Pseudopod 209: Corvus Curse

[DKT]

Pseudopod 209: Corvus Curse

By Barry J. Northern of the Cast Macabre podcast

Read by Ian Stuart, voice actor for hire

The dreams got worse and worse in the following week, but they only plagued me at night. I could explain those away without questioning my sanity. I slowly began looking into mirrors again, trying to ignore that one incident for sanity’s sake as well. What worried me the most was my thumb. Even though there was no blood, I wore a plaster around it because one morning I had peered into the crack and swore I saw bone. I didn’t want to look at it after that.

That Saturday when granddad and I arrived at his house in a cloud of diesel, Mum wasn’t waiting for us again. He said she was getting ready upstairs and wouldn’t be long. I turned on the TV while he put the kettle on. I know, I should have said something about Mum, but that would have meant accepting that something strange was happening to her, and right then I was aiming for normality.

Mum’s scream lasted so long I was halfway up the stairs before it ended.

[kibitzer]

I like this one very much. You can hear another reading of it over on Barry's own Cast Macabre. It's Episode 6, read by Mark A Crittenden.

I like the story's everyday feel -- no tombs, graveyards or shambling monsters -- just ordinary people dealing with an extraordinary legacy because they can do nothing else.

[BarryJNorthern]

Thanks, Kibitzer, I ought to have known you'd be the first to reply to this discussion as soon a it appeared! I've been looking forward to this discussion as much as I have been looking forward to hearing the story. I emailed Ian to thank him for his narration. He played it totally right. As he said, it's a close first person perspective, retold from a distance of many years, so it needs to be acted in an older version of the character's voice, which he did well.

While I'm on the subject of POV, I wonder how many listeners might be turned off by the first person perspective. I know a lot of people don't like it usually. I feel this story called for it though. As I said, it's very personal.

I'm looking forward to some insightful comments, questions, and criticisms here. The EA forums are a lot busier than the Cast Macabre forum, and I've been keen for a while to analyse why this story has been successful, perhaps where others of mine have not.

[heyes]

This story hit a lot of buttons for me, a lot. This story reminded me very much of my own relationship to my mother and to my her parents.  Even more so because the the particular accent used in narration for the grandfather matches very closely to my own grandparents' accent.  Hidden family secrets, which are both part of every waking moment in the family and never ever talked about.  That was my mother's side of the family, and still is. The finding of his mother, the realization that he too was touched by and shared in the horror of it. That strange combination of defensive amnesia and pin point accuracy in memory. The fact of the curse being an integral part of the mother's identity within the family made clear by the death of the one crow.

So yeah, maybe I read into a little for my own sake, but isn't that what makes horror horrifying?
Very very well done.

And by the by the POV makes the intimacy of the story inescapable, especially because it was done so well.

I don't know what they've been feeding the editors over at PP (although I'm sure it's not erta) but damn it's working.

[BarryJNorthern]

That strange combination of defensive amnesia and pin point accuracy in memory.

Yes, I think this is level of verisimilitude can only come from the experience of loss. I'm glad you articulated it in your comment like this, for I had not written this consciously. Thank you for your other comments to, I appreciate your feedback, and I'm glad you enjoyed the story.

[snap-hiss]

Very interesting.  The nature of the curse drew me in, as I tried to work out exactly what was happening.  Quite creative.  A nice piece, and I have been enjoying Cast Macabre for awhile now as well.

[ElectricPaladin]

I liked this story right up until the end, which I thought was kind of inelegant. I thought the writer could have found a more subtle way to express that last point - "any fucking day" kind of dispersed a lot of the tension the story was building. I would have preferred for the story's statement - that living with the curse would have done more good for her son than dying of it and the curse itself as a metaphor for suicide and the way it can blight a family for generations - to have been a little more subtle.

That said, I greatly enjoyed the journey. The curse itself was fantastically creepy and very well done.

Three out of five zeppelins.

