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Daniel Bishop's avatar

Okay, didn't realize I was going to be reading Blood Meridian (but with a redemptive edge) haha well done.

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Ian Dunmore's avatar

Hahaha you got me! I could tell it was the most McCarthyist story I’d written so far. In a way this story is what I myself read into Blood Meridian as a principle standing over and against the perennial violence.

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Keith Long's avatar

Astounding.

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Ian Dunmore's avatar

Thanks so much, Keith!

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killathesacrosanct's avatar

Great read. Thank you. Is the inspiration for the name Myr here the Slavic root for world, or mire? Both explanations seem fitting in their own way.

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Ian Dunmore's avatar

You nailed it! My goal was to use both, because it might be a mire to outsiders but it’s also meant to encapsulate the world and the thematic constancy.

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B. A. Clarke's avatar

Really impressed by the scope of the worldbuilding in this piece, and the description of the fighting, though it took me an embarrassingly long time to work out that the Myr was the name of the river.

Also, I must say, a shepherd tends to tend sheep. ‘Cowherd’ is I think the word you need.

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Ian Dunmore's avatar

Another excellent point as usual! I’ll change it to cowherd.

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Lyndsey Resnick's avatar

Once again, Ian, this hits all the right notes. Thanks for the great story!

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Ian Dunmore's avatar

Thank you so much, Lyndsey! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!

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Leanne Shawler's avatar

Woah. *is wordless*

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Ian Dunmore's avatar

In a good way I hope! I know this one was more brutal than my others, which is saying something…

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Leanne Shawler's avatar

Not just the bloody end, but the sacrifice to save others. I saw what you did there.

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Brannley Miller's avatar

Another great story, Ian. Thanks for sharing this one!

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Ian Dunmore's avatar

Thanks Brannley! I appreciate the support as always!

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Brannley Miller's avatar

Always happy to support! Btw, Brother Walent stole the show for me. I think he appeals to my longing to be a hermit monk that lives sequestered in the woods.

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