This piece is part of our “Tails + Tales” teen summer writing initiative inspired by the 2021 national summer reading theme chosen annually by the Collaborative Summer Library Program.
The story goes
They paid Victor
By the word.
Why else would he use
Every word possible
The longest phrases imaginable
To describe a Paris
That no longer exists?
But they didn’t pay Victor by the word.
No economically responsible publisher
Would ever
Ever
Ever
Pay Victor by the word.
The story goes
Victor killed a man
With his writing.
The longest sentence in French
To describe a popular king
Who already existed
Caused a man to die
Of asphyxiation.
But this tale is purely apocryphal.
No literate human being
Would ever
Ever
Ever
Read a sentence about Louis-Phillipe out loud.
The story goes
Every woman in Paris
Who enabled every bad habit you had
Were unavailable the day Victor finally died.
They were in mourning
For the loss
Of Victor’s business.
This story is true
But it’s hard to believe
Anyone would miss
The man who killed someone
With his writing.
Ainsley Atwood is a writer from Chicago who likes books about heists, historical fashion, and the stories of long-dead authors. When Ainsley is not writing, she enjoys reading, enjoying musical theatre from backstage, and spending time with friends.