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Ex-vicar turns into comic villain
Mark Branagan Evil has a new face. A retired Yorkshire country vicar is assuming a new identity – as a comic book supervillain.
Graham Taylor, former Vicar of Cloughton, near Scarborough, enjoyed worldwide success with his spinechilling novels Shadowmancer and Wormwood, which made him a millionaire.
Now Mr Taylor, of Scalby, Scarborough, is stepping into the story himself as narrator and main villain of Shadowmancer: The Comic. The middle-aged former priest has been given a dark new look by artists who design the graphically violent manga comics which in Japan are better read than many newspapers.
As the evil vicar, Obadiah Demurral, he will be able to raise evil mermaids to sink ships, conjure evil warriors with snake-like heads to do his bidding, and perform curses and spells.
His other powers include rendering enemies unconscious by burning the Hand of Glory.
It is powerful stuff for a former priest whose main concern before fame was how to keep his young family on a Church salary.
But Mr Taylor is looking forward to his new role with almost sinful relish. "I'll be wheeling out destruction to everyone," he said.
"It will be the first time a British vicar has gone into a Marvel-style comic. It is also taking literature to people who do not normally read books, so it another way of getting kids to read."
His six-year-old daughter Lydia will be not allowed to read the 11-rated comic when it hits the stands in December, although her sister Hannah, 17, will.
The rights to the novel are being acquired by Markosia Enterprises, the largest independent comic publisher in the UK.
Sal Salmon, of Markosia Enterprises based in Plymouth, said Shadowmancer will start out monthly, costing 3.50 in the UK and $3.50 in America.
"It is going to be huge and earn six-figure sums for Graham," he added.
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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