Friday, June 6, 2014

Quiet

I'm part of a local writers' club, and sometimes we like to use "prompts" as writing exercises. What is a prompt? Sometimes writers-- especially those in writing clubs-- will sometimes write a short short story (or flash fiction) as an exercise, but as part of the exercise is that everyone participating uses a given prompt, which is a line or two of text, as the opening lines(s) of the story. What happens next is up to the writer. So everyone writes a different story, but with the same first line or lines.
Prompts can also be used when writing solo, but it's more fun with friends.

Often, stories that come from prompts are not as well written or planned as "proper" stories, but it's not about quality, it's just an exercise in writing.
That said, they can be good, too. Hopefully you'll enjoy this story, despite it's length (or lack there of) and the fact that I wrote it in (probably) about a day.

EDIT: I highlighted the prompt phrase in light grey, so any writers can try out the same one. And I included a link to a really good prompt resource at the end of the page.

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"Shh! Hear that?"
"I didn't hear anything."
Josh hesitated. "Jacob, I heard something."
"Don't be a chicken," Jacob scolded.
"I'm not a chicken!"
"Keep it down," Jacob said in a harsh whisper.
"I'm not a chicken," Josh repeated, more quietly.
"Okay, then let's hurry up."
Josh nodded.
They walked down the hallway under the cover of darkness; their steps as silent as a cat's. They knew that one ill step; one errant noise could alert the sleeping residents.
Josh stared at the dim moonlight as it slipped in through the billowing curtains of an open window.
"Come on!" Jacob scolded as Josh stared out the window at the bright full moon. "You can't just stand around. Someone will catch you."
"Okay." Josh muttered in response, only half-listening.
As they proceeded through the house they saw an open door up ahead, so they continued on with twice the effort to sneak by quietly. But just as they came close to the door, a dog came out and approached them quietly. The old greyhound stared at them with dark-chocolate eyes and a curious expression. Though it showed no immediate signs of aggression, they feared it would start barking and wake the household.
Jacob produced a dog treat from his pocket and tossed it to the animal.
Content to eat at its own leisure, the dog forgot about Josh and Jacob entirely. They let out a sigh of relief, and moved on.
Continuing down through the pale halls of the sleeping household, Josh and Jacob came at last to the room they sought. Up on a surface just out of reach was the goal of their mission.
"They're up there," Josh said. "Go get them."
"Huh-uh," Jacob refuted. "You get them."
"Why?" Josh asked.
"'Cause I said so, that's why."
"Uhg. Fine."
Jacob cupped his hands together for Josh to use as a step. With that boost, he managed to reach the ledge and climb up.
And there—there was the jar. The pot, the urn, the container of wonder.
Quietly, and with near-infinite caution, Josh opened the lid. His hand slowly reached towards it and into its dark interior.
The opposite door opened with a creek, and they both knew that it was all over.
The lights came on.
"What are you boys up to?" Their mother said, puzzled yet patient, as she approached.
It was hard to not be intimidated by her as she stood towering over them, regardless of her tiredness and neutral demeanor.
"Uh… we were just getting a drink of water." Jacob said.
Their mother got them each a glass of water as Josh climbed down off the counter.
After drinking the water they hadn't wanted to begin with, they made their way back to their room, empty handed.


"We got caught," Jacob informed Luke and Liam, glumly, as he and Josh came into their room.
"What?" Luke whined. "How'd you get caught?"
"We almost made it, until Mom found us." Jacob said.
As Jacob, Luke, and Liam complained and argued, Josh reached into his pockets and drew out four chocolate chip cookies.
"Anyone want one?" Josh said.
They turned to look at him, staring in amazement at what he held. Josh couldn't help but grin broadly as his brothers came to his side, cheering quietly as they all shared the bounties of the mission.
For once, he was appreciated. For once, he was the hero.



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I'll probably post more writing exercises like this one in the future, as well as some full stories I'd consider actually complete.

I'll also post a good link to some prompts once I find it, for those of you who are interested.

As always, feel free to share your thoughts, questions, observations, etc.

Best wishes!

