{"id":1107,"date":"2016-02-03T14:03:27","date_gmt":"2016-02-03T14:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/?p=1107"},"modified":"2016-04-06T17:49:27","modified_gmt":"2016-04-06T17:49:27","slug":"lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/","title":{"rendered":"Lurchers in the Wind (and an Empress)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In which we whimsify about wild weather, walkies and worthless whistles. Plus writer<span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong> Brian Barr<\/strong><\/span> joins us to talk about his <em>Empress<\/em> comic, hurrah! So much for alliteration.<strong> Lurcher lovers<\/strong> should board the first carriage only; <strong>comics enthusiasts<\/strong> should proceed to the far end of the train.<\/p>\n<p>Lurchers first, then.<\/p>\n<p>There is no &#8216;I&#8217; in team. That&#8217;s because I is here, on my own, staring at mounds of mud-splattered washing and paw-marks over every surface. I&#8217;m fairly sure that&#8217;s one on the ceiling over there. Goodness knows, I love my longdogs, but the weather this winter has seriously challenged my desire to leave the computer chair.<\/p>\n<p>In previous years, we&#8217;ve had some great walks in the snow. <strong>Django<\/strong> is especially fond of snow, and digs his muzzle into it so that he can throw it in the air, like a little kid. Ice is quite fun as well. Two long dogs in tandem do a great job of hauling you along like a world-class skater, and make you the envy of passing Jack Russell owners.<\/p>\n<p>This year \u2013 storms and rain since November. Mud so deep in the woods that I&#8217;ve almost lost my wellies a number of times. And the wind\u2026<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1109\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1109\" style=\"width: 339px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-702733_960_720.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"1109\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/dog-702733_960_720\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-702733_960_720.jpg?fit=960%2C720&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"960,720\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"dog-702733_960_720\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-702733_960_720.jpg?fit=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-702733_960_720.jpg?fit=474%2C356&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-image-1109 \" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-702733_960_720.jpg?resize=339%2C254\" alt=\"dog-702733_960_720\" width=\"339\" height=\"254\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-702733_960_720.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-702733_960_720.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 339px) 100vw, 339px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1109\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">not a longdog, sadly<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>I have three problems with constantly walking in high winds:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Chilli<\/strong>,<strong> our alpha huntress<\/strong>, is only fully manageable on the whistle-treat system. For starters my fingers have been too numb to find the whistle under layers of clothing. I look like a terrible accident at a jumble sale on most walks, as if three old ladies were involved in a head-on collision and all their second-hand cardigans became one huge bundle with a beard sticking out. Worse, Chilli doesn&#8217;t always hear the whistle (or me calling her) because of the wind. A loose Chilli is a sort of wiry black missile, which even Django can&#8217;t catch.<\/li>\n<li><strong>That suspicious movement in the distance<\/strong>. You develop an additional sense if you have longdogs, a sort of long-range peripheral vision. Anything shifting in those bushes over there, a shadow moving on the far side of the field and so forth. Is that an alsatian off the lead, or a piece of cardboard? Trying to work out what is a potential risk, and what is just an airborne cornflakes packet, has become a nightmare. Recently the wind has been so bad that everything is whipping around madly, including people&#8217;s wheelie bins, car hubcaps, plastic bags and probably smaller, less well-anchored dogs. I dread the day when a Yorkie or a miniature poodle flies past. Snack-sized dogs are always a worry&#8230;<\/li>\n<li><strong>Poo bags.<\/strong> I am a dutiful sort of fellow, but pursuing escaped poo bags across a field which is mostly underwater is not my idea of fun. If you get them out of your pocket, they catch the wind, turn inside out and whip around trying to get free, seeking only to join that colony of liberated poo bags living in the nearby woods. Old, half-shredded bags gather round the young ones at night and shake their heads as they tell the little bags about how they escaped from The Beardy Man. I am their Urban Legend. This might be a minor problem, except for the fact that Django has days when he decides he needs multiple bottom-emptying stops, usually when a family with lots of curious children goes by. He does like an audience, and poo bag hell in high winds starts again&#8230;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Add to that my frozen ears, and I submit, m&#8217;lud, that it&#8217;s about time these bloody winds stopped. I rest my case.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1116\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1116\" style=\"width: 275px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-983114_960_720.