It isn’t every day your editor calls you depraved.
I chose the Bluebeard myth as my jumping off point for LES PETITES MORTS from Ghost Orchid Press. Evelyn Freeling edited this anthology of erotic horror fairy tales and myths where you’ll find my story “Cry Handsome.”
I’ve been writing a few gay slashers lately. This is one of them. You may know from reading my story “Rust Belt Requiescat” that I have an interest in medieval serial killer Gilles de Rais. Reputedly, he had hair so black it looked blue. Some say that’s the origin of the name Bluebeard.
Bluebeard and the Robber Bridegroom are fairy tale serial killers. Real life serial killers, at least those that have been studied, tend to experience disassociation and psychotic mental processes. That’s why, as I lead you toward the bloody chamber in the story, you may become disoriented, lost in a labyrinth of shifting identities and victims.
My tactical approach is modeled on old folktales that lack traditional western story structure. The palette is giallo. The visual language is important in making sense of the story. I named the protagonist Lucien Blue.
Bluebeard’s bloody chamber houses previous victims, inevitably found by the newest soon-to-be corpse. Writing about the bloody chamber as a psychological space inside the killer’s mind, haunted, sexual, and primal, I hoped to place the reader in the position of the innocent new wife.
I guess Evelyn is right about me being depraved.
You’ll be able to watch the LES PETITES MORTS launch party soon and hear me read from my story. P.L. McMillan was kind enough to host. You can follow her You Tube channel and watch when the video comes out if you’re curious about what happens deep inside the labyrinth.
Thank you for reading! If you enjoy my writing, please follow. I only post when I have new work to share and news of upcoming releases or events.
Horrorsong 