Story Snippets: Commencement

Image by mrbudgetphotography from Pixabay 

May and June are a time for graduations. This is a piece of flash fiction I wrote in a near future world not too different from our own. Noah has made an unconventional career choice, and one has to ask, has Noah saved his future or sabotaged it?

 Commencement

Noah swung his leg over the seat of his retrocycle. “Thanks for fixing it. Guess I don’t have to worry about getting caught.”
Honors students weren’t allowed in the vocational hall. Once Liv announced she was training to be a bike mechanic, she was pulled from her academic classes.

Liv put away her tools and wiped the last of the black grime from her hands. “Are you sure about your decision? Headmaster Greid pulled my salutatorian speech. Don’t think he won’t do the same to you.”

Noah rumpled his blue-tipped blond hair. “Tomorrow’s our last day. Nothing to lose.”

“Except your speech. And your future.”

Liv mounted her own retrocycle, and Noah followed her outside. They dodged potholes as vehicles hovered above. Only the poor braved the crumbling roads and sidewalks. Noah glanced over his shoulder at Stream Tech Preparatory Academy. Workers sprayed fresh holopaint over the pockmarked stone facade. Others nailed boards over the front steps. The alternative was razing the historic structure. These crews were filled with the dregs of the global society. Skilled tradesmen capable of making the needed repairs were a dying breed.

Noah and Liv parked their retros in the worker lot of their neighborhood and walked to his house. They avoided Liv’s home. Her career choice was as unwelcome as abandoning purple hair for her natural brown. Noah liked the color. Her image-conscious mother did not.

They passed through the mansion’s gates and detoured through the garage to retrieve his toolbox. Few knew of the private sale that turned his family from owners to tenants. Noah did his part to save them from bankruptcy. Some might even call it a sacrifice.

Noah slipped a hammer through his beltloop and stuffed nails in his pockets. “Liv, hold the ladder.”

He didn’t bother checking for nosy neighbors before climbing up. They would have to get used to a banker’s son swinging a hammer.

Hot and sweaty from an afternoon of making repairs, Noah gulped from the garden hose, and then held it up for Liv who guzzled from the stream.

She wiped the back of her mouth. “Despite Mom’s warning, I still haven’t caught worms doing this.” Liv kissed his cheek. “Meet you at the gate tomorrow. Our last ride before graduation.”

“Yeah.”

Had Noah saved his future or sabotaged it? If only he were as confident about his decision as Liv.

###

Fresh holopaint and metal sheets disguised the rickety stage of Stream Tech Preparatory Academy. Illuminated carpet runners covered the cracked concrete floor. Noah stumbled when his shoe heel caught the edge of a hidden hole. This misstep confirmed his career choice.

Headmaster Greid tugged on Noah’s graduation gown. “When you chose trade school you lost the privilege of giving the valedictory address.”

“I earned that honor.” Noah lifted his valedictorian medal. “Are you confiscating this?”

Mr. Greid mumbled, “if I could.” His voice returned to its normal volume. “As a student leader, you're negatively influencing the student body. Frankly, I’m disappointed in you.”

“You shouldn’t be.” Noah lifted his chin and mounted the stage steps avoiding one with missing tread.

Headmaster Greid took the podium and droned on about Stream Tech Preparatory. As promised, he bypassed Noah and Liv and introduced the student body president.

The headmaster strode toward his seat at the back of the stage. Crack. He stepped through a rotten board and fell face first. In the commotion, Noah took the podium.

“I am the valedictorian but my speech was blocked because I’m a disgrace. Why?” Noah gestured around the auditorium. “Shiny high-tech fabrics and performance paint cover the truth. Our country is crumbling because we don’t have skilled workers. Where are they? Shamed and shoved into a college education. Instead of racking up debt I turned down an education at a prestigious university to apprentice as a carpenter. Some might argue otherwise, but I’m no less valuable to society. Who knows, I may prevent a principal from falling through the floor of his own stage.”

Story Snippets: The Field Trip by Gretchen E.K. Engel

 This story was originally published on the Splickety blog in 2016. It was inspired by a field trip to an inactive volcano near our home in northern Arizona. Two Jacks, Arizona is a nod to the town where I live. Our main street is the Deuce of Clubs, and several other roads in the area are named after cards or gambling terms. Wild West for sure. What better way to close out September edge into October (a couple of days early) than with a story of a local legend and twins with an auspicious birthday on the autumnal equinox?

The Field Trip

Gwen cut her sons’ sandwiches while her duties cut at her heart. Jeremy and Jake counted down to their thirteenth birthday. Gwen counted those same days with if onlys. If only the boys hadn’t been early. If only the seventh grade field trip to the Molcadera Volcano wasn’t on their birthday.

“Gwen.” Mike kissed her on the cheek. “Bob says it’s only a formality. I’ll officially be plant manager by the close of business.”

If only her husband hadn’t taken the job at the paint plant. She never would have had to return to Two Jacks, Arizona. Her family had fled when she was thirteen after her classmate disappeared at the very place Gwen and the boys were headed. Gwen volunteered to chaperone. She had to. Because of Jeremy.

