PROMPT 45 – FILL IN THE BLANK

This method will give you the barest nugget of an idea and it will be up to you to really fill it out to its greatest potential. But I find I often do my best creative work under these very conditions. Select a noun. You can pick one out you like or find some random method of producing one. For instance, School or Serial-Killer. Then imagine there is a blank either before or after the noun and fill it. It’s sort of like playing the old television game show . . . Match Game.

Example: [Blank] School or Serial Killer [Blank] can turn into Bully School and Serial-Killer Accountant. The more bizarre the combination the better the odds of coming up with a truly original storyline. Now all you have to do is create a story around it.

 

Bubba’s School for Underprivileged Bullies -

It isn’t Chuck’s fault that he’s bigger and stronger than everyone else. Or that he sometimes accidentally knocks over the other students while he’s daydreaming about becoming the first planetary explorer. So he was happy when his parents enrolled him in the strangely-named Bubba’s School for Underprivileged Bullies. But that all changes when he finds out he’s the smallest kid in the school and that most of the other children act in a decidedly alien manner. He’s forced to form an alliance with the most famous bully in the entire state in order to escape from the school. Chuck isn’t sure which is worse . . . an alien invasion of Earth or spending time with Darlene Pimpleton.

 

 

            PROMPT 44 – STORY ROULETTE 

            Select or randomly pull two character labels, like cowboy and a college professor. Then select or randomly pull an issue that these two characters will clash with one another about. For example: an old cowboy and spinster kinder-garden teacher clash over the issue of how a child should be raised. Now put all that together to create a story.

            Here are two lists to get you started:

            Character Types                                               Issue

1. Soldier                                                                     1. Baking the perfect cake

2. Busy CEO                                                                2. Faith
3. Stay-At-Home Mom                                                3. Who gets the last seat to safety
4. Lawyer                                                                     4. Discovery of a dead body
5. Waitress                                                                   5. A monster among us
6. Homeless Man/Woman                                            6. Ownership of a dog that is found

* For even more fun, roll a die for random selection of characters and the topic.

 

Example: I had my son roll a die three times and generated the numbers 1, 3, and 6 – in that order. Using the chart, that gives me a soldier, a stay-at-home mom, and ownership of a dog.

See Spot Stay -

When the family pet runs away, a young stay-at-home mother clashes with a homeless vet over the ownership of the dog and eventually must decide whether her children or a friendless man deserves the dog most.

Writing Prompt #43

            PROMPT 43 – KNICK-KNACKS

            This prompt is similar to Three Item Monty in as much as it uses items to stimulate your mind into generating new story ideas. If you have an old knick-knack drawer or memory chest, look through it. Take out the items one at a time. Perhaps they generate a memory that triggers a story idea. Or maybe they are interesting enough to give you ideas if you think about the item in hand. If you don’t have a collection of memorabilia then take a trip to a antique store and look around. Something is bound to shake loose an idea for a story.

Example: I have an old aftershave bottle shaped like a car. It still has most of the aftershave in it, but I can’t imagine its any good after all these years.

 

The Glass Factory -

An inquisitive young man visits a factory that makes the most popular toys on the planet. Everything the factory makes is made out of the most beautiful glass—that doesn’t break. When he slips away from the guided tour of the factory he discovers a gateway to a world where technology is based on glass manufacturing and is powered by strange scented-liquids. Before he can return to the tour he is captured by the Glass Baron and put on trial as an industrial spy. His only hope of returning home safely is to escape the Glass Castle and find the portal that will take him back to Earth.

 

Writing Prompt #42

            PROMPT 42 – THREE ITEM MONTY

            Grab three random items and put them on a table. To make sure these items are as random as possible, make sure they each come from a separate room or location. Line then up in front of you and see if you can find a correlation between them that can be used for the basis of a story. If not, move them around until you do.

            Example: A blue plastic tumbler; a small, blue fan; and an old-fashioned lantern that uses a candle for light. Blue reminds me of cold. The tumbler and fan make me think of someone who is trying to cool down. And the lantern gave me images of a storm raging and the electricity going out.

 

Monster Storm – When invaders from another planet trigger a global storm, Dave takes refuge in an old, underground tunnel complex, but he discovers that he is not alone in the dark.

