Loved this story. It's not every day I come across a story that, at first glance, seems to titillate and tantalize, but then takes such a turn into the far grander, and richer, worlds of religious schism, Heaven versus Hell (with both being tangible places, rather than the entangled fancy of religious minds), and the age-old battle of order versus chaos. Your writing style in this one reminds me of HP Lovecraft, Edgar Rice Burroughs, or Robert E. Howard and, if intentionally done, you pulled it off masterfully.
I think this story ended where it needed to -- unresolved love, or quick and rapturous death? It's up to the reader to imagine. I think anything more would only distract and detract.
If I ever publish this story, I'd put your marvellous miniature review on the back. Thank you. The style and theme are indeed deliberate homages to Lovecraft, and to be compared those giants is lofty praise indeed. The story is a classic gothic mystery, it begins with a mystery about a death, and ultimately becomes a mystery about life itself.
As for the ending, here's a little insight into how I composed this story. I wrote the very last line first, and then built the rest of the plot around it. Often we writers are absurdly critical about what we create, but I think the ending of this story is absolutely perfect.
Sometimes, we must start at the end to go back to the beginning. Case in point: I'm a musician and composer. I had a drum-line mapped out for a number of years, just waiting for the proper inspiration.
My mother was an artist. When I saw one of her paintings, all clicked into place, the music fully formed in my head, complete with the drum-line I had done all those years prior. I could “see" every instrument, hear every note, a tapestry of color and sound.
I was fortunate enough to be able to play it for her before her death.
If you ever publish this, I would be honored to be included on the rear facing.
Strange that I am the first to comment on such a powerfully complex and interesting tale - I respond strongly to worlds not-quite-visible in your peripheral vision, only accessible to those deeply connected to "the other side" - I look forward to any future installments!
Thank you for being the first! This is a complex story, with many themes deliberately hidden for readers to discover. It's my homage to some classic gothic tropes, where the narrator investigates a mystery that will reveal the extent of their own ignorance, and the dire consequences of hubris...
The layering and complexity are the reason I read/commented. I suppose the piece may appeal more to people who already have an inquisitive bent, but everyone who is following you probably fits that description, and will feel that there is more beneath the surface and want more! (I've also just finished reading House of Leaves.)
Loved this story. It's not every day I come across a story that, at first glance, seems to titillate and tantalize, but then takes such a turn into the far grander, and richer, worlds of religious schism, Heaven versus Hell (with both being tangible places, rather than the entangled fancy of religious minds), and the age-old battle of order versus chaos. Your writing style in this one reminds me of HP Lovecraft, Edgar Rice Burroughs, or Robert E. Howard and, if intentionally done, you pulled it off masterfully.
I think this story ended where it needed to -- unresolved love, or quick and rapturous death? It's up to the reader to imagine. I think anything more would only distract and detract.
If I ever publish this story, I'd put your marvellous miniature review on the back. Thank you. The style and theme are indeed deliberate homages to Lovecraft, and to be compared those giants is lofty praise indeed. The story is a classic gothic mystery, it begins with a mystery about a death, and ultimately becomes a mystery about life itself.
As for the ending, here's a little insight into how I composed this story. I wrote the very last line first, and then built the rest of the plot around it. Often we writers are absurdly critical about what we create, but I think the ending of this story is absolutely perfect.
Sometimes, we must start at the end to go back to the beginning. Case in point: I'm a musician and composer. I had a drum-line mapped out for a number of years, just waiting for the proper inspiration.
My mother was an artist. When I saw one of her paintings, all clicked into place, the music fully formed in my head, complete with the drum-line I had done all those years prior. I could “see" every instrument, hear every note, a tapestry of color and sound.
I was fortunate enough to be able to play it for her before her death.
If you ever publish this, I would be honored to be included on the rear facing.
Strange that I am the first to comment on such a powerfully complex and interesting tale - I respond strongly to worlds not-quite-visible in your peripheral vision, only accessible to those deeply connected to "the other side" - I look forward to any future installments!
Thank you for being the first! This is a complex story, with many themes deliberately hidden for readers to discover. It's my homage to some classic gothic tropes, where the narrator investigates a mystery that will reveal the extent of their own ignorance, and the dire consequences of hubris...
The layering and complexity are the reason I read/commented. I suppose the piece may appeal more to people who already have an inquisitive bent, but everyone who is following you probably fits that description, and will feel that there is more beneath the surface and want more! (I've also just finished reading House of Leaves.)