originally published Weird Tales September 1935
Our Narrator wants to be a horror writer, Real bad. His stories suck but after awhile he manages to start selling stuff.
Feeling inadequate, he starts corresponding with occultists and such, and begins to learn of the arcana of the Cthulhu Mythos i.e. many of the usual books.
His attempts to find these titles are fruitless until one day he manages to scarf up a copy of Mysteries of the Worm for $1 in a hole-in-the-wall used bookstore. He can't wait to get it home but, alas, he doesn't know how to read Latin.
No matter! His closest correspondent, a "dreamer" and mystic in Providence, RI, does, and tells him to get his ass out there like now - and don't forget the book!
This goes righteously bad when Mr. Providence starts translating out loud, and soon finds himself hoisted mid-air and having his blood drained by an invisible something, which later semi-materializes into a chuckling gloop monster with sucker tentacles. O.N. flees for his life, but he knows this thing will come for him one day.
Despite being pretty slight and silly this one has so much verve its impossible not to like. The mystic's death in the invisible tentacles is a real thriller and the history of Ludvig Prinn is actually quite cool. Minor stuff but a lot of fun.
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