Having already posted on-line Fabulae, which took up much of my time in high school, and "Working Title" which took up much of my time in college, I decided to go back through my child hood stories and post everything up through middle school.
This isn't everything of course, it's simply everything that survived. I can think of a number of pieces I wrote that for one reason or another got lost, misplaced, or thrown away over the years. I guess everyone's childhood is like that. This is what I could dig up though. (Some of the lost stuff I wrote up brief descriptions of here, mostly just for my own sentimentality.)
Besides that big factor, a couple other minor cuts have been made. Anything I did in my free time I decided must have been important to me at one point because I put my own time into it. So I've reproduced it here, (even if it turned out to be a complete disaster like "The Story of Giddo.")
School assignments I was a bit more picky on. Stuff I really got into, I reproduce here. Stuff where I was simply going through the motions to get the grade I've left off.
You'll note I don't say, "Stuff that was really good." From the perspective of adult-hood, none of this seems particularly good. But some of it I really got into at the time, or was very proud of at the time.
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
A Farewell to Pork
11th grade English class. The assignment was to re-write a fairy tale imitating Hemingway's style.
I stood at the entrance to the three pig's house. "Little pig, won't you let me in?"
"You can't come in."
"Let me in. I'll be good."
"You can't. We won't let you in."
"Please let me in. It'll be grand."
"Won't you have some wine? Wine really is grand."
"I shall not have any until you let me in."
"We can not let you in. Let's not talk about that."
"I shall blow down the house. I really shall."
"You still can't come in. Not yet."
I took a deep breath and blew out and out and out. My breath went out swiftly, all of it. Then I breathed and it was back. Again I blew out. Then I was exhausted, and I started to cough.
From inside I heard the laughter of the pigs, and it angered me. I went to the roof to drop down the chimney, but the pigs had set a pot below me and filled it with Kummel, Cognac, and Vermouth, then set it on fire. I landed in the pot, but jumped out and fled. I felt no guilt about abandoning my supper. Although I still have several friends who eat pork, and I wish them the best of luck, it is not my show anymore.
I stood at the entrance to the three pig's house. "Little pig, won't you let me in?"
"You can't come in."
"Let me in. I'll be good."
"You can't. We won't let you in."
"Please let me in. It'll be grand."
"Won't you have some wine? Wine really is grand."
"I shall not have any until you let me in."
"We can not let you in. Let's not talk about that."
"I shall blow down the house. I really shall."
"You still can't come in. Not yet."
I took a deep breath and blew out and out and out. My breath went out swiftly, all of it. Then I breathed and it was back. Again I blew out. Then I was exhausted, and I started to cough.
From inside I heard the laughter of the pigs, and it angered me. I went to the roof to drop down the chimney, but the pigs had set a pot below me and filled it with Kummel, Cognac, and Vermouth, then set it on fire. I landed in the pot, but jumped out and fled. I felt no guilt about abandoning my supper. Although I still have several friends who eat pork, and I wish them the best of luck, it is not my show anymore.
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Invasion of the Frogs
This is the plot outline to a story that I started to write in 8th grade. I'm not sure what happened to the actual story itself, but it doesn't really matter because I only got a couple pages into it anyway.
This plot outline follows the format that my 8th Grade English teacher laid out as the proper way to write a story. Before that I would just make stuff up as I went, which was the fun way to do it. After 8th grade I took it as gospel that all stories had to be plotted out before you could begin, which kills all the fun. The reason I never really continued this story is because I already knew what was going to happen, so what was the point of writing it?
Also I had been taught that all stories should contain both a "theme" and a "thread". I tried to shoehorn both of these elements into my plot outline, but as you can see my heart wasn't really into it.
Title Ideas
Invasion of the Frogs
Frog Invasion
Mutant Frogs
Frogs
Characters
Timothy David Esot is a brilliant scientist at age 26. He is obsessed with his work and will do nothing else if he can help it. He is often criticized for never having time for other people. He has black hair, blue eyes, and wears glasses. His hair is parted to the right side. He makes a living off of selling inventions, but the money is never enough and he is forced to make many presentations on science to make money. These presentations are the only reason he keeps himself well groomed. His main goal in life is to join the ranks of Thomas Edison or Albert Einstein. He is 6 foot 1.
Froger is a large frog, about four times as big as Tim Esot's fist. Froger is two and a half years old. He's mostly green, with a white underside and red eyes. He has a deep voice, and a warped laugh that's unmistakably his. He does not hesitate to kill, but is very careful of killing his own frogs, because he knows their services may be required later, and he doesn't want to cause a revolt. If he does kill a fellow frog, he does it in secret.
