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ALL WRITING AND ARTWORK ARE THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF PSG LOPES. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, 2018.
I have always been drawn to the darker side of life. I have always loved the macabre and horror and Victorian goth. I have always been fascinated by literature from Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker, Stephen King, Anne Rice, Edgar Allan Poe, to movie and television writers and directors such as Alfred Hitchcock, Tim Burton, Vincent Price, Rod Serling, and many others. I grew up watching The Twilight Zone, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Elvira, Tales from the Crypt, and also grew up watching a lot of horror movies such as Hellraiser, Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, and Friday the 13th, and so on. Even my music tastes, although it widely varies at times, can also be dark, in general, some examples being Apocalyptica, Within Temptation, and H.I.M. I am hardly original and I know many individuals who are also into the same genre.
My point in this topic is how many individuals are so afraid of a little darkness and how misinformed people are in general. As long as there has been storytelling and oral tradition, many stories have very dark origins. Any fairy tale that your mother may have read to you as a child was probably a rated G version of the story that was given the Disney treatment. Most of those stories were derived by much older stories, with much grimmer outcomes. Any stories from the Brother’s Grimm or Hans Christian Andersen’s hardly warm the heart and make one believe in a happily ever after.
I find it fairly amusing that this time of year is the time that I am actually accepted for my tastes and perceived as normal. I am considered trendy from October 1st to October 31st and then from November 1st on I become a big ol’ weirdo again. I am not considered strange when I wear my leather jacket, floral Doc Martens, skull scarves, cat eyeliner, and crazy glasses during the Halloween season. I remember one day when I was substitute teaching one Halloween many years ago, I went to work dressed how I always dress and this woman actually told me she liked my costume. My sister, who works as a full-time teacher at the same school I was subbing at, politely told the woman that this was how I normally dressed. The woman then had that judgmental nose crinkle and just shrugged and moved along. I have never been into censoring myself in order to fit in or belong somewhere. I am me and being that sometimes is hard enough. I think people who are creative tend to have to justify their creativity to others a lot of the time. I don’t shop at old lady dress shops. I have always been quirky with my personality and choice of fashion. It has been a lonely life for certain being so different from the majority of the population around me. I can’t be anyone else, but myself. I can’t fake normal. But then again, who’s to say what normal really is? I am often reminded of that famous quote from Morticia Adams that I always see circling around social media that goes, “What is normal for the spider is chaos for the fly.”
That sense of darkness and macabre way of being is deeply ingrained in my work. I am often chastised even for that and many do not understand or appreciate my work and shy away from reading it because of its dark nature. I have always been very open and honest about my depression and anxiety. Another misconception people have is that if they socialize with an individual with depression that they too will become depressed. It is not contagious. You can appreciate a dark piece of art and not think you’re morose, or a devil worshiper. I am not a devil worshiper either, I just have particular tastes when it comes to composing my art. My eyes see differently than most and there certainly isn’t anything wrong with that. One thing I read the other day on social media, which I found fascinating, was this woman posting a seemingly helpful link for those who struggle with mental illness and said that she volunteered with this organization and would continue to do so as long as they didn’t drag her down with them. What an interesting opinion. How susceptible are you to others that you’d just assimilate and succumb to emulating to their personality just like that? I never heard of such a preposterous statement in my life. The seemingly well-meaning statement was laden with condescension and a lack of true understanding and empathy. I face this all the time when talking to strangers. It is frustrating, but I’ve accepted that this is how many people are in life. The best thing you can do is to educate others and explain what it truly is like to be someone like me and responsibly assist others where possible.
On that note, I am providing you all with my song, In Recovery, that was made from one of my poems featured in Dark Musings Poetry Anthology: Volume 1. The lyrics and melody are my own, but I had a paid vocalist and guitarist perform the song in my place because I do not have the proper funding for equipment or renting out a recording studio. This was a cheaper option to get out my work for others to listen to. I am quite proud of this song. The poem itself was inspired by a book series that I will eventually write, not any time soon because I have way too many other projects lined up in the near future. In Recovery, to me, is about a relationship that is so captivating and bewitching, but also toxic and destructive and even though these two individuals know and understand fully that they are no good to each other, they just can’t seem to shake the other one off of one another. I am sure many of you have had at least one such relationship in your life similar to this–that all-consuming rapturous whirlwind of a romance that just drained you fully of your very being. The woman spent the rest of her life recovering from such a romance. That’s what my inspiration was. Nothing malicious or menacing in this dark piece.
I’d like you all to give it a listen. The link is provided below. Please let me know your thoughts. What dark influences have you guys been affected by over the years? Any creators out there that are also inspired by gothic or horror elements? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Thanks for reading my blog! I’m excited to hear what you all think of my song. Also, if you are interested, I am providing my link to my Amazon Author Page and Red Bubble Merchandise store for anyone interested in perusing my work. Thank you all once again and have a great day!
Thanks everyone!
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