 

Final Writing Prod

            Well, this is it for my Writing Prods. As much as I enjoy them, if my readers are not interested in reading them I need to find something else to write. After today, I will stick with movie reviews and micro fiction. No more posts on how to be a more effective writer.

Two more of my original writing prods remain to be covered a second time. I figured that I might as well take a look at both of them and combine them into one final story pitch.

What’s In A Name . . . is one of my favorite prompts and one that I have used to write several stories that I have submitted to publishers. The idea is to select a book title that you love and then write a story about it. It’s probably best if you change the name of the story once you’re done.

Skewed View . . . takes a story that already exists and then write it from a radically different point of view, like that of an insect, or an alien, or even a stuffed animal.

            For my example, I’m going to use the title of my favorite book when I was a teen - Damnation Alley. That is a post-apocalyptic story about the last of the Hell’s Angels. How better to represent that book, in a different way, than to turn this into a literal setting. What if there was a specific place in Hell for fallen angels? What might it be like? What sort of things might be going on there?

            But telling that story from the point of view of one of the fallen angels would be the obvious route here. Even telling it from the point of view of one of the devils fails to skew the story enough for the second prompt. But what does that leave?

           

 

 

            Down and Mostly Out           

            Ben enjoyed life, while it lasted. He lived fast and free and hard. Too late did he realize that there is more to any of our lives than just living it up. Standing before God he is given a chance to redeem himself. There is a portion of Hell where the fallen angels are sent and the worst of the demons dwell. He must travel there and determine if one of the fallen was unjustly cast out.

            Then once that is done, he must find his own way out of Hell.  

           

 

 

Writing Prod - Holiday Mixer 2

            With the taste of Saint Patrick’s Day dinner fresh in mind and the beginning of plans for Easter just starting to intrude into my thoughts, it seemed only right that I took another look at . . . the Holiday Mixer. This prompt has the writer take two holidays and mix them together to come up with an unusual setting and an unusual story.

            And since we are smack in the middle of the aforementioned holidays I will work with them in creating this week’s sample story.

 

 

 

            The Egg Thief 

            Life is good in the little farming community of Dun Ibhir Dell; the weather is cool, the potato harvest is the best in years, and the chickens are laying eggs in record numbers. And yet, Darby has gathered the fewest eggs of any year he can remember.

            Things change when he sets a trap and captures a Puka who has been stealing the eggs as part of a tribute that is paid to giants in a far away land. As any self-respecting Leprechaun would, Darby decides to see this land of miracles for himself and maybe even steal a pot of gold that legends say the giants jealously guard.

 

           

Writing Prod - Fairy Bad 2

            How many different ways are there to lead into the Writing Prod?           

            I don’t know, but at times I find it difficult to come up with a new one. Just for the record, this is number forty-five. Which means I’ve been doing this for almost a year. During that time I have come up with a few ideas that turned into short stories I submitted for publication and a couple of novel ideas that I placed on my writing list. This weekly exercise in creativity has certainly been helpful to me, but what about my readers? Is this feature helpful, or entertaining, to any of you out there?

            Is it time for me to take a good look at this blog and change things up in a significant manner? What can I do to improve this blog? What sort of features would make you want to stop by more often? Please post a comment with your thoughts about it.  

            The prompt this week is something I call . . . Fairy Bad. Take a fairy tale or a popular story and write it from the villain’s point of view. If you want a little more realism in your tale then pick a BIG news story that has happened recently and work it from the point of view of the least favorable person involved. Make us understand why that person acted the way they did. Make us believe that they are not the villain at all; maybe they are just misunderstood and maybe they are really the victim of unfavorable press.

 

 

            Union Hogs 

            The forest used to be a nice place to live. All of the folks got along real well. Sure there might be a tussle or two at the Spring Spree, but by the time the Fall Feast rolled around all had been forgiven. Then the Hoggs took over the south mire. Bought it from their cousins, the three little pigs. Along with them they brought the Union; Contractor Local 1372 to be exact. They set to clearing out the briar patch and that’s when the trouble started. That section of the woods belonged to Lupa, the wolf, and those Hoggs wanted to build houses there. Well, you can imagine what happened next.

 

 

Writing Prod - Tough Luck 2

            Another week and another Writing Prod. Unfortunately, there are no holidays or special events happening to add a little twist to it this time.

