I’m writing a series of posts called “Inspirations” to share background information on what lead to each of the stories in my short story collection “Our Greatest Enemy.”

Going in order is: Wrapped in Silk

This is another story I first wrote in college. It was also (like Belt) another much shorter story (around 2k words), and it’s first iteration was… rough. I wrote it and set it aside for years before I picked it back up (around the same time I revisited Belt). This story has had more titles than I care to admit, as I struggled to find the right name for it. At one point I’d called it Prey for Spiders, but found the title too boring.

The inspiration for this story was its first scene, which could almost be a true story. The apartment I describe in this story was the same one I lived in for a couple of years: a grungy thing with two bedrooms and a bathroom that could have been a closet. I loved that apartment. I did a lot of soul searching there. I first rented it with a girlfriend and moved out of it single. It’s also where I wrote the first version of this story.

Erik in the story talks about the importance of long showers, and I do actually take long, hot showers. Some of the dialog in the story (where Gwen complained about Erik taking long showers) actually did take place. There is something therapeutic about taking a long shower to help reset a person after a long day. My wife is deeply annoyed by them. I often choose to take them an inopportune times. I, like Erik, also find them important.

In one such shower I did come across a spider in the very place I describe in the story. It was a small thing, but the thoughts in the opening section of the story are real. I did actually contemplate killing the thing only to change my mind about its presence. I felt it deserved to live, that it wasn’t my place to kill it.

Later that night (then a newly single man) this story came to me. As I was a senior in college at that time, symbolism was big on my mind. The initial idea was for Erik (Michael was his original name) to come to terms with himself being a kind of spider, an unwanted and disposable insect and somewhat dangerous. The spider was growing inside of him, and choosing not to kill it lead to his downfall. This, and the web of memories, are what I based the story on. I wasn’t proud of that first draft, but I remained excited about the symbolism. I’m glad I kept it and revisited it years later.

The idea of Audery and the child came during my recent re-writes. The initial story needed to “grow up” a bit, as it was laced with melodrama and angsty young adult emotions. I cut out a great deal of those initial sections, and added more dialogue with characters in their late-twenties instead of late-teens. I’m glad that I did, as Erik’s lax and disregarding behavior towards the child adds a dark layer to the story that I, as a father, find haunting. I love my children dearly, and it was hard to write about a character that seemed to not give a damn about his own.

Lastly, writing about the topic of suicide is really hard and really scary. It’s a place that no one wants to go to or discuss. I had to go there because it made sense for this character, someone that was deeply disturbed and struggling with his depression. I also think that it’s something more people have contemplated than they’d ever own up to. Erik thought little of therapy in this story, but I’m one that believes it should be more normalized in society. We all become victims to our own mind from time to time, and we all need a little help from others to climb back up the water spout.

As Erik says, life needs life.

If you haven’t read the story yet, pick it up on Amazon. Free for Kindle Unlimited readers.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D7QW7VQ5