Looking toward December.

In the last couple of days of November after finishing NaNoWriMo, I've gone back and picked up a scifi short story I had started to write. This story had been intended for a series of short stories based on the range of human emotional states. Here's a little taste from "The Torment of Ethan Stone" for your entertainment:

The most dangerous thing a mind can do is become complacent. Fear takes root in the soil of uncertainty. Even the silhouette of the unknown man outside the gallery held seeds of doubt. The sound of the door opened and slammed shut vexing a startled Ethan Stone. He dug his way out of the pile of books on his workspace, and hit the buttons to log out of the office on his way into the gallery. A fifth century jar wobbled as he brushed past it. He steadied the jar with a smooth motion that carried his momentum toward the gentleman that had just entered the gallery. He greeted the man with a hearty “good afternoon.”

“I like the glasses,” the man replied. “They’re a nice touch. You just don’t see them anymore.”

Ethan thanked him. His glasses like all the other items in his gallery were relics of times gone by. Most people were content to focus on what is rather than what was. Ethan and his visitors however were curious with how people lived in the times before. Even as a child he would marvel at the conveniences around him. Always asking “what if” to the point his parents would simply shrug and turn back to their own conversations.

The gentleman picked up the ball and fumbled with the rough surface. He tossed it upwards lightly. Ethan's heart skipped s beat. The ball came to rest in the man’s hand and he glanced at Ethan. "How much?"

Ethan puzzled at the question. Of all the objects in the gallery why would the man want the crude rubber ball. Ethan had read about the games. Many ended in injuries, many life threatening. A ten pound projectile hurled at amazing speeds that snapped bone and crushed organ. They were remnants of a brutal past, before society evolved. Ethan could barely imagine not wearing even minimal protective padding.

The story goes on to tell about the exploits of Ethan and his mysterious visitor as they enter the world of illegal sports in world where risk is the ultimate four letter word. Will Ethan keep his comfortable life where his ever need is taken care of? Or will Ethan fall victim to his curiosity and the thrill of the adrenalin rush?

I should be finished with Torment today and that gives me December to work on some shorts. I want to do a few winter or Christmas stories. I may split them up into a few genres. I definitely want to do a scifi short. I had wanted to do a scifi story involving snow and snow men but Dr. Who stole my thunder on that one with last years Christmas special. I'm not completely giving up on the idea, but I will need to do some massive restructuring of the idea.

I'll keep some updates going on my brainstorming progress during the first week on so in December. If you're not sure where to go after NaNo you should be able to pick up some tips here.

As far as revisions go I may do some revisions to the Torment short story. I would love to send it out to a lit magazine in the early months of 2014. The Eternal Wager (my Nano Project) will not be taking any active place in my December workspace.