Will Macmillan Jones

Griffin’s Quill is proud to announce Will Macmillan Jones as the first Featured Author.

A special thanks to Mr. Jones for accepting this invitation.  Read all about this Jazz loving fantasy writer from Wales.  His new novel, to be released November 15th, “Banned Underground” is full of witty humor, as was his interview.

About the Author:

A fifty something lover of blues, rock and jazz, I live in Wales with my partner, our several children, and assorted dogs and horses.

Style Sampling:

Far, far down in the dark tunnel, the teenagers huddled together in terror.  Fungus was playing his sax whilst walking along.

“What song was that?”  Chris asked as the terrible echoes faded away.

“ Blue Swede Shoes” asserted Fungus.

Linda ventured, “Fungus, shouldn’t that be blue suede shoes?”

“I learnt it from a Viking.  Fancy a mushroom?” Fungus lifted his sax again and reflectively started to play Wild Thing for his private amusement.  The awful echoes ran round and ahead of them, possibly to get away, until a small section of the tunnel wall collapsed.

“Wow, man!  The power of music!” exclaimed the wild saxcavator.

Out of the hole appeared a small, bearded helmet.

“Can’t you keep it down?  It’s not easy singing acapella in a mine anyway, and with that noise it’s near impossible.” The whole dwarf came out of the hole.

“Hi Lakin,” said Fungus, cheerfully.  “Meet my buddies, if I can remember their names.er….”

“Chris,” said Chris.

“Linda” said Linda.

“Humans,” said Lakin, mournfully,  “Don’t care for humans.  Except in stew of course.  What do they want, Fungus?”

The troll drew himself up to his full height and declaimed

“Sanctuary from the myrmidididididididiions of Caer Surdin, oh Lord! “

The effect was somewhat spoiled by the lump of mud that fell from the roof of the tunnel onto his head at that point.

Lakin looked at him.

“You off your trolley, Fungus?”

“No, honest.  We’ve just come down from Grizelda’s place, and The Watches were havin’ themselves a real time there.  You should have seen the colours,”

“Probably would have reminded me of that time you were sick in Frank’s bar.”

“Excuse me, “ said Linda, “but are dwarfs supposed to talk like that?”

“You come down a dark passage, following a luminous troll who is wearing Ray Bans and a stupid cap, and you wish to criticise my syntax?”

“I can see his point,” agreed Chris.

“No you can’t!” retorted Lakin, but adjusted his chain mail anyway.

“Look, be cool and let us in.,” urged Fungus. “Before half Caer Surdin follows us down this tunnel!”

“Are you saying you were serious?” Lakin asked, slowly.

”Was Elvis cool?”

“Not if he was cremated.”

“Everyone,” remarked Fungus, huffily, “knows that he was kidnapped by aliens. Now, what about letting us in?  These kids are relatives of Grizelda of the Forth Pentangle.”

“What, these are Grotbag’s kids?  We’ve heard of them already.  Do you know what they did to that Ned earlier today?”

“We didn’t do nothing to him!” said Chris, defensively.

“I heard you threatened him.  With a yoghurt.  From her Fridge,” accused Lakin.

They all shuddered.  Fungus treated the teenagers to a cold stare. “Just tell me you are not tooled up with any more of those live yoghurts.”

Linda looked in her bag.  “No.  But I thought all yoghurts were dead.”

“Then why do they keep movin about?” demanded Fungus, nervously.

Featured Author Interview:

As our first featured author, Griffin’s Quill selected Will Macmillan Jones.  Mr. Jones is a very talented up and coming author of fantasy with a double dose of good old British humor.  Here’s how the interview went:

Griffin’s Quill:  How did you come to be a writer?  Have you always walked this path or is this a “road less traveled?”

Will Macmillan Jones:  I’ve always messed about a bit with writing, sold a few articles to magazines, written in house business pamphlets, at last felt the need to try a novel.  Or four.

Griffin’s Quill:  “The Banned Underground” is due to hit the stands November 15^th.  What can you tell us about it?  What’s around the next bend?

Will Macmillan Jones:  The Banned Underground is actually a series, with two books now complete and a third and fourth in progress.  They follow the adventures of a dwarf blues band.  Why should humans get all the best music?

Griffin’s Quill:  Where did the idea for “The Banned Underground” originate?  Who’s your favorite character?  If you could spend a day in this world, where would you spend it?

Will Macmillan Jones:  The first and last question have the same answer!  The Lake District in the North West of England.  For me, the best scenery, the best walking…and the pubs are pretty good too.  All the characters arrived, ready made and shouting at me during a walking holiday there a few years ago.

Griffin’s Quill:  What drew you to this genre?  Do you write in any others?

Will Macmillan Jones:  I’ve always loved fantasy, and telling bad jokes, and combining the two is just great fun.  Recently, I’ve started producing some ghost stories too, probably under the influence of Halloween.

Griffin’s Quill:  Is there an underlying message in your writing, a theme you express?

Will Macmillan Jones: The books are good fun.  Both to write and (hopefully) to read.  They aren’t deep and meaningful, just intended as pure escapist entertainment.

Griffin’s Quill:  What do you find most challenging about writing?

Will Macmillan Jones: Not repeating the jokes…keeping the humour fresh can be hard work.

Griffin’s Quill:  Who or what inspires you?

Will Macmillan Jones:  The scenery.  And the music.  Really, at the heart of it all, it’s the music.  Has it been a long time since Rock and Roll?  Not for The Banned Underground, it’s never been away…

Griffin’s Quill:  If you were the Time Traveler in the 2002 movie adaptation of “The Time Machine,” what two books would you carry with you into the future?

Will Macmillan Jones:  Certainly Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny.  Maybe not so well known now, but a genuine classic and an amazing feat of the imagination.  Probably then some Tom Holt, or Robert Rankin, so that I’d have something to laugh at.

Griffin’s Quill:  What tools of the trade help you the most with your writing?

Will Macmillan Jones:  Couldn’t live without my moleskin.  It goes everywhere with me, so that I can make notes all the time.

Griffin’s Quill:  What advice do you have for undiscovered authors out there?

Will Macmillan Jones:  Just keep on trying.  Don’t give up.  There’s an old saying about a professional writer is just an amateur who didn’t give up.  Every published author has a wall full of rejection slips, it’s sort of a rite of passage to see if you’ve got the thick skin you are so going to need when your book comes out.