(I'm basically going to just use whatever random sign-off each time until I find one that really works)

EDIT: Here's a good list of prompts-- a couple of which I have already used.
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/writing-prompts-101/

Thursday, June 5, 2014

Maintenance


Sorry it's been a while. Here's another short story-- this one wasn't in the Introduction Of Sorts collection, but it was written around that time, so it's also one of my older works.
I did present this during a creative writing class I took recently, and it was well received both by my professor and my classmates. A few of them thought that it was an excerpt from the beginning of a novel or novella length story, rather than a stand-alone short. I think that's a good thing-- it suggests that the events of the tale imply a fuller world and narrative. However, it is just this one short story.
At least, for now.

Anyways, I hope you like it.

I just now realized how useless a thing that is to say. It's not as if I hope you are bored or insulted. Logically, it goes without saying that I want you to enjoy my story. Then again, I sincerely do hope that my little story will bring you some measure of happiness, so I will say it, regardless of the redundancy of it. Logic has little to do with the matter.





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MAINTENANCE
By William Bowles
A frigid wind swept across the snow-choked plains, kicking up a white haze against the deep, crimson sky. The temperature dropped by the hour, and the night grew darker in equal measure, but within the concrete walls of the factory, the evening crew persevered.
“These machines sure require a lot of attention, don’t they?” Simon asked, pulling his fleece hat down over his ears. Though the steel and concrete of the factory walls kept the howling winds at bay, winter's chill always managed to sneak in.
“If it could fix itself they wouldn't have to call us out here, now would they?” Carl retorted.
He scraped off a layer of frost that had built up on the outside of the machine, then began to unscrew a plate to check the wiring within.
“How much do you think a machine like this costs?” Simon asked.
Carl ignored the question. “Hand me the pliers.”
Simon held the tool just out of reach.
“Not until you answer my question,” he teased.
“Quit it, Simon. We’re on the job. Don’t waste my time.”
“How much did this thing cost?” Simon insisted.
Carl sighed. “Ten billion,” he guessed.
Simon whistled. “Wow. That’s a lot of money,” he said, though he had imagined a greater sum. “Really? Ten billion?”
“I don’t know. I'm just guessing,” Carl said, and snatched the pliers from Simon's unresisting hand. “Maybe twenty or thirty. Hell, it could be one billion or a hundred billion for all I know. I just know how much I get paid for repairing it.”
“And how much we get docked if we don’t!” Simon chimed in.
“Yeah. So stop distracting me and let’s make sure this thing is good to go.”
“Okay.”
For a little while, they didn’t speak as they checked wire connections, cleaned out dirt and ice, and replaced components that were damaged or worn. As Carl climbed down into the control chamber, he wished that his coworker would just stay quiet, though past experience told him that that was unlikely.
“What if it overheats again?” Simon asked. “What’d happen?”
Carl sighed. It seemed to him that Simon lacked the ability to keep his mouth closed for more than fifteen consecutive seconds. He counted.
“We were lucky they brought it in soon enough this time. If it had been farther out, they might not have been able to recover it at all.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Really.”
“But what if it does?” Simon asked. “I mean, overheat again.”
A part of Carl wanted to tell his novice coworker to stop asking unnecessary questions, but realized that it was a relevant inquiry. Simon was worried about possible consequences, which was understandable.
“We’ll probably get fired for doing a half-assed job.”
“Oh. Is that all?” he was a bit relieved, having imagined medieval torture.
“Well, actually,” Carl hesitated as he opened the main hatch, “actually, you’d only get a pay cut. I’d get fired.”
“’Cause I’m just a technician and you’re a chief engineer, right? So you’re the one responsible if something goes wrong, right?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
Simon nodded. “Okay, but what about the machine?”
“Oh, it’d be ruined. One more over-heat and this baby’s done for.” Carl patted the steel hull affectionately. “Especially if it breaks down way out there. Not like last time, when it was so nearby.”
With the hatch open, Carl climbed down the latter into the machine's interior
“Do these things overheat easily?” Through a nearby window, Simon watched the sky as it faded slowly from a deep blue to the cold black of obsidian.
“Only if the main cooling line is faulty.” Carl called out from inside the machine. He removed the damaged line as he spoke, which had become worn out over the past several months. Simon saw the old cooling line tossed out of the hatch and he stepped to the edge of his elevated platform, watching the length of blue-coated tubing tumble down to the ground below. Simon gulped. He had never been fond of heights.
