The Severed Knot

Another delightful offering from Malcolm Twigg, and a different style of comedy to "At the Third Stroke It Will Be ... Forever". "The Severed Knot" is more slapstick in nature and more physical. And so, the writing style is different. For example, "The Severed Knot" is a more ‘telling’ (rather than ‘showing’) approach to storytelling. I did not get a strong sense of the setting, because, on the whole, description is kept to a minimum. Nevertheless, it is obvious where we are throughout the narrative. On one occasion where the description is more detailed, it tends to be over-flowery; by which I do not mean I disliked it; indeed, it is a wonderful piece of imagery, I just felt it might be better placed in a different story. I did not get a strong feel for the characters, either. However, none of this detracted from the story. Indeed, some might say that is how short stories should be written, but I like a bit of picture drawing in my stories. The focus of "The Severed Knot" is on the absurdity of the events and on comedy, and very good it is to – I found myself laughing out loud. Well done, Malcolm, another story well worth reading.