I will be writing a 3 Day Novel this Labour Day.
Since I don't want the contest to hold my work for a year, I have not formally entered as I have in the past, and will be doing this informally.
I will be tracking the progress live at Substack.
Feel free to join me from 6PM Friday Sept 5 to 6 PM Monday Sept 7 as I put together another novel for Public Domain Super Heroes!
In case you don’t recognize any:
* Black Terror
* Spider
* Stardust the Super-Wizard
* Blue Bolt
* Fly-Man
* Daredevil
* Captain Midnight
* Blue Beetle
* Fighting Yank
* Samson
* Green Lama
* Miss Fury
* Skyman
* Pyroman
* Blue Flame
* Miss Masque
* Black Bat
* Hydroman
* Fantomah
* Arrow
* Cat-Man
* Green Turtle
* Flame
* Black Hood
* Phantom Lady
* Bulletman
* Spy-Smasher
* Amazing Man
* Magno the Magnetic Man
* Heap
* Funnyman
* Fantoman
* Atoman
* American Crusader
* Black Cat
* Claw (archenemy of Daredevil)
* Puzzler (enemy of Black Terror)
I want to share some art from the incomparable Jean Carlos Estevez Tarriba. He does much of my cover work, but what really hit me today was the last piece, a simple pen and ink sketch of Cormac Mac Art that I used for chapter art in my latest book, The Odyssey of the Gael: Immram Mac Airt Book One.
This piece reminds me of exactly why I use chapter art like this in the first place. Growing up in the 70s, pieces like this were scattered throughout the pulp swords & sorcery books I read and I fell in love with the genre because of them.
Worth the price of admission, folks.
Available at Amazon, The Odyssey of the Gael: Immram Mac Airt Book One.
My new release is the start of my version of the Odyssey.
I substitute Cormac Mac Art for Odysseus and this first book is a compressed siege of Troy, set in coastal France during the reign of King Arthur.
That’s right. I’ve included King Arthur and Merlin in Public Domain Super Heroes.
Can you think of a better historical/mythical fit? I can’t.
And it all still fits within my framework. No multi-verse.
No time-travel. No do-overs.
So, fun fact. Cormac actually uses a horse to breach the fortress.
How?
Well, you’re just gonna have to read The Odyssey of the Gael to find out!
This is a property I only learned about this evening.
A really great idea, basically historical fiction with a single, incredible sword as the main throughline through the ages, written by Arthur D. Howden Smith in 1929, so it's public domain, even in the U.S.
I'm strongly considering adding this to my line as a public domain, illustrated reprint, though not until I've taken a closer look at the text and history of the stories. It feels like something that might be a good fit within my Public Domain Super Heroes universe, though again, I need to do the research before deciding that.
I will be reading it closely this week, but I'd love to know if anyone here is aware of it and what they think of it.
Just to let all those here know, if you have an interest specifically in public domain super heroes, I've just been granted mod status at r/Publicdomainsuperhero and will be reviving what had become a dormant sub over the next few days and weeks.
I am changing some rules and hoping to encourage lots of posting.
Obviously, this sub is the primary and that's as it should be, but if you want to talk about public domain super heroes, specifically, I'd love to see you over there.
Cross posting from here will be very welcome if it's on topic.
I currently moderate r/PubDomainSuperHeroes, a community dedicated to public domain super heroes. The requested subreddit has no moderators and has been inactive for months. I'd like to revive it as a properly moderated resource for discussion, news, and preservation of public domain superhero characters and related media.
This is an ongoing universe, interconnected on a grand scale, with all of these characters existing in the same timeline. Someone elsewhere asked me for a list like this and once I'd compiled it, it seemed a shame not to share it further.
Happy to answer questions!
I write every word, 100% me and a human editor responsible for the work. I did start with AI covers but I'm now working with human artists going forward. 1 book a month, links in my bio.
Here's the list of the characters I’ve pulled from the public domain and beside each, any significant changes from the original that I’ve added. There are also at least this many original characters peppered through all the books, many as interesting or even more than some of the better known ones I've used.
Kull of Atlantis. Usually portrayed as a King, I’ve gone with a younger version, wandering in my Earth’s prehistory, rather than Robert E. Howard’s pre-Hyborain Thurian Age.
Solomon Kane. Essentially unchanged.
