Alphabet Superset

Alphabet Superset is (or maybe rather was) a creative challenge conceived by Campbell Walker aka Struthless. The idea is to create 26 pieces of art, one every week, with a topic for each one starting with one letter of the alphabet, going from A to Z. The overarching theme and the style of the entire set is defined in the beginning, so that they will create a cohesive whole.

Originally, the challenge ran from September 2023 to April 2024. I found out about it almost exactly a year later, so that’s when I am doing mine; starting on September 2nd 2024, and hopefully finishing on April 7th 2025.

So here it comes! And my topic is:

Myths, legends & fairy tales

Georges Seurat -- The Lighthouse at Honfleur, 1886. A painting of a shore with a building and a lighthouse in the distance. Small specks in the sky as birds are added.

D is for Dragons

- 6-minute read - 1090 words - by nori parelius

When the first reports of dragons came in, they didn’t even quite come in. Nobody believed it, and no serious news outlet would touch it. Most of the not-so-serious ones wouldn’t either. And so the first mentions appeared alongside reports of Nessie sightings, stories of alien abductions and haunted houses. In that company, a small village falling prey to a dragon or two seemed both tamer and somehow less believable at the same time.
A Drawing called Hades and Persephone by Eduard Trewendt, 1864, showing a king and a queen in togas sitting on a throne, holding hands, with a 3-headed dog by their feet

C is for Cerberus

- 2-minute read - 299 words - by nori parelius

First draft

Hi! Dear Sir or Madam, To whoeve Hi there!

You just adopted my dog I guess. I wanted to say thank you. He’s a good dog. I’ve had him for millennia ages, ever since he was a little pup and he was always a great companion. A great guard dog, for sure, but also just a really good friend.

He responds both to “Kerbie” and “Beast” and is very well-trained. He used to guard the Underworld my workplace, but with all the modern technology he’s not really needed that much anymore. And honestly, we don’t get that many people nowadays anyway, what with all the competition. My wife wants us to close the place for a few decades and travel, but Kerbie isn’t quite made for that lifestyle. He prefers to have a stable living situation. I’ll probably pick him up again one day, but you might be dead by then
A painting of an oldschool big metal key by Edna C. Rex with drops of blood added.

B is for Bluebeard

- 4-minute read - 737 words - by nori parelius

She’s standing there like a complete fool. The key clutched in her hand so hard that her knuckles are turning white. It’s a big key. Heavy. And cold. So cold it feels like it’s sucking the life out of the hand that is holding it. She’s standing there in front of the door, frozen. She has been standing there for a while now. What is she thinking about? Does she know? Does she suspect? Is that why she’s hesitating?
Sleeping Beauty by Edward Frederick Brewtnall. A romantic painting of a woman with long light hair in a white dress sleeping surrounded by flowers. A man is looking at her from a little distance. The woman has cartoonish pink headphones added, while the man has a green baseball cap and a scooter standing next to him.

A is for Aurora

- 6-minute read - 1225 words - by nori parelius

Aurora was the prettiest girl at school. Like, for real. Cute face, long blond hair, really cheeky smile. And a really nice body too. Although, you really had to see her in gym class in shorts, ‘cause normally she would wear these weird-looking baggy clothes. Cool, don’t get me wrong, but yeah, thank god for old Sullivan who made everyone wear shorts to gym. Those legs, man! Anyway. She was, like, really cute, and I had a crush. Well, duh!