Oh, I love this. I especially love that you’re both taking the genre at face value and on its terms, but still providing an actual fresh take on it. I’m reminded of “Gentlemen of the Road”, which also pulls off this trick of depicting a novel take on wandering hero in the Conan mould but ducking away from the false dichotomy of pastiche and ironic subversion.
And I say that as someone who enjoys deconstruction and subversion … but I also think that genre fiction is worth taking seriously on its own terms, which means accepting that maybe it means what it says, maybe it just wants to depict a man outside society.
There’s also something a little Borgesian here, but I can’t quite tell how. Maybe it’s the taking an unfashionable genre seriously and on its own terms? I’m thinking “Man On Pink Corner” and all the Martín Fierro reworkings.
But this also stands on its own as a Conan-esque story, not merely as a commentary on Conan the phenomenon.
I love how the emotional center of this scene shifts in an instant — from confrontation to something much more complex. It isn’t a simple surrender or reconciliation, but a reframing of power and choice that makes the release feel earned. Those moments are the ones that stick.
What a wonderful story. I read your Conan essay and I guess on some level I was itching to read this kind of story - great follow-up!
Thank you. I really appreciate that!
Oh, I love this. I especially love that you’re both taking the genre at face value and on its terms, but still providing an actual fresh take on it. I’m reminded of “Gentlemen of the Road”, which also pulls off this trick of depicting a novel take on wandering hero in the Conan mould but ducking away from the false dichotomy of pastiche and ironic subversion.
And I say that as someone who enjoys deconstruction and subversion … but I also think that genre fiction is worth taking seriously on its own terms, which means accepting that maybe it means what it says, maybe it just wants to depict a man outside society.
There’s also something a little Borgesian here, but I can’t quite tell how. Maybe it’s the taking an unfashionable genre seriously and on its own terms? I’m thinking “Man On Pink Corner” and all the Martín Fierro reworkings.
But this also stands on its own as a Conan-esque story, not merely as a commentary on Conan the phenomenon.
Oh, I love both of these stories about Erdric! And now I'm buying the literary criticism, "The Dark Barbarian That Towers Over All."
Thank you! Am glad I sold you on _two_ Erdric stories.
I love how the emotional center of this scene shifts in an instant — from confrontation to something much more complex. It isn’t a simple surrender or reconciliation, but a reframing of power and choice that makes the release feel earned. Those moments are the ones that stick.
Thank you so much! It's nice to be read well
Hanged. Coats are hung, people are hanged.
My pet peeve.
Homage to Conan the Barbarian, and a strong flavour of Shirley Jackson, particularly the opening sentence! Was that a subconscious nod?
Probably it was, subconsciously. Thanks!