[BarryJNorthern]

I really glad you got that the curse was a metaphor for the damage that suicide does. The harsh ending was also supposed to be indicative of the way the main character felt and an echo of the harsh abrupt ending of the mother's life. I can see how it may have been offensive, but I never shy away from that in my fiction. Apologies if it spoiled it for you though, and I'm glad you enjoyed the rest

[ElectricPaladin]

I really glad you got that the curse was a metaphor for the damage that suicide does. The harsh ending was also supposed to be indicative of the way the main character felt and an echo of the harsh abrupt ending of the mother's life.

My wife's a shrink, and I've heard some really distressing statistics about suicide and families. The children of suicides are much more likely to kill themselves. The grandchildren of suicides are more likely to kill themselves. I think it takes upwards of five generations until the suicide statistics return to normal. Talk about a curse!

I can see how it may have been offensive, but I never shy away from that in my fiction. Apologies if it spoiled it for you though, and I'm glad you enjoyed the rest

For the record, it wasn't that I was offended. I don't get offended. It was... how can I explain it?

I saw a play, once. August, Osage County. This play is supposed to be really good - it won a lot of awards - but I didn't like it, mainly because I thought the play handled tension poorly. Right before the intermission, the eldest daughter hauls off and beats the shit out of her mother, right there at the dinner table. And then there's intermission, and the rest of the play just limps along after that. The play blows its narrative wad all over the place with a big, stinking, steaming pile of violence and curse words, dispersing all the energy its gathered up. The rest of the play had no snap. No life.

I think the way stories gather and disperse tension is one of the most important things about them. The problem with Corvus Curse for me wasn't that there was cursing, it was the way the emotional intensity just... splats, and then it's gone. It all comes out in a big, fuck-laden bang and left me with nothing to chew on.

I'll be the first to say that this is definitely a personal thing. Some people don't mind that kind of ending, other people like it, and the third (probably largest) camp will read this post and think I'm not making any sense.

But ultimately don't take all this too seriously. Critique aside, I liked the experience of the story and I'd go out of my way to experience your work again, and that's what counts.

[snap-hiss]

How did the mother know that killing herself would stop the curse in her son?

[Jabari Woods]

I was expecting a bit of a buried message within the story as it kept going on. Hopefully something representative of humans evil intentions. But no such thing was found. A desire within me was not found. Just a curse unfortunately was all that was described. I find this more frightening than having any message at all. Or perhaps there was a message deeper within the story. I might have to listen again and get more creative in my analytical process of discovering more meaning. Very well written and delivered story.

[BarryJNorthern]

How did the mother know that killing herself would stop the curse in her son?

That's just one of the many questions I have for my mother that can now never be answered. I sometimes think of asking Grandad, but I don't visit him often enough as it is, and when I see him I like to keep the conversation light; how his allotment's doing, whether he's been fishing recently, that kind of thing. He's old now, and I can't bear the sadness in his eyes when something reminds him of his daughter.

[BarryJNorthern]

I think the way stories gather and disperse tension is one of the most important things about them.

Thanks for delving into this more and explaining it, ElectricPaladin, I appreciate it. You've given me food for thought.

My wife's a shrink, and I've heard some really distressing statistics about suicide and families.

Yes, it's the worst curse I know. The worst kind of abandonment. Unfortunately, I didn't need to research statistics to know that.

[Unblinking]

Barry--good to see you around, and welcome to the fold.  I always like to see the authors around their story threads, it makes things more interesting.  I haven't listened to the Cast Macabre yet, but it's on my "must listen" list.  I tend to be very single-minded when I pick up a new podcast, only catching up on the backlog of one at a time, and I'm in the middle of StarShipSofa's history right now (and that's slow-going, since many of the episodes are near 3 hours!!), but once I'm caught up over there, I think my next to tackle will be Cast Macabre.

By the way, Barry, are you interested in being interviewed (for both your editorial and your writing work?) for my site?  If so, let me know.

Anyway, on to the story:

This was a dark story well-told.  It all centers around a curse that's never explained, kept mysterious in the best cosmic horror sense of the word.  The most scary part is the kid realizing that he's suffering from the same supernatural malady and knowing there's not a darn thing he can do about it.  The supreme efforts at normalcy made me believe very much in the character, and relate to him very closely.  I've not had a similar tragedy in my family, but I think every kid can relate to the urge to just be "normal" for many smaller reasons, and it makes it that much more scary to have the root of the problem be such an extraordinary circumstance.

