"if i was orpheus i would simply not turn around" yes you would. if you were orpheus and you loved eurydice, you would. to love someone is to turn around. to love someone is to look at them. whichever version of the myth — he hears her stumble, he can't hear her at all, he thinks he's been tricked — he turns around because he loves her. that's why it's a tragedy. because he loves her enough to save her. because he loves her so much he can't save her. because he will always, always turn around. "if i was orpheus i would simply —" you wouldn't be orpheus. you wouldn't be brave enough to walk into the underworld and save the person you love. be serious

thank u to hozier for writing this song just for my book. spoilers for my book, the musical hadestown, and several millennia of greek myth:

imagine being loved by him, smh

true story: I was at a performance of hadestown a few years ago, there was a woman in the audience who clearly did not know how the story ended, because when orpheus turned around, she GASPED so loudly that the entire theatre could hear (I was up in a box very far away from her), and you could still hear her sobbing through the end of the curtain call, after "we raise our cups," after people started leaving their seats. I think about this at least once a week. it was such a funny and bittersweet moment. funny because everyone else in the audience knew what was coming, and it's rare that the ending takes someone that much by surprise. bittersweet because she was SO devastated (understandably), I think it's beautiful that the story and the cast were so deeply moving to her. I hope she is doing okay now!

anyway, some book things:

if you have been DYING to preorder my book but have been waiting for the right opportunity, barnes & noble is having a 25% off sale today on all preorders with code PREORDER25. you do have to sign up for their free membership, but in return you can save up to ones of dollars on my book.

as you can see from the video, I've gotten my advance reader copies, which I immediately used to create the world's most amateur stop-motion video. if anyone is interested in reviewing an early (free) copy, please let me know and I can send you one in the mail!

if you have no idea book what I'm on about, more info is here. in sum, I wrote a book that offers a modern perspective on the Greek myth of Eurydice and Orpheus through the eyes of a Korean-American woman who uses storytelling to try to connect with her brother and understand her family history. it's like a light beach read, only with a few details changed.

Today, 4/6, happens to mark 4 months and 6 days (and a few hours) until the release date of my book, Memento Mori. Coincidence?? (Yes.)

You can read a little behind the scenes on the cover here.

This book has EVERYTHING (that many fic readers hate):

1st person POV

Basically a genfic, so hardly any ships

No tags (but my previous post here has additional details, such as what tags might apply to this book if trad publishing included useful things like tag systems)

No tropes I can think of

Nearly all OCs

Despite this, many people (my mom) and dogs (my dogs, to be specific) have called this book "written," "short," and "????????¿¿¿¿¿¿¿?"

In all seriousness, it is a beautiful book and one I am proud and excited to see in print. You might like it, too, especially if any of the following appeal to you:

Eurydice and Orpheus, in which someone finally asks whether Eurydice actually wanted to return from the underworld

Persephone and Hades, as told in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter

Complex sibling relationships (aka Eldest Korean Daughter Syndrome)

Korean-American family saga from pre-independence to present, focused on women

Women trying to stay sane and alive despite [gestures vaguely at everything]

Angst

Neuroscience, for some reason?

The actual summary that goes on the back of the book:

In this brilliant portrait of rage and resilience, a Korean woman tries to connect with her younger brother and grapple with family tragedy through bedtime stories that weave together Greek mythology, neuroscience, and tales from their grandmother’s slipping memory. Recasting the myths of Eurydice, Orpheus, Persephone, and Hades through the lens of a Korean American family, this debut novel offers a moving and darkly funny exploration of grief, love, and the inescapability of death.

Interested? You can preorder here ahead of August 13.

That's all I've got until sometime in May, when I will belatedly remember that it is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, and that I have Asian American Heritage.

Very serious readers.

made a little bookmark inspired by the cover of memento mori, featuring eurydice (or perhaps persephone), with six red stones in the sky making up the constellation lyra as well as representing the six pomegranate seeds from the underworld. the stones look sparkly in real life, but less so on my potato of a phone camera.

I forgot how long it takes me to flush-set stones (and how difficult I find it!). a first attempt/prototype at something that I might eventually include as a little prize for certain preorders, if I can make it look passable—thoughts?

Two uses of my folding Orpheus and Eurydice bookmark:

- hold pages in book

- act out final scene in Ovid *sob*

A little behind the scenes Q&A with Debutiful on the redesigned cover for Memento Mori, which is now (a) more Korean and (b) importantly features Eurydice on top.

it me, I'm an alert for Memento Mori!

plus, a few other interesting myth retellings coming up 👀.

― Ovid, Metamorphoses

cover reveal 2: 2 cover 2 reveal (+ new website!)

like dionysus, my book cover is born again. now with 100% more korean-ness, to my mother's great excitement:

orpheus is upside down on the cover now, but he gets to stay right side up on the new website. I learned what a squarespace is and everything. if you are interested, you can use it to learn where to buy my book (basically anywhere, but I would love it if you considered your local bookstore), add it to storygraph/goodreads, and/or request it from your library. plus you can look at all of my weavings and jewelry, which have very little to do with the book but were fun to make.

thank you to my wonderful discord friends who gave me great feedback on how to website. I would love any feedback from you all as well!

MEMENTO MORI

Winner of the Red Hen Press Fiction Award

Did Eurydice want to return from the underworld? Did anybody ask?

In this astonishing work of “ferocious intellect and clarity,” debut author Eunice Hong weaves together Greek mythology, neuroscience, and the saga of a Korean family to create an “unexpected and thrilling story that features myth without being just a simple retelling.” Recasting the myths of Eurydice, Orpheus, Persephone, and Hades through the lens of a Korean American family, Memento Mori explores grief and love through a “beautifully written and impressively candid meditation on family secrets and the ties that bind.”

