BCC Shines A Light On: Dan Brotzel
Name of the piece published by BCC:
When/where was it originally published:
In my short-story collection, Hotel du Jack, 2020
Tell us more about your piece! What is the background of the piece? What led you to write it? What’s your process?
Relations between neighbours – intimate yet distant – fascinate me; I’m obsessed with neighbourhood forums and whatsapp groups. I’m also a big fan of hermit-crab fictions – using found structures (like a forum in this case) to shape a story around.
Two specific things inspired this story – one a tale of a local chimney sweep who (allegedly) claimed on a forum that another sweep had died so he could pick up his business. A thread progressed in which neighbours lamented the poor man’s passing, only for him to pop up a few days later and announce that he was very much still alive!
The other thing was a question that popped into my head: ‘Can anyone recommend an exorcist?’
And then the story all went on from there, with parodies of various local characters and made-up bits folded in as I went.
How did you feel when it was first published and how have your thoughts or feelings on the piece changed from then to now?
I feel like the story sort of came out quite close to my vision for it. This is the Holy Grail for me, and happens rarely.
What I’m really pleased about is that it seems to have quite a wide-ranging resonance. Everyone who reads it – wherever they’re from – recognises the vibe and character types.
Is there a specific message you would like readers to take away from reading this piece?
I just hope it makes people smile.
What else would you like to tell readers about your writing? (Doesn’t have to refer only to your BCC piece)
I’m currently putting together a collection of hermit-crab pieces (including this one) and looking for a publisher, UK or US! If anyone has any suggestions for presses that might like this sort of thing, please hit me up.
Where can readers find more of your work? (Website/social media, etc)
My new novel is Thank You For The Days – if anyone would like an e-ARC, let me know!
There’s also my website: www.danbrotzel.com and Medium bits: https://medium.com/@danielbrotzel
