Concerning ‘Between Old and New Tablets’

My latest short story, Between Old and New Tablets, has some references to events from the main RoH storyline — namely, the battle between the Viper and a large group of other Outcasts and Outsiders, in which he almost died, as well as the debt the Shadow imposed on him after saving his life. Including all these events would make this story way too long — and I would end up having to tell you the RoH story almost in its entirety. A longer version of this story will probably become a chapter in the main RoH story, since it is a pivotal moment, especially with the decision he comes to. So I tried to hint at them only just enough, at the beginning of the story, to provide context for the Viper’s state of mind. I hope it was not too confusing.

This story was an attempt to give you an insight into the Viper’s thought process and his ‘moving meditation’. I sometimes write him as seeming to be lost in thought while practicing his moves, or fighting imaginary opponents — the idea that a simulated fight can be used in a meditative or therapeutic way. I did not come up with this concept on my own, however. I’ve had martial arts instructors refer to the practice of forms (kata) as a kind of meditation.

In a way, I’ve gone ‘old school’ with this latest story. Most of my writing used to be like this: less action-based and mostly internal monologue. Indeed, many of my favourite (and oldest) characters, are rather introspective, and so lend themselves well to this kind of writing. I was told, at the time, that this was quite boring to read. Therefore I’ve tried, since then, to make sure to at least use such internal monologues in relation with the plot — internal monologue with a purpose.

Other than the plot of RoH there are two main sources of inspiration for this story. First, one of my favourite passages from Friedrich Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra (which also inspired the title of the story):

“Here I sit and wait, with old shattered tablets around me as well as new half-inscribed tablets. When will my hour come? – the hour of my going down, going under: for one more time will I go to human beings. For that I now wait: for first the signs must come to me, that it be my hour – namely, the laughing lion with the flock of doves. Meanwhile I talk, as one who has time, to myself. No one recounts to me anything new: so I recount myself to myself.” (3:12.1)

I have drawn inspiration for this character from Nietzsche quite a few times, especially Nietzsche’s Zarathustra. *One of my friends from university used to say that if you read Nietzsche long enough to start agreeing with him, it’s time to put the book down and go outside to get some sun.* There are indeed some problematic aspects of his philosophy, but that seems to me an appropriate pairing for the Viper, whose morality is also problematic. You might not be surprised that, within the story as well, the Viper was inspired by Nietzsche: Thus Spoke Zarathustra was one of the three books he stole from the Archives. Indeed, the persona the Viper will take on after this event, the Wandering Madman (as featured in Winter Triptych), draws heavily on Zarathustra.

Second, my own state of mind, on and off, for the past few years, has inspired this story. I don’t pretend to have ever experienced depression — I know people who have, and I wouldn’t want to trivialize their struggles — but my anxiety and melancholy sometimes make it difficult for me to get anything done. Of course, the guilt and frustration that comes from not getting anything done — especially when it comes to my academic work — then feed into my anxiety and sadness over it… you can see how this can get circular. This is especially hard for me to even admit at times, since my identity has become so intertwined with my academic abilities that being unable to complete a project on time seems like an existential crisis. These days I’ve been doing my best to at least be somewhat productive every day — and be kind to myself about it when I don’t accomplish as much as I would like. Sometimes, though, I would down my frustrations in exaggerated or metaphorical forms, eventually collecting all these pieces together to put into this story. So when I write that a blank page ‘fought him to a standstill’, then, you know where I’m coming from.

To end on a more amusing note, I’ll mention that the Maze, the Viper’s hideout during his time as an Outcast in the post-apocalyptic Upperworld, is based on a real place. It would not be too obvious from the descriptions, but the Maze is basically the Montreal metro system — a series of tunnels and stations and underground shopping malls — in its ruined state after the horrible Hell War. I’ve had this image of a crumbling, dark Montreal metro system splattered with the Viper’s writing since I was in high school. *Though cracked and leaking metro stations are not exactly an unusual sight in Montreal (e.g. station Guy-Concordia, for a few years) even now.* You can probably imagine the glee with which I envisioned these spaces in their post-apocalyptic ruined state as I commuted around town, during the years when I lived there.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed it!

— R.K. Magali

*Note: the passage of Thus Spoke Zarathustra is from the Graham Parkes translation (the 2005 Oxford World’s Classics paperback edition)

**Other note: the illustration accompanying this post and the story, in the previous post, was by the wonderful and talented Marie-Claire Saindon. She’s actually a brilliant composer.