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Disturbing, but good. I appreciate that you managed to get disturbing in by appealing to realism and human nature, how we act in desperation when we're starving.

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It felt odd to hit the littrle heart at the end of this installment. But this is a very compelling if heartbreaking story. I suppose know one really knows what they will do if truly hungry. I'm kind of in shock. How does one regain their humanity? The psychological toll must be dark and heavy.

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Technical question. Do you have a word count in mind for each episode? Or a scene and it takes what it takes?

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Hi Mark! Soooooo I actually pantsed the whole thing. No outline. No drafts. No character sketches. Besides the history notes I took beforehand, there was no additional prep. So, nope. I don't set a word count goal. The story kind of determines for itself how long it'll be. I discover the characters, plot, and themes as I write, and by some miraculous force, they just manage to harmonize into one story.

I'm planning to release an "Annotations" series where I explain the writing techniques I use for each story. Stay tuned for that announcement!

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That was a powerful story. I found one scene especially provocative. When the man who had stripped the women to make them work faster at the furnaces lay dying of starvation, he still seemed to feel that he had done what he needed to do to fulfill the great Communist utopian vision. How bad does it have to get before people reject the power of narrative? Maybe never bad enough.

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Dec 13, 2023·edited Dec 13, 2023Author

That's a great point, Dr. Timothy! I included that scene to highlight how even the cruelest antagonists are mere pawns in a system that is blind to the sufferings of individuals. Despite doing what he was told in Part II, he's still left for dead in Part III when things worsen. His efforts to please his superiors and follow instructions might have benefited the system, but what did it do for him in the end?

I was also trying to create some sympathy for him in that scene. Hopefully it worked?

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This was really powerful. I've read about the Great Leap Forward and some of its consequences, and heard some stories first had. This story really brings home the desperation so many must have experienced.

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Thank you, Jeffrey! I took a lot of inspiration from my grandparents' firsthand tales of what this period was like.

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Macy - you have created a really beautiful story here. The best stories contain some darkness and an honesty about the human condition. I admire your ability to craft fiction as it is a skill I don't readily posses. Keep up the great work.

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Thank you, Matthew! I appreciate the kind words & the support you've shown me as a writer. :)

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