We're starting now. It's now of course. This is the time to write. You deserve a bit of an explanation of what this book is and is not. It is not a structured narrative though it is a story. It was not planned or thought out, though it has been imagined for years. I have carried the characters of Erik Satire (The Gray Man and his crab, and Vivian Valladon) since 2019 and have brainstormed a well of fascinating and ridiculous ideas for a stage play, a rock opera that would surround them. What I did not have was a plot. Where to start was always the problem with Erik Satire, but eventually, as it does, inspiration struck. I gave myself parameters to work within. First, I'll just write when I feel inspired to. Second, I will go through the cards of the Major Arcana, in order, using each one as a starting point of inspiration. I will look at the card, read its description, and then free-write a scene, anything that might surface, for five minutes...only for five minutes. This book is the result of that ongoing free-writing exercise. There are a few plot points that have emerged from the process. It is loose in narrative, unorganized in story structure, and completely instinctual. It is groundwork for the next, more intentional, more organized, larger-scoped increment of the Erik Satire project, whatever that might be.