Here are the first three. The third one I'm already plugging around the comic book, Sherlock Holmes and mystery messageboards.

For those of you who are unfamiliar and haven't read The Spaghetti Strand Murder just yet, Romance with a Croquet Mallet was the name of a play I wrote back in 2000/2001 when I was still trying to find my feet as either an artist or writer.

I really wasn't sure at the time if I had a future in either art or comic books so I began to do a little dabbling in playwriting. I had started familiarizing myself with Oscar Wilde at the time, so this play was somewhat my attempt at something along the lines of an Oscar Wilde play.

Although, in the end I found it read more like P.G. Wodehouse than Oscar Wilde. Which was fine by me. In the past nine or ten years I've found myself leaning towards the type of comedy of P.G. Wodehouse.

With a little bit of a naughty twist here and there.

But the play never went any further than a reading with a local theatre group up at Mount Wachusett and sat on my hard drive for ages.

Last year, I ressurected scenes and lines from the play for my graphic novel The Spaghetti Strand Murder. In the past month or so in between writing a couple more follow up projects as well as doing some freelance work, I had decided that I want to write a follow up to The Spaghetti Strand Murder bring back Doland, Lady Sloughshire, Morass, Maladay the Butler, Vicar F. Entreaty Thompson as well as possibly Tom Bakerfield Stewart and Enamour Infamy for a scene or two.

I also want to use Dashing Young Harold Larson and Brigette the Maid from the play as well as introduce a couple of new villainous characters into the mix.

I have a desire to write a Life and Blandings type of story with these characters.

There were still a great deal of scenes and lives unused in my play that I haven't used just yet, so I thought I would day after Thanksgiving on the old turkey and pick the bones clean once and for all.

And I've decided to finally use the title of the play on this story. So nearly nine or ten years later, Romance with a Croquet Mallet will finally see the light of day.

Perhaps not on the stage at the Hanover Theater in downtown Worcester. But on the shelf at That's Entertainment ;-)

As a continued effort to promote Polly and Handgraves as an ongoing series, I just set up a page for Polly and Handgraves on Myspace. Click on the link below to check out the page and join it today. Be sure to pass it along to your friends as well:

Polly and Handgraves on Myspace

Here's the finished design. Scanned in and cleaned up.

This is an illustration I did for a t-shirt based on the book Lincoln Hates Werewolves. Those of you unfamilar with the werewolf hunting exploits of our former President, it's from the series of the same name by Stephen Lindsay published by Alterna Comics.

My Lincoln design was illustrated on Canson Smooth Bristol Board and inked with Deleter #3 Black Drawing Ink with Crow Quill Pen and Brush.

If I peaked your interest with my little photo tour of Worcester State Hospital, there are some great websites that you really need to check out. Either about the hospital now or about the hospital's past:
 
http://www.kirkbridebuildings.com/buildings/worcester/

http://www.opacity.us/gallery90_silent_creatures.htm

http://www.worcestermass.com/places/asylum.shtml 

http://www.preservationworcester.org/pages/endanger/10.htm

This last website is the most intriguing. It has pictures taken AT the hospital and some of the treatments they offered. Some of the photographs are downright bizarre and creepy. Enjoy:
http://www.kirkbridebuildings.com/blog/life-magazine-at-worcester-state-hospital  

Well, I just came back from a really exciting and really intriguing day in my little photo tour in the Polly's Worcester series. I decided to take some new pictures of the Worcester State Hospital to add to the series. Well, I found out when I was going up there that there's a massive amount of contruction going on. So, I asked one of the workers if it was okay if I took pictures and it was fine as long as I don't go on the other side of the fence.

So, I go up and spend a couple minutes snapping different angles of the hospital. As I was leaving I got into a conversation with one of the workers. I asked him what was going on and he said they were building the new hospital up there. I had heard something about it but I wasn't it if it was true or not. Well, it is.

A couple of the remaining buildings around the main clock tower had been demolished so I asked the guy if the tower was next. Which he replied "No".

This is where it got really interesting.

I come to find out the plans are to restore the tower and create it into a museum. My eyes lit up. I told him it was a great idea. We even traded website. He told me if I go on Oracle.com and type in the state hospital they have pictures from when the hospital was running. I told him about this great website Silent Creatures which has some really great pictures from inside the buildings taken not too long ago.

All in all it made for another great day of picture taken. But without further ado, here are some pictures of the future Worcester State Hospital Museum...

or whatever they plan on calling it.
And if you haven't already, join my Polly and Handgraves page on Facebook:
The Adventures of Polly and Handgraves on Facebook

 

Last Friday I started taking photo's as part of a Polly and Handgraves's Worcester Massachusetts on my Polly and Handgraves Facebook page. Basically it was to show the readers the various places which inspired the the scenes and the story of A Sinister Aura. I did take a few liberties with the settings since the story is pretty much a work of fiction based on facts from the case. I was certain to point that out in certain photos.

The Hammond House


I had confused this place with the Hammond House when I was illustrating my book. BUT this house does have historical signigicance since they found the gun walled up here many years later.


The cemetery behind the Congregational Church where Henry Hammond and Iris Prouty were to be wed.


The servant quarters. The only thing that remains of the Cherry Street Prouty Mansion. The rest of the Mansion was actually taken apart room by room when the family split. So, there are different parts of the mansion in different parts of the country.


Riders Tavern. The basis for the Inn which Polly and Handgraves spend the night in. The tavern is not actually located in Spencer. It's actually in Charlton. But there were certain buildings which I kind of incorporated into the story. Since it's not completely factual, I thought I would take a little artistic license here and there.


The Hogshead Tavern is not an actual place in Spencer MA. Well, Spencer MA circa 1929. There is a Hoghead Tavern as part of the Spencer Country Inn. I use to go there several years ago because they served fish n' chips on Friday nights. Unfortunately, the owners of the SCI are more interested in the inn part of the place and basically paid very little attention to the whole Hogshead Tavern part of the building. Which is a shame because they had a really good thing going on. The building is in the town over from Spencer, Leicester. At one time it was the Hillside Tavern.


The Hammond Family Grave Plot. Located in a cemetery next to Hope Cemetery in Worcester MA. But you have to go through the front entrace of Hope to get to it.


Henry Hammond. Who the character Lionel Hampstead in A Sinister Aura was based on.


Henry's parents Aaron and Ida Hammond.


Aaron and Ida's seperate markers.


Henry's marker.

One last parting shot before I head off after a successful day :-)

I just sent up a blog which will strictly be dedicated to the ongoing adventures of Polly and Handgraves. Click on the link below to check it out:
The Adventures of Polly and Handgraves