17 Year Old Cornwall Author Publishes Urban Fantasy Novel
17 year old Bradley Pennell, is on the cusp of realizing his dream of being an author with the release of his first novel Demongelic.
The urban fantasy novel follows the adventures of young Christopher Skye, a 16 year old that learns that his feelings about being followed and watched are actually true. Beings thought to be myths are real and have evolved and adapted into our society. Along the way he discovers he is half-angel and meets other Halflings that help in his quest to discover his origins and help keep him safe from the barrage of attacks at the hands of the Unlucky XIII.
It took just over a year to write the novel.
"It feels amazing to have finished the book. Towards the middle of the process I felt that the story was slipping away, but friends and family helped me stay on track", says Brad. "I hope that people will like the characters as much as I do. I'm excited with continuing on with the next book in the series."
Brad has combined his love of illustration with his imaginative writing skills and has brought to life the heroes and villains of Demongelic. It is surprising that someone so young has successfully completed this venture; now tack on the fact that he has also illustrated all the characters in the book including the cover.
So what drove Brad to take on such a major endeavour and where did the inspiration come from? Brad always had a vivid imagination, but after a dream where he saw these characters interacting, he started to write down his ideas. Chapters were written and the characters were fleshed out, both on page and in sketch format. He received a lot of encouragement from fellow students at St. Joseph Catholic Secondary School, where he is now a grade 12 student.
Last year, Brad attended ARTpreneur , a conference to help artists become entrepreneurs and received a lot advice from a variety of professional artists. He worked to hone his talents and over the weeks and months his self-confidence grew. He was featured on TV Cogeco’s ArtCurrent last November, and was on the cover of The Local Seeker as an up and coming cartoonist/illustrator in April 2011. This summer he operated his own business selling artwork related to Demongelic as part of the Summer Company program operated by the Cornwall Business Enterprise Centre.
“We are very proud that Mr. Pennell has continued the work he began with his Summer Company "Breaking Reality". Bradley’s experience with the program was certainly a success, and we’re very excited that he has continued to follow his dreams,” said Candy Pollard, Business Consultant with the Cornwall Business Enterprise Centre. “The release of Demongelic is a major accomplishment, and proof that Brad is a true ARTpreneur.”
Demongelic contains 26 chapters and is geared for ages 13 and up. It fits into the same urban fantasy genre as the series such as Harry Potter and Percy Jackson.
Demongelic will be available at Fantasy Realm on Pitt Street and will retail for $15.00. On Saturday November 19th. Brad will be onsite to sign copies from 10am-5pm. The Grind will also host a book signing on Saturday December 3rd from 10am-4pm. The book was printed locally at Angel Printing.
Since the drawings were so instrumental to his creation, Brad has included an illustration at the beginning of each chapter, so you get a good idea of which characters are key to that chapter. He has developed rich descriptions and special abilities for each unique character he’s created. The story combines action, intrigue, mystery and camaraderie amongst the characters. There are humorous moments, touching scenes and well described action sequences. The villains are entertaining, sarcastic & vile. Some are extracted from real urban legends with a Brad twist, while others are purely the imagination of a young man who has always had an interest in fantasy, folklore, and the basic good vs. evil quandary.
The main antagonist is Bloody Mary. Brad was terrified when he heard about this urban legend in elementary school and so, in a bid to accept that fear, he developed Mary in a unique way. She travels through mirrors and when she attacks and is retaliated against; her skin made of glass fractures, but can regenerate when she returns to her mirror world. She is just one of the many villains you meet in Demongelic.
Brad spent his summer at the downtown Cornwall Farmers’ Market & Waterfest/Artfest where he sold handmade bookmarks, keychains, t-shirts with Demongelic characters and a zodiac line he created. His entrepreneurial spirit was further developed when he was one of the successful Summer Company Business participants, which gives students an opportunity to create their own business. Summer Company is a program through the Ministry of Economic Development and Innovation Ontario and the local program provider is the Cornwall Business Enterprise Centre.
"Art is my passion - yet I also plan to continue with my writing," says Brad. "It's difficult to say what the future might hold. I want to continue to explore my art in College and see what doors open, and whether or not I want to walk through them."
Brad believes in Cornwall, and recently joined Team Cornwall to demonstrate his support of his hometown and act as a young ambassador. He encourages his friends and classmates to pursue their dreams too. He always likes to meet other young artists that share that passion for creativity.
One thing for sure about this young man is, that if he makes it big someday, he’ll never forget where he started and who supported him. As he so proudly told everyone at FanExpo; “I’m from Cornwall, Ontario”.
