Zachary Thomas Dodson's Blog

New Novella, Subtle Mind, out now! with a dive into Interactive Tragedies...

I have a new novella out today. But this is a very different launch than Bats of the Republic...

In a city sustained by an eternal waterfall, an idle fisherman from the upper class takes an opportunistic shot at the High Commissioner. Accused of attempted assassination, he is cast into a subterranean labyrinth, where he uncovers the scaffolding of lies that has kept the Surfacers’ city sundered from the sea. But can he reach the safety of shore, before he’s swallowed by a past that is slowly resurfacing?

The novella is called Subtle Mind , and it’s a prequel to my just-released debut video game, Sub-Verge. Sub-Verge is a psychological narrative puzzle: you're trapped in a deep-sea sub, surrounded by a fractured band of divers, and your only way out is through conversation.

For those of you who liked Bats of the Republic interesting, or followed the experiments of featherproof, this is another odd hybrid: literary fiction smuggled into a new medium. My game studio is called Interactive Tragedy, Limited.

Subtle Mind is only available on Steam, for just a few bucks, and the book also includes exclusive character portraits from the game's artist, Tiia Reijonen.

Thanks for following along through all the strange shapes my storytelling has taken!
—Zach

🔗 Check out Sub-Verge + Subtle Mind on Steam