For this piece, I was influenced by various aspects of Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves. For instance, I included references to Greek mythology (specifically about the Labyrinth and the Minotaur), some skewed placements of words and made the maze somewhat similar to the house in book. For the most part, the piece is about a girl influenced by the Minotaur myth (her “father’s favorite”) recounting her traumatic experience in a maze.

At the end of the piece, I wanted to focus on the theme of trauma. In House of Leaves, the Navidsons and Johnny Truant experience severe trauma but they both have dissimilar endings. Karen and Navidson get to rekindle their love while Johnny’s future is left ambiguous and with all his troubles quite unresolved. In this piece, I made the main character’s ending optimistic. Those who experience trauma don’t always have to live the rest of their lives in depression or constant fear. Though they may not be able to ever forget their trauma, they can still learn to move forward from it—especially with loved ones at their side.