I learned of NotebookLM today and had to see what it was all about. This is the result of my adding alancrawford.com.au and tbaoo.com in the source section and off it went.
Across Alan Crawford’s short stories, several recurring themes emerge, often revolving around the odd, the absurd, and the darker aspects of everyday life.
- The “twisted” and the strange: Crawford explicitly describes his stories as “twisted” and full of “wondrously weird, odd, and strange things”. This suggests a deliberate focus on the unusual and the unexpected in his narratives. Many titles also hint at this, like “The Tale of the Thing that Happened,” “My Mastodon” or “I Saw Prometheus and I’m very confused”.
- Dysfunctional relationships and social awkwardness: Many stories appear to revolve around interpersonal difficulties and social faux pas. Some titles point to this, for example “Arguing Too Often,” “The Affair,” “Awkward swimming trunks”, “Dave has a problem” and “Wendy hooks up”. The story sample about Rob’s underwear and his partner’s annoyance suggests characters struggling with intimate situations.
- The mundane and the absurd: Crawford often combines ordinary settings and situations with bizarre or unexpected events. For instance, Rob’s search for “well-fitting smalls” in a shopping centre car park, which has a strict no-smoking policy, is an example of this.
- Dark humor and satire: The description of his work as “nonsense” and “ridiculously puerile” as well as his expressed desire to “laugh at my own stupid sense of humour” suggests a satirical tone and a tendency towards dark comedy. The title “There is no fool like an old fool” also points toward this tone.
- Everyday frustrations and anxieties: Many of the stories seem to explore the minor frustrations and anxieties of daily life. Titles such as “Trouble at work”, “Sarah endures another day” and “A Nothing Day” suggests this. Even his New Year’s resolutions suggest he finds some aspects of daily life challenging, such as getting angry and needing to do exercise.
- Mature themes presented with an immature edge: Crawford states that while his stories are aimed at a “mature audience, it may seem immature at times”. This could indicate a blend of adult themes with a playful or irreverent narrative style. He also describes his material as “nonsense”.
These themes are woven throughout Crawford’s short stories, which he describes as the product of a “warped imagination”. The stories appear to be a blend of the real and the bizarre, highlighting the strange and often humorous side of everyday existence.
