Gothic – Writing Wrongs

So, one week into this experiment, and so far, so good. It’s been both wonderful and surreal. Last week, I had a short bout of the Sunday Scaries. It was as if my body didn’t believe I wasn’t logging on Monday morning and opening up email, Microsoft Teams, and Jira. (Oh, Jira. Do I miss you and my many filters? No. No, I do not.)

I was a little worried Monday morning that I’d open the manuscript and be completely blank—both the page and my mind. But I wasn’t, and I haven’t had a writing week like this in a very long time.

Accidental library and bookstore book haul

I also finished the Trapped in a Gothic Novel course with some help from that accidental book haul. I found The Haunting of Hill House creepy but interesting and not as scary as I expected. A Haunting on the Hill was very creepy, not to mention scarier. I like gothic fiction, but I’m not really into horror (at all). A Haunting on the Hill is about as scary as I can tolerate. I already had the last book, Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan, on Kindle (and it appears to still be at $2.99 as I write this if you want to go grab it).

Now it’s on to the other two books in my accidental book haul. Because reading (for pleasure) is absolutely part of my job these days.

So, last night, I attended a virtual watch party for Northanger Abbey. It’s part of the course I’m taking called Trapped in a Gothic Novel (mentioned in last week’s comments) at the Carterhaugh School of Folklore and the Fantastic.

Y’all, how is it 2024, and I’ve never done one of these?

Between watching the movie and reading all the witty comments, I didn’t have a chance to make any of my own (witty or otherwise; I’m not sure how the others kept up). My favorite of the night, in reference to the hero’s brother, Captain Tilney:

He’s handsome in that I-eat-live-scorpions-for-breakfast kind of way.

Up next is A Haunting on the Hill by Elizabeth Hand, the authorized follow-up to Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House. Which would be fine, except …

I’ve never read The Haunting of Hill House because back in eighth grade, I read “The Lottery” and subsequently noped out on all things Shirley Jackson.

I’m not sure I can do this, but I’m going to dive into the reading this week … and hopefully not lose too much sleep.