Category Archives: S. C. Green

Leg Day, Part I

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Welcome to another Round Robin story from the folks at the Parking Lot Confessional. If this is your first time reading, here’s how it goes. Today I’ll post the beginning of a story. My cohorts have no prior knowledge of what’s going to happen beyond these italics. That gives the next person only two days to figure out the next part of the story. Then another two days goes by before the final installment created and posted for your pleasure. I’m kicking this Round Robin Story off with an idea a friend planted just this weekend. Enjoy!

Leg Day

For the third time that day Char got the wheel of her chair stuck in a divot. The third time, and telling from the wrenching crunch, a bent rim. She could look past it though. Look past the ill luck, excessive stares and nervous jitters. She could look past all of it because tomorrow she got her legs.

The closer she got to the day, the more she couldn’t focus on anything else. It was the same every year.

Char looked around the courtyard. Not for help, but to check for witnesses. Not much is more embarrassing. Sure, the kids of the town get stuck and break wheels all the time. The adults, not so much. This will be her eighteenth Leg Day. She shouldn’t be breaking any more wheels.

Rocking side to side, she was able to roll herself out of the divot and continued home. Every few feet her chair lurched to the right. The wheel was definitely bent, but she’d be able to make it home and swap the wheel before her dad would even notice.

Really she knew better than to cross the courtyard, but she was in a hurry to get home. The sooner to sleep, the quicker tomorrow would be here. Char quickly forgot her lurching chair and went on creating her mental list of things she’d do once she got her legs.

When she was younger, and Leg Day came, she ran. She ran until her breath struggled to catch up. She ran until she saw stars. She ran until she puked. She ran up and down the wheel ramps, but mostly she ran through the grass, up the hills, and every place her wheels couldn’t take her.

Char still planned to devote part of her day to running. Running and more. Her dad used to love to climb. Trees, mountains, walls, really anything vertical, so he claimed.

She thought about Cleo and Eddie. They had the same Leg Day and every year they danced. Char didn’t know if it was good, but they smiled, laughed and loved as they spun, hopped and held each other close. So it must have been good. If Char shared her Leg Day. She would chase and be chased, though she never wanted to be caught.

Eventually the running would stop. It was far too easy to tell the homes of Day Afters. They were always too quiet. Quiet unless they had children. It took years for them to get use to the Day After. One year Char thought that if she kept running, run right through the night, she could have her legs for another day. It took her father three hours to get to her amongst the trees where her legs became lifeless and dead to the touch. Char didn’t like to think about that day. There would be plenty of time during her own Day After.

She rolled through the front door, and hurried to the mom’s old room where they kept spare chair parts.

“Charlotte? Is that you?”

She didn’t expect her dad to be home. Her hopes for covering up her bent wheel sank, almost bringing down her mood. Almost.

“What’re you doing home?” She turned to find her dad wheeling in from the kitchen. A waft of bacon followed him.

“Is that–”

“Breakfast for dinner? I know it’s your favorite.”

“Yes!” Char did a little victory wiggle in her chair. “I wasn’t expecting anything until tomorrow.”

The smile on his face faltered. He tried to master it back, but it only looked forced and perhaps painful.

“Char. We need to talk about your Leg Day.”

Come back Wednesday for Part II of Leg Day…

Fresh Eyes or a Fresh Load?

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We’ve all gotten bad writing advice at one time or another. Most of us eventually shake it off and move on. Heck, I bet there are a few of you out there that have given bad writing advice. I won’t point fingers, you know who you are. What I want to bring to light is a piece of good advice that could be bad if done wrong.

Fresh Eyes

At one time or another you’ve heard someone suggest this. I’ve heard it and suggested it. The scenarios differ — You’ve just completed your first draft; A scene has you stumped; You can’t seem to figure out what a character is doing or why; the story has lost momentum. Then when you reach out for help you get this response (in some form or another):

“Put it down for a while. Then come back to it with fresh eyes.”

This type of advice should only be given out along with explicit instructions. A doctor would go around writing prescriptions without instructions. If that wasn’t enough, the pharmacist also  has to tell you how to take it when you pick it up. I consider this piece of advice as a prescription. If you abuse it, you risk flat-lining your entire work.

So how do you keep it from doing harm, you ask? First off, let’s split into two groups. Unfinished works and finished works.

When you get this advice for solving a problem that’s keeping you from finishing your story, it often time means you’re too close to the situation. Maybe you can’t see the novel for the characters. You can get so focused on a single character, setting or event that you can forget what story you set out to tell. Then on the flip side, you could be so engrossed in the big plot or theme that you forget that each character has their own life to be fleshed out on the page. In this case, “fresh eyes” could mean jumping to a different part of the story or revert to an outline (I just saw all the pantsers out there clench). Working other parts of the story can solve the whatever roadblock you’re currently facing.

