Flett reworks the British folk practice of sin eating, in which the village outcast symbolically consumes the sins of the recently departed in exchange for monetary reward, into a joyful celebration of carnality, gluttony and pleasure. In her telling, the Sin Eater is privy to all the most shameful secrets of the community they serve, while thoroughly enjoying their strange and abject status. The Sin Eaters gather together to feast, drink, fornicate and make merry in spite of the heaviness of their role. It’s both a metaphor for the act of reading and writing itself and a beautiful meditation on jealousy, friendship and the expansive possibilities of the unconventional life.

First published in Electric Literature, 2022, and available to read here