Atop a winding mountain ridge, along the meandering edge of the coast or beside a twisting river deep in the rainforest, societies of fractal giants study the phenomenon from which they take their name: the fractal, a repeating geometric pattern that these giants are capable of visually and cognitively perceiving in myriad places in nature. By using their innate ability to change in size from tiny to gargantuan, fractal giants constantly rediscover this pattern manifesting everywhere, capable as they are of narrowly focusing in on the minute repeating-but-unique geometry of flakes of frost or gain a broad awareness through contemplative meditation on the tempestuous chaos of weather systems. The wisdom and insight they gain from harnessing their investment or detachment often proves invaluable to outsiders, and so fractal giants are often sought out for their wide-ranging perspective — or they may seek to broaden it further through adventuring.
Dreams of Logres: An Arthuriana Moodpiece
A short mood-piece inspired by Arthurian legend.
Continue reading “Dreams of Logres: An Arthuriana Moodpiece”
The Checkmate Tarot Spread
A small business that has hired you to provide financial consultation needs advice on how to deal with a litigious company that’s pushing them out of business. A group of friends is preparing to take a long journey across multiple different countries, and they’re looking for some advice on what they’ll need to take into consideration for the trip. A group of alt-right folk have been causing trouble in the local pagan community, and your coven of antifascist witches needs to formulate a gameplan.
In situations like these, you might be looking for a tarot spread that’s a little more in-depth, something with a lot of opportunities to strategise, to simulate possible moves, to apply lateral thinking, and to come up with multiple adaptable approaches to a complex problem.
The Checkmate Tarot Spread is a new spread developed to satisfy those needs.
HOLOGLYPHIC CENTRIFUGE IN ASTRAL ROTUNDA XXI: 24/7 Lo-Fi Musick of the Spheres
In recent years it feels like there’s been a massive new appreciation for Tarot, both in terms of folk choosing to get Tarot readings and folk choosing to learn Tarot for themselves. On one hand, we could say this is the due to the rippling futureshock of the rupture of the twinned Aeon of Horus-Ma’at after the quantum detonation of 2012 and the emergence into solar cycle 25 which vibrates from the Summer of Love through to the morphically-resonant Gaian nightside waking-dreams of 16th-and-17th century court alchemists; on the other hand, we could say it’s just because Tarot is extremely cool and lots of occult and witchy folk are talking more openly about their practice and making it more accessible to get into it.
A few folk have asked me some advice about getting started with Tarot, how to interpret the cards, how to pick a deck, and so on: I wanted to make a wee guide to collect together some of the advice I’ve given and to make it easier for a wider range of folk to try it out for themselves.
Continue reading “HOLOGLYPHIC CENTRIFUGE IN ASTRAL ROTUNDA XXI: 24/7 Lo-Fi Musick of the Spheres”
“Who’s quoting this?”: Synchromystic Language, Narrative and Metatextuality in Hellier
In November 2019, the second season of Planet Weird original series Hellier was released through Amazon Prime, and then later free on YouTube. The crew comprises Dana and Greg Newkirk of the Travelling Museum of the Paranormal and Week in Weird, Karl Pfeiffer and Connor Randall of the Spirits of the Stanley series, and, joining the team as a regular investigator after an appearance in Season One, occult adventurer and researcher Tyler Strand. Their investigation runs the gamut of paranormal phenomena, starting with strange emails from a man seeing goblins outside of his house at night, to the Mothman sightings and Fortean phenomena of Point Pleasant, to a cipher that decodes the names of ultraterrestrials, to spooky caves deep in the country. Season 2 brings us connections to the ostensible clustering of the paranormal along the 37th parallel, rumours of rural cult activity, experiments in hypnosis and psi, meetings with occultists, and the evocation of the great god Pan in an eerie cave. 1
One aspect of the team’s investigation that deserves close attention is their attempt at communication with the unseen forces that appear to be orchestrating their initiation into the wider occult world, if the signs and synchronicities are to be believed. Throughout their investigation, the Hellier team appear to be in contact with something – the essence of which is so slippery and difficult to grasp that they simply refer to it as “the phenomena”. This phenomena appears to manifest through their sessions with spirit boxes and in charting synchronicities – but there is ample scope to consider it as being in some way tied to the narrative of Hellier itself, the way the crew talk about that narrative, and how the phenomena crosses the dividing lines between the team’s experiences, the show, and its audience.