Some of the best stories come from an emotional core very close to the writer's life.  They can be much harder to write because you have to cut to that core to let it out, but hopefully the sharing will act as a salve on the wound.  I appreciate you sharing that this was closely related to your history.

And Ian has got to be my favorite male narrator of all time, his voice is just amazing, the voice of a professional at work.

Unfortunately, the ending didn't, for me, live up to the rest of the tale:
1.  Up until that point, the curse could be a very good metaphor for a variety of family problems, such as alcoholism or depression, things which may be passed onto the children through social cues or perhaps heredity.  This metaphor worked very well alongside the main story for me up until the last few lines.   The "curing" of his curse through her suicide turns the metaphor on its head for me, not in a good way.  Maybe I was incorrect in my relation to alcoholism/depression, and I just followed a metaphor down the wrong rabbit hole, but with that metaphor in mind, the suicide should have the exact opposite effect of what it did, making the curse worse.  Perhaps you didn't want to go there because of personal implications, since this is related to events in your own past, and that would make sense, and would be justifiable.
2.  The final few lines were heartfelt, and were certainly true to character, but they too explicitly spelled out his feelings towards his mother.  The story before that had done a wonderful job of explaining his love for his family, and the horror of the curse, that when the last couple of lines came, it just seemed a bit like it was spelling out what should have been obvious to anyone who'd been paying attention to the rest.  I'm not sure what would have made a better ending line for me.

[Scattercat]

Apparently, I'm late to the party.  ElectricPaladin and Unblinking both pretty much covered my reaction.  I was enjoying the story and the metaphorical play up until the ending, which felt a bit flat.  It took the story out of personal-that-I-can-relate-to and into personal-private-to-the-individual, if that makes any sense.  The last line pulls back, is distancing; profanity is a harsh and aggressive stance, linguistically, and it tends to push away more than it brings together, and that very private, very internal pain evident in the last line makes it suddenly hard to keep my internal sensibilities in line with the events of the story.  I have to say I'm not surprised that the story came from a personal experience; it seems like it got a little too close to home there at the end.

I do have to say that I really don't like this title.  It gave away the entire plot, for me; my only question was whether she turned into one crow or a bunch of them, which was answered after the first scene when she appeared covered in their excrement.  Also, "The Corvus Curse" sounds like something from Harry Potter.  It's very hard for a story to live up to a title like "[anything] Curse."  To qualify as a "curse," whatever it is had better be darned awful.  The irritating part is that this story really does have a good, strong, haunting vibe to it, and I think it would have benefited from a subtler, more oblique title that would let the story build up from it, instead of one that creates a deficit the story has to work to fill.

[BarryJNorthern]

Wow, thank you, Unblinking, for taking the time to write so much. Don't many authors come into the forums then? I'm surprised, personally I'm really enjoying this opportunity to interact with my readers/listeners. Good luck with the SS backlog, and I look forward to hearing what you think of Cast Macabre.

I can see what you mean about the tautological nature of the last two lines with respect to the rest of the story. Perhaps I let heartfelt sentiment override other storytelling considerations. I'd love to hear suggestions for preferred closing lines or statements.

[BarryJNorthern]

Scattercat, I agree with pretty much everything you said. I underestimated the impact a title has on a story back when I wrote this, and have since labored more to have the title be more of a mystery and commentary on the theme than it is here. Also, the true curse in the story has nothing to do with crows, so it's doubly inappropriate. I've also come to realise that the harsh ending was self-indulgent, and I that lost sight of keeping the reader's sympathy.

This is great. It's often so hard to find good, reliable, and honest critiques, even in writer's groups. Keep 'em coming!

[Scattercat]

On a thematic note, given the corrosive effects a suicide has on the surviving friends and family, it did strike me as odd that, in a way, the mother was *right*.  She *did* save her son by killing herself, as his incipient transformation receded afterward.  I'm not sure what that means, exactly, but it's been bothering me ever since I finished the story.

