In the summer of 2013, I started what I had hoped would be the first of several children’s books related to the Phantammeron. The first of these was a creation I called “Maymee” (or Maeme/Maome in earlier conceptions). This was my first attempt at a small illustrated children’s fantasy book, that tied in with what would eventually be the last books of the massive story behind the Phantammeron.
But after running low of funds, and needing to focus on the Phantammeron series for adults, I have abandoned this project. But I would like to include some information on this project for future reference, as I feel its a very interesting sideline to the last stages of the Phantammeron story. That in itself might be intriguing to those looking to puzzle together the large context of the Phantammeron mythos. But of course, I cannot reveal much. And Maemee for now will have to remain largely a mystery to my readers. But here are a few bits of info on Maemee….
The book will have custom illustration and artwork done in pencil on cold press illustration board. As of 2015, I have maybe 3-4 large color illustrations completed in colored pencil. But struggling with the blending and saturation of color, its now likely I will have to abandon these and start over. (but a few are included herein).
The stories will be very simple, but the illustrations quite complex and a very large time-consuming project for me. The story is based on the tale of a little girl living in the swamps of Louisiana in a gigantic, crumbling sugar cane plantation run by her dying grandfather. Maemee lives in the ancient home, and as she matures discovers its many mysteries, including hidden doorways, ancient tunnels, swamp landings, bridges, terrariums, and a basement library. It is in this library she discovers a hidden tome called “the Phantammeron”, which leads her in dreams to a magical land where things are not as they seem. While living in the swamp, she finds a large magical toad. She carries this magical toad everywhere, till the day he is lost and she has to travel to the mysterious world of Adda to find him.
You may notice the illustration shown above. I have actually changed the name of the character of Maemee several times since I first conceived of her, over 30 years ago. Originally I was fascinated by the term “Maome”, which is a Portuguese-English version of the word “prophet”. So, I decided to explore some French words in recreating her name. In my family we have an ancient French South Louisiana ancestor who’s grave I have seen in Richard, Louisiana. Her name was Ame, or Amee, meaning “friend” in French creole. So, I reformed Maome into Maemee from that name. However, the actual meaning of the character of Maemee runs much deeper than linguistics. Though she appears in the stories as a young human child born in the wild woods of Louisiana, when she travels to Adda, she becomes an adult, and is transformed, as is her toad. Somehow she is also connected (her spirit) to a more ancient Child of Light who perished before the world was formed, in the Twilight Forest of Phantaia. I cannot reveal her larger destiny here, but I am certain in the last book of the larger adult fantasy fiction she travels and adventures in the Phantammeron World to solve part of its riddle.
Being a father myself, I have always been interested in the lite and carefree world of children’s literature. Maemee, and her pet toad had allowed me to explore that until the demands of the larger fiction took over. But if I ever return to her story, I have many exciting adventures planned for her and her pet with many places and creatures to discover. I cannot wait to explore those things in the future. But it might be many years till I return to them. – The Author