What If? - The Shambling Man

Sometimes I wish I was the kind of person who saw a field of pretty flowers for what it was and not as an excellent hiding place for slithering, slobbering creatures. Or who saw an old man at a garage sale as just that and not as a sinister Stephen King character shambling toward me . . . .

Scenario: You're wandering around a big neighborhood garage sale. It's a beautiful day, lots of people are out and about, and everyone is friendly. An old man - tall, thin, gangly - shambles toward you on the sidewalk. He moves as if his joints don't quite fit together, his limbs loose like a scarecrow. Hedge clippers - large, dull - hang heavy from his left hand. He doesn't smile, but he nods, says hello, shuffles past.

What if . . . he's on his way to take down more than the hedges around his property? What if he's going after his wife? A neighbor? Why?

What if . . . he believes he must protect himself from a time traveling murderer lurking in the woods beyond his fence? Or that he must slay a monster living in the bushes around his house? What if he's crazy? What if he's not?

What if . . . plants, weeds, spindly trees are growing where they shouldn't? In the attic? In the car? From the carpet in his living room, in his bedroom? What if they're starting to grow inside of him, sprouting out of him? What if he's the only one who can feel them, see them?

What if . . . the hedge clippers are cursed and everything they cut grows back faster, thicker? What if whatever they cut into actually bleeds? What if the people who sold them to the Shambling Man know exactly what they are, what they do, but this was the only way to free themselves?

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Your turn! What is this man's story? Did you ever make up stories about people at garage sales? Imagine the history behind the items being sold? Ever wish your imagination was wired differently, like in a way that would actually let you sleep at night? 

What If? - We All Float Down Here

Since my imagination likes to take a seemingly innocent, random scenario and twist it into something with slithering shadows and skittering claws, and because I often scare myself, I would really appreciate some company as we once again play the What If? game.

Scenario: You're driving along a quiet road when you notice a lone balloon bobbing and swaying in the grass near a drainage ditch, a sewer opening nearby. It's a Get Well Soon balloon - big and shiny - anchored in place by a plastic disc.

What if . . . the balloon was placed there to lure curious people over, and once the people were near, someone - or something - dragged them off into the woods, into the sewer?

What if . . . the balloon didn't land there but grew there? Is it the start of an alien crop, one where the balloons will burst into horrible monsters at harvest time?

What if . . . the balloon got loose, drifted from another time, another place? What if there once was a hospital on that land and something very, very bad happened?

What if . . . the balloon is like a grave marker and cannot be moved or popped, no matter how hard anyone tries? Who is buried there? What kind of magic - good or evil? - keeps the balloon in place?

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Your turn! And feel free to create some "nice" tales. Believe me, I already gave myself nightmares, thinking about egg-balloons hatching hideous monsters along the sides of roads . . . .

What If? - The Sound of One Dog Yapping

It's been awhile since we had a What if? post, and since recent events sparked an idea, here we go!

The Scenario: Somewhere in the neighborhood lurks a dog with one of those yippy, yappy barks. The first time I heard it, I jumped out of my skin, thinking something was being strangled. Turns out - thankfully! - the only things being hurt were my ears. (And my sanity, such as it is.)

I don't know where this dog lives. I suspect its owner lets it hang out on the screened patio so it can get some fresh air and bark at every single thing that walks, crawls or flies by.

So, in an effort to not run screaming into the streets, I thought I'd let my imagination - and yours, if you'll join me - go screaming onto the paper/screen instead.

What if . . . the dog is trying to tell us all something, like aliens or zombies are on the way?

What if . . . we figure out where the dog lives and go over to talk - nicely! - to its owner, only to find the front door unlocked and no evidence any human lives/lived there at all? We follow the barking through the house, to the patio, only to find it empty, too. Do we just have the wrong house? Or could the place be haunted?

What if . . . we find out it's not a dog barking at all but some mutant creature never seen before? Is it from another planet? Is it the result of some lab accident or a science experiment gone wrong?

What if . . . we are the only ones who hear the barking? When we mention it to other people, they look at us like we're crazy. Are we losing our minds? Do we have super-amazing hearing? Are we hearing sounds from a parallel universe?

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Your turn! Chime in on any of the above or come up with your own! Do you have any annoying critters in your neighborhood? How did you handle it?  Did they ever make an appearance in one of your stories or blog posts?

Round and Round We Go

You all know by now how much I enjoy writing short fiction to prompts or themes. Well, over the holidays, literary agent Janet Reid held a flash fiction contest. But this was no ordinary flash fiction contest. Usually, we have about 48 hours to write a 100 word story that must include all five prompt words.

This time? Rounds. Four of them.

Round One: Prompt Word = bird, Number of Words = 30
Round Two: Prompt Word = ring, Number of Words = 25
Round Three: Prompt Word = colly, Number of Words = 25
Round Four: Prompt Word = sent, Number of Words = 20

Most of the usual rules applied along with a big twist: You could write individual stories each time OR build on a previous "starter" - yours or someone else's (with attribution, of course.)

It. Was. A. Blast.

I chose to build on my story. It was a risk because I didn't know what the next round's prompt word would be until it opened. I kept my story creepy (big surprise!) and my fingers crossed that I could make the prompt words work. My entry is below, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it.

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Fog shrouds the house.

A bird flits by a window, the old glass broken from within.

The fog breathes, escapes.

The bird does not.

Inside, the occupants are still hungry.

Long ago, they gathered at the dinner bell's ring.

But the meal was not for them.

The only thing to grow up was their rage.

Now, they're the monsters. Cursed, caged.

Desperate, their tongues, long and twisted, bruised colly and cobalt, lick the walls, tasting memories of blood and bone.