            This prompt I call . . . Tough Luck. It uses your personal experiences, or that of someone you know. Take the most difficult decision you have ever had to make and turn it into a fictional story. You can more fully explore the choice you made or go with a more “what if I had done the other instead” route.

            Nor does this have to be set in the everyday world with characters that have relatively typical lives. Imagine if that decision had to be made by the President of the United States or a larger than life action hero.

 

            Thar She Goes 

            Turgan the Terrible sheathed his energy-cutlass for the last time. For twenty years he had been the most feared scourge among all the seven sectors of space. He was a living legend in the annals of space piracy. But now he had to leave that behind.

            It was time to switch focus from his career to taking care of his most valuable treasure – Brand, his son. Not only did Turgan have to find a way to bond with a child he barely knew, he needed to prepare him to face the daunting challenge that is The Winter Festive Dance.

 

Writing Prod - Almost Perfect 2

            President’s Day!

            On the count of three, I want everyone to launch into a lively, rousing and joyous rendition of Hail to the Chief.

            One . . . Two . . . Three . . .

 

            What? You don’t know it either? Okay, let’s just skip that part. This week’s Writing Prod is something I call . . . Almost Perfect. Invent the perfect society. What would it be like? Now write a story about it.

            In keeping with a President’s Day theme, I will attempt to create a paradise with George Washington in mind.

 

 

            Green Government 

            The whole idea of greening the government sounded good – at first. Advanced technologies had opened up endless possibilities, including the cloning of George Washington to lead the U.S. into a prosperous age of cooperation with nature. And at first, President Washington led the way with advocating a greater reliance on renewable resources for many of the services where that hadn’t been common before: wooden dentures, sawdust packing material and leaf-wrapping for Birthday presents.

            Then Edward discovered the dark side of President Washington. Something that hadn’t been mentioned in any of the history books. In fact, it seemed in dark contrast to the man that had been dubbed the Father of our country. Edward had discovered a plot for George to become King Washington, the leader of the entire world.

 

 

Writing Prod - Product Placement 2

            Valentine’s Day is almost upon us, once again. A holiday filled with cupids, red and pink hearts, and announcements of affection to friends, family, and especially that one certain person that has enriched our lives. What a lovely holiday.

            Yeech!

            What it means for me is that this week’s Writing Prod will need to include some connection to this the most sickeningly-sweet holiday of them all. That should increase the difficulty of the task by quite a bit – considering that romance is my personal kryptonite.

            The prompt is one that I call . . . Product Placement. Normally, you would pick a product that you can buy in a store, or online, and then turn into an object that symbolizes an important message / theme in your story. It becomes the centerpiece for your story.

            However, in deference to Valentine’s Day I am going to change that a bit and specify that the product be taken from a holiday related commercial and used as a romantic element in your regular story. Or that you take a regular commercial and use it as a centerpiece for a romantic tale.

            This should be quite a challenge for me.

 

 

            Beerheart 

            Princess Blanche loved beer. The finest brewers in the land worked for her father, the king. How then was a simple hops farmer like Samuel Jackson to win the heart of the fairest maiden of the land if he had nothing to offer?

            Then one day he uncovered an ancient book that spoke of a magical brew that existed long ago and heralded by all as the finest drink ever devised. The book even mentioned where the recipe for the perfect ale could be found; in the far away land of Wine, protected by a snobbish and evil people who hated beer.

            Armed with only a drinking mug and a brave heart, Samuel faces a series of sobering challenges in order to win the affections of the Princess.

 

 

* Note: This prompt is not intended as an endorsement for alcoholic drinks. It is meant only as an exercise in the realm of the ridiculous.

 

 

 

Writing Prod - Sporting Chance 2

            Last night was the big event for football. While the game is the main attraction is it really the best part of the experience? Some are drawn to it for the half-time entertainment. Others look forward to the ultra creative commercials that are aired during the game. Then there are those like me that are drawn to the veritable banquet that is available during the game. And how about those couch gate parties where friends gather over the pretense of a sporting event?

            It seems only appropriate that this week’s prod be . . . Sporting Chance. With this writing prompt you take two sports and combine them to create a whole new one that becomes the centerpiece for your story. Or if you want more of a challenge, make up a whole new sport on your own. Think about the society that would develop such a game. Consider what sort of person would thrive in such a competition as well as who would cheer them on and who would oppose the sport altogether.