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"1116\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/dog-983114_960_720\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-983114_960_720.jpg?fit=584%2C720&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"584,720\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"dog-983114_960_720\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-983114_960_720.jpg?fit=243%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-983114_960_720.jpg?fit=474%2C584&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-image-1116 \" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-983114_960_720.jpg?resize=275%2C340\" alt=\"dog-983114_960_720\" width=\"275\" height=\"340\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-983114_960_720.jpg?resize=243%2C300&amp;ssl=1 243w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/dog-983114_960_720.jpg?w=584&amp;ssl=1 584w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 275px) 100vw, 275px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1116\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">our solicitor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">####<\/p>\n<p>Now, as I am the only serious comics lover on the <em>greydogtales <\/em>team (unless you count <strong>Twiglet<\/strong>, who enjoys chewing the edges off a good graphic novel) I shall continue in First Person. The Magic Loft here is renowned for its many wonders, one of which is a large collection of old comics. You can&#8217;t get at half of them, because of the books, the vinyl LPs, the clothes which will never be worn again, forty seven draft novels with bits missing and the large, rusty television aerial. This last item is crucial, because the cable from it runs down the outside of the house and is the only thing which anchors the thirty foot of jasmine growing into the bedroom window.<\/p>\n<p>What was I talking about? Oh yes, comics. In the last year I&#8217;ve renewed my expeditions up there and managed to extract a good quarter of the old comics. Wondrous treasures. So I thought I&#8217;d explore some newer stuff, hence things like our article on the <em>Hellboy<\/em> spin-off, <em>Edward Grey, Witchfinder<\/em>, a while ago (see <a href=\"http:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/?p=962\">the 3 sir edward greys<\/a>). And in the process I bumped into writer <strong>Brian Barr<\/strong>. Having apologised for the light bruising, I could only make it up to him by letting him say something about his own comic, <em>Empress<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"1110\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n.jpg?fit=629%2C629&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"629,629\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n.jpg?fit=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n.jpg?fit=474%2C474&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1110 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n.jpg?resize=300%2C300\" alt=\"12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n.jpg?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12665686_1762951287262163_1016343639_n.jpg?w=629&amp;ssl=1 629w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>A collaboration between <em>Cruel Productions<\/em> and <em>Isle Squared Comics<\/em>, <em><strong>Empress<\/strong><\/em> is both easy and hard to describe. The visuals, layout, all that technical stuff I leave to others, but the writing certainly caught my eye. <em>Empress<\/em> shifts between time zones, characters and viewpoints, always anchored one way or another by the titular character. I&#8217;ll let Brian tell you the rest, along with a bit about himself:<\/p>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\">Lines of Inspiration<\/h4>\n<p><em>My name is Brian Barr. I\u2019ve been writing and telling stories since I was a kid. I always liked ghost stories, and would often share them with family members. I grew up with a mom who loved horror, so horror and dark stories rubbed off on me. I also loved comic books growing up, and eventually got into fantasy and science-fiction. I also like literary fiction from time to time.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>My favorite authors are <strong>Anthony Burgess, Tad Williams, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Alan Moore, Clive Barker, Jon Walter Williams<\/strong>, and <strong>Jim Starlin<\/strong>. I love Japanese manga and my favorites are <\/em>Akira<em> (also love the movie), <\/em>Lone Wolf and Cub<em>, and <\/em>Devilman<em>. Anything that is creative and thought-provoking really fascinates me, and I like to explore different social themes in my writing. Along with gaining inspiration from books and authors that I like, music is very inspiring, and I like many types of music ranging from rock and punk to ambient electronic music. Different cultures and societies from around the world also feed my inspiration, as noticeable in Empress.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Empress<em> is a comic co-created by <strong>Chuck Amadori<\/strong> and myself. Chuck is an amazing writer and encourages me to get better in our collaborations. The artist of <\/em>Empress<em> is <strong>Marcelo Salaza<\/strong>, whose great talent turns my scripts into living works of art along with <strong>Geraldo Filho<\/strong>, our current colorist. <strong>Matheus Broncas<\/strong> colored issues 1-4 before Filho and his work is just as stunning.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"1111\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n.jpg?fit=629%2C960&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"629,960\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n.jpg?fit=197%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n.jpg?fit=474%2C723&amp;ssl=1\" class=\" wp-image-1111 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n.jpg?resize=251%2C382\" alt=\"12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n\" width=\"251\" height=\"382\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n.jpg?resize=197%2C300&amp;ssl=1 197w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/12650752_1762951397262152_1303570748_n.jpg?w=629&amp;ssl=1 629w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 251px) 100vw, 251px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Empress<em> starts as a supernatural noir horror-thriller, and there is a mix of other genre in the work as well, from dark fantasy to historical fiction. The comic revolves around a character I created in 2011 named Zia, a Hollywood starlet from the 1930s who suddenly ends up missing. A private eye is sent to find her by the movie studio Zia works for, and he finds that Zia\u2019s fate is beyond anything that he could have imagined.