FLASH CHALLENGE: November '07

[kailhofer]

The "Sequels Only" Challenge:

How do you know if you've got what it takes to turn a great tale into a story franchise? Unless you're one of the lucky few, it takes a long time to sell that first big story or book. So long, in fact, that you may not remember much about the world it was set in anymore. How then do you know you can write a good continuation when the call comes from a publisher who wants more? Addressing this concern is what this month's contest is all about. This month, I challenge you to create your very best sequel.

If you're interested in the test of sequel writing, this is for you. Or if you've always wanted to let the characters from your story 'ride again,' this is for you. Good luck!


REQUIREMENTS: (1) Your piece must be a sequel to your own story that appeared in Aphelion or in a previous Flash Challenge here (include a link to it in either case); (2) 1,000 words or less; (3) Well-recognized characters, settings, and series are allowed. I've checked with Dan and Mare stories are ok. Jeff did not respond, so no Nightwatch, sorry; (4) Just to show these are new stories and not ones an author has on file, a piece of glass must feature prominently in the story. A passing mention won't suffice; (5) 'PG13' or lightly 'R' content, please; (6) THIS IS NOT A "BLIND" CHALLENGE, so give your story a title and include a byline. Do not bother sending me a bio. I won't use it.

If, in my judgment, any requirement is missed, I won't post the story for voting. Sorry, but rules are for everyone.

HOW TO ENTER: Stories should be submitted to me by PRIVATE MESSAGE, and NOT posted into the thread. If you've never sent a PM, all you have to do is log into this forum and click the 'PM' button at the bottom of this post. That will take you to a special message board, a kind of Aphelion-only email, where you paste your story into the body of the message and then send it to me. You are responsible for doing your own formatting, and for the sake of uniformity, please leave an extra line between paragraphs, just like when you see them in the 'zine. I'm allowing different colors for now, but I'm not going to allow changed fonts or sizes. I want all the stories to display the same on everyone's computer. Please DO NOT send a regular email to me--I don't want to risk a spam filter blocking someone's hard work.

NOTE: ONLY REGISTERED MEMBERS who have posted at least one message may submit a story. Without that one post, the system will not let you send a PM. So if you wish to join the challenge, post a hello or introduction, or just put your two cents worth in on any of the discussions going on anywhere in the Forum. We'll be glad to meet you.

DEADLINE: Stories should be in by 10 p.m. Central Standard Time, 11/23/07. The stories will then be posted for voting. Voting will close at 10 p.m. C.S.T. on 11/29/07.

VOTING: This time, things will not be "blind." With many of Aphelion's favorite characters it would impossible not to recognize their creators, so author names will be on the stories and the poll for voting. All the story titles are literally tossed into a hat and chosen at in random order. Voting will be open for 1 week.

GUEST ACCESS: Guest votes will be allowed, so feel free to tell friends and neighbors about the contest and encourage them to read all the stories. We attract new readers each time.

If you feel a second story deserves a vote, you may legally vote again as a guest, but you'd need to do it from a separate network, say from a library or your workplace. Votes are tracked by IP address only, so a guest vote from your same network will change your previous vote to the newer one. Voting for yourself a second time is just tacky, so don't do it.

An example of what may be done follows.

EXAMPLE STORY Not eligible for entry.

1000 Words

[center]Art of Intrigue

By:
N.J. Kailhofer[/center]



"We must find The Etcher."

Althea looked up from her homework to see Delbert Lunt's bald head leaning over the shop's counter.

At least he's not wearing that plunger on his head today, she thought. "Why?"

Lunt straightened his tie and then pulled something from the jacket of his gray suit. "I got this in the mail at the bank."

He held up a business card-sized piece of glass. Etched into it was a picture of Althea's Mother, screaming in terror.

"Where is Madame Oberlin?"

"Mom!" Althea went white. "She was going to talk to someone about redoing the windows."

"Who?"

She bit her lip. "I don't know. It was somebody she heard about, who wasn't in the yellow pages."

A sound, like water freezing across a lake, crackled from the front of the store. Lunt pointed at the shop's front windows. A driving rain flooded across them, pouring the outside gloom into the shop, so at first she didn't notice white frost spreading across the glass to the left of the door. Clear voids were left as it spread, forming a picture. It was a gravestone, with her mother's name on it. Above, words read in reverse, 'The Journey's End'.

Lunt shivered. "I hope you have more fortune-telling cards."

She reached under the counter. "Let's go."

Just outside the shop, she fanned the cards in front of her, written side away from Lunt. "Ask your question."

"Where is Madame Oberlin?" He drew the card, then grabbed the entire pack and stuffed it inside his coat.

"What are you doing?!"

"The water made the ink run! I can't read a blasted thing."

He looked into her eyes. "You're going to have to use your gift. Think! Or better yet, feel it, Althea. You can save your mother. Where do we find her?"

Althea's mouth gaped open and closed. She felt small. She felt desperate. She felt a heavy weight pushing down on her. She felt--

"I'd kill for a hotdog right now," she muttered to herself.

"What?"

Althea's head hung low. Rain ran down her face, hiding the tears from her eyes, then dripping from her nose and chin. "I'm such a bad daughter. My mom is missing and all I can think about is food."

Lunt brightened. "Did your mother have a favorite hotdog stand?"

"The Shake Shack. Why?"

He hailed a taxi. "I have an idea."

[center]***[/center]

Her eyes scanned the patrons around the outdoor stand. "I don't see her."

"I'll check the park," Lunt said. "You stay here and keep watch. Perhaps we'll get lucky."

The rain had slowed to a slow drizzle, but the crowd was still small. Althea felt hollow, drained emotionally, and slumped into one of the wire chairs furthest away from the stand.

