"October Leaves" by Michael Swanwick
Imagine Ray Bradbury taking up nature photography, and you'll begin to get an idea of what the inventive narrative "October Leaves" is all about. Giving new meaning to the concept of "flash fiction," renowned SF author Michael Swanwick composes his story by taking photos of fallen leaves that he's inscribed with individual words and then arranged syntactically. The resulting tale (autumnal in both form and content) traces the annual 31-day journey of the allegorical figure October. Along the way October encounters ghouls, witches, vampires, and werewolves--all "his dying children." Finally, he meets and mates with Lady November, a one-night stand that Swanwick uses to explain the origins of the supernatural elements associated with Halloween. Ingeniously conceived and beautifully executed (you'll be amazed at how Swanwick matches his words to the size/shape/color of the chosen foliage), "October Leaves" is sure to delight any lover of the Halloween season.
The photographic progression can be tracked on Flickr, or the actual art book can be purchased from Blurb. Happy viewing!
No comments:
Post a Comment