Ghosting

March 11, 2024 1:15 PM

"Ghosting" by Kelly Lagor (2023) is an uncomfortable science fiction novella involving reinvention, memory, betrayal, drugs, sex, and a drier, hotter Southern California. She thought of her trunk, covered in stickers from places she could only confirm she’d been to by looking at entries she had no memory of putting in her diary. But these people were fellow like-minded misfits. They felt like a kind of home. She didn’t want to lie. Author's commentary.
posted by brainwane (5 comments total)

Memory shift always stresses me out. Memory is all we really are, what we choose to keep and what we discard. Having conscious control over that seems like it's got no way to end except badly.
posted by Scattercat at 2:34 PM on March 11 [3 favorites]

Not only that, but there's a thing in the world of dementia called "confabulation," which is a condition where when you forget something—say while telling a story—and your brain automatically inserts something to bridge the gap, seamlessly. You're not trying to lie; you don't even know it happens and you don't feel like you forgot anything..
posted by rhizome at 5:13 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]

Such an uncomfortable read. Impossible to love (or read closely), and at the same time I respect it too much to hate (or stop reading). This is one talented writer.
posted by MiraK at 5:16 AM on March 12 [3 favorites]

Memorable story—thanks for posting
posted by librosegretti at 7:41 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]

Confabulation is absolutely not limited to dementia patients, although I expect "normal" levels are not nearly as wild or as confidently accepted.
posted by Scattercat at 8:01 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]