From their thick sandy hair to their pale hazel eyes, there was little to distinguish her identical boys. Both were good students and athletes who were neither all-stars nor bench warmers. Jeremy’s trumpet and Jake’s saxophone were their biggest difference. That and the three minutes Jeremy was an only child before Jake showed up. And like the Jacob of history, Jake would take his brother’s birthright.

Unless Gwen could stop the bargain.

Gwen drove herself and the boys to school and remembered the girl. Had twenty-six years come and gone? She’d pushed away that memory until a thirteen-year-old had vanished the day the twins were born. Why did the bargain involve the first twin born on the fall equinox? Steeped in secrecy, no one knew who came up with the bargain. No one even spoke of it until Gwen’s mother told the legend as her family packed up and left the only town her parents had known.

Gwen’s phone rang as they pulled up to Molcadera. “Hello Bella.”

Dr. Zebulon, her boss said, “I’m retiring and want you to buy my practice. I know you’re with the boys today. Come by tomorrow.”

On the bus ride to the Molcadera, Gwen considered the opportunity. Of course it was good news. That was the bargain.

As soon as they arrived at the park, Jake, Jeremy, and their two best friends raced ahead on the winding trail. Jeremy led the pack not knowing the danger he faced. Gwen saw him disappear ahead of the others. Primed from half-marathon training, Gwen took off after him. The others would be okay.

Gwen squinted at the overhead sun. Noon on the fall equinox. It was time. She moved closer to the boys when a park ranger approached Jeremy.

The young man tapped Gwen’s son on the shoulder. “Do you want your family to be successful and have long and healthy lives? Your town to be protected?” His nametag read Luc Zebulon.

Jeremy nodded.

Luc pointed to the Molcadera. “Would you like to go inside the cone?” His eyes glinted red.

“Yes.” Jeremy grinned.

“Well, let’s go.” The ranger’s bony hand gripped Jeremy’s shoulder.

“No!” Gwen rushed to Jeremy’s side and pulled from the man. “Don’t!” She should have warned him about the bargain.

“What about your husband’s promotion?” Luc sneered. “Or buying Mom’s dental practice?”

“Jobs are jobs. He’s my firstborn.”

“I need a sacrifice.” The ranger shrugged. “And the economy sucks.”

“I’ll take my chances.” She hugged Jeremy. “And my son.”

“You’ll pay for refusing me.” The ranger hopped the fence and descended into the pit. They peeked over the railing. The ranger was gone. Fire rose from the long-dead volcano.

###

On the bus ride back, Gwen’s phone pinged to life with multiple messages and texts. Gwen listened to all of them and called Dr. Zebulon first.

“I’m going to have to rescind the offer and let you go.” Bella’s voice turned cold. “You didn’t fulfill your end of the bargain. The deal was my son for yours.”  

“That’s okay. We’re moving to Tucson.”

Gwen replayed Mike’s message. “Good news and bad news. I got the promotion, but we have to move to Tucson.” There was no bad news. They were leaving Two Jacks as a whole family.

Realm Makers Virtualcon 2020 Recap

Photo by Gretchen E.K. Engel

Two weeks ago I attended Realm Makers Virtualcon 2020 from the comfort of my own home. While I plan to be in St. Louis next year, I'm glad with the craziness that's 2020, Virtualcon happened. It was a much-needed event that was the perfect virtual version of an in-person conference. I'm an extrovert and was concerned there wouldn't be enough face-to-face audio/video interaction, but I found ways.

Normally, I'm Realm Makers' Friendly Neighborhood Volunteer Coordinator. This year that role looked a bit different. All new skill sets meant different volunteers and different duties. My main role was as tech support and as a Discord moderator. I did tech support, helped coordinate prayer on Discord, and helped with appointments.

I spent the weeks leading up to Realm Makers learning how to break Discord in every possible way, sometimes on purpose but mostly figuring out that my laptop didn't have a webcam and how to load Discord on different computers including my daughter's laptop since she was attending as a teen. Her first Realm Makers!

Making an at Home Event Special

To make Realm Makers an event, I bought special food including the ingredients for nonalcoholic strawberry daiquiris. We ended up drinking them later, but they were a hit. I bought special crackers and cheese. Most importantly, I knew I'd be busy and wanted an immersive experience, so I enlisted my husband and son on cooking duties.
Good thing. I was very busy Thursday and my son's shrimp tacos were amazing! Thursday night my husband brought home a takeout feast--great timing. We had some technical difficulties and had to pivot from Crowdcast to Zoom. I was supposed to moderate C.J. Redwine's Harry Potter Trivia and we had to make adjustments to switch it. All went well. Whew!

My home office is cluttered because it was designed as an open office space with four work stations, so my daughter's desk is behind mine and windows make it tricky with lighting. Because I had to moderate panels on camera, I moved downstairs and set up in our living room, the only "camera friendly" part of our house. Since we were going to be on different sessions at the same time, I let my daughter use her laptop in her room, a temporary arrangement that she appreciated.