Red SonYa of Rogatino. She only ever appeared in a single Robert E. Howard story. The biggest change is that she doesn’t speak like a Howard pastiche character.
Tarzan. My version is Chinese. You read that right.
Sherlock Holmes. My version is (redacted) and that affects every aspect of his character and mystery solving. Soon to be revealed. (It’s a doozy, folks!)
The Invisible Man (Griffin). He’s now a mercenary smuggler, along with a crazed scientist. More to come.
Professor Challenger. Essentially unchanged.
Captain Nemo. Essentially unchanged, moved a bit forward in time to allow him to still be alive circa WWI.
Ibis the Invincible. One of a very small number of PoC lead characters from the 1940s comics, I’ve made him my ‘Ferryman” character, responsible for finding, vetting and escorting each era’s champion (Captain Marvel) to meet that era’s Shazam and be burdened with the power. I’ve made him (sorta) immortal. And he bakes.
Captain Midnight. Once a male hero of comics, screen and radio, I’ve retooled her as a gay, bodybuilding woman who masqueraded as a man through WWII so she could fly bombers against the Axis.
The Spider. The original Spider was essentially a serial killer who used his wealth and secret identity to target criminals. My version is Richard Wentworth’s daughter, Rikki, who operates as The Spider in Silk City. She’s essentially a flirty, sexy Batman. How fun is that?
Dr. Satan. Taken from his single appearance in the 1940 serial film, Mysterious Dr. Satan, my Dr. Satan is essentially unchanged.
Spy Smasher. Essentially unchanged from his comics appearance in Fawcett Comics in the 1940s except for a colour scheme update, my version is a post war vigilante hunting Nazi scientist war criminals, while simultaneously his civilian persona (a C.I.A. operative) is tasked with bringing Spy Smasher in, since the government is using those same war criminals in scientific projects.
Hop Harrigan. I’ve given Hop a limb difference which led to his nickname. He’s basically my Six Million Dollar Man.
The Flame. Gary Preston was the super hero The Flame. My version maintains all those powers, including the bonkers idea of teleporting through flame, but he’s a Prince of the planet Pyrodania, real name Gar Ypres-Ston. He’s the alien equivalent of an African-American and he’s gay.
Crash Corrigan. Essentially the same as his single appearance in the 1936 serial, Undersea Kingdom, except he’s gay too.
John Carter. Essentially unchanged except for being a WWII soldier, rather than a Civil War veteran.
Buck Rogers. Essentially unchanged except for moving slightly ahead in time to be a WWII soldier.
Wilma Deering. The character is now a fellow American military officer during WWII rather than being someone Buck meets in the future.
Minute-Man. Essentially unchanged.
Fighting American. Essentially unchanged.
Miss Victory. Essentially unchanged, though she is the strongest one on her team, apparently inheriting her strength and speed through the female line in her family. More to come.
The Shield. Essentially unchanged.
Uncle Sam. Essentially unchanged.
Dan Garret. As yet to take up the mantle of the Blue Beetle, Garret is a cop in Silk City, moonlighting as a security guard.
Copperhead. My version of Bob Wayne (yes, that’s really his name) is very similar to the hero of the 1940 serial, Mysterious Dr. Satan, but I’ve fleshed him out and given him some neat serpent based super-powers. He also might just have a cousin named “Bruce” but so far he’s only mentioned an uncle Thomas…
Captain Marvel. My version is pretty different. I derive the powers of SHAZAM from Indigenous mythology rather than Greco-Roman as in the original. My Billy Batson is a girl. Captain Marvel is still male when she transforms and THAT is a huge part of my long term plan for the universe. Much, MUCH more to come.
Captain Marvel Jr. My version of Captain Marvel Jr. is very similar to the original, but my version of Freddy Freeman is an indigenous youth who is also a trans-boy. The wish fulfilment aspects of the Shazam power are in full play in this case and as with Captain Marvel, that is essential to my long term plot.
Mary Marvel. My version of Mary is essentially unchanged with the exception of her civilian identity being an indigenous girl.
Uncle Marvel. My version of Uncle Dudley doesn’t dress up or pretend to have powers. Like his nieces, he is an indigenous person.
Tawky Tawny. My version is Toni, owner of Toni’s Talkies, possibly the last DVD rental store on earth. She is Uncle Dudley’s lady friend. More to come on her.
