We are excited to share the cover and excerpt from the book with you today. Morrison fans, look no further, and if you're new to the writer's work, keep reading.
There is a brief synopsis of Luda.
Luci LaBang is a star: for decades this flamboyant drag artist has cast a spell over screen and stage. Now she’s the leading lady in a smash hit musical. But as time takes its toll, Luci fears her star is beginning to dim.
When Luci’s co-star meets with a mysterious accident, a new ingenue shimmers onto the scene: Luda, whose fantastical beauty and sinister charm infatuate Luci immediately... and who bears a striking resemblance to herself at a much younger age.
Luda begs Luci to share the secrets of her stardom, and reveal the hidden tricks of her trade. For Luci LaBang is a mistress of the The Glamour, a mysterious discipline that draws on sex, drugs, and the occult for its trancelike transformative effects.
But as Luci tutors her young protegee in the art, their fellow actors and crew members begin meeting with untimely ends. Now Luci wonders if Luda has mastered The Glamour all too well... and exploited it to achieve her dark ambitions.
What follows is an intoxicating descent into the demimonde of Gasglow, a fantastical city of dreams, and into the nightmarish heart of Luda herself: a femme fatale, a phenomenon, a monster, and perhaps, the brightest star of them all.
The full cover is by artist Chad Sell.
As a lifelong comics reader and graphic novelist, I was thrilled when Del Rey contacted me about illustrating this new book by Grant Morrison. For many years, I was best known for my illustrations of drag queens, and I loved exploring how queer creativity can transform queens into more magical versions of themselves. The design of the cover tries to balance artistry and outrageousness, the flawless precision of this queen's beat contrasted with the lipstick spontaneously scrawled across her face. I hope the final result is a lot of fun.
Next up, we have an email interview with Morrison, followed by an excerpt from Luda!
You are well-known for your work in comics and graphic novels, but you have never written a novel. What made you shift to medium at this point in your career?
Grant Morrison said that the last time he finished a novel, he was 19, so it felt like time to commit.
What can you tell us about the main character of the movie, Luci LaBang?
Morrison hopes that the primary power of Luci is to convince her audience that everything she says is true.
There isn't anything supernatural in Luda or that could easily be happening now.
Is Luda the main villain of the story? How would you describe the dynamic between the two people?
Morrison asked if the face in the mirror was an ally or an antagonist. Our story begins as a tale of teacher and student, but it becomes more complicated and dangerous.
What made you want to tell a speculative fiction story about drag queens?
Morrison: I was obsessed with performance and obsessed with my personal experience as a young working class person.
When I grew older, I was struck by a nostalgia for the old clothes and selves and possibilities that no longer fit as well as they used to.
I saw a way to unpack my feelings into a psychological thriller.
What are you most excited for readers to experience while reading this story, and can we expect more adventures in this world?
Morrison hopes readers will enjoy the flamboyant language, the glitter and glamour, the tricky, puzzle box narrative, the naked humanity, and the trip of a lifetime into an extraordinary individual's mind.
The part-Brooklyn-part-Glasgow city of Gasglow could play host to innumerable interwoven narratives.
There was no inner division when I was dressed and made up, as I said. I christened myself after Mercurius when we started the Troupe.
I became the name of a nom de plume.
I gave up on Luci. I made my farewells very emotional. She wore dresses that haunted the closet. I was scared to call her back because she would never allow my face to be distorted by the canvas from the museum. I was afraid of what I would find when I dug her up.
The perfect excuse was delivered by Widow Twankey of the Three-Times-Perfected. I was given the chance to surrender to something stronger, faster, and more real than anything I'd been used to. I would light my lamp and dust off my things. My shoes and agents.
I would let the Glamour burn me to the ground in its blue flame.
The Yellow Brick Road was started by a couple of pills. The tonic is double. What is the worst thing that can happen? I thought. I will choke on my own vomit in the back of a taxi. I will die with dignity.
Grant Morrison wrote an excerpt from LUDA. Grant Morrison is the author of Copyright. Excerpted by permission of Del Rey. All rights belong to the person. No part of this excerpt can be reproduced or re-posted without the permission of the publisher.
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