Jumpy was a frog highly respected by the others. He was normal size and green with black stripes and a white belly. He could never agree about anything with Froger. The two hated each other. When Jumpy threatens revolt, along with his large group of followers, Froger takes him to a room to discuss it. This room, which turns out to be an artificial forest, is filled with starving rattle snakes. Jumpy is devoured and Froger informs the rest of the frogs that Jumpy had tired of the Frog council, and simply hopped away.
Plot
Tim Esot finds a way to increase the intelligence of other creatures, and test his theory out on Froger. He find success. Froger becomes as intelligent as a human. Then, when Tim is gone, Froger sets the machine on "Super Intelligence" and uses it on himself. Finding success, he uses it on many other frogs in the nearby swamp. The frogs, with their super-intelligence, build an army of robots and prepare for a crusade to kill all the humans. After the frogs massacre a school, the frogs call Tim to their headquarters to explain to him their intentions, and offer Tim a chance to join them in gratitude to Tim for inventing the machine.
Tim refuses and reports everything to the police. Pretty soon the navy is called in, but the navy is miserably defeated because they can find no way to penetrate the robots that the frogs ride in. Also, the frogs have developed laser beams that are incapable of missing their target.
The Frogs realize that it was Tim who reported them, and send a robot to kill Tim Esot. But because Tim was the one who made everything possible, they decide to give him a sporting chance and send a less developed Robot that is capable of missing. Tim grabs his intelligence increasing machine and runs. Then, when cornered by the Robot, it panic he shoots the intelligence ray at the Robot. The robot explodes. Tim realizes the rays of the intelligence increaser somehow act as a short circuit to the Frog's Robot technology.
Tim reports his findings to the police. The police immediately call in other scientists. One scientist takes the intelligence increaser back to his lab. The frogs, however, have a spy in the police station. The frog. spy reports everything back to the Frog base through a micro-radio strapped onto him. When the scientist was walking back to his car, a robot was waiting for him. The robot shoots the scientist, and takes the intelligence increaser.
Once Tim and the others realize what has happened, they conclude that the Frogs must be examining the intelligence increaser in order to make their Robot ships impervious to its rays. With his back up machine, Time decides to send amplified intelligence rays into the frogs camp before the frogs can safe-guard their robot ships. The plan works, and all of the frogs, and their robot ships, explode.
However 5 of the frogs, and their robot ships, were outside of the main camp at the time, busy trying to figure out how to safeguard their ships. When they see the explosion, they decide to get revenge. 4 of the ships were sent to terrorize and destroy humans, while the 5th ship was sent to intelligize more frogs and rebuild their army. This 5th ship by chance just happened to end up at the swamp near Tim's house. Tim shot rays at the robot with his back up machine, but it did no good. The ship was already safeguarded against intelligence increasing rays. The Frog saw Tim, and fired back with a laser from its Robot ship. In panic, Tim shut the window. The laser was reflected off the glass and exploded the frog's ship instead.
Next, using home made grenades, Tim blows up all the newly intelligized frogs before they could build their own robots. Arming himself with two hand held mirrors, Tim went out to face the other four robots. He was able to find their location by listening to the news on the radio.
The first Robot shot at Tim, but Tim deflected the Shot with his mirrors, and it blew up the Robot instead. Then he jumped in between two robots who fired at the same time, and deflected both shots at once. Only Froger's robot was left.
Froger's robot lured Tim into a gun shop and, after a frightening confrontation, Tim succeeded in blowing up Froger's ship. The ship blew up next to the gun powder supply, and the whole store exploded. The next scene shifts to twenty years later, when Tim's family has a reunion and talks about how he was presumed to be killed by the frogs. Howe the frogs were ultimately defeated is a mystery to everyone.
Theme
Take time out for others
Thread
Every Room always has a lamp in it.
This plot outline follows the format that my 8th Grade English teacher laid out as the proper way to write a story. Before that I would just make stuff up as I went, which was the fun way to do it. After 8th grade I took it as gospel that all stories had to be plotted out before you could begin, which kills all the fun. The reason I never really continued this story is because I already knew what was going to happen, so what was the point of writing it?
Also I had been taught that all stories should contain both a "theme" and a "thread". I tried to shoehorn both of these elements into my plot outline, but as you can see my heart wasn't really into it.
