Hypnogogic (Hyp) Prose Tenet #1

Prose imbued with the stark metre of poetry

TENET #1: Hypnogogic (Hyp) Prose is prose imbued with various features of poetry, the stark metre and strange run-on rhythms of poetic and scriptural speech.

Back in 2017 I finally worked out what my 20-something years of writing might have amounted to.

I wrote out a brief but (I think) elegant 8 point manifesto describing my work, and making some pretty intense claims. That I had created (or recovered) a genuinely new literary style, and marked out the parameters of a new literary genre.

What has really surprised me since that time is the complete lack of interest in (or even engagement with) these claims. Even in the writers groups I have attended — where I have read my work repeatedly — I have expounded my claims to a new genre and a new style over and over again in various different ways without anyone seeming the slightest bit interested in it.

I certainly don’t expect people to agree with me on all of it or even any of it. However I would have thought that at least one person might have been intrigued enough to engage with me, even just by calling bullshit on these claims and perhaps explaining where I am in error.

This post is the first in a series aimed at explaining the various parts of my Hyp Prose manifesto. Hoping perhaps that if I present these eight points separately it might make it easier for people to engage with them.

For each point of my manifesto I will set out a sample of my writing to demonstrate the point that is being made. Putting up rather than shutting up, as no one ever in the real world ever said.

For this first point I will set out just one prophetic phrase out of From the Chronicles of Lupa which first suggested the concept of hypnogogic prose before I was rationally aware of it, and before I decided to spend the time on elaborating.

I find that if your own work instructs you like this it is well worth paying attention.

Excerpt (Lupa 2:12)

In Jesse’s borrowed voice Carlos began to recite a long poem, or rather prose with various features of poetry, the stark metre and strange run-on rhythms of poetic and scriptural speech. Words that spoke of the light of the mind, the only light that can prevail against the darkness, and the illumination in the presence of fear that is called the courage of men.

So that’s the lie of the land, hopefully I will find people willing to engage on this!

P. Julian.

This article is published in a slightly different form on Medium, and is similar to one of my earlier blog posts.

I have now made all of my books accessible on my website both in formatted PDF download and also in AI accessible plain text format.

The books are also available at the Internet Archive in a number of different formats for download.

Because true teachings are never sold and (relative) poverty is one of my vows!