When they turn on each other, it's swift, unsentimental.

Only one remains.

She crunches her brothers' bones, satiated.

For now.

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Would you build on your own story? Someone else's? Or would you write a new one - with that tiny word count! - each round? Do you enjoy writing to prompts or themes or super small word counts? Or do you find them too restrictive?

Signed, Sealed, Delivered: A What If? Post

Scenario: You place an order for some odds and ends. A few days later, a huge box arrives. Aware that sometimes the packaging is deceiving, you're not too concerned as you pull the box inside. After all, it's from the same company and the mailing label has your name and address on it. You open the box . . . .

It's definitely not what you ordered.

What if . . . the item in the box is something you've desperately wanted for a long time? Something incredibly expensive and extravagant? Something you've never told anyone about, ever. Who sent it? And why? And what do you do about it?

What if . . . the box is full of baby-related items, all monogrammed with the name Ella? You don't have children, and you don't know any children named Ella. You contact the company. Yours is the only corresponding order placed. It's bought and paid for by you. But the date on the invoice? Two years in the future. 

What if . . . the item in the box is a little on the naughty side? Maybe something you've been curious about but too embarrassed to check into. Do you call the company and complain or do you keep it?

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Come on, let's get those creative muscles sweating in this summer heat! What's in the box? What do you do? And hey, notice I didn't take us down the overly creepy or gross path? And I so could have . . . . 

What if . . . ? The Beach Version

In last week's Motivational Monday post, I mentioned taking a blogging break with the goal of actually starting one of my many projects, one of which was being a tourist in my own town. So, last Friday, my husband and I had breakfast down at the beach then went for a nice, long walk before the heat and the crowds rushed in.

I love walking on the beach for many reasons but one of my favorites is the sheer amount of things to see and people to watch. It is an ever changing landscape of nature, of humanity, and it is an amazing opportunity for creative exercises and story ideas. Here's a few scenarios that sparked my imagination: 

* In the parking lot, two elderly men in matching t-shirts, carried marked sticks with fluttering tape, the kind that mark where sea turtles came onshore and laid their eggs. Hmm…were these mean really volunteers for the local aquarium? What if they were trying to impress some ladies and knew they were too old to pass for lifeguards? What happened to the turtle's eggs? Did they hatch? Were they eaten by animals? Stolen by humans? Part of some sick scavenger hunt?

* A middle-aged couple walk on the beach. The man yaps loudly on a phone while the woman walks quietly next to him. Does she wish he was holding her hand instead of his phone? Are they married? Is this trip a second honeymoon? Is she contemplating divorce as she stares down at the crushed shells beneath her feet? Or…what if they're on a first date? What if he thinks talking on the phone makes him appear more important, more interesting? What if he's only pretending to talk to someone? What if she really is impressed by his antics? 

* Two boys, tan and skinny, about 10 years old, stand in the water up to their hips, fishing lines cast, no adults nearby. Why aren't these boys swimming and splashing and having fun? Why are they so serious? What if the fish they catch will be their food, their families' food, for the day? What if the boys are homeless? What if they plan on cooking the fish over an illegal fire later that night? What if the police who patrol the beach don't turn them in, give them sodas instead? 

Those three examples only focus on people. Think about the wildlife, like pelicans and sandpipers. Think about the shells - broken and whole. Think about the debris that can - and does - wash up on shore. What about a child's yellow plastic sand shovel, bobbing in the surf, its owner long gone? That image can elicit sadness or shudders. (I'm sure you know which of those I'd go with if I was writing a story….)  

What stories do you find at the beach? Or, if you're not a beach person, what do you see in the woods? The mountains? At the neighborhood pool? Do any of the "What if?"'s in this post spark any ideas for you? Go ahead and share in the comments! 

What if . . . ?

Lately, I've been challenging myself to pay more attention when I'm out, to look for the odd, to listen for the quirky, to take someone else's slice of life and twist it into a scene, a story, of my own making. Sometimes all I end up with are a bunch of questions, but even just doing that mental exercise keeps the creative juices flowing. Here are two recent moments that had me scribbling in my notebook....

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My husband and I were in a restaurant. The hostess led an older couple to the booth behind us. I thought they were a married couple...until I heard the man ask the woman, "Are you a steak eater?" Ah ha! Definitely not married. Probably not friends. Maybe acquaintances. What if...

...this was a blind date? Who set it up? Why?

...they met at their church or where they volunteer? Through a personal ad? At a karaoke bar? During a marathon? 

...they were childhood sweethearts, reunited after all this time? What if they'd had a crush on each other but never asked each other out? Why? What if he was the neighborhood bully, now looking to make amends? What if she was the bully? 

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My husband and I were in the car, sitting at a red light. In the left lane, one car ahead of us, a pig snout jutted out the open passenger window. A small hand curled over the window frame. A child, wearing a pig mask leaned out. It was a good pig mask, too, not a chintzy plastic one. When the light turned green, the car pulled ahead, but not before the child stuck out his or her arm and gave everyone a wave. What if...

...it wasn't a child at all? Who - or what - was it?

...the child wore the mask the way some kids carry around a stuffed animal or a blanket, for comfort? Why a mask? Why that mask? 

...the child was scarred or burned? How?  

...every child in the family had a mask they wore - goat, bull, giraffe? Why?

...wearing the pig mask was punishment? What if the child had stuffed themselves full of food and was being punished for being a "piggy?"

(That last handful of questions takes me to some very dark places, so we'll end here, shall we?)

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How about you? Do you already notice what's happening around you or do you need to challenge yourself to wake up like I did? Where do the "What if?" questions take you in either/both of these scenarios? Have you seen or overheard anything funky lately?