Here is the first sight of the cover of the new book of tales by Welsh master story-teller Rhys Hughes which will be published by Elsewhen Press in March. Rhys has entitled it Mirrors in the Deluge, and in the foreword he explains that titles are very important to him. This title in particular is almost an homage to a bygone writer called Abraham Merritt. As Rhys explains “Merritt wrote books with beautiful titles, evocative titles that suggest a deeper sense of mystery and wonder than the actual works can possibly deliver. Perhaps he did his best to match content to subtle promise, perhaps not, I don’t know. But it still seems to me that his Dwellers in the Mirage is one of the finest titles ever conceived; a title so superb I always wanted it for my own. I couldn’t steal it unaltered, of course, but I’ve finally managed to assuage my envy by adapting it to my own needs. Hence Mirrors in the Deluge, a curiously Welsh reversal, I feel!”
The title obviously inspired the cover image too. Rhys’ own notes to Alison, when she was designing the cover, were simple: When I finished this book, the cover I had in mind was of a mirror in the pouring rain, but the image in the mirror was not of rain, but of a magical sunlit world. When he saw the design that Alison had produced, his response was quite understated and restrained, he said “I absolutely LOVE the cover! It’s magnificent!” Phew!