The inspiration for this story came when I happened across a picture showing the grave of famed Swiss artist H.R. Giger. Giger, who passed away in 2014, had a distinct and horrifying visual style that popularized the idea of “biomechanical” art, i.e. images of machinery combined with organic material. You probably know his name thanks … Continue reading Short Story: “The Unknown Occupant”
Tag: short story
Short Story: “Portrait of an Amsterdam Lady”
I wrote this story about a year ago, based off an Internet prompt that I don't remember now. I submitted it for publication to a few places, but nothing happened, so I sat on it for a while and forgot about it. Until a few days ago when I stumbled across it again. It's hardly … Continue reading Short Story: “Portrait of an Amsterdam Lady”
Short Story: “In the Garden of Death”
Seems that I've finished a spooky short story just in time for Halloween! How about that? This is a project that I've been wanting to do for quite a while. It's a follow-up, technically a prequel, to my story "White Saffron." It was loosely inspired by my recent reading of Madeline Miller's Circe, and it … Continue reading Short Story: “In the Garden of Death”
Today on Project Gutenberg #38
Today on Project Gutenberg, we have... Unbegotten Child by Winston Marks The only thing scarier than being pregnant is being unwillingly pregnant. And the only thing scarier than being unwillingly pregnant is when you have no idea how you got that way. Inexplicable or simply impossible pregnancies have been a trope in fiction for literally … Continue reading Today on Project Gutenberg #38
Short Story: “The Clown Bicycle Disaster of 1827”
I have no idea how to introduce this story. I think it defies explanation. But let's call it a work of absurdist literature? The only thing I can tell you about where it came from is that I challenged myself to write a piece of short fiction based on three randomly generated nouns, and that … Continue reading Short Story: “The Clown Bicycle Disaster of 1827”
Today on Project Gutenberg #25
Today on Project Gutenberg, we have... Sonny by Rick Raphael With a title as short and nondescript as "Sonny," it's all too easy to overlook this short story at first. But the transcriber's note at the beginning of the PG text tells us that this story was originally published in the April 1963 issue of … Continue reading Today on Project Gutenberg #25
Short Story: “The Care and Keeping of Your New Pet Frankenstein”
Normally I would try to write something scary for October, but this year I felt like going in a sillier direction. I've wanted for a while to use the idea of writing an owner's manual or pet care guide for some kind of horrifying monster, like Cthulhu or a zombie. Because I still had Frankenstein … Continue reading Short Story: “The Care and Keeping of Your New Pet Frankenstein”
Short Story: “The Only Grave on the Moon”
I got the inspiration for this piece a few weeks ago when I stumbled across the story of Eugene Shoemaker, who actually is the only person whose remains have been sent to the Moon. I initially approached my idea with the attitude of "Wouldn't this be a messed-up situation?" But once I started writing, it … Continue reading Short Story: “The Only Grave on the Moon”
Short Story: “Snapshot of an Apocalypse”
I wanted to throw another story up on here since I haven't done that in a while. This one is actually from about three years ago, and it's kind of weird even for me. I wanted to write something that was based around a description of a creature, and I also tried experimenting with second-person … Continue reading Short Story: “Snapshot of an Apocalypse”
Short Story: “White Saffron”
Back in October of last year, I wanted to write a spooky short story for Halloween. So I pulled up a list of about 100 or so horror-based writing prompts and picked a number at random. The prompt I got was "This centuries-old beauty treatment is effective but horrifying." While the scheduling didn't work out, … Continue reading Short Story: “White Saffron”