The Sibyliad is my unfinished epic and is composed of several short books. You’ve inspired me both to share and to finish this work. This pseudologue consists of one pre-chapter.
This was so enjoyable to read! Such a unique world you’re building. I am looking forward to the next part! Please change “a few weeks” to “a few hours” 😭
Certainly not for the naive reader. (Which would be me---thick as 4-day old mold on bread). I read Chapter 1 first, and concluded the 'God' who is supposed to be in Hell is the Christian one, and it's got something to do with a stolen jar --that you'll get around to explaining why is God in Hell and who put Him there, but the mystery of what happened to the murdered monks grabbed my interest immediately. All those organs stacked in a pile, perhaps for kidney pie? Daphnis making a stab (no pun intended) at solving the "how" question about the presence, placement and method of death of religious was well done.
However, having read the set-up establishing the players and the crime, so far, makes the Pseudologue undecipherable to me. Unless the king's secretary and the 'friend to heroes' are explained, as well as what is happening in the preface, I'm not sure you need it. If it's part of the story (is Allesandra dead, or not? --- and what's with the pair sucking blood? life? energy? ---beats me), then maybe it should be placed somewhere close to the reason it's there.
It's clear you've a great background in the geography and history of the area, the actors involved, and the Ottoman expansion into the Balkans (with all it's mixture of religious beliefs), and that history alone is fascinating, considering Osman I didn't begin the expansion until 233 years after the Battle of Hastings.
One thing that caught my attention was your sentence about women becoming "... nuns for God instead of for their families" because Alessandra's family, although once wealthy, is now impoverished. But, wouldn't it still be expected that, especially, as the daughter of a presumed wealthy family, she'd have/need a dowry? Poorer monks could always make money for the Church by selling relics and indulgences (and were expected to do so), and they had male privileges unavailable to women ... education, land, sexual company, if they were wealthy, especially in Rome. So, that part of the sentence confused me.
is that about homer's younger sister?
LOL. Clever but no. 😆
This was so enjoyable to read! Such a unique world you’re building. I am looking forward to the next part! Please change “a few weeks” to “a few hours” 😭
That means a great deal. I felt like this prelude should be cut, and I thought I kept it out of pure self indulgence and cowardice. 😆
What is substack for if not that? 😉 I love a good prologue pseudologue
This is lovely. Looking forward to more of it!
Certainly not for the naive reader. (Which would be me---thick as 4-day old mold on bread). I read Chapter 1 first, and concluded the 'God' who is supposed to be in Hell is the Christian one, and it's got something to do with a stolen jar --that you'll get around to explaining why is God in Hell and who put Him there, but the mystery of what happened to the murdered monks grabbed my interest immediately. All those organs stacked in a pile, perhaps for kidney pie? Daphnis making a stab (no pun intended) at solving the "how" question about the presence, placement and method of death of religious was well done.
However, having read the set-up establishing the players and the crime, so far, makes the Pseudologue undecipherable to me. Unless the king's secretary and the 'friend to heroes' are explained, as well as what is happening in the preface, I'm not sure you need it. If it's part of the story (is Allesandra dead, or not? --- and what's with the pair sucking blood? life? energy? ---beats me), then maybe it should be placed somewhere close to the reason it's there.
It's clear you've a great background in the geography and history of the area, the actors involved, and the Ottoman expansion into the Balkans (with all it's mixture of religious beliefs), and that history alone is fascinating, considering Osman I didn't begin the expansion until 233 years after the Battle of Hastings.
One thing that caught my attention was your sentence about women becoming "... nuns for God instead of for their families" because Alessandra's family, although once wealthy, is now impoverished. But, wouldn't it still be expected that, especially, as the daughter of a presumed wealthy family, she'd have/need a dowry? Poorer monks could always make money for the Church by selling relics and indulgences (and were expected to do so), and they had male privileges unavailable to women ... education, land, sexual company, if they were wealthy, especially in Rome. So, that part of the sentence confused me.
Can't wait to see where this is going.
Wow, what an amazing read! I don't know how I missed this one, but I'm looking forward to many more like this now!
I enjoyed this even though I am not entirely sure what is going on yet. Intrigued to learn more in the next instalment.