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>We planned <\/em>Empress<em> as an ongoing comic series, and we\u2019re almost halfway through the scripts we\u2019ve written so far. We\u2019re working hard to get it out there and share a new, unique story with lovers of fantasy, horror, sci-fi, and good fiction period. We\u2019re creating our own mythology with inspiration from many archaic cultures, and forging a fun, dark story that people can enjoy.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61OMsGroIWL.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"1113\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/61omsgroiwl\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61OMsGroIWL.jpg?fit=333%2C500&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"333,500\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"61OMsGroIWL\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61OMsGroIWL.jpg?fit=200%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61OMsGroIWL.jpg?fit=333%2C500&amp;ssl=1\" class=\" wp-image-1113 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61OMsGroIWL.jpg?resize=251%2C377\" alt=\"61OMsGroIWL\" width=\"251\" height=\"377\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61OMsGroIWL.jpg?resize=200%2C300&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61OMsGroIWL.jpg?w=333&amp;ssl=1 333w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 251px) 100vw, 251px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Along with the <\/em>Empress<em> comic book, my first novel, <\/em>Carolina Daemonic, Book 1: Confederate Shadows<em>, is available on Amazon in Kindle and Print. I have many short stories in a range of magazines and anthologies from <\/em>Dark Chapter Press\u2019s Kill for a Copy<em> (with more to come from <\/em>Dark Chapter Press<em>), <\/em>Nebula Rift, New Realm Magazine<em>, and different publications from <\/em>J. Ellington Ashton Press<em>. Just type in <\/em>Brian Barr<em> in the Amazon search, my stuff will come up.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Thanks for this opportunity to join in the fun, greydogtales.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s been our pleasure. You can find out more about Brian&#8217;s writing at his site here:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.brianbarrbooks.com\/\">brian barr books<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Empress<\/em> #5 is the start of a new story arc, but in addition to back issues you can also get #1 \u2013 4 as a single edition.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/gp\/product\/B01377OSRI?keywords=empress%20comic&amp;qid=1454333302&amp;ref_=sr_1_1&amp;sr=8-1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"1115\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/61ccjxwyyl-_sx325_bo1204203200_\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61CcJ-xwYYL._SX325_BO1204203200_.jpg?fit=327%2C499&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"327,499\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"61CcJ+xwYYL._SX325_BO1,204,203,200_\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61CcJ-xwYYL._SX325_BO1204203200_.jpg?fit=197%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61CcJ-xwYYL._SX325_BO1204203200_.jpg?fit=327%2C499&amp;ssl=1\" class=\" wp-image-1115 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61CcJ-xwYYL._SX325_BO1204203200_.jpg?resize=256%2C390\" alt=\"61CcJ+xwYYL._SX325_BO1,204,203,200_\" width=\"256\" height=\"390\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61CcJ-xwYYL._SX325_BO1204203200_.jpg?resize=197%2C300&amp;ssl=1 197w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/61CcJ-xwYYL._SX325_BO1204203200_.jpg?w=327&amp;ssl=1 327w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 256px) 100vw, 256px\" \/>empress at amazon<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">####<\/p>\n<p>We&#8217;re a little over-stuffed here in the ramshackle shepherd&#8217;s hut. So what comes over the next couple of weeks is a mystery. An interview with <strong>Neil Baker<\/strong> of small press <em>April Moon<\/em>, <strong>Steve Vernon<\/strong> on supernatural sea stories, more <em>Lurchers for Beginners<\/em>, a feature on the new Carnacki audio production, <strong>David Senior<\/strong>&#8216;s fabulous photography and<em> Scary Women 2<\/em> are all waiting somewhere.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Subscribe or follow now so you can miss those things you don&#8217;t like (our new sales line!)<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In which we whimsify about wild weather, walkies and worthless whistles. Plus writer Brian Barr joins us to talk about his Empress comic, hurrah! So much for alliteration. Lurcher lovers should board the first carriage only; comics enthusiasts should proceed to the far end of the train. Lurchers first, then. There is no &#8216;I&#8217; in &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Lurchers in the Wind (and an Empress)<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"iawp_total_views":7,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[61,51,74,21,22],"class_list":["post-1107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-comics","tag-empress","tag-fantasy","tag-lurchers","tag-weird-art"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Lurchers in the Wind (and an Empress) - greydogtales<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lurchers in the Wind (and an Empress) - greydogtales\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In which we whimsify about wild weather, walkies and worthless whistles. Plus writer Brian Barr joins us to talk about his Empress comic, hurrah! So much for alliteration. Lurcher lovers should board the first carriage only; comics enthusiasts should proceed to the far end of the train. Lurchers first, then. 