Well...it's finally up!
http://www.themerrymariner.com
In 2011 I first had the notion of an inkling of a spark of an idea to write a series of all-ages stories about a family of adventurers who travel around the globe in their windmill-ship. I've always loved to travel, to soak in a local culture and wander the streets and markets of foreign cities, but I've never really liked the tourism part of it. I've always wished I could tramp through exotic, faraway lands, untouched by modernity or war, where around any corner there might be mystery or adventure. I want to visit Ottoman Istanbul and Qing dynasty China, be the first to explore the pyramids or scale Mt. Everest, to buy a talisman in Sri Lanka which will transport me to a colony of natives dwelling in huts in the jungle canopy.
So I dreamt up Verona Wicklow and the Merry Mariner, to visit this non-existent, nostalgic world in their shoes. They can take me - and you - with them on the impossible adventures on which I've always wanted to embark.
So I dreamt up Verona Wicklow and the Merry Mariner, to visit this non-existent, nostalgic world in their shoes. They can take me - and you - with them on the impossible adventures on which I've always wanted to embark.
The doodle that started it all for me
That was 2011. It's now nearly 2015! Over the past few years I've been building up this world, getting to know the characters that inhabit it, and fine-tuning my own skills as a writer and illustrator so that when you sit down to read a Merry Mariner yarn, you're drawn into the world like you're seeing it on the silver screen. Whether I've succeeded or not is for you to judge.
In fact, you can do that right now! The very first short story in the series, Verona vs. the Doldrums, is available to you, for free, right this very moment:
In fact, you can do that right now! The very first short story in the series, Verona vs. the Doldrums, is available to you, for free, right this very moment:
Download Verona vs. the Doldrums
Verona vs. the Doldrums was written to be an introduction to the ship and the family. We'll spend the entire story aboard the ship itself, familiarizing ourselves with the Merry Mariner and the Wicklows. Starting with the next short story, next month, we'll start weighing anchor in some of the wild and fascinating locales on the Seven Seas.
As with every Merry Mariner story, Verona vs. the Doldrums is self-contained, so you don't have to read it in order to understand the next one. You'll be able to read all the short stories and books in any order you please.
As you'll see on the "Stories" page of the site, my plan is to write six short stories, each from the perspective of one of the members of the family Wicklow. There'll be one per month from now until May, and they'll all be free. Next summer I'll release the first full chapter book, The Merry Mariner Sails the Sands. There will be at least seven books in the series, and probably a number of other short stories sprinkled about as well.
This is just the beginning. I can't wait for you to see what's coming up.
Welcome aboard!
As with every Merry Mariner story, Verona vs. the Doldrums is self-contained, so you don't have to read it in order to understand the next one. You'll be able to read all the short stories and books in any order you please.
As you'll see on the "Stories" page of the site, my plan is to write six short stories, each from the perspective of one of the members of the family Wicklow. There'll be one per month from now until May, and they'll all be free. Next summer I'll release the first full chapter book, The Merry Mariner Sails the Sands. There will be at least seven books in the series, and probably a number of other short stories sprinkled about as well.
This is just the beginning. I can't wait for you to see what's coming up.
Welcome aboard!
RSS Feed
