Late last year I watched An Evening with Ray Bradbury. He was giving the keynote at The Sixth Annual Writer’s Symposium by the Sea in 2001 and, during his speech, he offers some interesting advice to aspiring novelists:
Short Story #09: The Ridiculous Green Kayak
One time, a few years ago, I took to a river in Cambodia in a rented kayak for what I hoped would be a lonely overnight adventure. It turned out to be neither lonely nor overnight, but it was so much of an adventure that I struggled for many years to put it down.
Car Value Study
Short Story #07: Chain-Link Fence
“My boy, it is desire and nothing more. You want to possess her. You do not love her.”
I thought about the old man’s words as I stared at the divorce papers.
Short Story #06: Shot
The trigger had a resistance to it as I began to squeeze. It was asking me “Are you sure?”
More force for yes, relax for no.
Frog
Short Story #04: Chelsea
“May I join you?”
Alberon, who was nursing his second whiskey with his head resting in a propped hand, looked up at the young lady and snapped to attention, spilling his drink. She had a pale, softly triangular face, accented with scarlet lipstick, and framed by curly dark hair that fell around the thin straps of her blue dress, leading down to a pair of knee-length boots.
She laughed at the long pause. “So may I?”
Short Story #03: The Report
“So they just disappeared?”
“Only explanation, sir.” The sergeant said. “There are two ways out that corridor, and my men…sorry, people…er, team”—the sergeant was still coming to terms with the captain’s mandate on how the security services were to be formed—“had ‘em both covered.”
Short Story #01: The Routine
At precisely 7:45 AM, Felix Terrace wakes up.
By the time his phone’s alarm begins to sound, he is already out of bed and performing 25 push ups. He heads into the bathroom for a four minute shave and an eight and a half minute shower.
Evil Mentor Horror Alchemist
The title is based on what the character generator in The Brainstormer app presented.