Title Ideas
Invasion of the Frogs
Frog Invasion
Mutant Frogs
Frogs
Characters
Timothy David Esot is a brilliant scientist at age 26. He is obsessed with his work and will do nothing else if he can help it. He is often criticized for never having time for other people. He has black hair, blue eyes, and wears glasses. His hair is parted to the right side. He makes a living off of selling inventions, but the money is never enough and he is forced to make many presentations on science to make money. These presentations are the only reason he keeps himself well groomed. His main goal in life is to join the ranks of Thomas Edison or Albert Einstein. He is 6 foot 1.
Froger is a large frog, about four times as big as Tim Esot's fist. Froger is two and a half years old. He's mostly green, with a white underside and red eyes. He has a deep voice, and a warped laugh that's unmistakably his. He does not hesitate to kill, but is very careful of killing his own frogs, because he knows their services may be required later, and he doesn't want to cause a revolt. If he does kill a fellow frog, he does it in secret.
Jumpy was a frog highly respected by the others. He was normal size and green with black stripes and a white belly. He could never agree about anything with Froger. The two hated each other. When Jumpy threatens revolt, along with his large group of followers, Froger takes him to a room to discuss it. This room, which turns out to be an artificial forest, is filled with starving rattle snakes. Jumpy is devoured and Froger informs the rest of the frogs that Jumpy had tired of the Frog council, and simply hopped away.
Plot
Tim Esot finds a way to increase the intelligence of other creatures, and test his theory out on Froger. He find success. Froger becomes as intelligent as a human. Then, when Tim is gone, Froger sets the machine on "Super Intelligence" and uses it on himself. Finding success, he uses it on many other frogs in the nearby swamp. The frogs, with their super-intelligence, build an army of robots and prepare for a crusade to kill all the humans. After the frogs massacre a school, the frogs call Tim to their headquarters to explain to him their intentions, and offer Tim a chance to join them in gratitude to Tim for inventing the machine.
Tim refuses and reports everything to the police. Pretty soon the navy is called in, but the navy is miserably defeated because they can find no way to penetrate the robots that the frogs ride in. Also, the frogs have developed laser beams that are incapable of missing their target.
The Frogs realize that it was Tim who reported them, and send a robot to kill Tim Esot. But because Tim was the one who made everything possible, they decide to give him a sporting chance and send a less developed Robot that is capable of missing. Tim grabs his intelligence increasing machine and runs. Then, when cornered by the Robot, it panic he shoots the intelligence ray at the Robot. The robot explodes. Tim realizes the rays of the intelligence increaser somehow act as a short circuit to the Frog's Robot technology.
Tim reports his findings to the police. The police immediately call in other scientists. One scientist takes the intelligence increaser back to his lab. The frogs, however, have a spy in the police station. The frog. spy reports everything back to the Frog base through a micro-radio strapped onto him. When the scientist was walking back to his car, a robot was waiting for him. The robot shoots the scientist, and takes the intelligence increaser.
Once Tim and the others realize what has happened, they conclude that the Frogs must be examining the intelligence increaser in order to make their Robot ships impervious to its rays. With his back up machine, Time decides to send amplified intelligence rays into the frogs camp before the frogs can safe-guard their robot ships. The plan works, and all of the frogs, and their robot ships, explode.
However 5 of the frogs, and their robot ships, were outside of the main camp at the time, busy trying to figure out how to safeguard their ships. When they see the explosion, they decide to get revenge. 4 of the ships were sent to terrorize and destroy humans, while the 5th ship was sent to intelligize more frogs and rebuild their army. This 5th ship by chance just happened to end up at the swamp near Tim's house. Tim shot rays at the robot with his back up machine, but it did no good. The ship was already safeguarded against intelligence increasing rays. The Frog saw Tim, and fired back with a laser from its Robot ship. In panic, Tim shut the window. The laser was reflected off the glass and exploded the frog's ship instead.
Next, using home made grenades, Tim blows up all the newly intelligized frogs before they could build their own robots. Arming himself with two hand held mirrors, Tim went out to face the other four robots. He was able to find their location by listening to the news on the radio.
The first Robot shot at Tim, but Tim deflected the Shot with his mirrors, and it blew up the Robot instead. Then he jumped in between two robots who fired at the same time, and deflected both shots at once. Only Froger's robot was left.
Froger's robot lured Tim into a gun shop and, after a frightening confrontation, Tim succeeded in blowing up Froger's ship. The ship blew up next to the gun powder supply, and the whole store exploded. The next scene shifts to twenty years later, when Tim's family has a reunion and talks about how he was presumed to be killed by the frogs. Howe the frogs were ultimately defeated is a mystery to everyone.
Theme
Take time out for others
Thread
Every Room always has a lamp in it.
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