Way back in the early 2000s a certain movie came out that was intended for children with the main idea to boost the popularity of one of the rides at Disneyland California. What the Movie Makers didn't think through was the potential popularity - or even craze - that the lead actor created. In fact, if I recall, he wasn't even intended to be the lead actor, or at least, the lead character. That was supposed to have been Orlando Bloom as Will Turner... except Johnny Depp's interpretation of Jack Sparrow overtook everything - including the ride at Disney.
Pirate Mania - Jack Sparrow Mania - had arrived. And not just for the kids!
It turned out that us Grown Ups delighted in the daft fun of it all. I say 'daft', because in truth, the movie was daft: totally implausible, several really bad continuity bloopers - but genuine laughter FUN.
The first time I saw it was on DVD one afternoon in 2004 when I wasn't well. I got to the bit where Jack Sparrow nonchalantly steps off his sinking boat onto the jetty at Port Royal. I laughed out loud... and didn't stop laughing.
Hooked is probably an understatement. Being interested in history I delved into what bits of the movie were based on fact (leaving out walking skeletons and cursed gold!) I also searched for a good novel or two or three along the same sort of theme: light-hearted nautical adventure with a good [adult] romantic interest and a touch of supernatural fantasy. I found several Young Adult stories - the emphasis being on young. (Basically no sex or violence). I also found lots of adult nautical adventures - Patrick O'Brian, C.S. Forester, Alexander Kent... all super novels, but with a distinct lack of 'feminine interest' (a lack of female characters!) So I decided to write my own.
Sea Witch the First Voyage of Captain Jesamiah Acorne was the result. Publishing it was not straightforward, suffice to say I parted company with my (ex) agent and traditional publishing and went 'indie' in 2006 (so, twenty years ago!) It was a sharp learning curve - but the best decision I ever made. (Well, apart from moving from London to Devon in 2013!)
I am currently writing the Seventh Voyage (Jamaica Gold) which I will publish soon. But as a prequel story I wrote When The Mermaid Sings - or 'How Jesamiah Became A pirate'.
That novella is doing well, and I wrote a substory connected with it, (because I had the idea and that idea needed to be written down.) Not knowing what to do with it though, I filed it away on Dropbox... and then I proposed another anthology with the theme of Courage, and that was that. A Taleteller's Tale found its home!
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read a snippet
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A TALETELLER’S TALE by Helen Hollick
Somewhere in the Caribbean, 1709
When the only sound is the song of the sea, do you listen?
Or do you drown in the embrace of a mermaid?
The careening was done. Tomorrow, when the sun eased above the eastern horizon to convert the clear, star-pocked night sky to the bluest of blue, and the night-black sea to all the ocean shades that can be found upon an artist’s palette, they would pack up their camp, kick sun-warmed white sand over the cold, grey ash of the rock-rimmed fire pits, board their ship and sail away to lands near and far, and to take what they wanted or needed from those who dared to sail too near to their bow-wave. Pirates had the freedom to do such things.
But for now, for this last night of rest and carousal, it was time to roast wild pig on the spits and drink dry the broached kegs of rumbullion – strong, dark, rum.
And to tell tall tales of past adventures...
“Ah,” said the helmsman, Frank O’Bartlett, his nut-brown face brightening, the deep wrinkles smoothing momentarily, “did I ever tell thee o’ the mermaid we once encountered?”
The men lazing around the fire, sucking the last of the marrow fat from the pork bones or refilling their tankards with strong rumbullion either laughed or groaned.
“Several times, mate!” Jon Cleyver, the bos’n, chortled. “I reckon we knows it as well as you does!”
Jesamiah Acorne, however, pricked up his ears. He was still new to the crew, young, only sixteen or seventeen – he’d forgotten which, because he had lied about his age when he’d run away from his Virginia home and the bullying of his half-brother. Had lied in order to join the crew of the Mermaid, under the command of his dead father’s old friend, Captain Malachias Taylor. “I’d like to hear it,” he said with enthusiastic interest.
About Helen:
Originally first published in 1993, and now known for her captivating storytelling and attention to historical detail, Helen’s historical fiction, nautical adventures, cosy mysteries and short stories, invite readers to step into worlds where the boundaries between fiction and history blend together. Her historical novels span a variety of periods, with a particular focus on the Early Medieval. Her Pendragon's Banner series offers a vivid portrayal of the King Arthur story set against a plausible reality setting, while the events that led to the 1066 Battle of Hastings shows her ability to bring historical figures and settings to life.
Her novel about Queen Emma (The Forever Queen – USA title) became a USA Today best-seller.
In the Sea Witch Voyages, she subtly weaves in elements of supernatural fantasy against the Golden Age of Piracy, creating an immersive and addictive nautical adventure experience.
Her Jan Christopher cosy mystery series is set during the 1970s, based around her, sometimes hilarious, years of working as a North London library assistant. Her 2025 release of Ghost Encounters, co-produced with her adult daughter, Kathy, reveals some benign ghosts of North Devon where the family moved to in 2013. Helen has written several short stories, further exploring the echoes of the past, all with her compelling and convincing signature style.
Amazon Author Page:
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