The biography of Auric Goldfinger?

At HMSS, we’re not much into James Bond fan fiction. Why would you put all the time and energy into something you (legally) wouldn’t be able to publish? And, as any aspiring James Bond writer should know, Ian Fleming Publications is not looking for any new Bond authors, or looking at any unsolicited manuscripts.

Having said that, however, we’ve tripped over somebody who’s come up with a pretty cool idea. Roland Hulme, on his Militant Ginger blog, has posted his idea for, and prologue to, a fictionalized biography of one Mr. Auric Goldfinger. Called The First Edition Death Warrant, it examines Goldfinger’s obsessions, his personal drives, and his history. As Mr. Hulme puts it,

I imagined the story of this man’s life. It was exciting, erotic and macabre. As a young man, I envisioned him as a noble sort, outwitting Nazis and Russians during World War II. However, as his obsession with the ‘purity’ of gold increased, Goldfinger himself became more and more corrupt.

We think this is a novel (no pun intended) idea, with some degree of merit. Ian Fleming’s villains are such terrific characters, and loom so large in our imaginations, that we think something like this could be a fascinating read. Hulme says he’s contacted the estate of Ian Fleming to see if they’d be interested. We wish him luck!

Read all about it at the Militant Ginger.