The Nameless Dark - A Collection

[Mr. Veech]

I finally got the chance to start reading T.E. Grau's The Nameless Dark: A Collection. I have yet to finish the entire book itself, but so far I'm deeply impressed by this rich as well as sizable collection of stories. "Rich" is an appropriate description since each story is unique yet is similar in tone to its peers. While there are, of course, traditional influences ("The Truffle Pig" is self-consciously Lovecraftian in some ways), I feel that there's a beautiful dark mixture of both David Fincher (the aesthetic tone of the film Se7en in particular) and the early Clive Barker. Indeed, I haven't been this excited since I first discovered the latter's Books of Blood. Out of the six stories I've read so far, the two which stood out the most for me are "The Screamer" and "Expat."

I knew this collection was/is highly praised, and I now know why. Needless to say, I will return to express my thoughts once I've finished reading the book in its entirety, though I might wait until after I've read They Don't Come Home Anymore.

SIDE NOTE: The prose is exactly where it ought to be; it's very restrained yet not at all simplistic. It changes, depending on the subject matter of each story, resulting in a wonderful overlap between form and content.

[T.E. Grau]

Thank you for the kind words, Mr. Veech!

I'm glad you're enjoying the tales.

[Mr. Veech]

There's something else I've noticed regarding the collection. A lot of weird fiction tends to be centered around "detached" intellectuals. However, the characters in The Nameless Dark are, for the most part, thoroughly human, i.e., they're typically not "maladjusted" in the conventional sense. I was laughing almost all the way through "The Return of the Prodigy" because of how much Gary and Gladys reminded me of people I know (I grew up and live in the American South).

It adds a unique human dimension alongside the cosmicism behind each story, which means the collection does a good job of maintaining a healthy distance from other writers such as Lovecraft and Ligotti. Not that one shouldn't self-consciously model their work after the greats. I think it's also important to respect and pay due homage to the tradition you are a part of. However, maintaining a balance between being influenced by your predecessors and presenting something of your own is the ideal, I believe. In any case, I think The Nameless Dark does that quite well.

[T.E. Grau]

That's an interesting commentary, Mr. Veech.

I suppose it comes from the fact that I've spent most of my life fully engaged with the world, albeit with a bit of an observational distance, and with my own judgments and critiques stored away in that obsessive habit of most writers.

I don't know as much about Ligotti, but from what I know of Lovecraft, our childhoods, teenage years, and adult lives couldn't be more different. So, while we share similar views on humanity's place in the universe, and what we find interesting in terms of fantasy/fantastical fiction, our day-to-day lives and experiences are probably quite dissimilar.

[Mr. Veech]

Quote Originally Posted by T.E. Grau

That's an interesting commentary, Mr. Veech. I suppose it comes from the fact that I've spent most of my life fully engaged with the world, albeit with a bit of an observational distance, and with my own judgments and critiques stored away in that obsessive habit of most writers. I don't know as much about Ligotti, but from what I know of Lovecraft, our childhoods, teenage years, and adult lives couldn't be more different. So, while we share similar views on humanity's place in the universe, and what we find interesting in terms of fantasy/fantastical fiction, our day-to-day lives and experiences are probably quite dissimilar.

Well, you don't have Lovecraft's excessive haughtiness, which is obviously a good thing. There's a definite humility to you.

I'll be wrapping up The Nameless Dark soon. I'll move on to They Don't Come Home Anymore afterwards. I'll probably read some of Laird Barron's work later on as well. I was initially put off by Barron's use of contemporary cultural references because I thought they were unnecessary. However, having read a great deal of The Nameless Dark, I see their potential, assuming they're used in the right manner.

[T.E. Grau]

No reason for anyone to be haughty, as we're all just a collection of atoms, lumbering around this beautiful watery ball for a few years before collapsing back into the dust. Anyone feeling superior or "better" than anyone else is ridiculous.

I suspect that HPL was outwardly uppity because of what fuels most of that sort of thinking - an inferiority complex and personal powerlessness. Overcompensation and fear of commonness explains a lot of poor behavior.

Read Laird's first two collections. They're fantastic.

[Frater_Tsalal]

In all fairness to Lovecraft, in his personal correspondence with friends, he almost always displayed great humility and downplayed his own artistic efforts.

[Mr. Veech]

Quote Originally Posted by Frater_Tsalal

In all fairness to Lovecraft, in his personal correspondence with friends, he almost always displayed great humility and downplayed his own artistic efforts.

I suppose most artists/writers tend to have conflicted personalities.

[T.E. Grau]

Fair point.

I was speaking more about his views of himself personally, living as some exiled, high born English aristocrat, forced to live in a land of savages and jabbering trash.

Quote Originally Posted by Frater_Tsalal

In all fairness to Lovecraft, in his personal correspondence with friends, he almost always displayed great humility and downplayed his own artistic efforts.

[Mr. Veech]

Sorry. I didn't mean to derail the topic of this thread. I suppose it's just the nature of conversations.