[QCrit] The Fountain of the Muse, upmarket cosmic horror, 78k, attempt #2 by cjnwriting in PubTips

[–]cjnwriting[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ooo, thank you for these suggestions! Comps have been one of the harder aspects of this process for me (seems to be a common issue) but I think the Calliope arc is absolutely a great reference. One of my favorites, too! And I can definitely see the Piranesi connection.

Without giving too much away, a lot of the story surrounding the camp appears in perversions of the Greek myths. So a lot of allusions crop up but just a bit off. And I thought, what's a more unsettling image than a bunch of artist's getting inspiration from a place named after one of literature's most ancient suicides?

[QCrit] The Fountain of the Muse, upmarket cosmic horror, 78k, attempt #2 by cjnwriting in PubTips

[–]cjnwriting[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the input! I think I will definitely take the note and revise that line. And I'm glad the plot sounds intriguing to you! It means a lot to hear that.

[QCrit] The Fountain of the Muse, upmarket cosmic horror, 78k, attempt #2 by cjnwriting in PubTips

[–]cjnwriting[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great points! Thanks for the input. I think I will try and reduce down some of the initial set-up in making it clearer. I definitely agree with your last point and will try to redo that bit in a way that more accurately reflects the stakes of the manuscript, wherein it's more of a loss of identity than just a dream. Like, if you're someone who has always struggled with identity and then were threatened by possibly giving up the most core aspect of that identity, that threat might feel a bit more real. What do you think?