“If there’s even a small flaw in the coating,” Carl called out, his voice accompanied by the mechanical clatter of tool-work, “it will eventually wear out, and that’d be the end of it.”
Simon looked skeptical and opened his mouth, but Carl cut him off as if he could see him.
“Yes, even in this weather. The temperature outside doesn’t do so much to the mechanics inside. Not as much as you’d think. It’s all the friction, burning fuel, and electronics, you see. All that generates a lot of heat.”
Carl then appeared head-first as he climbed up out of the hatch, closing it behind him.
Again, Simon pondered. He contemplated his next question more carefully. For a minute, neither of them said a word. Carl was beginning to hope Simon had finally shut up once and for all, though his hopes were in vain.
“Um… Carl?” Simon asked reluctantly.
“What is it, Simon?”
Almost afraid of the answer, he asked “How many people… will it kill?”
Carl shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. A thousand, perhaps,” he answered casually. “Maybe more. Hand me the welder.”
When he was not given the tool, he looked over at Simon who stood staring back at him; pale as snow.
“A… A thousand…?” he asked weakly.
“Yeah. Give or take,” Carl said. “Maybe ten thousand. If it does its job.”
“But… why?”
“Why? Because of all the rebels in Jadensburg, you dolt. We send this baby in and shoot up a few city blocks… it’ll teach them a lesson.”
“But it isn’t just killing rebels, is it? It’s going to kill innocent people too, isn’t it?”
“Well, there's bound to be some collateral. A machine can’t tell the difference. Besides, it doesn’t have to eliminate the rebel militia. All it needs to do is send a message.”
“A message?” Simon retorted in disbelief.
“Yeah. Something along the lines of ‘this is what happens to traitors.’”
“But they’re not all traitors. Most of the people there are innocent, aren’t they? Just… regular people. Probably didn’t do anything bad at all. Don’t you think that’s wrong?”
“Oh, I know it’s wrong. Everything’s wrong,” Carl said wearily as he cleaned some debris out from the crevices of one of the massive Gatling gun barrels “It’s not a matter of who's right, because no one is. But if I walk away, someone else will do the repairs. Besides, I need money, too. I stopped caring a long time ago. It just made things harder.”
“But… why? They’re just innocent people. They didn’t do anything wrong. They’re just regular people like you and me. Why do we have to kill them?”
Carl turned to him, and shot him an accusing look. “You got a complaint, Simon?”
Overhearing the argument, another worker on a platform some yards away called out “Is everything okay over there?”
Engineers and repairmen on other platforms looked at them, too.
Carl looked at Simon. “Well?”
“No, no. I… I’ve got no complaint,” he said submissively. “Everything's okay over here,”
“Nothing to worry about,” Carl replied to the other engineer, who went back to what he had been doing. The others too soon returned their attention to other things.
“Alright then,” Carl said, calming down, “let’s finish up and get outta here.”
Simon nodded sullenly. “Okay.”
“Hey, lighten up, will ya?”
“I know. It’s just… Have you ever thought of--”
“I try not to,” Carl interrupted. He shook his head, trying to forget about what his actions were going to cause.
Simon kept mostly quiet after that. If he had any further questions, he kept them to himself, which Carl appreciated. The silence gave him time to think without distraction. But his mind wasn’t on the job at hand.
The repair crews checked the giant treads for damage, but they were fine. Simon found a crushed and rusted old bicycle that must have been stuck under the treads for a while, but there was nothing of consequence. One of the rocket launchers needed a replacement igniter; cameras seventeen, nine, and twenty-two needed cleaning; and the paint job needed touching up where a Molotov cocktail had burned it.
By around one o'clock in the morning, the repairs were nearly done. Everyone was exhausted, yet they were all grateful it hadn't taken longer. One by one, teams finished their jobs, lowered their lifts, and vacated the facility. As Carl finished the last of the tasks, he turned to Simon.
“So. Ah… Looks like we’re about done here,” he said, hesitantly. “You go on. I’ll close up.”
“You sure?” Simon asked.
Carl shook his head. “Don't worry about it. We're just about done anyway.”
Simon nodded. He flipped the switch to lower his platform. Once he reached the ground, he stepped down and made his way toward the exit.
Carl looked at the hatch and thought; recent words echoing through his mind.
From the toolbox he produced a pair of pliers, and then paused. He gave himself one last chance to reconsider, but eventually decided to go ahead. He opened the hatch and went down into the tiny maintenance chamber within the machine's interior. With the pliers he stripped a bit of the coating from the main cooling line and left.