Captain Nazi. I’ve made Captain Nazi a bit different. One of my original villains, Perdita DeVachron, inhabits the clone of her late brother, the once formidable (and original) WarWulf who fought for the Axis. She gains the power of SHAZAM through nefarious means in Never, Mind!
Mr. Mind. My version of the alien worm is a bio-engineered parasite who feeds on negative emotion, magic and the powers of super heroes. He is a tiny, green, red and black worm with teeth along his flanks, mildly psychic and wholly terrifying.
This one was left on Swords in the House of Horus!
Thank you Tony Dobbs! We've never met, but I'm grateful for your patronage!
I stole 40 minutes of Robert J. Sawyer's time this afternoon to talk about everything he's done, how the industry has changed and much more!
The other day, someone asked my about the reading order for my books. As always, I answered that you can read them in any order you like. Each is a standalone, with hints and Easter eggs within that might help you figure out the overarching plot I'm slowly spooling out.
But then it occurred to me that what he really wanted was a timeline, not a reading order.
So, to that end, here's the story so far. In chronological order.
Amazon.com/author/james.richardson
Swords In The House of Horus: A Lost Scroll of Kull of Atlantis
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FXL2HNY9
Set in the prehistory of Stygia, the land that would one day become known as Egypt, the future King of Valusia encounters a strange, possibly immortal wizard who seeks a power from beyond the stars.
Battling the god Horus himself, Kull must vanquish foes from every quarter!
-------------------------
The Gauntlet of Nabu: A Solomon Kane Tract
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978202
Set in colonial Massachusetts, Solomon Kane encounters an entity that hungers for the very souls of an innocent family. Can he discover the secret of the Gauntlet of Nabu and use it to once again imprison the evil it held at bay, before it escapes and unleashes its evil upon this new land?
--------------------------------
Red SonYa of Rogatino The Shadow of Tanaghaara
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G3XK289Z
Set in an unnamed time of flintlocks and sabres, Red SonYa, warrior, mercenary and adventuress is blackmailed into escorting a young nobleman through a dangerous mountain pass to his betrothal. The pass is plagued by wild creatures, bandits and something far worse.
When Lady Raven arrives, will it be as friend or foe? Red SonYa must battle an evil from beyond the stars and her own nature to prevail!
---------------------------------
Red SonYa of Rogatino The Secrets of the Amazons
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978202
Travelling to the shores of the Indian Ocean, Red SonYa seeks a mythical tribe of warrior women who share her penchant for battle and adventure. What she finds is a secret that might reshape the world!
-----------------------------------
The Beast of Borneo
Free to read at https://publicdomainsuperheroes.com
It is the dawn of the 20th Century. In the heart of Africa, an infant has grown to near adulthood in the care of a tribe of intelligent apes. Viscount Greystoke, Huishi Zijue of China, better known to the world as Tarzan, encounters a man from Europe, the first he has met.
Captured by a strange man swathed in bandages, this man, Sherlock Holmes has come to Africa to recruit the young Tarzan for a mission far more important than stopping the gold smugglers who have taken him prisoner. Can Tarzan free Holmes before his mysterious captor does the unthinkable?
-------------------------------------
The Rock of Eternity: The Challenger Papers.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978113
It is the early part of the 20th Century. Professor George Edward Challenger is the darling of the day for returning from his South American adventure with actual dinosaur eggs in hand. The media and scientific community are in an uproar, but those eggs are not the only thing Challenger brought back from his quest.
The inconceivably ancient knowledge he was burdened with after encountering a strange, buried, alien vessel at the base of the plateau where dinosaurs yet roam in the modern age, forces him into new adventures that will re-write the history of the universe.
-------------------------------------
The Mongo Machine
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978202
The world is at war, once again. The Nazis have recovered a machine that could turn the tide of history and it's up to a small team of warriors, Major John Carter, Captain Buck Rogers and Lieutenant Crash Corrigan to find and destroy the machine before the Axis can use it to secure weapons of unimaginable power from an incredible alien ally.
--------------------------------------
The Metropolis of Mongo
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G3X8P94M
Awakening in a strange, alien city, Captain Buck Rogers and Colonel Wilma Deering find themselves thrown from a world war to a galactic one. Besieged by the Empire of Mongo, the city planet of Theopolis fights for its very survival.
