Oklahoma Pagan Quarterly, Great Man Arrives in Computer Cave Mailbox
Today the Samhain 2018 issue of OKLAHOMA PAGAN QUARTERLY arrived, with my story “The Great Man” next to last (as second place winner — see October 19; September 23, 16) in a special section of top ten “Spooky Samhain Contest 2018” winners. Or to quote Editor-in-Chief Belwoeth Harbright: This year we have a specially curated concoction of creepy chronicles for you especially eerie individuals. . . . Our silver honorable mentions come first; then our four finalists round out our 2018 Samhain Edition. 
The contest itself had had three divisions of which I had chosen number two, “Spooky Semi-True Stories,” that is tales which are purported to be true or, at least, that the spooky element might be real, as opposed to the other two, of accounts claimed to be absolutely real (ghost encounters, etc.) and those presented as entirely fiction.
So “The Great Man,” anyhow, has to do with certain beliefs that came up during the French Revolution, about guillotining and when an executee’s brain becomes truly dead. Is there an interval of maybe a few seconds in which one still has consciousness enough to realize that he’s been killed?
The issue actually has been out since October 1 in print-only format, but if you missed it and have a hankering to check out the fuss, just press here. You get news and features on pagan subjects plus nine great stories along with mine (well, just having received it myself, I haven’t yet read the other stories, but if they had the taste to give mine the second prize, I assume the others are good as well), which makes for a nice package of Christmas Eve reading while waiting to see if the snare you set to catch Santa this year will actually work.
jamesdorrwriter 
December 5, 2018 at 2:36 pm
Good one! I remember reading that conjecture — that brain waves continue for a few moments after a head is severed. I’m not sure how they conclude this since if your head is in the bucket, you have no way to talk. Maybe you could blink your eyes — blink twice to say “I’m still alive”.
gotta find out what YOU did with the idea!
December 5, 2018 at 2:53 pm
During the reign of terror, at least in Paris one of the assistants would take the head out of the basket immediately and hold it up by the hair for the crowd to see. Two instances, claimed to be true at the time (Charlotte Corday, Lavoisier), are noted in the story.