            Rollerball and The Hunger Games are both excellent examples of this sort of story. They are not so much about the sport itself, but the people and the culture that have adopted the game. This prompt lends itself most easily to fantasy and science-fiction stories, but could be done as a more traditional sports-themed tale if you prefer.

            My brother loved the pitch I developed the last time I used this prod and urges me all the time to actually write it. Let’s see how he reacts to this one.

 

     

            Dragon Pass 

            Monpar is a civilized world. Land disputes between nations are settled with a simple game of Dragon Pass. While the game itself is violent and results in the death of most, if not all of the participants, it is still more civilized than war. Each of the teams attempts to move the ball from the center of a large obstacle course to their safe zone. If the ball touches the ground it is handed over to the other team. It’s really quite easy – except that there is a dragon on the game field and the ball has been painted to look like one of her eggs.

            This is the last year that Dibbons can be drafted for the game. Even though he has lived in the same cottage all of his life, few of the people in his village know him by name. He has made his livelihood alone, in the nearby forest. Now he will have to work with a group of people he has never met and hope to survive the game.

 

 

 

Writing Prod - Celebration 2

            During this second pass through the writing prompts I have been combining them with whatever events that happen to be going on and have had great success with that. Today’s event will be the rain. We get so little of it here in the desert it becomes a reason to celebrate whenever it shows up.

            Oddly enough, the actual prompt is called . . . Celebration. The idea is to make a story around an unusual holiday. I previously suggested taking a random noun, or verb, and turning it into a major event. Which makes RAIN the word for the day.

 

 

            Rain Day

            Once, long ago, water fell from the skies. They called it “rain.” That was before missiles scorched the atmosphere – and the people. Now the gathered remnants of humanity hold on to the vanishing reservoirs of water as best they can. When one of the underground pools dries up there is war. More of the people die.

            When Toge is assigned the duty of finding another water source for his community to invade he sets out intent of finding a way to return the water to the skies and stop humanity from destroying itself one dried up water hole at a time.  

 

 

 

Writing Prod - Ph-ph-phrases 2

 

            Not only is today Martin Luther King Jr. day, but it’s also time for my regularly scheduled Writing Prod. So let’s just go ahead and combine the two and see how that turns out.

            This particular prompt is called  . . . Ph-ph-phrases! The idea is to talk an old saying of some sort and turn it into a story. Out of deference to Mr. King, I will take one of his memorable statements and go from there.

            “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

 

 

 

 

            The Dream 

            If ever there was a thing more destructive to men’s souls than a civil war, Aubrey couldn’t think of what it would be. Countrymen fighting against their neighbors and even family fighting against one another. In the end, the result was an oppressive system put into place to insure that there would not be another war. A dark, hateful set of rules enforced by emotionless robots that had turned everyone in the country into slaves for the government.

            Then the dreams began. Aubrey walked the streets of the city, lighting up the neighborhoods as she passed through them. They grew more numerous and stronger in their intensity until she realized that they were more than mere dreams. They were a call for her to take to the streets of the nation and dispel the darkness one hopeful act at a time. No bloody revolution would work against the steel keepers they had made for themselves. She would have to start a war of love and light.

 

Writing Prod - Heroic Rebirth 2

            Due to my battling a health issue, there will be no fanfare accompanying today’s posting. We are once again looking at . . . Heroic Rebirth. That is a writing prompt where you take someone you admire greatly and place them into a fantastic setting. Then ask yourself how they would resolve the problems they faced there. Basically, you are creating a fictional story that runs along the lines of a true story.

            The first idea that popped into my mind was how would Abraham Lincoln solve the current deficit issue the United States is currently facing? However, I’m pretty sure I went to Old Abe last time around so instead I present: 

 

 
           The Last Days Of Adam 

            Adam lived in a simpler time. No taxes. No lawyers. No rush hour traffic. Of course there was a lot of responsibility that went with the First Man position he occupied. As the father of the human race it was up to him to start the ball rolling so that humanity would flourish and thrive displaying bountiful amounts of good intent. At least, that had been the plan.

            Somewhere along the way, everything has gone horribly awry and Adam has been sent down to Earth to try and straighten it all out. The problem is that he is going to have to do that as a regular mortal. Okay, mostly regular mortal.

 

Writing Prod - Advertising A-No-No - 2

            Do you know what today is?  

            That’s right; it’s back to school day. Let’s shout out a big hooray. After two weeks of holiday madness and children with too much energy from too little activity outside the house I am finally free. Well, mostly free. They monsters are coming back home eventually.

            Today is also the first full week of the New Year. I’m not going to call it a resolution, but I have been mentally preparing myself to get some serious writing done this year. Not that 2012 was a horrible year for writing; I finished a rewrite of a novel, submitted it twice and had it rejected just as often, and sold three stories. The trouble is that I could have done so much more. This year I plan to do more. Expect me to work on my novel Exit Stage Left and submit it before the year is out. 

            In a few months, I will be attending my fourth LDStoryMakers conference. These are great and you don’t have to be LDS to attend. It will also be my third time for entering the First Chapter contest they hold each year. One of the entries I plan to submit is based on a Writing Prod idea I generated on the blog a few months ago. I mention that only to demonstrate how effective writing prompts can be to a writer – even a writer as full of ideas as I am. (Not to toot my own horn.) 

            On with today’s prompt . . . Advertising A-No-No. This is one of the sillier prompts that I have listed. The idea is to take an ad from radio, television, or magazines and develop a story based on a world that is really the way they show it in the ad. Then from there you turn that into a story.

            Or else, you can develop a sinister ad campaign of your own and then write the story behind it. There has to be some item, or personal quirk, that you think should be widely available to the masses. Just thinking about it gave me an idea for a story.   

 

  

          Canned Goods           

            While attempting to invent “Ready to inhale” dinners that a person merely breathes in to consume, Todd Frinkle stumbles upon a method of packaging good behavior. Just pop the top off a can of Consideration and breath deep and you will be amazingly gracious all day long. Fame, fortune and dreams of a Nobel Peace Prize all fade away when Todd discovers a group that plans to reverse engineer the technology so they can create a line of products that will turn people into remorseless killers. Even if he can find a way to stop them it turns out that the short cut to good behavior leads to a prolonged inability to tell right from wrong. But how can a crack-pot inventor, a couple of neighborhood kids, and a nearly blind dog going to prevent it?

 

           

           

Writing Prod - Where Reality and Fantas Collide 2

            As incredible as it seems we have arrived at the end of another year. For me and my family 2012 was an excellent time for us. It is all but gone and I am left wondering what I can expect from 2013. Maybe this will finally be the year that one of my novels is picked up for publishing.

            Today’s writing prompt will include the theme of new beginnings out of respect for the holiday and my love for speculation. The prod itself is something I call . . . Where Reality and Fantasy Collide. You can either take a real person and introduce them into a fantasy setting or take a character out of fiction and place them into a real world scenario.

 

            Another Year Gone

            Out with the old – in with the new. Just like that 2009 was history. Sure, they threw him a grand retirement party, but that upstart 2010 managed to make himself the center of attention. Now he was expected to sit back with all of the previous years and enjoy immortality. Ahead of him lay endless arguments about which year had left behind the greatest legacy. No thank you.

            When all was said and done, 2009 had left the world pretty much in the same condition he had found it. The problem with that is he was supposed to have been the year that it all changed. Determined to shake things up a bit he leaves the retirement home and soon stumbles across a plot to destroy time. Maybe 2009 will be a year to remember after all.

 

Writing Prod - Mouth of Babes 2

            Merry Christmas to one and all.  

            For today’s writing prompt I am going to throw a little holiday cheer into the mix. The actual prod is something I call . . . Mouth of Babes. If you have young children, ask them for a story idea and then run with it. If you don’t have any young children see if you can borrow some.

            My youngest son told me to write a story about a dragon. Then once I added a Christmas setting to that idea I had the following story.

 

 

               Dragon Bells 

            Pencho lives in the land of dragons. It is a dangerous place and the inhabitants battle with one another constantly. But Pencho finds his normal routine disrupted when he stumbles across a strange human from a far off place that talks about a wondrous thing called Christmas. Little does Pencho know that his quest will end with him pulling Santa’s slay on Christmas Eve.

 

 

 

Writing Prod - For Starters 2

            December 21 will roll around before my next column. That makes this a perfect time to include an end of the world theme into my weekly prod. Since I will be combining that with whatever writing prompt is next on the list that will make it kind of a unique prompt of its own.

