floating cloud of red mist. He then flipped the release on his musket, spun
the barrels so that the fired barrel faced back and the loaded faced forward,
and he vaporized the downed soldier’s head as well just to be sure. He wasn’t
about to let any zombies rise on his watch.
“Everybody
to the wall,” Fraser ordered. It seemed that Boone’s gunfire and the shrieking
had alerted the remaining werewolves, who were apparently done feasting on the
French and wanted to upgrade to a little English breakfast.
“Zombies
and werewolves,” whined Revere. “I sure hope no vampires show up.”
“Vampires?”
Boone countered. “What are you, a child? Vampires aren’t real.”
“They’re
not?” asked Revere.
“No
- vampires are just a myth. But dragons, dragons will fuck your shit up,” said
George Washington.
Playlist for Midnight Riders
“Loved by the Sun”: Tangerine Dream
This is a cheeseball eighties song and I love me some
cheeseball eighties music. This one has a sort of epic and mystical sound to
it. So it’s good for when I’m trying to get into more of the supernatural
elements of the story.
This is a strange and enjoyable tune with a bit of steel
drum. Who doesn’t love a bit of steel drum? If you know the band, then you
already know what kind of song this is. I like this song and others like it
because it is somewhat inspiring to see the utter chaos. Utter chaos is crucial
to many of my stories.
See the first two selections and you know that I love
strange lyrics and eighties music. Well this song is the best of both worlds.
Written to sound like a traditional 80s rock ballad but the lyrics are
amazingly offensive and bizarre. It was love at first listen to me. This is
also a nice barometer. Because if you are offended by this song, then chances
are the language in my books is a bit harsh for you as well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzUPG8olnO0
I like this song both for its oddly energetic chorus and
also for the style of comedy it uses. I like confusion and manipulation of
audience expectation to create comic situations. This song certainly plays with
that. Good times.
First off this song is awesome so it should be on every
playlist. And as an added bonus, it features stylish werewolves. My book also
has werewolves. But mine are bastards. His have perfect hair and a fondness for
Chinese takeout. Seriously this song belongs everywhere.
I like this song because of its poppy cheesiness. I also
have a tendency, when it comes to music, to relate more to the sound than the
words and although the lyrics are certainly interesting if you speak Flemish or
whatever, it is the music alone that provides all of the inspirational boost I
need. The video in the link is just a picture with the music because the actual
videos are pretty poor quality.
Another song that is actually a really excellent tune but
has the added bonus of being rather bizarre. A fictional band designed for a
movie but regardless, a lot of their music is good. This song is a good example
of how you can have a good song with childish humor and still make it work.
Again I love strange comedy.
This song is both beautiful and thunderous. One of my
favorite Green Day songs. This song I find to be a very powerful tool for
inspiration for scenes that involve intense emotion and beauty. There are a few
of them in my books and the sound of this song makes for a good example of the
balance I look for in those scenes.
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Top Ten:
For this list I have put together ten of my favorite
supernatural creatures in no particular order. Some liberties are taken with
some of the lore but hey, it’s just a fun list. I may change my mind about what
should be on it by tomorrow or the next day, but they are all awesome and that
is what counts.
Wendigo:
A violent incarnation of insanity and rage. The wendigo is often portrayed as a
simple cannibal, but when you really turn these guys loose and let them blossom
into the terrain obliterating fuzzy mass of unstoppable rage that they can be,
then they are tough not to love.
Zombies:
Ah the zombie; so simple, so stupid, and yet oddly creepy. The mindless
solitary desire to feed at all costs, even at the cost of its own destruction,
combined with a grotesque yet formally dressed appearance makes the zombie a
frightening entity. Although only in groups; one zombie is nothing. But don’t
get cocky. Chances are there’s more than one; you just don’t know where it is.
Phoenix:
I am a fan of birds. Birds that burst into a searing torrent of flame and are
then reborn? Well, that makes for an awesome bird.
Werebear:
I love me a quality lycan. But those damn werewolves are getting overdone. So
why not go with the Werebear. Bears are cooler than wolves anyway. How many
times have you seen a wolf beat up a bear? I’ll tell you how many times- no
times. Because it never happens. Bears will kill the hell out of you; Were
Bears are capable of some major carnage.
Manticore:
I love hybrid creatures. Monsters that are a mix of other things and smashed
together. Well hello Mr. Manticore. Lion, cool wings, poison darts. What -
poison darts come out of you? Ok that gets you on the list.
Chimera:
Hey look another hybrid creature. But the chimera is the best hybrid of them
all. A simply amazing and unpredictable mixture of a lion, a dragon, and a
goat. That’s right. They got a goat mixed in there. Dragons are amazing, but
when you mix it with the excitement of a goat monster, it makes a big pile of
awesome.
Old
School Vampires: Now I am pretty wary about putting
vampires on this list as vampires have become a big sparkly bucket of teen
angsty love and overall suckiness. But I say no. Those are not vampires; those
are just well dressed men with sharp teeth. The real vampires burst in the sun,
kill you for your blood, sort of smell like the grave, and enjoy a good fight.
Those vampires are still awesome. It is just so hard to find a good vampire
nowadays. Poor vampires. They have been ruined by junior high girls.
Succubus:
Succubae are basically really hot girls that will kill you by having sex with
you. I think that pretty much makes the case.
Doppelganger:
The awesome name, best enjoyed while being said in a borderline offensive
German accent, does half the work. Also it can become anything. Even you. In
fact, you just might be a double walker right now and don’t know. Ich Liebe
Doppelgangers. I also Liebe
flammenwerfers but that is another list.
Kappa:
Small creepy little water sprits that just want to invite you in for a swim.
Sure, it’s to drown you, but that’s no reason to be rude. They also have little
bowls on their head. So if you get attacked by one, shove its ass over and dump
the water out of its head. That will mess it up. Also Japanese mythology is
packed with cool creepy things. I had to have at least one on the list.
Dragon:
The dragon? Yes. Maybe it’s predictable, maybe they are overused according to
some. But the dragon is the ultra-expression of sheer supernatural creature
power. Flight, size, claws, armored skin and a variety of awesome breath
weapons, often fire. What else does a dragon need? Perhaps a large mountain to
make its home and a pile of riches from its mangled foes? Oh wait - they have
that too. Dragons are the best and if you don’t think so then we probably can’t
be friends.
Honorable mention: Minotaur, Centaur, Sphinx. And
about fifty others. J
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