As for the lucky ones who are dealing with a finished manuscript, fresh eyes is usually meant as, “Take a break. Relax. Drink some wine. In a few days, weeks or months you can pick up the finished draft and work on revisions. That way you can view it somewhat anew.”

I’ve seen more stories die from this mentality. Sure a break seems just. A celebratory glass of wine is a great way to cap off the big THE END you just typed. But putting off edits and revisions for more than a day can be a big mistake.

Let’s be real. If you wrote the story chronologically (most do), that first chapter was printed and dried months and months ago. Even if you are a NaNoWriMo winner, you’re still thirty days from your first words. I’m sure your eyes will be plenty “fresh” to start again. Also, with the ending so fresh in your mind, the beginning chapters should be easier to tweak knowing your end game (again, talking to you pantsers out there).

Either way, finished or unfinished, if you just can’t stand the thought of diving back in right away, do yourself a favor and start something else. Immediately. Even one day away from writing, is one more day to create excuses to not go back the next.

500 Club (5/17)

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This Thursday I find myself ready to melt into the concrete. With some luck, maybe we can also thaw a bit of that creative glacier with a few writing prompts. Who knows where the word-runoff could lead.

Here’s what to do:

  1. Write 500 words based on one of the two prompts below.
  2. Post it to your blog.
  3. Give us a small taste in the comments below along with a link to the full text.

As always, feel free to change the name and sex of the characters as you see fit. After all, it’s your story.:

1. Finish this opener: Only one left. The first two were wasted.

2. Flashback Challenge: Write 500 words where the last half is a flashback. The first half should stand on its own, but have the flashback change the way the reader sees the first half.

500 Club (5/10)

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I see we found our way to another Thursday and yet another set of writing prompts. Let’s see if we can’t wring some creative thoughts in 500 words. Think you can do it? Here’s all you need to know to get at it:

The rules as we see fit:

  1. Write 500 words based on one of the two prompts below.
  2. Post it to your blog.
  3. Give us a small taste in the comments below along with a link to the full text.

As always, feel free to change the name and sex of the characters as you see fit. After all, it’s your story.:

1. Deus ex machina: Where a seemingly unsolvable situation is neatly wrapped up by an intervening god, character, event, object, etc. A device better avoided… except this time. Write 500 words from the view-point of that intervening god, character, event or object.

2. Picture Worth 1,000 500 Words: Write 500 words based on the picture below.

Click for larger image.

All Tied in Knots

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It’s confession time, again. And there’s nothing worse than posting one of these that sounds more like a list of excuses than a list of accomplishments. I have a little of both this month. Okay, more of one than the other.

For the last month I’ve felt like I’ve had my hands tied when it came to getting anything creatively done. Everything from house hunting to laptops breaking plagued me this month. Just classic cases of life happening. Converging all at once makes it suck that much more.

Those were legitimate problems to stop writing for a while. Now they’re not. However, the longer I went without writing, the harder it was to pick it up again. I began looking for other things to do that would keep me from writing. You know, things like house work.

So in concerted effort to break that unhealthy chain, I’ve started to write. My first task was to finish the Round Robin story we set out to do **mumble-mumble** weeks ago. To keep it fair, I didn’t (completely) read it until I knew I’d have the time to finish it. Shooting from the hip is a big premise to the story, and I didn’t want to deviate from that. You can read the full story here, or get to it from the menu bar above.

Now I’ll wrap this up so I might get to another short story I have brewing. In the mean time, can you let me know how you manage to get out of your non-writing slumps? One can never have to many tools at his or her disposal.

3 Things I Need to STOP DOING So I Can Write Already!

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I procrastinate.

There. I said it.

Usually I can pull out of my procrastination haze and complete whatever task I’m avoiding in just under the wire. It’s the fear of consequences that gets me to the finish line on time. If I don’t do my job, I’ll be looking for a new one. If I don’t get the house in order, I’ll have the wrath of the Mrs. to deal with. See where I’m going? Fear is a powerful motivator for me.

I can’t say the same about writing. I have no deadlines other than my own. If I don’t meet them, then I change them. Not done by Friday? What’s another week. Less than a thousand words written today? Five hundred will do, right? Sure I’m left with guilt, but it doesn’t have the same effect as fear. I’m going to continue to work on it. In the mean time, let me clue you in on some of the bad things I should be cutting out:

1. INTERNET

I have to echo The Amys here. This is the number one time-suck to my writing time. It always stars out innocent enough. Check an email. May write one (that counts as writing, right? Didn’t think so.)

Look in on Facebook. Click a link. Then another. Next thing I know, I’m dosed with some cyber goodness such as the like of the Burrito Bison, The Annoying Orange, and Phil in the Whaaat? For those of you who clicked the links, you’re welcome… or sorry, as the case may be.

*For full disclosure, I spent more than a half hour playing on those sites just now, getting their URL. Stupid internet goodness.

