… and it’s still not literature’s fault.
Recently I wrote an article on the creepy clown phenomenon in the US and how author Stephen King (creator of Pennywise) had felt the need to defend the majority of these pranksters as being harmless and predominantly fun pranksters just having a giggle; now as the creepy clowns move to the UK another author has had to release a statement defending their clown based literature and distancing themselves from the pranksters haunting British townships.
Joseph D’Lacey and co author Jeremy Drysdale recently released a novel by the name of Clown Wars (it’s on my TBR review to follow) a book that according to reviewers and critics say defies labelling and in fact “..stuffs all the labels in its clown sized pants and daring you to pull a label out from one of its pockets” The book’s blurb reads:
“For as long as anyone can remember, the Clowns and Humans of Blueville have co-existed peacefully. Sure, each species thinks the other is a little weird but that’s never been something to fight about. Until, that is, a series of freakish terrorist attacks – seemingly perpetrated by clowns – turn the two bloodlines against each other. When war breaks out, the future of both species hangs in the balance.”
Sounds like a blueprint for what has been happening in recent months both here and across the pond in the US doesn’t it? Except of course that this is a work of fiction, it’s not a how to guide, it’s not a recipe for life and it’s certainly not to blame for the sudden epidemic of creepy clowns popping up across the globe.
Unfortunately the press doesn’t appear to see it like that and both Joseph and Jeremy have been bombarded by reporters demanding they explain the strange coincidence of their publication and the sudden appearance of creepy clowns.
Of course there is no link other than the fact that both feature clowns but the press do love a scapegoat but here is what Joseph and Jeremy have to say on the matter.
In the light of recent events concerning incidents of stalking, threats of assault, harassment, breach of the peace and other nuisance-making – all allegedly perpetrated by people dressed as clowns – the authors of Clown Wars: Blood & Aspic wish to make the following statement:
“We do not condone, nor have we ever, clown impersonators and/or clown-associated accoutrements, disguises or paraphernalia for the purpose of causing intimidation, harm or unrest. Nor do we find the global spate of such ‘attacks’ in any way amusing.
Clown Wars: Blood & Aspic is a work of pure fiction written, like any other novel, as entertainment. It was never intended to inspire idiots to dress up as clowns and run around terrifying innocent people.
Having been contacted by a number of journalists hoping to pinpoint the origin of these ‘clown happenings’, we now feel it is time to distance ourselves from any and all such activities by saying loud and clear: this has nothing whatsoever to do with us.
This is our final comment on the matter and we do not wish to hear from any more reporters or members of the public pretending to be ‘real’ clowns. Nor will we field any further complaints about the contents of the book. None of this is our responsibility. It’s just a story.”
Joseph D’Lacey and Jeremy Drysdale
Oct 10th, 2016
Taken from Joseph D’Lacey’s Blog
Having chatted to Joseph on a regular basis I can say with confidence that if you were looking for someone who was plotting clown based anarchy he’s probably not in the top million suspects; and to have to witness yet another author having to defend and distance their work because of the actions of a very small percentage of the world’s population is a sad reflection of our need to pass the blame onto somebody, anybody else.
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