Steppenwolftwist

Introduction

This is a two-hundred-word post from my blog Seven Days In (you can read it by clicking on this) that has close to two thousand views. I posted it in March last year but people (and no doubt many robots) are still visiting for some reason. I don't know if it's the mention of COVID, the mention of the Hermann Hesse novel Steppenwolf and its content, Bob Dylan's "TaraNtula" (which I would recommend to anyone just for the effect it will have on you) or Jordan Reyne's stunning song and video for "The Shadow Line" which I included (check the end of this for my interview with Jordan)

When I last took a highly read Seven Days In post and shared it on Vocal, it became my most-read Vocal story although it contained clickbait, I just wondered if two thousand readers and robots visited that, would they then check out the same post on Vocal expanded to hit the six hundred word requirement, and it got eleven hundred reads, so I am wondering if the same will happen with this. I honestly don't expect it to but I would be very happy if it did.

Obviously, SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) has probably come into play, though the title "How To Win The Lottery and Make money on Scratch Cards" is total clickbait although the content is informative and fairly straight.

Maybe there are fans of the band Steppenwolf out there visiting, and I knew the band for their song "Born To Be Wild" before I knew of the Hermann Hesse novel.

The Steppenwolftwist Post

I had my COVID injection yesterday and it physically knocked me with a lot of the symptoms but I think I am now over the worst.

"Steppenwolf" has taken a major unexpected twist, in a drug, drink and sex-induced surreal scenario Harry Haller takes a step into a man vs machine world scenario worthy of JG Ballard.

I really didn't see that coming, and with about twenty pages left of the book I am not sure what else will happen. If I'd known the format of the book, two breaks in the first fifty pages then two hundred pages of non-stop narrative, I think I may have been put off, and it's not for everyone but I am glad I have read it and got through it.

I have also decided to revisit "TaraNtula" by Bob Dylan next before maybe dipping into another unread (by me) classic.

So as I am still not 100%, I am going to go left field and share "Shadow Line" by Jordan Reyne because it is the song that hooked me on her and the video is wonderful as is the song.

Conclusion

This was written just before I joined Vocal and despite my blog getting over eight hundred thousand visits over fifteen years, I still only have six followers, nineteen comments and have made maybe two hundred dollars from it. Vocal have paid me over a thousand dollars in my twenty-two months with them.

This is also a prime example of how easy it is for me to be inspired to write. I have added four hundred words and made some minor amendments to the original pose, but you can check the original out to see what I was writing about then. Seven Days In was more of a diary for me, although you could say that I use Vocal like that (much to the chagrin of some members who think it should all be fiction and Vocal Challenge entries)

I hope you have enjoyed seeing just a little of my past and I now will wait to see if this soars or bombs on the read and visit front.