Pharaoh Akhenaten is remembered as the Heretic Pharaoh. It’s said he was a peculiar and fanatic king who, led by his visions and spiritual revelations, established monotheism in Egypt. And who, once deceased, was deleted from history by his successors, leaving a trail of mysteries and an infinite amount of fallacies about himself and his story behind. This is what we have been told up to now.
But... What if I told you that at the beginning of the roaring 20s, under the utmost secrecy... certain papyrus scrolls from his time were unearthed? Some rare papyrus that gave testimony of how the man, not the pharaoh, was in reality? And that everything we ever knew about his history, has little to do with who he truly was... Akhenaten, Ato, man, master of his own
mistery school, alchemist and prophet, far away from his land. A man who started a journey, not only physically, but internally, accompanied by a few, yet loyal, followers. And next to him, -or probably in front of him- Meritaten, the closest witness to everything the man lived, besides the title and the crown. The true voice of this story.
Set between dreams and reality, between a dark world almost 3500 years old and the colonized Egypt of the '20s, Golden Brown tells an exciting story charged with mystery and adventure where nothing and no one is what they seem. But above everything else, it's a story about souls, love in all of its shapes, and truths that need to be rescued from under the ruins and the darkness, so they can, at last, see the light of day.
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Egypt, 1919. A group of 6 young enthusiastic folk got together to create The Collectors Club and perform excavations secretly (not to say... illegaly) especially , in Amarna, which was less exploited than the Valley of the Kings.
It was like a game to them until, a few years later, in the ancient city, in a hidden part of the ruins of a noble house, they made an eerie discovery. Something depicting King Akhenaten in a way no archeologist nor egyptologist had ever seen a pharaoh represented before. The papyrus scrolls. A kind of personal, secret diary, written by a female voice who was very close to Akhenaten. She wrote about herself and her inner thoughts, but also about him like he was something more than a King... like he was a Master, a prophet, and, above all, a human being.
A few years later, with some death in between and more and more unsolved mysteries, Glendora Quinn, daughter of one of the founders of the Collectors Club, has just returned to Egypt after some years, called by the sole survivor of the Collectors Club, Dr. Martha Greenfield. The Dr. makes her part of the mysterious discovery and at the same time, Glendora receives a valuable (and beautiful) relic... the key to put things in their right place.
With the papyri almost completely translated, both ladies finally reveal something so relevant and surprising that it could completely change everything that is known so far about Akhenaten and his story.
Not everyone around wants these revelations to see the light, so Glendora, Dr. Greenfield and their allies must protect them at all costs... And, above all, that truth must get it to us. To all of us.
And this is Golden Brown. A journey, an adventure between shadow and light, truth and lies. Past and present in sync. Everything in its right place.
HOW WAS THE PROJECT BORN by Vanessa Trueba.
"The time I came into this world, so did a song by the British band The Stranglers, called ‘Golden Brown’. I grew up with that song and its music video. I was fascinated by it, and it continued to fascinate me every second of my life, and I was proud as I felt the song "mine" as we had been born at the same time, and as it's the most perfect song I have ever listened to. I always knew I wanted to use that title for a story, regardless of the original meaning of the song. But life went on.
One autumn night, lots of years later (after several failed attempts to work on "Golden Brown"), something happened that opened my eyes, and I knew who I wanted to give soul and voice to my story. At last!
Once I knew I wanted Akhenaten in Golden Brown, I started thinking and thinking, not really knowing how to focus the story... but I had a lot of ideas while I slept... I dream a lot and pretty coherently. It's not something super unusual or surprising in my work process. Most of my stories came to me whilst dreaming (thankfully naps have some use in me), but this time the dreams were very recurrent. I started writing everything down. I crossed paths with some very interesting scientific information, and with a wonderful legend. Eureka. I had all the elements in place!
Reality and historical research, surprising (and nerdy) investigations, my dreams (kind of coherent in an oneiric manner) to give it some life, legend, mystery, and lots of imagination to sew it together and give it shape... And there was Golden Brown. Providing an interesting logic (fantastic or not, legends will be legends...) to some questions and shadowy parts regarding Akhenaten and his world. And also Meritaten's who I want to give a deserved spotlight. In the end, she is the axis and the real voice in this story. The true meaning of Golden Brown.
This is my vision. Alternative, personal... fictional in a lot of aspects, real in others (like in a game...you decide which). But one thing is very much for sure: this story is loaded with dedication, love, anticipation, my soul and my heart."
CHARACTER DESIGN
The most mysterious and complex Pharaoh history ever gave us, and the most unknown, regardless of the fact that hundreds of books were written about him. Idealist to an extreme, spiritual, and a visionary... He never really fit into this world and much less as a pharaoh.
