_9MOTHER9HORSE9EYES9, sometimes abbreviated to 9M9H9E9 or MHE (), is the screen name of an anonymous writer of

creepypasta A creepypasta is a horror-related legend which has been shared around the Internet. The term ''creepypasta'' has since become a catch-all term for any horror content posted onto the Internet. These entries are often brief, user-generated, par ...

speculative fiction Speculative fiction is an umbrella term, umbrella genre of fiction that encompasses all the subgenres that depart from Realism (arts), realism, or strictly imitating everyday reality, instead presenting fantastical, supernatural, futuristic, or ...

Reddit Reddit ( ) is an American Proprietary software, proprietary social news news aggregator, aggregation and Internet forum, forum Social media, social media platform. Registered users (commonly referred to as "redditors") submit content to the ...

Work

From 22 April to 17 July 2016, the writer posted a science fiction horror story in short installments to apparently random Reddit discussion threads. The story was posted in segments as replies to comments in the discussion threads. The story, sometimes referred to by others as the ''Interface series'', touches on such topics as "

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

Elizabeth Bathory Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Empress Elisabeth (disambiguation), lists various empresses named ''Elisabeth'' or ''Elizabeth'' * Princess Elizabeth ...

, the

Treblinka concentration camp Treblinka () was the second-deadliest extermination camp to be built and operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland during World War II. It was in a forest north-east of Warsaw, south of the village of Treblinka in what is now the Masov ...

humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the monotypic taxon, only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh u ...

s, the

Manson Family The Manson Family (known among its members as the Family) was a Intentional community, commune, gang, and cult led by criminal Charles Manson that was active in California in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The group at its peak consisted of a ...

and

LSD Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as LSD (from German ; often referred to as acid or lucy), is a semisynthetic, hallucinogenic compound derived from ergot, known for its powerful psychological effects and serotonergic activity. I ...

", and particularly involves entities called "flesh interfaces". The story attracted media notice the day after its first parts were published. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', reporting on the story, described it as "compelling" and "gradually more beautifully and boldly written from multiple narrative perspectives". ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...

'' mentioned the possibility of the whole thing being part of a

viral marketing Viral marketing is a business strategy that uses existing social networks to promote a product mainly on various social media platforms. Its name refers to how consumers spread information about a product with other people, much in the same way th ...

campaign for something yet unknown. The book ''Immersion and Participation in Punchdrunk's Theatrical Worlds'' praised the usage of Reddit as a means of horror and noted how within a week of the first post readers had already set up a wiki to document the story. An impromptu fandom collects information about the story in a

subreddit Reddit ( ) is an American Proprietary software, proprietary social news news aggregator, aggregation and Internet forum, forum Social media, social media platform. Registered users (commonly referred to as "redditors") submit content to the ...

and

wiki A wiki ( ) is a form of hypertext publication on the internet which is collaboratively edited and managed by its audience directly through a web browser. A typical wiki contains multiple pages that can either be edited by the public or l ...

Identity

In a later deleted post, the writer described himself as a "30-something American male", and indicated a history of

substance abuse Substance misuse, also known as drug misuse or, in older vernacular, substance abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods that are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder, differing definition ...

. However, this post also incorporated fictional elements of the story. A

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

article also reported that the author said he is "male, in his thirties, lives in the United States, works as a freelance translator, and was once a heavy user of

." The author told ''

Gizmodo ''Gizmodo'' () is a design, technology, science, and science fiction website. It was originally launched as part of the Gawker Media network run by Nick Denton. ''Gizmodo'' also includes the sub-blogs ''io9'' and ''Earther'', which focus on pop ...

'' that "I live in a home for men and work a little to make ends meet." Both ''Vice'' and ''Gizmodo'' have speculated that the writer of the story was Reddit user Anatta-Phi, a prolific

conspiracy theorist A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...

and moderator of ShrugLifeSyndicate, a subreddit of similar themes including

psychedelics Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary mental states (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips") and a perceived "expansion of consciousness". Also referred to as classic halluci ...

psychosis In psychopathology, psychosis is a condition in which a person is unable to distinguish, in their experience of life, between what is and is not real. Examples of psychotic symptoms are delusions, hallucinations, and disorganized or inco ...

and

synchronicity Synchronicity () is a concept introduced by Carl Jung, founder of analytical psychology, to describe events that coincide in time and appear meaningfully related, yet lack a discoverable causal connection. Jung held that this was a healthy fu ...

References

External links

Reddit.com: user 9MOTHER9HORSE9EYES9 commentsReddit.com: "9M9H9E9"Reddit.com: "ShrugLifeSyndicate"
{{DEFAULTSORT:9MOTHER9HORSE9EYES9 20th-century births 21st-century American short story writers 21st-century pseudonymous writers American horror writers American science fiction short stories American science fiction writers Articles with underscores in the title Creepypasta Living people Reddit people Unidentified people Year of birth unknown

Work

Identity

See also

References

External links