Vellichor

shelves with many books stacked and organized

Vellichor

n.
the strange wistfulness of used bookstores, which are somehow infused with the passage of time—filled with thousands of old books you’ll never have time to read, each of which is itself locked in its own era, bound and dated and papered over like an old room the author abandoned years ago, a hidden annex littered with thoughts left just as they were on the day they were captured.

From vellum, parchment + ichor, the fluid that flows in the veins of the gods in Ancient Greek mythology. Pronounced “vel-uh-kawr.”

Emorries

a magnifying glass over photos and books

Amentalio

a person in a white dress, facing away

Solla, Solla, Solla

a hand reaching out for plant tendril

Harke

a dreamlike image of a person's face over water

Blinkback

a wall full of pictures and objects

Rasque

close-up of the shards of a broken vase

Midsummer

a person standing in a garden holding a clock

Yeorie

a woman with tendrils of smoke moving across her face

Backmasking

a woman's face with a double exposure

Inerrata

a hand holding a broken cup

Nowlings

a pile of black and white puzzle pieces

Etterath

a graduation cap and gown on a chair

Walloway

water faucet that seems to emanate from the ground

Austice

a leaf imprint in the mud

Anchorage

a person's arm extended over river rapids

Lap Year

several people racing bicycles uphill in a forest

Archimony

a person looking at broken furniture

Anticious

a group of men in hats looking at elevated signage

Midding

Cover image for the Midding word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Foilsick

Cover image for the Foilsick word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Anechosis

Cover image for the Anechosis word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Lockheartedness

Cover image for the Lockheartedness word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Affogatia

miscellaneous items on a table

Kerisl

piles of old books scattered in an abandoned room

Harmonoia

Cover image for the Harmonoia word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Alpha Exposure

a close-up of a baby with diffusion filter

Insoucism

Cover image for the Insoucism word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows