I, Peter Blake, am the author of ‘The Barbelo Codex’. I am a married man with an amazing wife and son. I am also a rather big fan of Science Fiction and Horror (Particularly Cosmic Horror).
 
          This story has, for me, been a practice in catharsis; a reaction to finding myself promoted to Fatherhood. To say that this was a mammoth realisation would be an understatement, but the weight of responsibility I suddenly felt towards both my new son and my wife nearly broke me. The hubris of the creation of a new life battled constantly with the necessity of the act, and my will towards it. So, I found myself conflicted in a fundamental way. I had to do something in order to rise above the overwhelming turmoil, and thus I chose this outlet!
 
          I’ve written a few stories in my time, but they were very much for my own enjoyment and not for publication in any form. This on the other hand was an attempt at something longer form and certainly deeper in its message, something to be put on show… for better or for worse!
 
          My influences are quite wide, ranging from J.R.R Tolkien, to Olaf Stapledon; John Stuart Mills, to Marcus Aurelius; Charles Dickens to John Milton; and of course, H.P. Lovecraft to Edgar Allan Poe. Other influences would include the Book ‘The denial of Death’. By Ernest Becker. It was a difficult one to get through, but very inspirational toward my own personal perspective. Upon my travels and perusing, I stumbled on the ‘Nag Hammadi’ library (Dead Sea Scrolls). In particular the ‘Apocryphon of John’, and ‘Thunder, perfect mind’, a fascinating Cosmogony, that completely inverts the Jewish and Christian Genesis.
 
          While thinking about what I would write or how I would write it, I discovered that in all my favourite stories there was always an Ontology or Cosmogony, that underpinned the story or ‘Universe’ within the series. This obviously applies to the beautiful ‘Silmarillion’ by Tolkien, or ‘Star Maker’ by Olaf Stapledon. But also Lovecraft and his amazing Cthulhu Mythos. So this is what I decided to ‘try’ to do…
 
          Not the easiest of tasks!
 
          All of this comes together in the pot while I write the Barbelo Codex.

All the best,
Peter Blake