Obscuro

Several years ago I toyed about with an idea for an online graphic novel that I was going to entitle "Asylum".  Though I really liked the concept, the story never did evolve into anything that took hold on me creatively. It ended up in the unfinished project stack and became forgotten.  Last year I started writing a book for young readers having to do with a library in an imaginary town called Obscuro.  I had actually cranked out five rough chapters but once again I hit a space in the story where I couldn't make everything "gel".  It also got placed in my unfinished stack.

Lately I have had some of what I would call ominous comments from folk who seem to think I should do something in a graphic or illustrated format. I resisted the idea heavily. I had attempted to do it once before and it just never seem to either gather the audience or attention I thought it should, so I let it go.  That was some years ago and since then I have run from the idea as fast as I could. Then I saw something that a friend at work shared with me and it not only adjusted my attitude, it inspired me. I suggest you give it a view before you read this entry any further.




This teaser for MARWENCOL actually hit me on a deeper level than some I share this video with. In fact one person I showed it to said, "Ok, a movie about a man playing with dolls." Then I understood, not everyone is going to get it but I caught something humbling about my attitude towards doing an online graphic novel compared to an individual that suffered an horrendous injustice and turned to a creative outlet to cope with life. I could see no difference between this man and say Tolkien's  elaborate Middle Earth or say Dr. Who's universe. It was simply all about the act of creation and its therapeutic value.  Perhaps the need to create is validation enough.

Then ideas started to fall into place like tumblers on a lock being turned by a key and I felt an inky black, furry muse curl up into my lap like a wisp of ether and start telling me a story. Not really, but it sounded good. Actually I began to see that Obscuro was my MARWENCOL, and in this imaginary town that existed in some Victorian/Edwardian era had more than just a library but also an Asylum and funeral parlor and much more including supernatural infestations and mysterious esoteric avenues of self discovery.

The process of building Obscuro and inhabiting it will be a long and laborious one but hopefully a rewarding one as well. If it gathers no interests other than myself and if it does end up being a project that seems like creative masturbation, perhaps the therapy will be fruitful.

The first entry will be the story entitled Sanctus Sanatorium. It is an ambitious tale but also will introduce Obscuro and some of the players that hopefully will lead to another story about a fat, black cat that sleeps heavily in a Library in the center of town.

Anon