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Apart from that, he enjoys growing unusual fruit and reading rejection slips. He is six foot tall, ageing at an alarming rate, and has his own beard.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/greydogtales.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/author\/greydogtales\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Lurchers in the Wind (and an Empress) - greydogtales","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"http:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/lurchers-in-the-wind-and-an-empress\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Lurchers in the Wind (and an Empress) - greydogtales","og_description":"In which we whimsify about wild weather, walkies and worthless whistles. Plus writer Brian Barr joins us to talk about his Empress comic, hurrah! So much for alliteration. 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Holmes forced more of the vile Turkish tobacco into his pipe, wincing as he realised that yet again he was smoking the damnable stuff in order to keep up appearances. \u201cDespite the fact that you are secretly my\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"sherlock holmes\"","block_context":{"text":"sherlock holmes","link":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/tag\/sherlock-holmes\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Huty1913428","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/sherlock-holmes-basil-rathbone-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5050,"url":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/roots-weird-william-hope-hodgson-discussed\/","url_meta":{"origin":1107,"position":1},"title":"ROOTS OF THE WEIRD: WILLIAM HOPE HODGSON DISCUSSED","author":"greydogtales","date":"April 24, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Interested in the origins of weird fiction? Want to get the real lowdown on William Hope Hodgson? Then join us as we talk to author, editor and scholar Sam Gafford, in an interview which is already being described as sharper than a spinning diskos. The Night Land, Carnacki, WHH's life,\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/cabrol2-210x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4071,"url":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/fables-disappearances-untethered-tales-gwendolyn-kiste\/","url_meta":{"origin":1107,"position":2},"title":"Fables and Disappearances: The Untethered Tales of Gwendolyn Kiste","author":"greydogtales","date":"May 29, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Today, dear listener, we have loss and identity; clarity and hope; the core of writing, style, Angela Carter and some dark, magical stories. When we thought about interviewing author Gwendolyn Kiste, we realised we wanted to burrow behind her work a bit, so we went there.\u00a0 Though we centre on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"interviews\"","block_context":{"text":"interviews","link":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/tag\/interviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"SONY DSC","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/And-Her-Smile-Will-Untether-the-Universe-Gwendolyn-300x201.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7509,"url":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/clarks-world-the-willvent-bin\/","url_meta":{"origin":1107,"position":3},"title":"CLARK\u2019S WORLD: THE WILL\u2019VEN\u2019T BIN","author":"greydogtales","date":"November 5, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"We\u2019re always pleased to see a new book from Alan M Clark, not only a talented author but also, as it happens, an award-winning artist. The Will\u2019ven\u2019t Bin, just out from IFD Publishing (15th October), joins his other intriguing historically-set works, this time with a Young Adult focus and science\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"alan m clark","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/EbookCover_TheWillventBin_small-200x300.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7522,"url":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/open-calls-for-strange-tales\/","url_meta":{"origin":1107,"position":4},"title":"OPEN CALLS FOR STRANGE TALES","author":"greydogtales","date":"May 12, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Back in business, starting with two open calls in which I\u2019m involved editorially. First one for imaginative stories of Folk Horror; the second one for strange detective mysteries which may or may not have a supernatural element... Coming from Cathaven Press OCCULT DETECTIVE MAGAZINE: FOLK HORROR SPECIAL #1 Edited by\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/ODMOctAdCore-300x203.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7530,"url":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/his-heart-shall-speak-no-more\/","url_meta":{"origin":1107,"position":5},"title":"HIS HEART SHALL SPEAK NO MORE","author":"greydogtales","date":"May 19, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"As I\u2019m currently celebrating ten years of being in print, I thought I\u2019d put a few extras up on greydogtales, just for fun. So today I\u2019m providing a full, downloadable pdf of my story \u2018His Heart Shall Speak No More\u2019, formatted as its own booklet. Not only does it demonstrate\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"His Heart Shall Speak No More","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/shoreb-204x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1107"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1118,"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1107\/revisions\/1118"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greydogtales.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}