things have gotten worse since we last spoke and other misfortunes

this is a collection, so here are my thoughts on its contents:

you’ll find it’s like that all over: an interesting scenario held back by bad prose. the narrator tries to be characterful and ends up annoying.

the enchantment: simultaneously sparse and overwritten. compelling ideas here, but i didn’t get enough time with the characters to really care about them. needs more meat and less metaphor.

things have gotten worse since we last spoke: profoundly uncomfortable and affecting. a look at my nightmare scenario.

so… this is weird, right? i’m trying to figure out why one affected me and the other two left me cold. is it a matter of proximity, of how relatable the subject matter is? that plays a big part in it — i find agnes very relatable — but it’s not the only reason. things have gotten worse is an epistolary, so a lot of the writing style is justified as an expression of character. melodrama and overwrought metaphors make sense when it’s a character’s voice. it doesn’t work nearly as well when it’s the narrator being so blunt. it especially doesn’t work when i’m directly told how characters feel.

it leaves me feeling like things have gotten worse was just a happy accident, like the form and style just happened to line up. i don’t notice its flaws because it happened to hit me where i’m weakest.

reading this has made me grateful my partners are so good to me and that they’re such capable editors.