Hatrack River Writers Workshop   
my profile login | search | faq | forum home

  next oldest topic   next newest topic
» Hatrack River Writers Workshop » Forums » Fragments and Feedback for Short Works » The Mushrooms are Alive!

   
Author Topic: The Mushrooms are Alive!
Phanto
Member
Member # 1619

 - posted      Profile for Phanto   Email Phanto         Edit/Delete Post 
I drastically changed my short story. It's so different that I don't feel I have the right to send it to the people who posted in my other thread. As such, I've made this thread.

Any help is welcome, but I'd especially like if you offered to look at the entire story, which is around 1.5k words.

quote:

Walking home from a day's hunt in the Endless Forest, Sam couldn't stop humming the tune that the jester had been singing. It was a strange song—something about how the only way to solve a dispute was to be more caring and more loving. Not that Sam had anything against empathy, but empathy didn't get the fields plowed, didn't herd the cattle, or do much of anything at all.

When Sam reached his small house, he was shocked almost out of his wits. Someone had broken down the door. Pulling out a long knife, he hurried in. The first thing he saw was a cluster of gigantic mushrooms. What the…?

One of them turned and looked at Sam with beady green eyes. In fact, it had arms, legs, and a head—it was alive! And it spoke: "Get out, fat human."


[This message has been edited by Phanto (edited July 07, 2004).]

[This message has been edited by Phanto (edited July 07, 2004).]


Posts: 697 | Registered: Mar 2003  | Report this post to a Moderator
yanos
Member
Member # 1831

 - posted      Profile for yanos   Email yanos         Edit/Delete Post 
Feel free to post it to me. I'm free this weekend for a change.
Posts: 575 | Registered: Dec 2003  | Report this post to a Moderator
Monolith
Member
Member # 2034

 - posted      Profile for Monolith   Email Monolith         Edit/Delete Post 
This is much better than the 1st. Except on tiny little thing: I think that you should've shown the house ( or at least said he was approaching it or whatnot ).

I think it would've worked better like this:

"As he approached his house, he noticed something wrong with his house. To his astonishment, somebody had broken down the door to his house.
He rushed to see what was wrong and along the way he grabbed a large, rotting tree branch to deal with the intruders.
After crossing the threshold to his house, he say a cluster of gigantic mushrooms."

Or something like that you know.

Just my thought. ( Oh yeah, you can ust that if you want. )

-BHJr-


Posts: 340 | Registered: Jun 2004  | Report this post to a Moderator
Survivor
Member
Member # 213

 - posted      Profile for Survivor   Email Survivor         Edit/Delete Post 
Yeah, I noticed that too.
Posts: 8322 | Registered: Aug 1999  | Report this post to a Moderator
Lorien
Member
Member # 2037

 - posted      Profile for Lorien   Email Lorien         Edit/Delete Post 
I've got time if you want to send it over.
Posts: 116 | Registered: Jun 2004  | Report this post to a Moderator
goatboy
Member
Member # 2062

 - posted      Profile for goatboy   Email goatboy         Edit/Delete Post 
quote:
He gasped. Someone had broken down the door to his house. Grabbing a large, rotting tree branch lying on the ground, he hurried in. The first thing he saw was a cluster of gigantic mushrooms. What the……?

First paragraph is pretty good. Third is okay, too. The above transitions rather quickly, but 1.5k is awful short. You can only put so much in that small of a space. You might try messing with the first two sentences. You could add “As he entered his yard,” to the first one. The second one could become “Someone had broken down his door.” I think the word and line count would be about the same.

I don’t know about the rotting tree branch. Might change it to a more sturdy weapon. Maybe a block of firewood or something. The mushrooms sound cool.

I’m waiting on one from MaryRobinette, but this weekend looks like time is going to open up. You can send it if you want, and I’ll take a look.


Posts: 497 | Registered: Jun 2004  | Report this post to a Moderator
Phanto
Member
Member # 1619

 - posted      Profile for Phanto   Email Phanto         Edit/Delete Post 
Updated the sample + sent out

Thanks!


Posts: 697 | Registered: Mar 2003  | Report this post to a Moderator
Phanto
Member
Member # 1619

 - posted      Profile for Phanto   Email Phanto         Edit/Delete Post 
Sent to Yanos, Monolith, Lorien, and goatboy. If any of you didn't recieve, please lmk.
Posts: 697 | Registered: Mar 2003  | Report this post to a Moderator
goatboy
Member
Member # 2062

 - posted      Profile for goatboy   Email goatboy         Edit/Delete Post 
Got it Phanto. Already started on it.
Posts: 497 | Registered: Jun 2004  | Report this post to a Moderator
   

   Close Topic   Feature Topic   Move Topic   Delete Topic next oldest topic   next newest topic
 - Printer-friendly view of this topic
Hop To:


Contact Us | Hatrack River Home Page

Copyright © 2008 Hatrack River Enterprises Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.


Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classic™ 6.7.2