A Halloween Serial

After observing the success of serial podcasts (including the eponymous “Serial” podcast put out by NPR), I figured I’d try my hand at a serial for Halloween. My inspiration, though, was less the true-crime story of Adnan Syed, but rather Conan Doyle’s “The Hound of the Baskervilles,” which, as you surely know, is a Sherlock Holmes tale that was serialized in The Strand magazine in 1901 and 1902.

My story is divided into 13 parts, which will appear as blog posts throughout the month of October on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. So the story itself will begin tomorrow (Monday).

But for today, here’s an excerpt from “The Hound of the Baskervilles” that should give you a flavor of the genre:

The company had come to a halt, more sober men, as you may guess, than when they started. The most of them would by no means advance, but three of them, the boldest, or it may be the most drunken, rode forward down the goyal. Now, it opened into a broad space in which stood two of those great stones, still to be seen there, which were set by certain forgotten peoples in the days of old. The moon was shining bright upon the clearing, and there in the centre lay the unhappy maid where she had fallen, dead of fear and of fatigue. But it was not the sight of her body, nor yet was it that of the body of Hugo Baskerville lying near her, which raised the hair upon the heads of these three dare-devil roysterers, but it was that, standing over Hugo, and plucking at his throat, there stood a foul thing, a great, black beast, shaped like a hound, yet larger than any hound that ever mortal eye has rested upon. And even as they looked the thing tore the throat out of Hugo Baskerville, on which, as it turned its blazing eyes and dripping jaws upon them, the three shrieked with fear and rode for dear life, still screaming, across the moor. One, it is said, died that very night of what he had seen, and the other twain were but broken men for the rest of their days.

I don’t profess to be an Arthur Conan Doyle, but I do hope you enjoy my own literary effort that begins unfolding tomorrow. Tell your friends! And have them sign up for the blog at http://www.waytrips.travel.blog

Until tomorrow then.

sdb