---

RE authors in the forums:
It does happen every now and then, but not as often as you'd think.  I'm not sure if it's personal preferences or lack of knowledge or just no time; probably any of a dozen factors could keep an author away from the forums.  It seems most "normal" for authors who DO respond to let the thread play out and then come in with a sort of mini-essay to respond in general and maybe address specific questions or issues that were raised.  It is a very different thing to write knowing the author is listening and responding than to write for the forums in general, I think; I'd never have figured out why I didn't like the ending if I hadn't come here, read the thread, and gone, "Ah, I see.  That explains the odd tone."

[kibitzer]

Don't many authors come into the forums then?

Very few. It's always great when they do and I think they get a fair, if forthright, critique of their work. The one who do turn up are usually willing to discuss they whys and wherefores of what did/didn't work for people. It's pretty cool.

[kibitzer]

I tend to be very single-minded when I pick up a new podcast, only catching up on the backlog of one at a time, and I'm in the middle of StarShipSofa's history right now (and that's slow-going, since many of the episodes are near 3 hours!!), but once I'm caught up over there, I think my next to tackle will be Cast Macabre.

FWIW, Cast Macabre is a lot shorter than SSS -- closer to EA-cast length. Usually shorter. At least so far. You could kinda slip in a few CMs as a rest from SSS ;-)

I've kinda put SSS to the side for the moment. It's just too long and a little uneven.

[Scattercat]

Don't many authors come into the forums then?

Very few. It's always great when they do and I think they get a fair, if forthright, critique of their work. The one who do turn up are usually willing to discuss they whys and wherefores of what did/didn't work for people. It's pretty cool.

I think the big taboo is Telling Readers What to Think.  I imagine a lot of authors would shy away from posting just because that way they can let the story speak for itself and not try to guide discussion or interpretation.  Lord knows that if I ever had a story posted somewhere, I'd be a raging bundle of nerves just wanting to jump in and tell everyone why they're reading it wrong.  ;-)

[BarryJNorthern]

As far as I'm concerned, the reader is free to think whatever he or she likes, and to say whatever they want here too. The majority of folks who listen won't come here anyway, and those that do will probably listen first. If what they read here alters their perception of the story ... well, it doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things does it? It's only a little horror story after all.

[Unblinking]

Yeah, there are probably various reasons writers tend not to stop by:
1.  They don't want to skew responses to their story
2.  They're too busy or just not interested in registering for the forum
3.  They find negative reviews needlessly demoralizing and so skip reading them all
4.  A timid commenter might be more reluctant to post what they really think if they know the author's watching.

But I say, to heck with those reasons.  I like to see an author stop by.    In my view the author's opinion has no more bearing on deciding what REALLy happened than any reader--if the text doesn't express a specific meaning, then any interpretation that fits the text is equally correct.  But sometimes it's interesting to compare intent with result anyway.

[SanguineV]

I very much enjoyed this story, only two comments I would lend to the discussion.

The metaphor for me seemed to be domestic violence, drug abuse, or some mental disorder (bipolar, depression, etc). The escape from the curse by suicide seemed to end it and avoid passing on the actual curse, which didn't align with suicide for me. (Not to say many of these can be avoided so easily.)

The ending was just too crude. This felt like a mismatch between the character described so far and the character at the end. They didn't intersperse their memories with swear words for emphasis, why start on the final line? Also (and this is a personal view) I find swearing to be lazy, specially in writing. It is usually used when the swearer can't think of a better way to express themselves. I would generally expect swearing in a story to be part of the development of a character, not some way to emphasise the final line. I guess on reflection a more poignant final line may have been "every day". To me this can be delivered just as well by the narrator (well read BTW) and also makes it clear that the effect of the suicide is with the main character every day of the rest of their life, not just "any day".

[BarryJNorthern]

Wow, thanks for sharing your thoughts, Sanguine, and for the suggestion of the last line, I like it. It carries much more meaning and impact, and is more sympathetic to the mc. I'm tempted to suggest the edit to the original editor Mark A. Crittenden, who is including the story in a new revision of the original Howl anthology for the fledgling Red Skies Press.

It seems no-one likes the last line so far, I wonder if there are any who do?