Yesterday I made hot lunch for the school kids, which involves taking lots of food to school, feeding forty-some people, and cleaning up afterwards. Next year I think I'll sign up to do it twice, with another mom, rather than once all by myself.
So last night I decided to reward myself by watching Northanger Abbey. And I got a bright idea: why not write a Gothic Mennonite novel?
The staircases in the old Kropf house creaked ominously as Cousin Elizabeth ascended with the clean sheets, right after she recovered from swooning when Henry leaped out of the Fawn Tall Fescue brandishing a Leatherman, and Alfred rode to the rescue in a John Deere 3600 combine. . . and meanwhile Zack the young seedsacker listened to KLove as he worked away in the dusty bowels of the warehouse, oblivious to the skeleton [of a rat] hidden behind the bins and Henry's raging jealousy over Paul hiring Zack when he (Henry) had applied first . . .
Quote of the Day:
Steven's friend Trenton: Once there were some Amish boys at my grandpa's church. I don't know what I did to them, but they put rocks in their suspenders and shot them at me.
Ben: I bet Steven wants to wear suspenders now.
Another bright idea...skip the Gothic! Pauline
ReplyDeleteP.S. Dean has a pair of bright red suspenders that Steven could maybe borrow. They look like excellent slingshots!
No thanks, not your style!Or maybe not mine...
ReplyDeleteSharon
Question for you - Just exactly what is a Gothic novel? I've probably read them but have often wondered exactly how to define them. I do know that the action doesn't happen as fast as your "sample" showed. It kept me busy absorbing what was happenning! Incidentally Amish weddings and Mennonite weddings are not exactly the same. My childhood was sprinkled with attendance at Amish weddings and they were quite the affairs.
ReplyDeleteMary Horst
love it! I'd buy your novel in a heartbeat...the Kropf in me couldnt let me pass it by!
ReplyDeleteMary--Wikipedia says:
ReplyDelete"Gothic fiction (sometimes referred to as Gothic horror) is a genre of literature that combines elements of both horror and romance. . .
The effect of Gothic fiction depends on a pleasing sort of terror, . . . Prominent features of Gothic fiction include terror (both psychological and physical), mystery, the supernatural, ghosts, haunted houses and Gothic architecture, castles, darkness, death, decay, doubles, madness, secrets and hereditary curses.
The stock characters of Gothic fiction include tyrants, villains, bandits, maniacs, Byronic heroes, persecuted maidens, femmes fatales, madwomen, magicians, vampires, werewolves, monsters. . ."
On second thought, after looking this up, I'm quite sure a Gothic novel is not my thing.
Your gothic synopsis is a hoot! But the problem with a Mennonite gothic novel, our theology and upbringing just doesn't lend itself very well to "villains, bandits, maniacs, Byronic heroes, persecuted maidens, femmes fatales, madwomen, magicians, vampires, werewolves, monsters. ." Just thinking about a Mennonite vampire makes me want to giggle!
ReplyDeleteRosy (from Plain City)
The idea made me chuckle as well! :) It would definitely be a one-of-a-kind novel.
ReplyDelete