            This one I call . . . For Starters. Not as challenging as I would have wanted for my last column before the world ends, but it will do. Start your story with a specific sentence. It could be the last line of your favorite novel (modified a bit if you want), it could be a memorable line that your father once said.

            For my example I used a well known internet search engine and typed in Mayan – because I wanted a handy link to them for my story. I came up with this: “The Maya peoples never disappeared . . .”

 

 

            Mayan Mountain

Opening line: “The Maya people never disappeared, they just faded into insignificance.”

 

            For Tim, the Mayan civilization was a great puzzle. They had advanced studies in art, mathematics, architecture, and even a written language. Then it all faded away. The most predominant culture in Yucatan Peninsula region collapsed without any known explanation. Their descendants remain, married into other cultures, distanced from the wonders of what they once were.

            Then Tim discovers an artifact that may hold the key to the rapid decline of this magnificent civilization. It tells a story of visitors from the sky and an exodus of the best and brightest of the Mayan people into the heart of a mystic mountain. With the help of college friend, who finances an expedition to the Yucatan, they search for Mayan Mountain.

 

 

Writing Prod - Conspiracy Club 2

            Not only is it Monday, but it is December too. Where did the year go? Where will all of us go when we reach the end of the Mayan calendar later in the month?

            The writing prod for this week I call . . . Conspiracy Club. It provides good plots for serious as well as comedic stories, adult as well as young adult. All you need to do with it is take a real organization, company, or group and imagine what it would be like if they were just a front for an evil empire.

            Think of all the possibilities: boy scouts, the PTA, MADD (why even the letters of that group spells evil conspiracy), the plumbers union, or even PBS. Even though all my suggested groups are more appropriate for a humorous take on the conspiracy theme, this works well for serious novels.

 

 

            Tech Revolution 

            Ted had a hard time programming his VCR let alone operating a computer well enough to cruise the internet super-highway. That was alright, he could do without both of the modern devices to which the American public was enslaved.

            Retirement afforded him enough time to engage in his favorite form of relaxation. Walking the neighborhood and enjoying the day. Until, he noticed an invasion by the Club Tech boys. At first it was odd that so many of his neighbors had simultaneously jumped on the latest technology bandwagon. Then it became alarming. After each visit by the techs he noticed a dramatic change in how his friends acted.

            Something was wrong, but he didn’t the first thing about technology. He had to get down to the bottom of this conspiracy and do that he needed an ally. Then along came little Jimmy Rogers from next door. He needed to perform some neighborly deeds in order to earn back his computer privileges. And Ted had the perfect work for him; teach an old man some new technology tricks.

 

 

 

Writing Prod - Dream Guide 2

        

            First off, let me apologize for not posting the next installment of “High” School on Friday. I should have warned you that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and there is always a distinct possibility that I would get distracted by it. And I did.

            Now back to business as usual and that means I have a Writing Prod to share with you. The next on my list is one that I call . . . Dream Guide. If you keep a dream journal this will be easy. Write down the details of a dream you had and then turn it into a story.

            You probably wouldn’t guess it, but this is a prompt that gives me significant trouble. Yeah, weird huh? I’m the Story Man and I can turn just about anything into a story – except my dreams. That’s because my dreams are too fragmented to generate a reasonable plot from them. Besides, who wants a story about a protagonist organizing objects in preparation for a move. Hmmm . . . or do you?

 

 

            Charlie’s Charm Closet           

            Last week everything was fine. Charlie had friends, he had the run of the neighborhood, and he had baseball. Then his parents suddenly announced that they were moving and all of that went away.

            They moved to a small, creepy town with few children and no baseball team. Charlie protested the move by boycotting the family, but that only earned him extra chores. His parents assigned him the job of cleaning out the junk-filled closet under the stairs. Then everything changes when Charlie realizes that this is a magical closet filled with wondrous items. The relics disappear when taken out of the closet and are replaced with something new.

            Every day becomes a new adventure for Charlie, until a mysterious real-estate agent shows up at the house and explains that there has been a mistake and the family will have to move. Charlie has seen this person before; she is on the cover of a book in the closet. This is no real estate agent – this is the Dust Queen who will use the relics to enslave the people of Earth.