Thief Kids (2022)

Finally! At long last, the project of my middle-school years has been reimagined and created! The angst that I felt as a teen has not been lost, only refined, in this production that shows the troubled thief, Scourge, battle his inner emotions and outside forces of evil in his dark city, Darkly Lane.

Content Warning: Suicidal ideation, criminal behavior, violence, graphic description

Paperback ($7.50): https://www.amazon.com/Thief-Kids-Golden-Goblets-Curse/dp/B0BN5BR53T/

Cover art illustration done by my very own Nana, Monique Domnanovits. Title and map illustration by the illustrious Raouf Moues. Other inside art and cover polish by my wife, Sarah.

Thief Kids follows the turbulent Scourge Vellan, a thief who finds he’s descended from a legendary cursed pirate. It follows his journey thieving with his accomplices — he wouldn’t call them friends — and running into foes along the way. All the while, his greatest foe is his own mind.

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Personal Foreword

When I was in school, I did not find my state of mind represented in any of the books that I read. While characters that looked like me came a dime a dozen, there were no characters with the depth of depression and vehement rage that I felt in my teenage years. I thought that writing characters with such sadness and anger was some sort of taboo. Every main character for kids seemed to have a big smile on their face all the time; they didn’t seem allowed to have emotional issues.

So, with frankness, I state that the protagonist of this novel, Scourge, is possessed of both deeply-depressive thoughts, including suicidal ideation, and snaps of rage which include threats of physical violence even against friends. He is written this way to be an honest portrayal of the person that I was in my younger years.

I began writing Thief Kids in 4^th grade. It was a work of love, but it was not viable for publishing due to its disorganization. As an adult rewriting Thief Kids, I have done my utmost to maintain the integrity of Scourge’s character.

The reason his mind is still presented with these flaws is to create a relatable yet fictional representation of depression and rage in a story intended for teenagers.

I was and still am tired of heroes whose minds aren’t their own worst enemy.

So, this finished novel is dedicated to the grief and the anger that I struggled with. It’s dedicated to the chaotic mind of an angsty teen. It’s dedicated to my younger self.

I recommend writing as a coping method to anyone who can relate.

For optimal reading experience, listen to My Chemical Romance, Trivium, or A Fire Inside while reading.

Afterword: Writing Thief Kids (2022)

When I was a young child, I often disliked reading because the media for kids was too lighthearted. I did not see my dark disposition represented in movies and books until I grew a little older, though the portrayal was never quite right. One of the first novels that showed me the emotional turbulence of a child, which inspired my writing from the beginning, was Cornelia Funke’s The Thief Lord. The anger towards society shown by the orphans’ angst, and Scipio’s leadership and desire to be an adult, resonated with me. I wrote Thief Kids to take these elements one step further.

The original Thief Kids series was my first major writing project. Proudly I share that before I entered college, the Thief Kids series was 400,000 words and still in progress. It was a massive project of writing practice but also an object of great shame, for looking back on it always made me feel inadequate. The characters and plot were juvenile and unashamedly cringey (which I now understand really means that the actions of the characters mismatch the mood of the story). However, the original series today is a trophy of great pride, and the story has a magical, youthful energy that can put a genuine smile on my face because of its unabashed portrayal of the dark world of Darkly Lane.

Many changes had to be made to the original series to make it meet my modern standards. First of all, I had to rewrite the beginning with the end in mind. The original Thief Kids is a 12-part series, of which I only finished the first eleven parts. This novel, The Golden Goblet, encompasses parts 1 through 4 of the original series, with part 3 being largely removed. Many events had to be cut, altered, or rewritten, yet I am confident in the finished product. 

Another major issue with rewriting the original Thief Kids series is that it was rooted in Greek mythology. Scourge’s dynasty was originally called Fury, and they were literal descendants of the kinslaying-punishing Greek Furies. The home of Scourge’s dynasty was the Underworld, and Cerberus would be one of Scourge’s most enduring archenemies. As fun and thematic as all that is, I wanted the story to be less based in lore from the “real world”. Reworking Scourge’s curse and the world he lives in took great pains, but ultimately, I ended up with a story that made sense yet contained the same mood and nostalgia as the original project.

It was important to me to maintain some of the more unbelievable aspects of the story, such as the abundance of crime in an otherwise upper-class suburb. Scourge’s personality was also a subject that received scrutiny from many whom I’d asked feedback for, but my irony was that Scourge’s personality was based on my own thoughts. The depths of his depression and heat of his rage was something I felt vehemently as a teenager. I am firm in my portrayal of his character.

Finally, I address the supernatural physical abilities of the characters. This novel glorifies the effect that individuals can have on their world. Since I wanted to show that a single person can have a lasting impact on their world, it is only natural that each character has larger-than-life power. It also increases the action-level of the story. 

Returning to an earlier idea, the original Thief Kids series has 12 parts, and this novel shows only the first four. Another two full novels would allow me to tell the complete story of Scourge and his companions and adversaries. Terrifyingly awesome stories of angst, betrayal, and bitter love lie ahead, including a thieving tournament, journeys to cities outside of Darkly Lane, monster-ridden ocean voyages, and a treasure valued and feared beyond any measure await.

Stephen Knudsen

November 2022