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What is the moral of this story? Some of my classmates interpreted it as an anti-war message. While war is generally an ill thing indeed, that is not the purpose of this tale. After all, there is no war involved; it is an internal conflict. "War" implies two sides fighting against each other. The horrors described by Carl are not war, but massacre. If this story is anti-anything, it's murder, corruption, and apathy. If its about anything, its about bravery, and standing up for what's right, no matter the consequences. Or something like that.

Then again, Maintenance is primarily a form of entertainment. I want it to be enjoyed. If it has any positive impact on the world, then that is a greater thing than I could ever have hoped for. Yet this is not a soap box from which I protest this or that. This is meant to be a fun story, first and foremost. I do hope that my stories can inspire some degree of good in the world, but it's not meant to be a message merely in the guise of entertainment.

One of my classmates said that she imagined Carl joining the rebellion and having a story of his own, in which he fights against the tyrannical government, or something like that.
While I was glad the story was able to imply further events in her imagination, that's not really the point of the story. The nature of the rebellion and the government are merely background, intentionally left vague. In fact, who's to say that the rebels are even the good guys? Sure, somebody in the higher-ups ordered a horrific internal strike at a city believed to support the rebellion, but A) that doesn't necessarily mean that everyone in charge feels the same, and B) it doesn't mean that the rebels are any better. They could be just a violent bunch of anarchists are just lashing out at authority for the sake of it. Conflicts are not always that simple. In fact, they rarely are.
I think one reason why she imagined that sort of scenario is because we Americans love us a good rebellion. Everything from Star Wars to the founding of our own nation is centered on the brave and idealistic rebels fighting against an oppressive force that seems impossibly strong. Something about overcoming impossible odds and the overthrow of unjust authority is just so ingrained in our very being that we can connect to it on a subconscious level.
Or something like that.

I get the idea that this isn't going to be the last of my long-winded ramblings.

Anyways, feel free to share your thoughts, interpretations, feelings, questions, observations, etc.

I hope you enjoyed this story.

P.S. I will post the 10th page of the Hero's Dilemma comic soon. Maybe today or tomorrow.
EDIT: It's up now!

Monday, May 19, 2014

Otto

Sun and Mountain may have been the first story I wrote with publication in mind, but Otto was my first story to actually see any kind of publication.
It was published in a local short story magazine and won first place in it's category. It may not be a masterpiece, but it's a fun little story that I'm quite proud of, if I do say so myself. And I hope you will like it as much as my friends and I do.



OTTO
By William Bowles
It was another gray day in Industry City, and as always, the morning found Otto pushing his old steel-mesh supply cart from house to house.
Despite the distances he had to walk each day, he rather enjoyed his job. It was not what you'd call a dream job. Or a nice job. Or even a respectable job. But it was a job. A real, legitimate, occupation. Most others like him would never achieve anything in life, working as servants or manual laborers: slaves in all but name.
When he reached the next house on his route, he approached the front door and pulled the cart up just behind him and to one side. He knocked three times on the door and waited patiently for a reply. It wasn't long before the door opened to reveal a curly-haired, middle aged woman. She looked at Otto with a slightly puzzled expression, but listened nonetheless.
“Evvvning ma’am.” Otto greeted in a friendly tone.
“Good evening....” she said, unsure of how to respond.
“My nammmme is Otto. Are you havinggg agoodday?”
“Yes, I am. Thank you for asking. What can I do for you?”
“It’s nnnot what youcando for me,” Otto said, “it’s what I can do for yooou.”
“Oh?” She looked behind him and saw the cart. “Are you selling something?” It didn’t take Sherlock Holmes to figure out his agenda at this point. He gave his regular sales pitch, displaying various trinkets, devices, tools, and parts. It was all mechanical goods. People in Industry City would basically buy three things from mobile venders: mechanical goods, edible goods, and subscriptions to magazines that would never show up.
Although she found nothing she needed, she gave him a tip. According to another of Otto's philosophies, these small donations were, in a way, better than sales. For one, they are given out of good will rather than for personal gain, which cheered up the young salesman on hard days. Secondly, they did not deplete inventory.
Meeting a friendly person always improved Otto’s mood, and gave him the courage to keep going on through rough times. Some days he needed all the support he could get.
When Otto knocked on the next door, the resident seemed to stall as long as he could, no doubt waiting to see if the visitor would leave of his own accord. Finally, however, the door opened. The man was large, unshaven, and not happy at all to see Otto.
“Gooood eveningsir!” Otto said. “Howareyou?”
Otto could already tell the man was uninterested, but he had to ask regardless.
“Nope. Sorry. I don’t buy from robots.” The man said plainly, his apology being nothing more than an empty word, most likely spoken unaware.
“But sir, if you’d jussst...” Otto said in as friendly a voice as he could muster.
“I don’t buy from robots.” The resident said, with finality, and closed the door. It wasn’t even slammed, just closed, as if a full slam was more effort than the mechanical vendor was worth.
Otto was left standing at the door step, dejected and embarassed. This sort of treatment, though unfair, was not uncommon.
Despite his hardships, a robot’s lot was not as bad in those days as it had been in years past. He in particular was better off than most of his kind. Even so, rejection hurt him as much as it would a man of flesh and blood.
The fact that sales had been down didn’t help matters. His inventory was beginning to run low and he hadn’t received any supplies in a long time.

