tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8378359295868499245.post4228627460870163866..comments2024-03-17T07:14:20.822-07:00Comments on Mainlining Christmas: Fiction: 25 Christmas Eves, part 4Lindsayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10372317376002783405noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8378359295868499245.post-73337377525293270752012-12-15T12:10:35.653-08:002012-12-15T12:10:35.653-08:00"Masterpiece." I like that.
I don't..."Masterpiece." I like that.<br /><br />I don't think you're the only one who'd suspect a bait-and-switch here. Stories about the devil almost always end in one of two ways, and both involve a hidden strategy and a battle of wits or skill. If I'd have been reading this instead of writing it, I'd have been anticipating (and dreading) a twist like that, too.Erin Snyderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00894781339191061541noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8378359295868499245.post-43648735189761751522012-12-15T08:21:31.082-08:002012-12-15T08:21:31.082-08:00That is certainly how it comes off, and it's w...That is certainly how it comes off, and it's way better without the ambiguity as to whether the Devil gets Hector's soul. The "parting gift" line does imply the Devil never expects to see Hector again. It probably wouldn't have bugged me if I wasn't me with my particular neroses. At some point near the end, I became worried that I wouldn't be able to love the story because it wouldn't have the happy ending that it wanted. Because obviously it was really about their friendship, and it would have felt like a cheap bait and switch. Still, I assume the possibility that the Devil is going to turn around and be evil is part of the story's complexity. In any case, this is kind of a masterpiece.Jessehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08057230575604873733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8378359295868499245.post-90964866551828475642012-12-15T00:25:03.875-08:002012-12-15T00:25:03.875-08:00I'm assuming you're asking if I was trying...I'm assuming you're asking if I was trying to imply that the gift closed some sort of verbal contract, thus making his soul the property of the Devil.<br /><br />The answer is no. The ending was intended to be straightforward, though it's really hard to convey that when you're writing a story about the Devil. I included the note on the gift (I'd rather have left it out) to try and point the reader away from that interpretation, but I know it's a hard sell. Everyone's always waiting to see how the Devil stacked the deck to win: in this case, he hadn't.<br /><br />Now, whether that was because he couldn't or he chose not to... that I wanted ambiguous.Erin Snyderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00894781339191061541noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8378359295868499245.post-9228642247113981672012-12-14T15:19:20.905-08:002012-12-14T15:19:20.905-08:00Really excellent story. I do have one question, th...Really excellent story. I do have one question, though. Is the ending supposed to be ambiguous?Jessehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08057230575604873733noreply@blogger.com