Wednesday 9 March 2011

the Ghost Boy

The ghost boy
Merle the Ghost Boy

The ghost boy lives in a boarded up shop at the end of a dark twisting ally. Behind a rusty chain, a lock with no key and a door that might once have been green but now is black with age. The shop is filled with books, paper, ink, typewriters, wooden letterpress blocks and archaic machinery. He thinks his name might once have been Merle, or Mervin or maybe Fox. It’s been so long since anyone has ever asked.

The night is filled with the moans, shrieks, and groans of the printing press as the Ghost Boy plays with ink and letterpress blocks. He reads his books, prints stories and posters of fantastical imaginary things. He pins up posters on telephone poles and plasters them on walls. He makes up typography jokes that nobody ever hears. Nobody ever laughs but him.

Merle

He walks though the town when the lights are dim and laughs at signs in papyrus, comic sans and arial black. He painstakingly prints graffiti letter by letter onto white painted walls to share the beauty of typography and words. He painstakingly types letters and notes, and slips them into newspapers and books in the library and the bookshops in town. He waits and waits for the books to be opened and his secret notes to be found.


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the Ghost Boy was made with love using scraps of fabric, vintage thread and buttons, he is filled with toy filler. Merle comes with his very own story card. I have listed Merle on etsy, click here or click on the link on the sidebar.

7 comments:

x vInTaGe VioLeT x said...

aww i love Merle!
your stories for your dolls are so good - i could really picture his dusty old shop {i think you'd like to own that shop for real :)}

Apryl said...

Vv- I think you would work in that shop too... as long as there are buttons and haberdashery too. :o)

Jessica Rodarte said...

Merle,
One day I will visit your and your charming shop and laugh heartily at your jokes.

Jessica Rodarte said...

Exuse me, "visit you!"

jillytacy said...

Merle is very cute! I love the idea of finding hidden notes from him!

Jessica Rodarte said...

"Exuse?" I'm just not saying anything anymore. How could I misspell "excuse?"

Laura Sparling said...

I love that Merle laughs at Papyrus and Comic Sans.

Merle is cute.