As sales continued to escape him, even he--usually so perky--was beginning to lose confidence. But a ray of light came to him at that time, personified by a familiar face.
Lewis was a distance down the road, and walked quickly towards Otto, waving to catch his attention. He too was a salesman; one of the few that had managed to escape the factory work of common machines. The encounter brought Otto some confidence.
“Hey there, Otto!” Lewis said cheerfully as he approached. He was a V twenty-four: Mk2, a newer model of android than Otto, a V twenty-three. The two were of very similar outward appearance, but the improved twenty-four had an upgraded voice card that was more durable than Otto's, which was already damaged.
“Hello Lllllewisss.” Otto said, his mood already beginning to lighten.
“Are you alright Otto? Something seems to be troubling you.” Lewis inquired. “Have sales been down?”
“Twentyyyyy percentanddropping.”
“Aren’t you due for a re-supply?”
“Prrrobably not.” And then, for optimism sake added “Maybe withinthemonth...”
“My sales are up 12.66 percent this month. Maybe you just need a break. I know you work all day.”
“I’m ok-k-k--- ay.” Otto insisted. His argument was unconvincing.
“You really don’t sound too good.” Lewis said to him. “You remember Bart, right?”
“He raaaan like clockwork.”
“Yes.” Lewis agreed. “And no one has heard from him in months. No doubt he wore himself out and short circuited.”
“You don’t, don’t, donnnnn’tknowthat.”
“Listen to you, Otto. You’re about to blow that old voice card of yours yourself. Let’s take some time off. It’ll do you some good.”
Otto agreed to take a break. To Lewis he seemed reluctant, but in fact he welcomed the change from routine. But Otto was a hard worker, and he only allowed himself rests when necessary. Within the hour, he was back to work.

The next day (as gray as usual), as Otto pushed his old cart along, he came across a house that seemed to be illuminated less by lamps or light fixtures than by sparks. He could hear the buzz of power tools inside as he knocked on the door, and waited for the resident to answer. After a second, the sparks stopped and the lights came back on.
The young man who answered was wearing heavy-duty machining gloves and a welding mask, which he raised after opening the door. When he saw Otto, a smile appeared on his oil-smudged face.
“Hey buddy! What’s going on?” He said, clearly a robot enthusiast. When he saw the cart, he added “You selling stuff?”
Otto nodded.
“Well, let’s see whacha got.” To him, the idea of buying mechanical parts from a robot seemed a novel idea.
The machinist stepped out of his house, approached the cart, and scanned Otto’s inventory with child-like enthusiasm. It wasn’t long before he found something that really caught his eye. He pointed to the parts and shouted out to Otto, an excited grin on his face.
“Are these parts to a V twenty-four?”
“Mk2.” Otto specified.
“Wow!” He exclaimed, picking up an arm here, a battery there. “You got like, the whole guy in here!”
“I have parts for the entire model.” Otto confirmed. “Except for the voice card, I’m afraid.”

