11 Comments

I am imagining this in an illustrated childrens book format (but not for kids). As the pages turn, the illustrations degrade into rough and vaguely haunting sketches. From “the hungry caterpillar” to “amped up spot from across the spiderverse.”

Then the dog shows up and its a sunny, friendly childrens book again.

The way you told this was unnerving but deliberately so. This was a really unique experience! Very well done!

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This one had me wondering what Maggie was really seeing and worried about how it would end! My initial theory was that she was already dead, but I’m so glad I turned out to be wrong!

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The already dead thing passed through my own mind too, given I'm a big one for afterlife stuff...

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Loved this! Thanks for the insight at the end too! 🍁🧡🍁

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I've recently gotten hooked on learning about these lost-in-the-National-Parks cases... people like Eloise Lindsey and Evangeline Lorimer and Trenny Gibson and many others. So when I started reading this my first thought was, "Oh wow, this reminds me of Eloise Lindsey's story--" What a spooky imagining of that kind of scenario! (Though, I will admit I expected her to have turned into a bird at some point, a la Ivy & Ixos!)

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Good stuff S.E. The punctuation and punchier fragmented sentences definitely give it a faster pace than the usual style. (Not better, not worse; differently good).

Unrelated: for some reason the opening immediately brought to mind a line from 'Sword of Doom' an old Jidaigeki movie: "Mountain winds. They rise up from deep in the valleys... blowing up the young green leaves. Beyond, all you see are endless mountain ranges... that fade far away into the clouds."

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So much great movement here. Got pushed right along and felt those blisters forming in my boots...!

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Loved it, with the unexpected twist of a happy happy ending! Surprised! Somehow I missed this story when originally posted. Glad I found it...

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Excellent build up to ultimate end.

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based on a true story... always love that line!

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Even on a social trail like the AT it is extremely easy to get lost and once off trail your errors compound exponentially.

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