NEWS RELEASE
CHARLES SAUNDERS TO WRITE JUNGLE QUEEN NOVEL
Editor Ron Fortier
has announced that noted fantasy author, Charles R. Saunders, will write Lulama,
Witch Queen of the Jungle, as his second novel for Airship 27 Productions.
Fortier is the Managing Editor of the Colorado
based book publisher.
Saunders is best
known for his creation of the heroic Sword and Sorcery genre character, Imaro,
who initially appeared in a series of DAW paperback novels during the
1970s.
Also at the urging
of Fortier, Saunders had previously written the novel Damballa in 2011,
creating the first black 1930s pulp avenger in the history of the
genre. In addition to its historic
significance to the pulp community, the book went on to win the prestigious
"Pulp Factory Award for Best Pulp Novel of the Year".
Earlier in 2013,
another publisher, Pro Se Productions, released a critically acclaimed
anthology, Black Pulp, that featured a Saunders' short story called
“Mtimu” which featured a black hero in the tradition of Tarzan of the
Apes. In the story was a secondary
character, Lulama, an African witch, who struck a chord with Fortier.
“For a long while,
I’d been thinking of doing a pulp book featuring a black jungle queen,” he
elaborated. “As Damballa had put
a new spin on the iconic pulp masked hero, I thought it was time to do the same
for the jungle queen genre.”
Lulama was exactly
what Fortier had been envisioning and he quickly contacted Saunders, suggesting
he develop the character further and spotlight her in a new series. The African American author was surprised by
Fortier’s enthusiasm for the character and agreed to give the concept some
thought.
A few months later,
fellow writer, Percival Constantine, wrote an insightful essay concerning
racism in early pulp magazines and used Saunders’ “Mtimu” as an example of the
New Pulp movement of today that is expanding the field of pulp literature by
boldly confronting those past wrongs. In
his essay, Constantine purposely used Lulama as a symbol of the former African
persona now evolving into a fully realized and self sufficient character.
Saunders was
delighted as he read the essay as it supported Fortier’s claims to Lulama’s
potential for future adventures.
That settled,
Saunders is now writing; Lulama, Witch Queen of the Jungle for Airship
27 Productions.
“If all goes
smoothly, we hope to have it out by the start of 2014,” Fortier predicted, his
own enthusiasm bubbling over from the potential. “And we couldn’t be happier. Charles Saunders is a great writer, and
having him do another book for us is an early Christmas gift here at Hangar
27.”
Charles R. Saunders, also credited as Charles Saunders, is a
Canadian African-American writer and journalist. He is a retired copy editor
for a newspaper. Saunders was born in Pennsylvania and graduated from Lincoln
University.
His fiction books include Imaro, The Quest for Cush, The Trail
of Bohu, Dossouye, and The Naama War, and Damballa. His non-fiction work includes Sweat and Soul: The
Saga of Black Boxers from the Halifax Forum to Caesars Palace, Spirit of
Africville, Share & Care: The Story of the Nova Scotia Home for Colored
Children, and Black & Bluenose: The Contemporary History of a
Community.