- THE END -

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The idea behind this story was to start out giving the readers the least information possible, and then allow them to find out more a little bit at a time. First, Otto's just walking along with a cart full of supplies. Then you learn more and more about him as the story progresses. I hope I was able to do so as well as I would have liked.

 In contrast to Sun and Mountain, there isn't any specific lesson here. At least, not that I'm aware of. And certainly not one that was a driving focus or motivating factor in it.
If you think there is, then by all means, enlighten me.

 As mentioned before, Otto is part of my short story bundle "An Introduction of Sorts", which is available on Kindle and Kindle apps. It's only a dollar, and because of Kindle's hosting fees, I don't get much at all per sale, but it is nice to be able to see how many people cared enough to purchase it.

 Again, I hope you enjoyed this story, and I look forward to posting further pieces here in the future.

 Until next time!

Friday, May 16, 2014

Sun and Mountain

This is the first story I ever wrote with real intent to publish; the first I wrote with any idea that fiction could be a thing that I did. Considering that, I figure it would be a good first story to post here.
It's a little different than my usual style, but I like it. It has a lot of sentimental value to me, and a special place in my heart.
I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Sun and Mountain

One cold winter afternoon, while Sun was high above, Mountain marveled at Sun's warmth.
"Even on this frozen winter day," Mountain said to Sun "you can still keep us all from freezing!"
"This is nothing!" Sun said. "I can create more warmth than this!"
"Really?" asked Mountain. "Show me!"
So Sun began to glow a bright red, and sent forth a thousand balls of fire in all directions; each one exploding in a shower of sparks, warming the earth as if it were a hot summer day.
"Amazing!" Mountain exclaimed.
"It is very hard to control so much fire." Sun replied.
"You are very good at it." Mountain said in admiration.
"Thank you." Said the Sun. "It is what I've done since the dawn of time."
"I wish I had fire..." Mountain said, half to himself.
"You cannot control the fire." Sun said. "Fire is strong and fierce and dangerous."
"What if I had just a little?" Mountain suggested.
"There is never a little fire." Sun replied. "You are not strong enough to control the fire."
Disappointed, Mountain said good-bye to Sun. Sun said good-bye, and went about his way.
But Mountain couldn't let it go. He was envious of Sun's fire, and wanted some for himself. But since he could have none, he was crestfallen.
That's when Shadow came to him.
Now, you must understand that Shadow is the trickiest of all Nature’s children. He is mischievous and cleaver.
"What’s the matter, Mountain?" Shadow asked.
"I wish I could have fire like Sun." Mountain said in a sad tone.
"He won’t let you?" Shadow asked.
"No." Mountain answered "He said I’m too weak."
"You’re not weak." Shadow said encouragingly "You’re one of Nature's strongest children. Even Wind, who moves all others, cannot move you."
"You think so?" Asked Mountain.
"Sure! In fact, I will get you the fire you seek."
"Really?" Mountain asked in disbelief.
"If you can help me." Shadow said. "I help you, you help me. That sounds fair, right?"
"Yes, yes!" Mountain exclaimed.
And shadow left to get the fire. But Sky over heard this. Since Sky is everywhere, he sees everything. And whenever he sees trouble, he always reports to Sun, who cannot be everywhere at once.
"Are you sure about this?" Sun asked Sky.
"Positive." Sky answered with certainty.
"Then you must keep an eye on Shadow." Sun said. "And if he starts causing trouble, you must stop him."
"But I cannot do anything." Sky said to Sun.
Sun though about this: it did pose a serious problem. Sun can stop Shadow, but can only be in one place at a time, and even then, he is too far away to catch him quickly. Sky is everywhere, and is close enough to the earth to act quickly, but cannot do anything to stop him. Sun thought about this for a minute.
"I know!" Sun exclaimed. "I will give you fire with which you can stop Shadow. Shadow dislikes anything bright."
So sun took a piece of fire, and split it into a thousand pieces and sent them across the heavens, so Sky would be able to use fire no matter where or when Shadow appeared.
But Shadow is also everywhere, and he over heard this discussion. He decided to use this to his advantage. Some time later, when Sun was away, Shadow came out to play some tricks.
"Stop causing trouble!" Sky said to Shadow.
"I’m not hurting anyone." Shadow said defensively.
"Sun told me to stop you if you caused any more problems." Sky said sternly.
"What are you going to do about it, Sky?" Shadow asked. "You can’t do anything."
"I can stop you now!" Sky said, getting fed up with Shadow’s petty games.
So Sky took fire from one of the fragments Sun had given him, and threw it down to the ground with a mighty shout. He threw it so hard and fast it became like a jagged beam of light. So great was Sky's fire that it shocked and scared Shadow. It was stronger than either of them had imagined. But Shadow’s plan had worked, nonetheless. He picked up a branch that had been hit by the fire, and now burned on one end.
Shadow went with haste to Mountain with the fire.
"Here, Mountain!" Shadow said.
"You really got the fire!?" Mountain exclaimed, not thinking Shadow would actually succeed.
"You can have it," Shadow said "But you have to help me."
"Anything!" Mountain blurted out in desperation.
"You must let me hide within you when ever I need." Shadow said quickly, knowing Sun would come soon.
"Yes, of course." Mountain agreed. He opened his mouth to let Shadow in. So Shadow went into Mountain’s mouth and put the fire in his throat. Just then, Sun came.
"Mountain!" Sun shouted.
"I am here!" Mountain said in excitement.
"Is it true?" Sun asked, fearing the worst. "Have you taken the fire?"
"Yes!" Mountain said, barely able to contain himsef. "Watch what I can do!"
Mountain looked to the heavens, opened his mouth, and sent forth a great flame that shot up, and rained down upon the earth around him. But the fire was hot, and Mountain yelled out in pain.
"That hurt!" He shouted. "My mouth is burning! My throat is burning! My stomach is burning!"
Sun sighed in disappointment. "That is because the fire is too strong for you. It is fierce and chaotic. You thought it was small, but it grew very fast."
"I want to get rid of it!" Mountain cried out "Help me! Take it back!"
"I cannot take the fire back, Mountain." Sun said. "It is your burden now. You must always hold it inside of you, so it doesn’t burn up the whole world. This is why I always keep the fire far away from the earth."

