Death & the Internet

R.I.P. to a beloved creator.

Shamus Young has passed away.

If you know him at all, it’s mostly likely through his DM of the Rings webcomic by which he imagined the Lord of the Rings as if it were run by D&D players. I didn’t read him religiously, but I would have occasional binge of his content once a week or month. I know I’ve cited his posts more than once when I’ve discussed writing and stories because he had a knack for seeing things and breaking things down in the same way I see them. (probably because we’re both computer nerds and programmers – though he’s far, FAR better at it than I will ever be)

CS Lewis once said “Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: ‘What! You too? I thought I was the only one.'” I know there’s a lot of talk about the rise of parasocial relationships and the internet substituting for real human interaction, but even if Shamus never even knew I was alive, there was a real comfort in knowing there was someone else out there who saw the world the way you did – who could put your thoughts into words better than you can sometimes. And now that they’re gone? You still feel a little lonelier.

It’s certainly why we hope for an afterlife isn’t it? Because an eternity might just be enough time to go around to everyone and say, “Hi, you don’t know me, but I owe you a drink and a thank you…”