Out from Red Hen Press on August 13, 2024, but you can preorder now!

Reeve Carney (with Eva Noblezada) leaving the Hadestown stage for the final time [x]

"Orpheus glances Back" (#7 in my Orpheus and Eurydice series) “He stopped, and now, even at the confines of light (thoughtless alas!) and deprived of understanding, he looked back at his Eurydice: there all his labour vanished, and the conditions of the cruel tyrant were broken and a groan was thrice heard in the Avernian lake. Then she; who is it, O Orpheus, that has destroyed miserable me, and thee also? Whose great madness was this? Lo, again the cruel Fates call me back, and sleep seals up my swimming eyes. And now adieu: I am carried away encompassed with thick darkness, and stretching out my hands to you in vain, alas being no longer yours. She said, and fled suddenly from his sight a different way, like smoke mixing with thin air: nor did she see him catching in vain at the shadows, and desiring to say a great deal more; nor did the ferry-man of hell suffer him again to pass over the withstanding lake.” (-Virgil, Georgicks) When Psyche looks upon her secret lover’s face (Eros) against his orders, it sets her on a long journey where she ultimately must perform impossible labors to appease Aphrodite. In the final task, after trekking to Hades to collect some of Persephone’s beauty in a box, the girl can’t help but peak within the box, which renders her unconscious, and she is only saved by Eros in the end coming to remove the sleep. Pandora, the first mortal woman created by Hephaestus, was warned not to open the jar offered by Zeus as a present, but when her curiosity overpowered her, she opened the lid, releasing ills and evils into the world. When King Pentheus, in his arrogance, denied the divinity of Dionysus, the god bewitched the king’s mother and aunts who tore the man apart, thinking him a lion. King Erysichiton, ignoring the warning, cut down sacred trees in the grove of Demeter, and was cursed with everlasting hunger, resulting in him later devouring his own flesh.  As always, Thanks for looking, and please share this image if you can! Xoxo

Like this art? It will be in my illustrated book with over 130 other full page illustrations coming in June to kickstarter.  to get unseen free hi-hes art subscribe to my email newsletter

Follow my backerkit kickstarter notification page.

Thank you for supporting independent artists! 🤘❤️🏛😁

when we’re done with our overwhelming grief we’ll eat i guess

Had a very talented Italian animator, Sub Divo Coelo, offer to collaborate with me on animating some of my images in after effects. Super exciting to see this come to life.

One of my goals in life is to get my kickstarter book "Lockett illustrated: Greek Gods and Heroes" (linktree link in my bio) adapted Into an animated series, so if anyone has any suggestions on types of animation apps to use for my works, how to pitch animation/streaming services, or if you have any connections within the entertainment industry, please reach out and don't be shy. Getting an animated series adaptation picked up will be a massive uphill battle, and i wont be able to do it alone, so ill be reaching out to my followers alot. 🤘😁❤️🏛

This is something I will be actively fighting starting in.2024. But for now I will continue to collaborate with independent animators and designers to breathe life into my works here on social media.

Happy holidays to everyone. Hope 2024 offers you an opportunity to level up in whatever ways you are seeking. Im so grateful for everyones support here on TUMBLR, and for riding along with me on this journey. Big stuff coming in the new year! Love you all! ❤️🏛❤️

The Abduction of Persephone

         In the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, we are shown the tragic tale of the abduction of Demeter’s and Zeus’s daughter Persephone; goddess of spring growth. The young girl, out picking flowers, is entranced by the beauty of a Narcissus flower when the earth opens up and Hades appears and steals her away in his chariot. Persephone cries out, but of all the gods, only Hekate hears the voice, and Helios, the sun god high above, sees the crime. Demeter, consumed by grief and neglecting her duties as an agricultural deity, disguises herself as an old woman and searches for her Daughter over the earth with torch bearing Hekate providing assistance.

In the city of Eleusis she becomes the nursemaid to a royal family and infant son; Demophon, whom she attempts to make immortal by cleansing the child with ambrosia and setting him upon the hearth fire in secret at night. But Demophon’s mother, the queen, discovers the ritual and interrupts it, preventing the child from obtaining immortality.

         Because Demeter is neglecting her agricultural duties, Zeus fears for humanities survival, and sends Hermes to deliver a message to Hades, imploring him to return Persephone to her mother. Hades relents, but tricks Persephone into eating a pomegranate fruit, forever tying her to the underworld. The daughter returns to the surface, reunites with her mother, but is fated to return to the underworld for a third of the year. Demeter, now satisfied, brings back fertility to the crops and even teaches the mortals of Eleusis the secret rites and rituals which will eventually become the Eleusinian mysteries religious cult. 

         Persephone appears in other hero myths beside Hades, as the queen of underworld, receiving the musician Orpheus in his quest of his lost love Eurydice, and Heracles, who negotiates for the release of Theseus. 

Support my book kickstarter "Lockett Illustrated: Greek Gods and Heroes" coming in early 2024.

Cover Reveal + Preorder!

Don't look back.

Did Eurydice want to return from the underworld? Did anybody ask?

Weaving together Greek mythology, neuroscience, and memories inherited from her Korean grandparents, the narrator grapples with death by telling stories to her younger brother that ask what life means for him, for her, and for their family.

Recasting the myths of Eurydice, Orpheus, Persephone, and Hades through the lens of a Korean American family, Eunice Hong's debut novel explores the grief and love of a woman coming to terms with trauma, memory, and the inescapability of death.

Release Date: August 13, 2024

Preorder at Bookshop, Target, and Barnes & Noble, among other places!

Marie Paul Deville-Chabrolle for Daum Pate-de-Verre Amber Glass Eurydice Figure. Early 21st century.

if i was orpheus i just wouldn't have turned around lol