The Book

The book I've been working on for over a decade is almost done.  I've not spoken of it publicly before because I've always thought of it as a hobby.  I've shared very early copies of it with some family and friends and they've encouraged me strongly to get it out in the public.

I've been working with my editor Jill Oldham on and off for the last couple years as we've both had time to work on this hobby project.  I also have a friend @patrickrlaurent who's worked on some cover art with me.  This isn't the final form, but I thought I'd share the first draft  of the cover.  I may post some samples here as I get sections worked out.

When he woke up Saul expected to spend his day programming The World.  Instead, he discovers the young hacker he'd been chatting with only hours before is the latest victim of a serial killer.  Before the day is over, he will discover that he is not only the killer's next target, but he is also the FBI's prime suspect.  Saul's world begins to change in ways he never expected as he reaches out of his isolation for help.

Makeup!

“Cut!” the director shouted.  “That was horrible!  Where are the writers?  When I said I wanted more non-verbal communication, I wasn't talking about some kind of circus mind reading act!  Fix it!”  he barked as two disheveled men ran up to him during his fit.

“Sir?” The taller man asked hopelessly before the director could storm completely off the sound stage.  “Are we still limiting the number of spoken words for the whole movie?”

“Yes!  No leeway.  The movie is Two Hundred Words not Two Hundred and Seventy Six Words!”  The director completed his tantrum and left.

The men looked at each other sighing deeply in unison.  They had spent endless nights trying to tell this sad drama in an hour long screenplay with this ridiculous constraint.  “You think he’ll count French words?” the shorter man asked rhetorically.

“We've used up all the words in the finale. How are we supposed to explain that Mark is John’s long lost brother and that he had amnesia after a war injury or he would have been home to help with their dying father?”  The taller man complained.

“Oh!  We need a head wound.”  The shorter man was suddenly excited.  “Makeup!!” He yelled.

-----------------------
Entry for Flash Firday #47
200 Words Exactly

Finding Enlightenment

“This is stupid.” he blurted out, opening his eyes.  The view up here was certainly life changing but after a week of shivering in his tent all night, and meditating all day, Dan was done with the whole “find enlightenment” thing.

“I bet those monks are laughing their butts off right now.”  He mused aloud, “Hey let’s send the dumb one up the mountain and see how long he stays.” Dan mimicked the monks accents poorly.  “Well, I fell for it!”  He stood frustrated, stretching.  He now knew the answers he wanted were not up here.  Meditating wouldn't bring his father back or fix his sister.  He sighed deeply and and froze hearing a new sound.

He had been utterly alone on his island in the clouds, just Dan and the grass that sighed wistfully in the wind.  Heart pumping at the sound of footsteps, he turned, half expecting to see an orange robed monk with a mischievous grin.  Instead he saw a dog jogging towards him gleefully.

Dan used his best doggie voice “Well hello there buddy.”  He rubbed its neck checking the collar for a name.  In the same voice he added “If you’re name is Enlightenment then somebody up there has a really sick sense of humor.”

------

Flash Friday 45 Entry

Word count: 210

Persistence

"Who let all the kids in here, Max!" The grizzled man growled at the bartender. The noise was deafening.

"They're all celebrating.  Just got diplomas and jobs.  Not gonna turn away business, Lu.",  Max replied.

"Hey, I need a screwdriver, a kamikaze, and a zombie." a kid elbowed up to the bar jostling Lu and barking rudely.

While Max set about mixing the trendy concoctions the boy turned back to his friends elbowing Lu, oblivious.

"Easy there, Lu.  If you fume any harder there'll be smoke."  An old man with a white beard took the stool on the other side of Lu.

Contraband

Story Prompt

In the end it was a good that the Hat Head Club drank our own water.  Teachers just ignored us when we complained about the taste of the fountain.  It was Monday and the HHC was meeting near the fountain.  All five of us wearing our crazy, custom knitted hats and watching the gym class let out, each kid taking turns gulping the water, making a face, and turning away.

Sarah gave us the new hats she had finished.  Mine was an owl!  She knew it was my favorite.  Jenny got the three eyed alien, Sasha the panda, and Mica now had spiky, yellow, yarn hair.  We giggled over our new prizes, fawning over Sarah’s gifts.  Then Mica’s face turned serious as she covertly handed us each a bottle of water like it was contraband.  We nodded solemnly reminded of the reason for our hats, our solidarity with Mica’s baldness.

Friday Flash Fiction Entry at: http://flashfriday.wordpress.com/2013/10/04/flash-friday-44/comment-page-1/#comment-5130

---

Knock me over with a feather. There were so many excellent moving and entertaining entries, I am humbled that I should be picked. Thank you to the judge Beth Peterson and our host Rebekah Postupak. http://flashfriday.wordpress.com/winners/ben-miller/

Cool! An official interview and everything: http://flashfriday.wordpress.com/2013/10/09/sixty-seconds-with-ben-miller/