J. S. Kuiken

The Greek Boy was published in Bosie Magazine in 2018. It chronicles the last years of Lord Byron’s life, and his love for his pageboy.

While many find Byron repellant, I find him fascinating. To say he was a complex man would be an understatement. He is so much more than just a misogynist, philanderer, poet, lover, abused child, and member of the aristocracy.

When I wrote this story, it was a love song, in a sense. I addressed Byron as “you” and used second person to peel back his surface layers, the layers people become mired in and judge him for. Second person was a way to escape that, and show Byron as the human being he was. It was also my way to speak to him.

Interestingly enough, I wrote this story having thrown my back out working at Wal-Mart. I spent three glorious weeks convalescing. I was in incredible pain at times, but it was glorious because I got to spend it writing about Lord Byron. And at the end, I completed a short story. It was the happiest I had been in probably a year.