2. Cleaning House

Sound odd? Well, when I’m in need of a good excuse not to write, I suddenly find the state of my house unacceptable. Dusting, mopping, dishes and laundry take immediate priority. And for those of you who don’t know me, I hate each and every one of those activities. Yet somehow at times, they seem like a better idea than tackling that difficult plot, character or setting. My wife might string me up, but I must cut out the cleaning.

3. Be Selfish, Not Selfless

This is the hardest one for me. I want to put everyone else before me. I want the best for my family, and I want to be the one to do it for them. My wife and I have a good balance in that regards. It took us several years to get it right, and there might be a hiccup now and again, but we make it work. My problem is crumbling for my kids. How can I resist when my two-year-old pats the ground next to her and says, “Come on Daddy. Sit. Sit.” Answer: I can’t. And do I just ignore when my son brings wild snakes he’s caught into the house? Answer: A resounding NO!

I’m getting better, I limit my time on the internet. I barely touch it on the weekends, and house cleaning is limited to designated days. Eventually I’ll be able to sneak away more for myself. As the kids get older, they’re less entertained by Dad. That’ll hit harder one day, but for now it’s a small light at what feels like a very long tunnel.

What do you need to avoid? Are you successful? Any and all tips are appreciated.

500 Club (4/19)

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Hello Thursday!

I have some writing prompts ready and waiting to be tackled. Carve out a few minutes and give them a try.

Here’s all you’ll need to know:

  1. Write 500 words based on one of the two prompts below.
  2. Post it to your blog.
  3. Give us a small taste in the comments below along with a link to the full text.

As always, feel free to change the name and sex of the characters as you see fit. After all, it’s your story.:

1. Finish this opening: Killing the headlights and coasting up the driveway, the crunch of the gravel under the tires was the only indication he had arrived. He checked the passenger seat again. No turning back now.

2. Work a poem into a 500 word story. The poem can be as long or as short as you like, made up or well-known (just remember to give credit where credit is due).

Not Much

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There’s not much to tell this month. My time has been consumed with buying a new home. I can honestly say I wasn’t prepared for the emotional roller coaster buying a home can cause. Just typing this post is causing some hair to lose its will to hold on to my scalp.

The writing is sparse and rather home-buying related. I’ve seriously slacked and have put my energies elsewhere. I have no doubt that’s adding to the roller coaster.

Soon the ride will be over. Please, please, let it be over soon. At which time I’ll pick the up the slack and write away in my new digs.

Best of luck in your own writing endeavors.

500 Club (3/29)

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Let’s take a break from the Round Robin story to give you a chance stretch your creative muscle too. Use these prompts to go crazy. Break outside of your normal writing style. It’s only 500 words. How hard can that be? Give it a try. Even Bat Boy can do it.

Here’s all you’ll need to know:

  1. Write 500 words based on one of the two prompts below.
  2. Post it to your blog.
  3. Give us a small taste in the comments below along with a link to the full text.

As always, feel free to change the name and sex of the characters as you see fit. After all, it’s your story.:

1. Finish this opening: Bill had no problem showing his home. The rooms were clean, the appliances new, and the walls completely repaired. He doubted seriously anyone would notice the…

2. Pick a headline from any news source you like, the wackier the better. Off-beat tabloids are the best for these. Now, without reading the story, create your own.

The Wizard Made Me Do It

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I’m going to do something a bit different for my book review. I’m going to tell you about a book that I’m not done reading. (Truthfully, if you’ve read my other blog, you know that’s a load of hogwash. I do it all the time.) It’s captured my attention and I don’t think I could’ve waited until another From the Stacks week to tell you about it.

Wizards: Magical Tales from the Masters of Modern Fantasy is an anthology edited by Jack Dann and features a hoard authors, including Neil Gaiman, Garth Nix, Gene Wolfe, Orson Scott Card, Elizabeth Hand, Eoin Colfer, and Tad Williams just to name a few. Quite obviously this anthology revolves around one of fantasy’s favorite patriarch, the wizard. Although, as some of the stories point out, not every wizard has to be male.

I’ve heard of at least half of the names in this collection, guaranteeing my purchase. And with the exception of the first story by Neil Gaiman, all are original works. The Neil Gaiman story, “The Witch’s headstone” is actually a chapter from his novel, The Graveyard Book. No complaints here. It’s an award-winning story and stands alone beautifully.

But the main reason I’m bringing this collection to your attention is for the authors I’m not familiar with. Granted they might be known to you or someone else, but to me they were new. Authors like Jane Yolen, who wrote a story about a Jewish wizard, and Patricia A. McKillip, with the story of teen wizard on her most important day, her Naming Day. Before I read them in this book, I’ve never heard of them. Now I’m going to actively look for something else by them.

It can be difficult to find new authors to read and Identify with their stories. Word of mouth is good, but not always reliable. Anthologies are a great way to find new author while enjoying the ones you already like. I personally would like to recommend Wizards, but any anthology with an author you like in it could be just as rewarding.