Spirits and Conjure, incants and hexes

Here I stand, returning to Fable Avenue. Writing has begun on the third installment, and I can feel the growing intensity of the story. As cliché as it sounds, it’s like that moment when the elements gather for a storm. The tense humidity, the increasing winds, all feeling like Mother Nature balling her fist and getting ready to remind humanity of her strength.

The story’s weight has become heavier.

Yeah, I know…

The Fable Avenue Saga has always had a certain gravitas to it, even with all its whimsical text. The story is still, at its core, a reflection of what black people have been through (the Maafa). It’s our burdens wrapped up in a fairytale. It sounds disrespectful, but it’s far from it. It’s as respectful and honest as our story can ever get. A road map presented as mythology, where we’ve gone, where we’re going, and where we stand spiritually in the eyes of the Cosmos.

It’s all been an introduction from here. The Ghost of Gabriel’s Horn was an introduction to the mythos, the hidden mysticism of the world. It set the ground rules for the invisible universe ready to be tapped into by the main characters, those gods and goddesses tricked into believing they were mortal men and women. Though not always ‘proper’ in its usage, the vocabulary was presented. “Tricks,” and “hexes”. It was simple, before turning into “incants” and “conjures”. Nothing that hadn’t been used before in other stories, but a fresh twist on how they were used.

Brooklyn’s Lilac Brew, the second installment, took place 57 years after The Ghost of Gabriel’s Horn, and it continued with the theme of introductions. Fable Avenue was an established culture. I wanted to write it as if there was still a good deal of history to it, and starting the book with that gut punch of a first chapter dropped people in the middle of some drama. The shockwave of that chapter would resonate all the way through the book’s climax.

And here I am. Book III has begun. Introductions aside.

We know the characters. We know the place. We know the rules of the world. It’s time to play chess.

Yes, there will be new characters to come into the fold of this grand mythology. Other characters, only mentioned or cameoed in Brooklyn’s Lilac Brew (and The Ghost of Gabriel’s Horn) will be expounded on.

The elements have gathered. The tension has compressed. Mother Nature has balled her fist.

And The Fable Avenue Saga’s third installment will reveal itself as a force of nature!