17 Comments
User's avatar
EJ Trask's avatar

damn sean you’re really fucking good at this

Sean Thomas McDonnell's avatar

<3! Thank you thank you thank you!

MA Knight's avatar

This is an awesome tribute!

The Ear Implant Foundation's avatar

Wow, this story really brought The Overlook to life!

troy adkins's avatar

wild, unpredicable, yet inevitable... great storytelling, sean

Sean Thomas McDonnell's avatar

Thank you, Troy! <3

Bryan Wiler's avatar

Sean, this is really fucking strong - bummer about the rejection. King was my first true love as a reader (and he’s still in second place), so it always feels comforting to disappear into his world again, even for just a few minutes.

Sean Thomas McDonnell's avatar

Thanks, Bryan!

Two questions -

Who is your first place?

When can I read your story? I’m dying to see where you took it.

Bryan Wiler's avatar

Chuck Palahniuk took over the top spot after I read Choke around 2002, and has stayed there ever since.

And you can read “Always It Comes Around” as soon as I get my rejection notice. I’m sure it will be coming soon.

Saint-Lazare's avatar

Trippy stay at the Overlook, me likey

Tom Schecter's avatar

Goddamn.

K.C. Knouse's avatar

Bill had an unbearable load to shoulder. Post WWIi everyone assumed any young man must have served in some capacity in the military. Of course, Bill did serve at home. Those folks were needed to support the war effort. Still, there was a stigma attached to those who did not serve in the military. Your story does an excellent job of describing the shame and misery it caused. Thanks for sharing it here. I've never heard of the anthology you speak of and would have never had the pleasure of reading it if it had appeared there.

Sean Thomas McDonnell's avatar

Yes! I was thinking about how brutal it would have been for a man back then to be the only male in his family to not serve. It also made me think of an old Irish song called The Town I Loved So Well. There’s a line -

“The men on the dole played a mother’s role, fed the children and then trained the dog.”

Thanks for reading! It means a lot to me!