So, this is why Sky has stars, to throw fire down at Shadow when he causes mischief. This is why Shadow always hides from Sun, coming out in the open only when Sun is away, and hiding when he is near. He also hides in Mountain’s cavernous mouth, since Sun can never find him there. And this is why Mountain has fire inside of him. And since he isn’t strong enough to hold it, it often escapes from him.
If Mountain had just let Sun take care of the fire instead of being taken over by jealousy, he wouldn’t have the painful burden that he has brought upon himself to this day.

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To this day, I am not sure how I came up with this story. It sort of wrote itself; each element of the tale inviting the next scene unbidden.
It was inspired, in part, by old Native American folk tales, where in aspects of nature were the characters in place of the humans that had not yet come to be.
What's odd is that I have tried numerous times to write more fables like this one, yet it never worked. I could not, as they say, make lightning strike twice. It is as if this story of Mountain and the rest of nature's children could come about only by spontaneous inspiration, and never by force. It certainly wasn't for a lack of ideas-- those I had plenty of. Perhaps it will happen again some day. Perhaps it won't. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.
And if I never get the inspiration for a second, well, at least I will have written this one.

Sun and Mountain is available on Kindle and related apps, bundled along with two other stories, Maintenance and Humakora in a collection called "An Introduction of Sorts"-- so called because it was essentially my introduction to the world.

Anyways, I hoped you liked it. I will post more of my stories here, along with excerpts, prompts, exercises, as well as whatever writing related topics I feel like talking about.

...I need to come up with a good sign-off.

Thursday, May 15, 2014

An Introduction of Sorts

Welcome to my new blog. Make yourselves at home.

Here, I will post short stories, excerpts, and more. Some of which I have already published (usually either self published, or in a local magazine), others are being seen by the public for the first time.

I am hoping to reach new audiences through this blog. I tend to write in a wide variety of genres, mainly fantasy and science fiction, but I've dabbled in a variety of other genres and settings.
Maybe it's a better idea financially to pick one thing and go with it all the way, but I write what I enjoy, and I want to reach as many different people as I can, not just one group.

But enough of my rantings-- there will be a story here tomorrow, which I will talk about then.

Until then, take care!
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