Have Buck and Wilma travelled to the future? Everything, including their very biology, seems to indicate they are 500 years in their own future, but regardless of where or when they are, there's a war on and they are spoiling for a fight.
------------------------------------
The Marine Moon of Mongo
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978083
Crash Corrigan finds himself flat on his back. Above him, a massive glass dome holds back an ocean in the sky. Is this fabled Atlantis? Where has the the strange Nazi machine sent him? When?
Before he can find the answers he needs, Corrigan is thrown into a life and death struggle in an arena that echoes ancient Rome, where life is cheap and death is entertainment. Befriended by a strange, alien creature he names Penny, Crash must fight for his life and the freedom of those who are pitted against him!
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The Martian Monsters of Mongo
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978172
John Carter has returned to Barsoom. Somehow the alien machine spits him out on the sands of the planet he's been trying to return to for 25 years. But he's far from anything and anyone he knows and he's not alone.
A team of Nazi soldiers has come through as well and they're hunting him. Can he evade their pursuit, while fighting off the giant apes and banths that hunt him as well? And what of this strange woman who he meets in the desert? Is D'ahn J'onn a friend, a foe or something else entirely?
----------------------------------
Operation Paperclip
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978202
In the early days after WWII, Spy Smasher is on the trail of Dr. Satan, a notorious Nazi war criminal. In the jungles of South America, the evil Dr. has burrowed in like a tick and Spy Smasher, aided by ace pilot Hop Harrigan, must expose his operation to the light of day before he can bring his plans to fruition.
There's only a couple of problems. Dr. Satan knows he's there and he has an army and a giant robot!
--------------------------------------
Dr. Satan and the Element of Evil
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FSLRW4YZ
Silk City, 1948. The Spider is trying to find a lost girl who might be in more trouble than she can handle. At the same moment, on the intelligence sent by Spy Smasher, Captain Midnight has tracked Dr. Satan to a warehouse in the seediest part of Silk City. The two heroines will collide in a maelstrom of drugs, henchmen and giant robots.
Can they work together to defeat the Doctor and save the girl?
---------------------------------
Snakes & Ladders
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978202
Ouroboros City, a few years after WWII. Bob Wayne's mentor, the state's governor, has been murdered in the most gruesome way imaginable, leaving almost no evidence. The police are baffled, so Wayne dons the mask of The Copperhead, once worn by his grandfather to right wrongs in the Old West. Copperhead must navigate the underbelly of the city and climb the ladder to find the man responsible for the governor's death.
What he finds is not what he expected.
-----------------------------
The Sizzling Spider and the Sinister Skull
The Sizzling Spider, Minute Man, The Shield, Uncle Sam, Fighting American & Miss Victory within!
A group of star-spangled heroes, known collectively as the Patriot Corps, has tracked a potentially dangerous relic, The Skull of Nabu, to Silk City. They enlist the assistance of the Spider and her team to recover the skull at any cost, before it falls into the hands of Illyria the spy queen.
----------------------------------
Say the Magic Word!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978032
It's 2026 and Billy Batson is a young girl, living a quiet life in Fawcett Bluff, a reserve in northern Manitoba, Canada. She dreams of bigger things, a life of adventure and wonder, like she sees in the action movies she loves.
An encounter with Ibis the Invincible places Billy on a path even she cannot imagine, gifting her with the magic of SHAZAM, a mantle which is only bestowed upon those who seek to protect above all.
Burdened suddenly with power beyond imagining, Billy must navigate the powers of Captain Marvel and save her family from an equally powerful entity who covets what she's been given.
-------------------------
Never, Mind!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1997978148
Freddy Freeman isn't alone. Inside his head, an evil, bio-engineered parasite who calls himself Mr. Mind has taken root and is trying to hijack the young man's psyche.
When a plot to steal Captain Marvel's power goes awry, suddenly Freddy Freeman finds himself controlling the power of SHAZAM, just like his best friend, Billy Batson.
But is Freddy in control, or is Mr. Mind?
--------------------------------------
And I've only just begun.
I keep reminding everyone, there's a clock on this.
While I have plans to add characters to the universe through 2051 and the end of the Golden Age of Comics as it enters the public domain, the plot I'm currently unspooling in the background will begin to close off this universe on January 1, 2039.
Don't miss it!
If you're struggling with quitting smoking, check out Jessi Hartnett's site. She has tips and tricks that can help. I was happy to be a guest on her podcast recently.
