Some tragedies arrive without warning. Others reveal a trail of missed signals, emotional wounds, and opportunities for intervention. In All the Dead Fallen Leaves, author Morgan Blair examines that painful trail through a psychologically intense work of literary fiction.
Available in Kindle and paperback editions, the novel explores isolation, bullying, radicalization, and the devastating consequences that can follow when despair is allowed to deepen.
A Tragedy Reconstructed Through Evidence
On October 31, 2007, former student Will Bellman and his friend Taylor enter their old school and begin shooting. They describe the attack as their day of judgment and name it “Tribulation.” Readers know the outcome from the beginning. The central question is far more difficult: Why did Will do it?
Morgan constructs the story through evidence released five years after the attack. Will’s journal entries trace his life from freshman year to senior year. Police statements establish the aftermath, while his suicide note offers a final glimpse into his thinking. A magazine interview with Chloe, the childhood sweetheart he loved, adds another deeply personal perspective.
The novel never follows Will during the shooting itself. Its focus remains on the years, relationships, choices, and warning signs that led him toward violence. This structure creates emotional distance from the atrocity while keeping readers close to the human decisions behind it.
Will begins as a recognizable young person who wants acceptance, security, and love. A childhood accident killed his sister and left him physically and psychologically scarred. He carries intense guilt, faces persistent bullying, and gradually loses his ability to imagine a hopeful future. Even his love for Chloe struggles to reach him because he feels undeserving of happiness.
Watching a Descent Unfold
Will’s life changes when Taylor transfers to his school. Taylor offers companionship and presents himself as an ally against the people who torment them. For the first time in years, Will feels understood.
That connection slowly becomes dangerous. Taylor is obsessed with the Columbine killers and repeatedly speaks about mysterious friends named Eric and Dylan. His fixation introduces Will to a worldview in which violence appears meaningful and revenge feels justified. As Will experiences further loss, Taylor’s darkest ideas begin gaining influence.
The reader witnesses this transformation through Will’s own words and the recollections of others. His likability makes the experience increasingly uncomfortable. He has recognizable emotions, genuine vulnerability, and an aching need to belong. Readers can see the approaching disaster while noticing the many moments when support, intervention, or a different decision might have changed his path.
Morgan describes the experience as watching a train wreck in slow motion. The destination is known, and every chapter increases the desire for someone to recognize the danger and act.
The book also examines the “Columbine Effect,” a term associated with people who idolize mass killers, imitate their behavior, or draw inspiration from previous attacks. Morgan’s research on this subject later led to work with Kyle from the YouTube channel Dire Trip on a documentary series about Columbine.
A Story Written With Prevention in Mind
The novel began during a period of grief in Morgan’s life. After watching a documentary about Columbine, the subject remained in Morgan’s thoughts and inspired a short story. Readers familiar with the case encouraged its expansion, and the first draft was completed within three months.
Randy Brown, a Columbine parent, read an early version and encouraged Morgan to continue. Traditional publishing agents responded positively to the manuscript while expressing uncertainty about how to market such difficult material. Personal loss later drained Morgan’s momentum, and the book remained untouched for a time.
Its eventual release came with serious concerns. Morgan feared the story might be misunderstood as glorification. The intention is firmly rooted in prevention. Red-flag behaviors can be difficult to remember when presented as clinical lists or brief news segments. Stories remain in the mind because readers experience their emotional consequences.
Will’s journey incorporates warning signs organically. His humanity invites recognition without excusing his choices. Morgan urges readers who recognize their own despair in his later experiences to speak with someone and seek help. Emotional wounds deserve attention before they cause further suffering.
About the Author
Morgan Blair describes themself with dark humor as an eldritch horror bound inside a “meat suit.” Away from writing psychologically unsettling stories, Morgan spends time attempting to keep a pet cactus alive. Their work on the Dire Trip documentary reflects a broader interest in researching violence, radicalization, and the cultural influence surrounding Columbine.
A Warning Readers May Remember
All the Dead Fallen Leaves asks readers to notice what can happen when guilt, cruelty, isolation, and harmful influence converge. Its greatest hope is simple and urgent: someone may recognize the warning signs, reach out for help, or intervene for a friend before another tragedy begins.
We had the privilege of interviewing the author. Here are excerpts from the interview:
Thank you so much for joining us today! Please introduce yourself and tell us what you do.
I’m Morgan Blair. I’m an eldritch horror who has been bound to this world in a meat suit. I pass my time by writing stories and trying to keep my pet cactus alive. But in terms of this book, I also branched out when about a year and a half ago I received a message from Kyle (Dire Trip) when he was in the early planning stages of his documentary series on Columbine. I gathered a lot of research material about the case, since the book also deals with what has become known as ‘The Columbine Effect’ and have been assisting on the documentary.
Please tell us about your journey.
The book itself is about a school shooter, told in the form of evidence gathered afterward- police statement, the shooter’s journal, a magazine interview with the girl the shooter loved, and his suicide note. The story never actually stays with the character while he is committing the atrocity. You can see the slow and terrible path from normal kid to a killer. And the kid, Will, is likeable. That’s part of the point. But since we already know he did it, that makes it worse. It deals with what has become known as ‘The Columbine Effect’ – when people idolize the killers and begin to emulate them. When they are inspired to commit their own atrocity. The main character, Will, meets Taylor, who is obsessed with Columbine.
Any message for our readers.
The entire point of the story is prevention. People don’t easily remember sterile lists of red flag behaviors to look out for. But they do remember stories. Will is likeable. His descent into despair and rage is like watching a train wreck in slow motion. You know what’s happening, and the whole time you just want him to stop. And there were so many opportunities for him to do so.
Thank you so much, Morgan, for giving us your precious time! We wish you all the best for your journey ahead!