The Spoons That Are My Ears!

Yes, another new chapbook. I wrote the first Fanny story back in 2007 as a one-off while I was living in Madrid. The idea for a sequel didn't come until the following year. I wrote that. Then I wrote a sequel to the sequel. And a sequel to the sequel to the sequel. And a sequel to that. So I eventually ended up with five interconnected stories. Neil Jackson of The Penny Dreadful Company accepted them for publication; but after they were typeset, proofread and the review copies were printed, I had an idea for a sixth Fanny story. Oh dear! But Neil was gracious enough to allow me to write it and insert it into the sequence. This chapbook features all six -- 'Fanny is Famished', 'The Furry Godmother', 'Petal Put the Kelly On', 'Fanny of the Apes', 'Knobheads and Dipsticks' and 'Fanny of the Opera'.

The Fanny stories utilise a technique I'm fond of, namely taking something that is already absurd but not perceived as such (in this case the moral fable) and applying merciless logic to it until it turns inside-out or crumbles away. It's just a form of deconstructionism, I suppose. I enjoy doing this. I've deconstructed vampires, zombies, invisible men, ghosts and many other illogical memes in my time -- with absolutely no general effect whatsoever. They still persist. Ah well! The Fanny Fables can be ordered here. Just don't tell Neil Jackson that I've recently had another idea for a seventh Fanny fable (called 'Pussy in Boots') set in Boots the Chemist and starring Diana the Rig...