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The Black Fortress

BONUS EXTRAS

Shemrazul

10/12/2019

10 Comments

 
Excerpt from CHAPTER 2:

​Wyvern stopped when he reached the outer band of gold-carved symbols, and there, he went down on one knee, bowed his head, and pressed his fist over his heart. “I am here in answer to your summons, oh, Horned One. What is your will?”

He heard the sound of fire whooshing up from the pit. Quickly jumping to his feet, Wyvern backed away to avoid getting singed.

A column of flame blazed up from the depths as Shemrazul rose from the pit. Wyvern lifted his head and found his father towering up out of the flames.

Looming over him, Shemrazul’s face was not easy to look upon. Grotesque, long, and cruel beneath the span of his horns, it was the stuff of nightmares. Especially those yellow eyes, with their pupils slit like a serpent’s.
​
The eyes glowed with pride as the demon gazed at him. 

In THE BLACK FORTRESS Shemrazul's character and personality come to life as he takes on a much larger role than he had in previous books. Before this book, he had only made a couple of brief appearances.

Having a demon or the actual devil as a character in a children's book can be a bit dicey. We didn't want him to be too scary, after-all we do have kids as young as 6 or 8 reading our books, but we also didn't want him to turn out soft and comical. We ended up with a pinch of the fearsome Balrog that Gandalf battled in THE LORD OF THE RINGS, a dash of the character called Darkness, played by Tim Curry in the 80s fantasy classic, LEGEND, and a whole lot of our own imagination.

Do you picture Shemrazul like either of these Hollywood demons? Or do you have some other image in mind? Please share your thoughts.

Check out these Balrog and Darkness clips below. Parental discretion is advised. And, hey, keep an eye out for a young Tom Cruise in the Legend clip. :) Funny!!!
10 Comments
William Kennedy
10/12/2019 08:41:30 pm

i reckon the character has been created really well, he has elements that will make children think of him as scary without terrifying them whilst bringing up themes in his goals that will not be lost on adults.

Reply
Pam C
10/13/2019 01:06:01 am

Scary..absolutely but just enough to keep your mind fascinated by his upcoming schemes...the descriptions definitely bring this character to life...

Reply
Gael
10/14/2019 12:47:31 pm

Fantastic, thanks, Pam!

Reply
William Kennedy
10/13/2019 02:33:57 am

ok, no spoilers obviously but i just finished and all i can say is DAMN! that was soo good, cant wait to get around to writing the review

Reply
Theresa Geider
10/13/2019 04:38:21 am

I agree with you William, I’m 30 pages from completing reading the book!! I just want to keep on reading-it’s the best book yet!! It grabbed me from the moment I started reading the first chapter!! All I can say is “WOW-what a book!!!”

Reply
Gael
10/14/2019 12:51:37 pm

YAAAYYY! You guys officially made my and Eric's day over here. Awesome... ~ Gael (((trying to look cool while wildly jumping for joy inside)))

Reply
Bonnie Giacovelli link
10/13/2019 10:49:51 am

I totally picture Shemrazul as the character in Legend with fire all around him and larger. I also hear Tim Curry’s voice as I read. I think this character is quite a scary and imposing figure and perfectly villainous for all readers.

Reply
Gael
10/14/2019 12:49:23 pm

Yay! That is great feedback. You know, lol, when Jake first ventured into Hades in The Dark Portal, I never dreamed we'd ever attempt to write any point-of-view scenes in the mind of an actual devil, lol! I hope I am not permanently warped from trying, haha. Although I admit to laughing maniacally at my computer while writing the closing scene involving him. Muahaha. ;)

Reply
Aleena Grosjean
10/14/2019 05:09:18 pm

My family is not real big on scary stuff, so I think this is perfect and fits the story well. I think the picture of Shemrazul as the LOTR Balrog is awesome! That image is going to be in my mind for the rest of the story. I'm not too far into the story, yet just because my boys' schedule hasn't left much time for reading. Fall break is coming next week, so I hope to finish the book during that time. :)

Reply
Eric
10/16/2019 09:29:04 am

Thanks, Aleena! Sounds great!

Reply



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  • Home
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