About our authors, artists, and the work they create
Gordon Grice’s story “If Gold Runs Red” was published in Metaphorosis on Friday, 4 November 2022. Somewhere I picked up a warped, water-stained, moldy volume of Chinese folklore called The Man Who Sold a Ghost, translated into English by Yan Hsien-Yi and Gladys Yang. It was packed with gruesome tales of were-foxes and greedy specters. I liked the poetic flavor of one from around 500 AD. It’s about a boy rescuing an injured bird. The …
Q: What would your characters say about you?
A: I fear they would say: “Clean your ears, bud. What I said was much more interesting than what you wrote down.” I hope they would say: “Thanks for letting us find our own way.” I expect they would say: “Well—you did your best.”
Karl El-Koura’s story “Anamnesis”
in Metaphorosis Friday, 19 May 2023.
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Q: What is the first/most recent book that you lost sleep reading/thinking about?
A: I have a vivid imagination and an obsessive personality so I frequently lose sleep over books, but one of my most memorable reads so far this year is Hell Bent, the second book in Leigh Bardugo’s Alex Stern series. Much like the first book, Ninth House, Hell Bent manages to be equal parts thought-provoking and positively bonkers. It’s an unflinching look at class, gender, and racial conflict. It’s an exploration of the transformative power of trauma. It shines a light at the darkness that lies within us all. It does all of that, while also having naked demons, ghosts, frat boy vampires, and other similarly attention-grabbing plot devices and twists. I laughed, I cried, I said ‘whaaaat’ and ‘nooooo’ outloud to myself several times while reading. Truly, Hell Bent is a standard-setting masterpiece of dark academia.
Elizabeth Raphael’s story “The Conch Shell”
in Metaphorosis Friday, 12 May 2023.
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Karl El-Koura lives with his family in Canada’s capital city, holds a second-degree black belt in Okinawan Goju Ryu karate, and works a regular job in daylight while writing fiction at night. “Anamnesis” is his third appearance in Metaphorosis. His stories “The Azurian Shield” and “Her Last Will” were published in the October 2021 and September 2022 issues, respectively.
www.ootersplace.com, @KarlElKoura
Karl El-Koura’s story “Anamnesis”
in Metaphorosis Friday, 19 May 2023.
Subscribe now for e-mail updates!
Justen Russell’s story “Holding On” was published in Metaphorosis on Friday, 21 October 2022. At its core, “Holding On” is about coming to terms with what it means to follow your dreams. In our world, very few people will ever be astronauts, or presidents, or best-selling authors. Even among the privileged and connected, who have more opportunities than most, luck can be more important than skill. In the face of abysmal odds, as we grow …
Q: What is your favourite part of writing?
A: When I’m writing, anything is possible, including giving this instinctive introvert a voice extending far beyond anything achievable on my own. It’s also a sort of therapy as I inhabit a multitude of characters, each with their own backstories, perspectives, and conflicts, and in so doing discover otherwise inaccessible nuances of human motivation. Lastly, what better escapism from the present with its threats of war and cataclysm than the future, not because that future will necessarily be any better (we can hope, but then again we have history), but because then, at least in our imagination, humanity has any future at all!
Ramez Yoakeim’s story “The Diamond Noose”
in Metaphorosis Friday, 5 May 2023.
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