Episode 3: Beyond Incandescent

Welcome to Story Time with Darcie!
In every episode I’ll read you a piece of my own short fiction. I’m an eclectic writer, so you may be surprised by the genres and situations, but what these stories have in common is their exploration of big ideas.

Today, I’m delighted to share Beyond Incandescent with you. In this story, we enter the land of the dead where we revisit and reinvent Charion, ferryman of the dead. In case you need a bit of a refresher on your Greek Mythology, after their death, souls cross the River Styx in a skiff rowed “Venitian style” by Charion, a nightmarish figure of bone and rags. Well, that’s how the original story tells it.

Please join me in welcoming a new voice to the pod: Pamela Kelly. Thanks for voicing Candy for me, Pam. I’m looking forward to bringing you on for future episodes as well.

When I was assigned to write a romance along a riverbank, I was horrified. Romance is not something I enjoy reading much less writing, so I searched for a riverbank that would let me break away from genre expectations. When I landed on the River Styx, I knew I could mold Charion, traditionally a foreboding character, into an unexpected romantic lead. 

Beyond Incandescent hits people differently. Some dislike how I’ve twisted the traditional story. Some enjoy the surprise of it. Some see a mirror of their own tragic loss of a loved one to Alzheimer's. Some hate Karen for trapping Candy and others praise her for the compassion she shows at the end. What do you think?

Well, that’s it for another episode of Story Time with Darcie. Special thanks to Pamela for adding her voice this month. 

If YOU would like to become a voice on Story Time with Darcie, please, reach out! My eclectic stories need a variety of voices, and yours will be a welcome addition!

Thank you for listening. To read more of my stories and perhaps inspire my next one, join me on facebook at DarcieTKelly, and of course, subscribe here for future episodes of Story Time With Darcie. 

Direct link to text version of Beyond Incandescent by Darcie T. Kelly.