"Oh!" On the table in front of her was a rain-soaked sketch of the front of their shop. In the other window of the drawing, the word 'Defeat' taunted her.

Every inch of Althea's body ached. Her mother was all she had.

"Althea?"

She jumped. "Mom?"

Her mother stood by the next table, her face a mask of pain. A strange man had his arms around her, pulling her forward. He was thin but muscular, in jeans and a sleeveless t-shirt that was spattered with something that looked like blood. His face was gaunt, elongated by a pointed goatee on his chin. His eyes were sunken in dark circles.

Althea jumped at him. "Get away from my mother!"

"Althea!" her mother shouted.

His eyes locked with hers.

Althea felt herself freeze in place, her spirit leaving her like sugar melting in rain. Every ounce of strength she had struggled against it, but the pull was unrelenting.

Mom!

She collapsed into her chair, unable to stand.

Her mother sat down next to her. The Etcher perched in the seat across from Althea, his gaze still locked with hers. She felt herself about to lose all that she was.

Lunt's hand clamped down on The Etcher's shoulder. "Marcus! Good to see you."

The spell broken, Althea gasped. "What's going on? Why did you kidnap my mother?"

Her mother looked at her. "He did no such thing. He's been redesigning the windows. We're going for something more edgy. See? 'Defeat Your Journey's End' with a gravestone. That should pick up our séance business, don't you think?"

Althea sputtered. "The windows really changed."

Her mom frowned. "You're not the only one with talents, dear. He's outstanding with any glass or metal."

"Why is he covered in blood?"

Madame Oberlin laughed. "That's ketchup. When the rain came, we ran for cover. I twisted my ankle and smeared my hotdog all over him when I fell."

The Etcher's deep voice said, "You were right, banker."

Lunt sat down in the other chair. "That was a hypothetical discussion and you knew it. I certainly didn't want you to frighten anyone. What was the point of this card, then?"

Madame Oberlin spoke up. "That was my idea, I sent them to all my friends. I hoped it might boost his business. It got your attention, didn't it?"

Lunt tugged at his tie. "That it did."

Althea blinked. "You mean no one was ever in any danger? I was frantic for nothing?"

The Etcher shook his head. "Not for nothing. I now know your gift is not limited to cards. I pride myself on knowing the entire community, and their abilities. We'll meet again."

Something about the way he said it chilled Althea.

He turned to Lunt. "Debts must be paid. I'll make your new lobby centerpiece. Something out of Greek mythology, so it has a classical 'rich' feeling. Perhaps the banishment of Phineas, the seer."

He smiled at Althea.

Lunt shrugged. "The board should like that. Since you won't give out your address, you'll call to set up a time?"

[center]***[/center]

On the way home, the way The Etcher smiled at her stuck in Althea's mind. She couldn't help thinking that her life had just become more complicated.


[center]The End[/center]

Sequel to:
http://www.aphelion-webzine.com/cgi-bin ... 1186616340

[kailhofer]

will be entering this one, but i wish we had an archive to check which of our stories were run when...

There's a search engine in the archives.

Go to the archives, then click the index of back issues. There's a box for typing in a name to search for on the index of each issue. It then gives a link to each index page where it appeared, so you can then go to the page your story was in & see what the address was.

Not a perfect system, but not too shabby, either.

Nate

[kailhofer]

Wow.

I sure hope the reason everything is so quiet around here is that you all are too busy writing your sequels...

Nate

[kailhofer]

Funny, I have a plot in mind, but can't seem to come up with a good beginning.

-- david j.

Are you one of those people who write linearly? Or can you write the rest & come back to the beginning later?

Myself, I prefer to begin at the beginning, even if it is a flashback. This can make it complicated, since I don't always know what it is I'm flashing back from. Somehow it all turns out later.

Good luck!

Nate

[kailhofer]

Just in case anyone didn't notice it, the deadline is a little shorter this month. I needed to make sure there was enough time for voting before the next issue comes out. Stories have to be in by Friday 11-23-07 before 10 my time (central standard time).

1 entry so far...

Nate

[Robert_Moriyama]

... Speaking of which, the first Sunday in December is December 2nd! I thought I had a little more slack than that between the 25th (the "deadline" for prepping material for the December/January issue, this coming Sunday) and publication day. I may have to skip this challenge (leaving "Penguin Boy" and his new sidekick to find their own way in the world...)

Let's hope the victory in this challenge is not by acclamation (i.e., only one entry => automatic win).

(By the way, will there be a January challenge, even though there won't be a separate January issue of Aphelion?)

RM

[kailhofer]

... Speaking of which, the first Sunday in December is December 2nd! I thought I had a little more slack than that between the 25th (the "deadline" for prepping material for the December/January issue, this coming Sunday) and publication day. I may have to skip this challenge (leaving "Penguin Boy" and his new sidekick to find their own way in the world...)

Let's hope the victory in this challenge is not by acclamation (i.e., only one entry => automatic win).

(By the way, will there be a January challenge, even though there won't be a separate January issue of Aphelion?)

RM

You mean you didn't want to chance that you could actually finish an Al & Githros in 1,000 words? :) Oh well, Penguin Boy needed further adventures, too. Maybe someday.

Is it always the 25th, even if the 1st Sunday is far off? I know it's only a week this time, but in October it was 10 days before. Just curious.

As for January, I haven't figured one out specifically, but there's no reason why we couldn't. It might help keep things fresh in that lag time when everything slows down in January.

Nate

[kailhofer]

Let's try Dec. 9th & Jan. 11th for the next challenges. I can make that work.

Nate

[kailhofer]

"Black Friday" has been good so far! Now up to 5 entries.

Nate