(Quickly: Entered a contest by outlining a prequel novel to The Dark Crystal and drafting the first seven chapters. Didn’t win. You can download/read my submission for free: The Dark Crystal – Ruin of Innocents.)
Last year the Jim Henson company invited authors of any ilk to draft a bit of what might become a novelized prequel to The Dark Crystal. The big wigs at the company promised to read through the pile and hire their favorite contestant to spool their pitch into an honest-to-god Dark Crystal novel, publishing contract and all. If you’re anything like me, there are few things you enjoy more than writing and The Dark Crystal, and a shot at building on and contributing to a work that was so deeply formative to me seemed both incredible and intimidating. I wanted to give it a try.
I learned yesterday that either the big wigs in question didn’t care for my submission, or they just cared for some other folks’ much more. Seems like a waste to draw the curtain of forfeit around the weeks I spent researching, outlining, drafting and finalizing my seven chapter sample, so I thought I’d offer it to anyone tempted to give it a peek.
Believe it or not, the 30 plus pages of Ruin of Innocents I cooked up may have been the most difficult project I’ve taken on. Juggling someone else’s characters, mythology, lore, timeline, and universe is no simple undertaking. Even in the most grandiose mythos of my own design—the Cannibals trilogy—the rules are all up to me. They bend to my whimsy. Not so for a work of fiction (elaborated on in a comic series held to be canon) older than myself, whose fans nurture decades of obsessive affection for every detail. I know. I’m one of them.
Not to mention that, other than an unpopular movie adaptation, there are no Dark Crystal novels one might look to as a guidepost. This will be the first. The beauty of The Dark Crystal lies in its richly conceived otherworldliness and unsuspected darkness. Even now, the movie is pretty dang creepy, involves a horrific genocide, and comes from the creative mastermind who was, around the same time putting the finishing touches on The Great Muppet Caper. Who knew?
The upcoming novel—whoever ends up writing it—looks to be marketed at The Hunger Games crowd: fans of juvenile fiction. “Young adult readers.” A high school book. My inspiration was the biblical account of the hunted firstborns, often the subject of horrific paintings uniformly titled Slaughter of the Innocents. My inspirations were holocaust survival stories. I’m not suggesting my entry was rejected based on content, I just mean that, as someone who was impacted by that encroaching dread I felt watching The Dark Crystal as a child, it was tough scaling back on the dark. It’s all pretty dire sounding. If you’ve read An Edict of Worms, this probably makes sense.
I took the loss pretty hard. I don’t often experience rejection in my work because of the DIY nature of it all. Sure, people don’t like my books from time to time, but who cares? I like them. That’s all that matters to me. This whole debacle was another animal entirely: handling someone else’s work, the responsibility, the potential at stake… Whoever wins that thing will get to contribute to a world created by Jim Henson. That’s big. Good for them (seriously).
At any rate, I outlined the entire novel, but my pitch included only what would have been the first seven chapters. For anyone interested, here is a work never to be finished, and my first and last foray into what has ultimately amounted to… fan fiction.
Download/read my submission: The Dark Crystal – Ruin of Innocents
P.S. I still have my own books coming out this year.
Good writing as always but maybe you should be working on the movie your fans paid for and not Jim Henson fan fiction.
Dude, I understand your frustration (believe me, I’m one of the guys making the movie), but you’ll have to trust me when I say that this (Dark Crystal) project (and every other non-Cancer project I’ve committed time to) has in no way shape or form robbed any attention or work ethic from the Cancer movie. I.e., I’ve not worked on something else when I should’ve been working on the movie.
Making a movie with what is essentially a crew of three (sometimes less) is a long, expensive, tedious and problematic process. The folks involved are doing the absolute best they can with the time and resources available to us. Going out of your way to take mean jabs at me here won’t speed anything along.
Email me at josh (at) showbread (dot) net and let’s talk about how we might work out a refund for you.
Even as fans/supporters of Josh Dies we should zero input in how he chooses to use his time, God gives him the time to do with as he pleases, as he also gives us to do with what we will. (And I know how you feel, I can’t wait for the movie either!) Lets just keep sending positive energy his way instead of thinking he owes us something or that he is accountable to us. On another note, reading Ruin of Innocence has inspired me to check out The Dark Crystal. (I’m only 21 so it was a little before my time)
Honestly, I’m really bummed out that you didn’t win. I love The Dark Crystal…I have fond memories of watching it with my Dad as a kid. I love Jim Henson. I’ve often felt that a lot of Jim Henson’s art has been misunderstood and turned into something it never should have been after his death.
If someone told me that a Dark Crystal prequel novel was coming out, I would have a lot of anxiety about it. I would be worried it would ruin the magic of the movie I fell in love with. However, if I heard a Dark Crystal prequel novel was coming out that was written by Josh Dies/Porter? I would be nothing but excited. I know you love all things Jim Henson and The Dark Crystal is one of your favourite films. It would have been safe in your hands.
As far as I’m concerned, you’re the perfect man for the job and they really messed up giving the job to someone else. I can’t wait to read your seven chapters. Thanks for the hard work you put into this. I’m sorry it didn’t pay off.
Reblogged this on Project X7 and commented:
Love it.