We live out west, so I had to get up early to prepare for the day and sessions started at 8 a.m. my time. I decided to sleep in our guest room to keep from interrupting my husband's sleep. It was so nice because it was like staying in a hotel room. I had no idea being in my own home could feel so much like a vacation.

Friday and Saturday my husband and son fixed dinner. One of the meals was lasagna roll-ups, a family favorite that takes a bit of time to prepare.

Socializing Happened
Two things made Realm Makers for me, nightly gaming and video chatting. We gamed on Discord using video chat. All of the hilarity and inside jokes that make tabletop gaming one of my favorite parts of Realm Makers happened at Virtualcon. Those game conversations drifted into late night visiting where we joked around but also deepened friendships. Saturday, I attended the Havok after party where the anthology finalists and winners were announced. I loved hearing the authors discuss the story behind their winning stories. The party continued on and I loved hanging out with the Havok Hive who include longtime friends and new friends. We had a great time and as usual turned into some memorable moments. The evenings hijinks included a prank that involved a sock puppets and a hazmat mask.

Quality Content

From N. D. Wilson's mindblowing keynote to C.J. Redwine's closing one, it was a conference full of fantastic content. As conference staff, I don't usually get to attend much in the way of sessions, but with the Crowdcast and Discord format, I was able to attend some sessions. I learned a lot from C.J. Redwine's marketing session and can't wait to attend the other sessions over the next few weeks.

I moderated the Why Write Short Fiction Panel. It was so good. The conversation flowed, and I rediscovered my love for short stories and the impact they have on us. We had a great discussion on a story that hit two panelists very differently. It was a story that made one panelist uncomfortable because it was convicting but resonated with me on a deep, emotional level.

To sum it up, Realm Makers Virtualcon 2020 was the perfect event for this year! And for 2021, I hope you'll Meet Me in St. Louis!

Flash Fiction Fun! (Laurie)

Back in 2017, I wrote a post about my first experiences writing short stories. I'd been pleasantly surprised that after writing two full-length novels, I'd managed to write a story in under 10,000 words! At the time, I never dreamed I'd be capable of writing anything shorter, and flash fiction (*very* short stories that are usually 1,000 words or less) didn't appeal to me since it seemed way too quick - over before I had a chance to feel engaged or connected to the characters.

Fast-forward two and a half years, and my first flash fiction piece, "Rubbed the Wrong Way," was published in an anthology titled Stories That Sing that just released on April 30th (isn't the cover gorgeous??). The same publisher, GoHavok.com, will be posting my second flash fiction piece, "Dragonbreath," on their website tomorrow (Wednesday, May 6th)! Somewhere along the way, it seems I've come around to being a fan of reading and even writing flash fiction :)

The blessing and curse of flash fiction is that it's so short. Really good flash fiction is so much fun to read because you get a great story in a matter of minutes. On the downside, it can feel incomplete - one scene where the rest of the story is missing, an action sequence without enough context to appreciate what's going on, or an overview instead of an engaging plot.

So that's where the trick of writing flash fiction comes into play. How do you write something that short without disappointing readers' expectations? For me, I've found the key lies in the story planning. For full-length novels, I spend a minimal amount of time plotting and figure out most of the details as I write. But for flash fiction, I put a much greater percentage of time into brainstorming, because if I can't nail down a story that will work in such a small word count, I'll never get anywhere in the writing phase.

When I was brainstorming "Dragonbreath" (which falls in Havok's Super Duper theme, featuring stories involving superpowers), I thought it would be fun to write about a guy who can breathe fire, and all the complications such an ability would add to his day-to-day life. But even the shortest of stories needs to be leading somewhere, and I struggled to turn my list of humorous anecdotes into a coherent plot. As I tried to figure out a way his power could be useful in resolving a conflict, the story threatened to expand way beyond the word count limitation. Any kind of epic battle or rescue could never be adequately portrayed in a few short pages. Eventually, I dreamed up a female character with her own troublesome superpower and a way their talents could interact, and it all clicked into place! Go figure my superpower story would take a turn towards romance... :)

What I love about writing flash fiction is the challenge. When you're limited to 1,000 words, there's no space for overwriting or weasel words, which forces a honing of writing and editing skills that transfers well to longer works. And as an editor once pointed out to me, readers shouldn't feel the tension of the word count. A really well-written piece of flash fiction should tell an engaging, satisfying story without the reader needing to make excuses for the author due to the length restriction. I don't think I'm quite there yet, but it's fun to try! Also, I've found flash fiction to be a great way to keep writing and creating during times when I find it hard to focus on longer projects (like right now, in the midst of social distancing, coronavirus scares, and having my husband and kiddos always at home!).

If you're interested in flash fiction as a writer and / or reader, I'll put in one more quick plug for Havok! New flash fiction pieces are posted on GoHavok.com every weekday and some Saturdays, all following a certain theme but in a variety of genres. Each story is always free to read on the day it's posted (like mine will be tomorrow), or you can become a member and access their entire database of stories. They've been a pleasure to work with, and I'd highly suggest stopping by whenever you're looking for a quick read!


Any fellow flash fiction writers out there? Do you enjoy reading shorter fiction, or do you prefer to stick to full-length books?


See you next time!
Laurie