A loser has an unhealthy relationship with mice in this story published in the 12th issue of Eldritch Tales back in 1986. The story wasn’t that bad, but the title was terrible! It was another one of those punning titles with which I was very taken back in the early years of my career, as I describe in my comments on “Stirred But Not Slakened.”
Back in the ’80s, when I was asked to read something spooky at a Halloween party one year, this was the story I chose. It seemed more traditional than the other pieces I had written up until that time, and more likely to work in performance. Also, at the time the story seemed chilling … though from this distance, it only seems silly.
Two decades can do that even to the best stories. It’s the rare ones that hold up to the writer—if one is continuing to improve, that is.