"Shottle Bop" is a

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

by American writer

Theodore Sturgeon Theodore Sturgeon (; born Edward Hamilton Waldo, February 26, 1918 – May 8, 1985) was an American author of primarily fantasy fiction, fantasy, science fiction, and Horror fiction, horror, as well as a critic. He wrote approximately 400 ...

, first published in 1941 in the magazine ''

Unknown Unknown or The Unknown may refer to: Film and television Film * The Unknown (1915 comedy film), ''The Unknown'' (1915 comedy film), Australian silent film * The Unknown (1915 drama film), ''The Unknown'' (1915 drama film), American silent drama ...

''.

Avram Davidson Avram Davidson (April 23, 1923 – May 8, 1993) was an American writer of fantasy fiction, science fiction, and crime fiction, as well as the author of many stories that do not fit into a genre niche. He won a Hugo Award and three World Fantasy ...

has said that it is the source of all "odde shoppe" stories; and even if not that, of many. The protagonist discovers a mysterious shop"The Shottle Bop", between Twentieth and Twenty-first Streets, on Tenth Avenue in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

which has bottles containing all manner of strange things. The proprietor dislikes his pompous attitude, paralyzes him by spraying him with the

essential oil An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the ...

from the hair of a

Gorgon The Gorgons ( ; ), in Greek mythology, are three monstrous sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa, said to be the daughters of Phorcys and Ceto. They lived near their sisters the Graeae, and were able to turn anyone who looked at them to sto ...

's head, and only releases him after extracting a grudging apology. The proprietor then mixes up a strange

potion A potion is a liquid "that contains medicine, poison, or something that is supposed to have magic powers." It derives from the Latin word ''potio'' which refers to a drink or the act of drinking. The term philtre is also used, often specifica ...

, saying it will, when drunk, "cure" him and give him a "talent". The protagonist returns home and, after initial reluctance, drinks the potion. He discovers that he can now see and talk with

ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

s; although they cannot see him. When he goes back to look for the shop, it is not there. He sets himself up as a

psychic A psychic is a person who claims to use powers rooted in parapsychology, such as extrasensory perception (ESP), to identify information hidden from the normal senses, particularly involving telepathy or clairvoyance; or who performs acts that a ...

investigator: a business at which he is highly successful, with the aid of unseen disembodied assistants. He taunts some of his low-life former associates with his success. They round on him, but he persuades one of them to spend the night in a

haunted house A haunted house, spook house or ghost house in ghostlore is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were otherwise connected with the property ...

, for a bet. That night, the effects of the potion wear off.

References

1941 short stories Fantasy short stories Horror short stories Short stories by Theodore Sturgeon Works originally published in Unknown (magazine) Potions {{1940s-fantasy-story-stub