Collecting 6 previously published short stories into one volume for the first time!
Public Domain Super Heroes House Legends: Volume One
The perfect entry point into the Public Domain Super Heroes universe! Experience tales of swords & sorcery, science fiction and super heroics from the Houses of Crom, Entropy and Justice and peel back the curtain on the plot that is driving this growing and exciting universe!
I've tried turning it on in the profile, still shows zero.
Tried turning it on in the settings, still shows zero.
I'm very puzzled. Last count I had 22 followers and there are still 17 visible ones in the list.
Help appreciated!
I have been building my channel in support of my Public Domain Super Heroes project, for about 6 months now.
There are something north of 35 serials, most of the Fleischer Superman shorts (one got a copyright notice that I'm currently disputing) and a playlist of feature films, along with more than a dozen Sherlock Holmes features.
I add a serial a week and feature films that relate to my project whenever I run across something interesting.
To keep YouTube's algorithm happy, I put them up on a schedule, so new episodes drop ever week, and every fourth serial I put up, I make fully public right away. There are at least 20 serials fully public at this point.
There are undersea adventures, Zorro serials, Buck Roger, Tarzan and Flash Gordon serials and comic book adjacent properties like Brenda Starr are also included. And of course tons of super heroes like Spy Smasher, Captain America and the Phantom.
I have so many loaded that a new episode of something drops every day between now and the fall. And there are about 20 more still to be uploaded.
Most people think these serials are all public domain, but in reality, most are what I call "Copyright Unenforced". Many have active copyrights, but the various companies simply don't care about them. They might, at anytime, complain to YouTube and there's very little I could do but accept them taking them down.
The Captain Marvel serial, a personal favourite, is widely thought to be public domain, but I found the renewal cards at https://vcc.copyright.gov/browse, but YouTube allowed the upload without issue.
It's hit and miss.
For instance, the two Batman serials went up, no problem. They're very popular with my viewers. But when I tried to upload the Kirk Alyn Superman serial, YouTube nuked it before it even processed. So for now, I'm not even trying the second one.
I invite you all to browse through and enjoy. There's some amazingly fun stuff on the channel, and more to come.
Had a great time talking to the Tired Granola Bar Podcast!
The earlier post from Happy-Lingonberry inspired me to take a crack at a public domain Justice League.
From left to right as in the lovely Alex Ross portrait:
For Green Lantern: The Comet (MLJ) was space based, flew and controlled energy.
For The Flash: Red Robbins (Fox Features Syndicate). a rare speedster from the public domain. I had to really dig to find him and until today, I'd never heard of him. He's ripe for a rennaissance!
For Superman: Any of the Marvels. Captain Marvel is the most obvious, but if it's my team to build, I'd put Mary Marvel in his place to give the team a little more balance.
For Batman: Spy Smasher (Fawcett) is my pick. There are plenty of others who could fill the role, but I happen to really like Spy Smasher.
For Wonder Woman: Miss Victory (A.C. Comics) is a good pick. There are several star-spangled super-heroines in the public domain though, so others would fit the bill as well.
For Aquaman: Surprisingly difficult to find. No public domain heroes I could find had underwater powers except for things like mythological mer-people and sea gods. My best substitution is Crash Corrigan from the Undersea Kingdom serial of 1936. I happen to love Crash and he's a naval officer who has adventures in Atlantis. Captain Nemo would be another fair option, but if someone knows an obscure sea-based hero (or villain!) to swap for him, I'm all ears.
For Martian Manhunter: Plastic Man (Quality) has the shape shifting and while MM also has super strength, telepathy, flight, invisibility and density control, there's just no character out there in the public domain that covers all those bases. Plastic Man shape changes and after a fashion can fly or glide, plus if you don't notice that your filing cabinet is suddenly red and yellow with eyes, he has invisibility too!
John Carter awakens on Barsoom.
Before he can even get his bearings, he is attacked by an unimaginable foe.
But he is not alone.
Reunited with his faithful calot, Woola, hunted by Nazis, giant apes and worse, can Carter prevail over his enemies? What about his friends?
Available in Paperback, Kindle and Audiobook formats.
35 Central Ave. E. Brockville ON
Come and meet the author, pick up a signed book or two and learn what Public Domain Super Heroes is all about!