Prose, Poetry, and Pictures
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Behind the Story: Evening at the Bus Stop
Yesterday I posted a story sketch “Evening at the Bus Stop” about an old man and a distressed woman having a conversation in which both are unable to really listen to each other. Today I want to go over some of steps that I took to complete that sketch. It all started with an idea. I…
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Story Sketch: Evening at the Bus Stop
It’s six o’clock in the little town of Layton, Utah. The sun has already set and the sky is covered with a seeming endless coat of dark clouds. On Main Street, at a small bus stop, sits a woman in a purple windbreaker. Her short, curly hair is newly dyed the blackish-red color of old…
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Why Do We Tell Stories? – Part 2
Yesterday I spent some time on the question of why we tell stories. I started by going over the functions of story outlined by professor Harvey. Today I wanted to break from her list and start listing some functions of story that I observe, note any overlaps, and examine these functions more closely. I would…
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Why Do We Tell Stories?
“Let’s start at the very beginning / A very good place to start” —Julie Andrews, The Sound of Music Today, as Julie Andrews suggests, I want to go back to the beginning and explore a basic question: Why do we tell stories? Not only in creative writing, but in daily life as well. A couple of…
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It’s Time for a Change
I’ve been busy with my non-writing work and with launching a new business, so for the first time in four years, I’m having difficulty finding time to write, which is unacceptable. For the past four years I’ve had nearly unlimited time to study the art and craft of writing and to put that study into practice,…
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Fred the Zombie: Part IV
You are reading part IV of this periodical. Click here to read part III. That evening, as the other zombies harass a broken-down Ford Explorer full of an unfortunate group of survivors, and the chirping of crickets mingle with the moans of the dead, Fred and Tiffany stroll shoulder to shoulder down the street. Fred…
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Fred the Zombie: Part III
You are reading part III of this periodical. Click here to read part II. Fred blinks, trying to decide if he is seeing things. Is this really Tiffany here before him, sharing the flesh of the same corpse? Dare he believe his rotting eyes? But there she sits, and here he sits, and — what…
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Fred the Zombie: Part II
You are reading part II of this periodical. Click here to read part I. Tiffany D. had been the lead check girl at the Ralph’s where Fred worked. She was an aster of optimism in a garden of disgruntled weeds, a girl who smiled for every customer, made small talk with the elderly, and always…
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Fred the Zombie: Part I
Fred is a typical zombie. He enjoys shambling through the streets, staring blankly into the sun on hot days, chasing after stray dogs, and, naturally, feasting on the flesh of the living. Yes, Fred partakes in all the typical luxuries of the undead — thriving in some ways — in a once-heavily-populated-and-well-fed community. But Fred…
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Writing Prompt: write a short magical realism story about loneliness
Hello you. Here is a short story sketch I wrote about a Pygmalion-like character with some twists on the original myth. I hope you enjoy it. Giroff spread the crinkling blinds and peered down on a group of friends passing under his window. His eyes were bloodshot and the flesh around them was swollen and an ugly shade…