In particular, language, narrative and metatextuality are recurrent themes throughout the series, most often literally in the sense of delving into various esoteric books, cryptic emails and ciphers, or attempting spirit communication through diverse means; there’s a more subtle current in the fact that many of the group’s paranormal experiences – and the production of the show itself – sidle up against the vagaries of communication, textual processes, and storytelling, some of which we’ll discuss below.
Note that there are spoilers for both seasons of Hellier in the discussion ahead!
Work / Hire / Commission
We will make such strange and curious things for you.
- Samples of all work can be found in the Portfolio.
- Requests can be made and discussed over email or Twitter (see Contact),.
- Open to NSFW/18+ commissions.
- Transactions are handled through Ko-fi or Paypal.
- Note that requests for work with additional requirements (tight deadlines, high-volume work, contracts e.t.c.) may be priced differently.
Contents
Content Writing
Fiction Writing
Writing and developing scenes, backstories or mood pieces for personal original characters, roleplaying characters and extended universes, creating lore and fic for conworlds and original settings.
- $25 for up to 1,000 words, + $10 per 1,000 words thereafter
- Specialist subjects: M/M fic, narratives with queer characters, witchcraft, the occult and supernatural, Victoriana, orcs, monsters, furry.
- Samples: The Netherhall Experiments (Writing Sample); Monstrous Lore.
Game Writing
Writing for games, including interactive narrative, dialogue, item descriptions, romance routes, sex scenes, lore entries or mood/atmosphere pieces.
- $25 for up to 1,000 words, + $10 per 1,000 words thereafter
- Specialist subjects: writing for visual novels; games with horror/occult elements; games with queer characters/narratives; and any intersections between.
- Samples: Tusks: The Orc Dating Sim (Narrative Writing Sample); Project Paleblood (Item Description/Lore Sample).
Content/Feature/SEO Writing
Writing blogposts, guest features or articles for SEO on a variety of topics.
- $25 for up to 1,000 words, + $10 per 1,000 words thereafter
- Specialist subjects: Queer culture; witchcraft and the occult; monsters and Monster Theory; and any intersections between.
- Samples: A Fear of the Flesh: Francis Bacon’s Influence on Silent Hill; Monstrous Identity: Monsters and their LGBTQ Fans; Fashion Fantasy.
Interactive Narrative/Twine Games
Creating a short twine game based on characters, themes and narratives requested.
- $50, + $negotiable for additional requested complexity (e.g. branching narratives, specialised game mechanics)
- Specialist subjects: M/M, narratives with queer characters, witchcraft, the occult and supernatural, Victoriana, orcs, monsters, furry.
- Samples: BEHEMOTH (itch.io), Hypnagogue (itch.io).
Illustration
Illustrating characters and scenes, and creating cover art.
- $35 for illustration + flat colours
- Samples: Art Portfolio.
Tarot Readings
Each Tarot reading comes with a card-by-card analysis and interpretation, an overall summary, and a photo of the cards in your spread. Note that Tarot readings aren’t foolproof and 100% accurate systems of predictions, and future decisions should not be based off of a reading alone!
All Tarot readings are handled through Ko-fi, or Patreon for subscribers.
- $3 for a 3-card reading, $6 for a 6-card reading, $9 for a 10-card Celtic Cross reading (for all readings except Extensive Readings.)
- General Reading: A general overview of your situation at present; no specific question or direction, using the cards to suggest a particular issue.
- Specific Reading: A reading to explore one question or issue in particular, where all of the cards will be interpreted in light of that question/issue.
- Creative Reading: Ideas and inspiration for original characters or settings, such as suggestions for character backgrounds, possible plotlines for future roleplaying campaigns, looking at narrative problems from different perspectives, or something similar.
