What Manner of Man

When I was looking for queer web serials, St. John Starling’s What Manner of Man kept coming up—for good reason, turns out. This lush, gothic, gay epistolary romance is a treat for vampire lovers and fans of sexy blasphemy. It’s also a passionate meditation on organized religion and stifling stricture, and a journey of a man of faith finding its limits and pushing beyond to find who he wants to be and what truly matters to him. I did not go on the much-beloved Dracula Daily adventure, which WMoM was inspired by, but this work stands firmly on its own. Minor spoilers to talk about things that compelled and moved me.

From page one, our protagonist, Father Ardelian, absolutely radiates ‘closeted gay monsterfucker’ energy. He oscillates between a total lack of self-awareness, a clear resistance to actually gaining self awareness because of what it would mean for his faith, and moments of deep insight and thoughtfulness. And it’s a joy to watch; in turns funny (yes, Father, it’s totally regular for a priest to really want to fuck I mean “meet” a demon!), tragic, and profound.

Fellow lead Alistair Vane arrives in the wake of a blood-red sunset, heralded by oncoming darkness, surrounded by ‘an aura of almost palpable evil’, and... well. Guess what his deal is. I guarantee you’ll figure it out before Ardelian (who immediately finds him ‘magnificent’). But watching our Father fail to realize why or even that Vane is obviously horny for his blood, neck, and entire self is a great deal of fun. The pacing is deliberate, but effective, especially combined with the gorgeous prose. Having spent time on the west coast of Ireland, I recognized and felt grounded on the island of Swallow’s Rest and in the strange, historical surroundings of Withern Hall. The island and manor are practically characters in their own right, as is the unique community there (with two very memorable lesbians and lots of other queer eccentrics among them). Ardelian’s engagement with that landscape and community kept me hooked even when he wasn’t having, recovering from, or gathering new material for his regular (hot!!!) erotic nightmares.

Through all this winds a sharp and thoughtful narrative around faith and religion. My mother grew up Catholic, and though she broke away from the church before I was born, I’ve spent years realizing how deeply that faith still haunts her. Watching how Ardelian used scripturally-infused self loathing as a bludgeon against any part of himself that didn’t fit the role he felt obligated to play filled me anew with compassion not just for him but my mother and others who’ve lived that experience. It was exhilarating watching Ardelian move through and beyond his crisis of faith, and without spoiling anything, I expect Ardelian’s final “letter” to stay in my mind for years to come.

I found WMoM a beautifully written, tragically humorous, blasphemously erotic, and deeply affecting work. I’m very much looking forward to St. John Starling’s next (Frankenstein related!) project.

I love this, having followed it from the very start to its current form. It's the kind of story I keep thinking about, that's enjoyable both on a surface level and rewards deeper thinking when a subtle element like the meaning of a character name suddenly becomes clear.

The connection between What Manner of Man and Dracula is subtle yet clear for those who think to look, the parallels are truly parallels in that they don't intersect, this is its own narrative. What Manner of Man essentially asks, what if the dynamic of Dracula's first act was the entire story, what if the hints of homoeroticism were expanded on?

But again, What Manner of Man is a story that has its own things to say, it is not Dracula. And it says what it wants to loudly and clearly without fear, not neutering itself for some attempt at mainstream appeal like so many other works.

Also it's fun to make fun of Father Ardelian as he is in the first act and I have made many memes to that effect. But he undergoes quite the arc, and watching that transformation is a key part of the story's appeal.

Lastly, if you've read the newsletter version, I promise you there's more to this edition that you'll want to see. The new and refined scenes have some powerful lines that add greatly to the story.