The Pale-Black Maiden: Afterthoughts

Vampires, like zombies, are monsters I tend to avoid in my work. The reason for this is pretty simple; I don’t have much/anything new to add to these monsters. The zombie, in particular, has been driven into the ground at a near-erotic level by creatives. Nothing more can be explored with that genre post World War Z by Micheal Brooks, and I am fine with that. The vampire, I think, hasn’t been ground down as much, but thanks to the likes of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, a great book without a doubt but one that kept the vampire squarely locked into a specific dynamic.

The Pale-Black Maiden doesn’t break ground with the vampire monster, but I think it can slightly change the formula. Who doesn’t want immortality so they can do everything they want?

The first draft of The Pale-Black Maiden was conceived in a single Saturday afternoon, driven by a competition started by the YouTuber Sidalpha, who wanted art and stories based around goth girls. I stepped up the challenge and crafted the story. I submitted it within the time frame and waited for the winner to be announced, looking forward to the possibility of a prize and the public reading.

Unfortunately, nobody won the competition. The email address didn’t work, Sidalpha never received the emails, and a fix was never issued. The competition fizzled out, and I was left with a story that I didn’t know what to do with.

Please note, I do not blame Sidalpha or hold any ill will towards him. I was disappointed, but shit happens for better or worse.

I tried submitting The Pale-Black Maiden to magazines but was rejected by them all. Unfortunately, I have no idea why, so I decided to release the story for free to provide insight into my work that isn’t behind the paywall.

I hope you enjoy The Pale-Black Maiden, I had fun writing it, and I hope you have fun reading it.

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Simone Swanepoel for editing The Pale-Black Maiden; I would also like to thank the beta readers who helped me get The Pale-Black Maiden into shape—patreons that sub will be acknowledged here.

And for The Pale Black Maiden: