Blog: “The Mirror in the Basement of Waverly Manor”

I’ve been working on my new story, “The Mirror in the Basement of Waverly Manor,” for almost a year now because my life lately has been fundamentally unstable in the best possible way. Emily and I ended our lease last August and left Atlanta to travel across 9 European countries in 13 weeks, seeking glory and adventure and love. Although we mostly just drank too much wine and ate nitrite-filled meats and stinky cheeses, I’d say we broadly achieved our goals. 

At the very least, I succeeded in turning my GIRLFRIEND; a title that evokes immaturity, playground romps, and silly kisses — you know, kid stuff — into a fully fledged WIFE; a moniker that evokes a stable, elegant, formidable, timeless bond. I’m in the big leagues now, baby.

I proposed in Dublin, then spent another 10 weeks traipsing around Europe, only to return to Charleston and get married 3 months after that. A whirlwind! And it wasn’t even a shotgun wedding! No fetus marched us down the aisle, just our love and youthful eagerness to get hitched forever and ever. To top it all off, we’re picking up and moving to a new city across the country to begin our ~midwestern era~ in the great land of Chicago, a city with two baseball teams, one of which had a pitcher I’m related to from literally 100+ years ago. He does not play anymore; he is retired. Jake Weimer, look it up.

Tonight’s story doesn’t have much to do with travel, though. It is nearly a one-set ordeal, with the bulk of the story centered around Edgar, an aimless, downtrodden young man who becomes entangled in the orbit of Waverly Manor, the inauspicious estate around which mysterious rumors of unspeakable horrors always seem to swarm. He and the manor’s proprietor, Gertrude Waverly, form a mutually beneficial, if unusual, bond. Still, as their fortunes rise, it becomes more clear that the foreboding manor on the hill is not all that it seems. As secrets unfold and threaten their happiness, you, the reader, must decide if the rumors are true or just idle gossip. Or, I’ll make it clear to you cuz that’s my job, but you have to read the thing to find out.

I’m changing up the format and will be posting this 6.7k word (25 mins) story into 3 uneven chapters, so you brain-rotted space babies can enjoy it in more digestible chunks.

Part 1: 1.6k words, 6 mins read.

Part 2: 3k words, 12 mins read.

Part 3: 2.1k words, 8.5 mins read.

Lastly, I was influenced by the following media in writing this story:

“I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream,” a 1966 short story by Harlan Ellison.

“Call Me by Your Name,” a 2017 film by Luca Guadagnino.

“The Haunting of Hill House,” a 2018 TV series by Mike Flannagan based on the 1959 novel by Shirley Jackson.

I hope you enjoy it! 🙂

Part 1: Out now

Part 2: 4/10/26

Part 3: 4/17/26