- Extensive Reading: A more in-depth reading, either involving more cards, with more complex and specific requirements, or which are required to be repeated regularly. This may include tarot readings for businesses, queries with multiple questions, queries with two or more possible options, or for those requiring more esoteric/occult interpretations of the cards (good for those with a background in the occult). Extensive readings’ costs are negotiated based on requirements: get in touch through the contact page for more information.
- Patreon supporters on the Conjuror or Wych tiers can request a 3-card or 6-card Tarot reading each month.
Consultancy
Sourcing the origin of weird possibly-occult symbols or things you’ve found; suggestions for where to look for further information on occult topics or areas of interest; consultation on occult and magickal art, narratives and history in fiction; discussing experiences and interpreting them through potential occult lenses. Information is presented without dogma or commitment to one particular religious or spiritual practice, and is provided as context/routes for exploration rather than as definitive and authoritative orthodoxy.
- Consultation is usually a pay-what-you-want donation after the consultation itself, larger projects or more extensive consultations are open to negotiation.
Portfolio
Visual Art
Illustration
![Tusks – The Orc Dating Sim [promo]](http://houseofalexander.wiki/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Tusks-The-Orc-Dating-Sim-promo.png)
Digital Art
Digital Photography & Photomanipulation
The Whispering #1: Choosing Duties; Cennedig as Front of House
A look at some small game design choices that were going into a previous build in Tusks: The Orc Dating Sim — a way of dealing with an issue between the NPC Autonomy system and making the story more accessible to players, and how Cennedig is the lynchpin in player interactions with the three chiefs of the clan.
Continue reading “The Whispering #1: Choosing Duties; Cennedig as Front of House”
Room to Breathe in Games and Play
Exploring dens, private spaces, and room to breathe in game design through The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask and merritt k’s Soft Chambers project.
Writing Portfolio
Feature Writing
- “Fashion Fantasy” series (2018)
- “The Whispering #1: Choosing Duties; Cennedig as Front of House” (2017)
- “Room to Breathe in Games and Play” (2015)
- “The Price The Two Pay Will Be The Third: We Know the Devil, a review.” (GayGamer, 2015).
- “Monstrous Identity: Monsters and Their LGBTQ Fans.” (GayGamer, 2015)
- “A Different Kind of Sophisticated Gent: A Look at Dorian Pavus.” (GayGamer, 2014)
- “Fear for the Flesh: Francis Bacon’s Influence on Silent Hill.” (GayGamer, 2013)
Fiction Writing
- “Queer Happenings”, published in Queering the Map of Glasgow (Knight Errant Press, 2018).
- “Monstrous Lore” series (2018)
- “Stag Rag” magazine (2018) 🔞
- “The Netherhall Experiments” series (2018-19) 🔞
- “Satyr Play” (2018) 🔞
- “Only One Among Us” (2018) 🔞
- “Ragged Fur and a Fading Scar” (2018) 🔞
- “Tusks” Extended Universe (2015-16, available on itch.io)
- “Only With an Open Hand” (2015) 🔞
- “The Wheel of the Year” (2016) 🔞
- “How Our Name Was Known” (2016)
Game Narrative Writing
- Tusks: The Orc Dating Sim (2017-19, available on itch.io)
- Project Paleblood (upcoming)
- Water Temple [demo] (2018) (available on itch.io) 🔞
- BEHEMOTH (2018, available on itch.io) 🔞
- The Loch: A Scottish Fishing RPG (2013, available on itch.io)
- Hypnagogue (2013) (available on itch.io)
Other Writing
- HOLOGLYPHIC CENTRIFUGE IN ASTRAL ROTUNDA XXI: 24/7 Lo-Fi Musick of the Spheres (2019, tarot guide)
- The Checkmate Tarot Spread (2019, tarot guide)
- Monstrous Love & Heroic Failure (2018, manifesto)
- The Slow Games Movement (2018, manifesto)
- The VIGILPHASE Manifesto (2018, manifesto)
- QUIJA: Reading Games (2014, zine, available on itch.io)