Welcome to this instalment of Rapid Fire, my ongoing series of quick interviews with Black Library authors talking about their new releases. These are short and sweet interviews, with the idea being that each author will answer (more or less) the same questions – by the end of each interview I hope you will have a good idea of what the new book (or audio drama) is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.
In this instalment I spoke to Guy Haley (for the third week in a row!) about his latest 40k audio drama, Prophets of Waaagh!, which contains three short audios (previously released in MP3-only format) all rolled up into a single package. It’s available to order right now via Black Library and also Audible, and it’s brilliant fun!
As usual, let’s get straight to the questions and Guy’s answers.
Track of Words: What’s the elevator pitch summary for Prophets of Waaagh!?
Guy Haley: An Ork radio play.
ToW: Without spoiling anything, who are the main characters and what do we need to know about them?
GH: They’re my Red Sunz big mek mob, so that’s Big Mek Uggrim, not quite big Mek Snikgob, Mek Bozgat, Frikk the Grot and Talker the Madboy.
ToW: Where and when is it set?
GH: On a nowhere planet, just after the Cicatrix Maledictum opens.
ToW: Is there anything that you’d recommend fans check out before listening this?
GH: Yeah, my other Red Sunz Meks tales – Engine of Mork, Evil Sun Rising, and Klaw of Mork.
ToW: Why this story? What made you want to write this in particular?
GH: As usual, I was asked! The audio studio wanted to an Orks tale. I’ve got a good reputation as someone who can balance the mad and bad sides of the race. They suggested Speed Freeks, I suggested carrying on my Red Sunz stories. That was that!
ToW: What were your main influences when writing it?
GH: Bill King’s Makari the Gretchin tales from the old Waaargh! the Orks (note R!, it’s that old), Ere We Go! and Freebooterz books had a huge influence on me. I was only about 15 when I first read those. Every greenskin tale I’ve ever written springs from the same interpretation of Ork Kultur.
ToW: Each of the three stories opens with an introduction spoken in orkish – how did that come about?
GH: I thought it would be fun! I certainly enjoyed it. All the Orkish I ever use in any of the Games Workshop universes comes from the back of Ere We Go, where there was the most extensive table of Ork glyphs and words ever printed. Bits of the same information have been reused over the years, but never reproduced to quite the same extent. I had to make a few words up, and add a few grammatical rules. The rest was making it sound like a real language without it actually having all the real underpinnings. A lot of what I do is narrative conjuring tricks.
ToW: How do you find the balance in greenskin stories between humour and darkness?
GH: Orks are funny because they are shocking. All humour stems from shock, we laugh at the incongruous, or the uncomfortable. Orks are incongruous to human eyes. They’re like Tom and Jerry, only where people actually get hurt. The trick is to remember while you’re penning the latest comedy grot-slap that Orks are huge, dangerous creatures who would torture you to death for fun, then eat you, probably while you were still alive.
I remember Andy Jones, who used to run Black Library, saying to me years ago “Orks are like gorillas. They’re funny to watch at the zoo until you get into the cage with them.” Which was good guidance, although Orks, unlike gorillas, are fundamentally violent. They’re not malicious, or evil, they have their own rules that make perfect sense to them, but from our point of view they might as well be wicked.
It is very easy to overdo the comedy. Ork machines are ludicrous contraptions, but they work, and they are built to kill. Ork hierarchy leads to hilarious maimings, but it makes their society robust and functional, although it would be hell to live in it. You must never lose sight of the Orks’ origins, why they were made, and why they are the way they are. They’re an incredible, dangerous warrior race, created to survive anything you can throw at them. They’re not funny green apes with silly pets.
ToW: How does the final product compare to your original concept? Has anything changed much from your first ideas?
GH: I shall probably always answer the question in the same way – not really. Once I have an idea, I tend to stick with it. I did try to come up with a Speed Freeks story, but discarded the concept because of the limitations roaring engines would impose on your ability to hear any of the dialogue!
ToW: How does this story compare to the rest of your work? Is it a familiar style, or a departure?
GH: If you’ve read any of my other greenskin stuff, it fits right in.
ToW: Do you have plans to continue any aspects of this story, or is it a standalone piece?
GH: I’m sure I’ll return to Uggrim and company one day.
***
I’d like to say a massive thank you to Guy for taking the time to contribute these answers, alongside the two other Rapid Fire interviews he’s recently done (Plague War and Lord of Shadows).
You can check out my reviews of all three Prophets of Waaagh! audio dramas right here: The End of Daze, Bozgat’s Big Adventure and The Waaagh! Faker.
Click here to order Prophets of Waaagh!
If you fancy taking a look at some other Rapid Fire interviews, just click here. If you’ve got any questions, comments or other thoughts please do let me know in the comments below, on Facebook or Twitter, or by emailing me at michael@trackofwords.com.