In Golden Brown, Akhenaten man, not king, starts a very complex emotional journey. A journey of self-discovery, the most difficult ones there are. When he thought he knew everything about his mission in life, all his standards break down after making a decision that will change everything. He discovers himself, his soul, his true calling, and the meaning of the unconditional love his secret hermetic school preaches so much about. This new double life as Master and Preacher happens as his reign falls, betrayed by his peers and his people. He starts another journey, this time a physical one, to distant lands. The pharaoh dies in the eyes of the people and history, but the man lives and the prophet is born. The Akhenaten who leaves us the legacy I want to show you.
Is water: passion, emotions, vigor. But also like water, calm, and healing if necessary. That's Meritaten, Mer for her loved ones. She is the moon, that moves the tides. Princess, Queen, anonymous survivor to the chaos, fire, and destruction of Akhenaten's kingdom. His loyal companion and the light of the journey, as her decisions, for good or bad, shape the events... We could give her a lot of titles to describe her, but she is just a young woman living a turmoil of emotions and occurrences that overwhelm her. Yet she persists, survives, and makes her own way, and through her eyes and heart, we see this story in a close and intimate manner, from beginning to end.
As a lighter side note, she loves flowers, perfumes, splashing around in the water at night, and running around naked in the garden.
Glendora Valentine Quinn. This Irish youngster is the daughter of one of the founding mothers of the Collectors Club andand was brought up surrounded by ruins and valuable artifacts between Cairo and Amarna. She´s always been busybody, and that natural tenacity and curiosity took her to accidentally discover the great unknown treasure, the holy grail no one was looking for, the Papyri in the ruined cellar... that female voice witnessing everything in the past no one knew but her. In this way, while Glendora reads and unravels certain mysteries, she is the link between the two realities: Egypt in the 1920s and Amarna almost 3,500 years ago.
Leon Maynard. Also the son of another founding member of the Collectors Club and an Egyptian noblewoman. He never thought of following into the steps of his father's military career, General Maynard, so he chose to live in the family manor in Asiut, raising lions. He is very young and has lived too much for his age... He lives his own reality, absolutely convinced by some strange chimeras and wishes in his head, his ghosts and own lies... starting with his mechanical hands. He wants to think he lost his limbs while sustaining an attack of his own lions, but the reality is a bit darker than that. Dark like his secrets. He knows it, but he prefers not to remember.
Is he an ally or an enemy to Glendora and Dra. Greenfield? He needs answers too but probably he'll find the ones he wasn't expecting
FORECAST OF DEVELOPMENT AND CONDITIONS OF THE CAMPAIGN:
GENERAL
We know the kind of effort it takes to do a good job, and both the author and Spaceman Project are prepared. We love this medium and we want to take it to another level where the readers, authors, and the booksellers are the protagonists. It is because of that that we have taken the small details into account and adjusted the fundraising goal for what we’re offering.
This is an all or nothing campaign model. In order for the project to become a reality we need to reach 100% of the goal. The length of the campaign will last 30 days but can be extended by 7 more days if the project reaches 75% of its goal before the end of the month. As the publisher, Spaceman Project, can make contributions to the campaign to boost or complete the goal at its own discretion. As is customary, an announcement will be made public if this happens.
COSTS INCLUDED IN THE CAMPAIGN
Author / Cost to create
Platform / Creation, management and Crowdfunding collection management.
Publishing / Editorial advisory, quality control, translations, graphic design, pre-production, printing, delivery of rewards to backers and bookstore distribution.
DEVELOPMENT PIPELINE
Author / 15-18 months after the end of the campaign. *
Editing / 3 months of editing after the author’s final delivery.
Printing / 5 to 10 weeks for printing.
Deliveries / it will take between 2 and 6 weeks after the books have been received to be sent to the backers.
*Spaceman Project is not responsible for delays in the creation as this is the author’s commitment to the backers. In the case that the work is not finished, the author is directly responsible for refunding the backers.
All illustrations presented in this campaign are provisional and are subject to change once the goal has been reached, and work on the project commences. This is only applicable to the cover images for the most part, not to the story, the format of the work, nor the rewards being offered. Obviously, we are presenting a work that is in progress and under development. Creativity has no limits and we are confident that we will not stop improving, and as such, we have made a commitment to quality with our readers.
While the project is being created, the authors are responsible for issuing updates and keeping the backers informed. Once the materials have been delivered to Spaceman, the publisher will be in charge of informing the backers about each of the next steps (Editing/ Production/ Warehouse arrival/ shipment of packages).
