 The idea for the story came to Lovecraft from one of his own dreams he had in 1928, which he wrote down in his "Commonplace Book" as

Daniel Upton, the story's narrator, explains that he has killed his best friend, Edward Derby, and that he hopes his account will prove that he is not a murderer.He begins by describing Derby's life and career.Derby had been interested in the occult even as a very young boy.