Each Tuesday, rather than a POSSIBLY
IRRITATING ESSAY, I'd like to both challenge you and lend a helping hand. I
generate more speculative and teen story ideas than I can ever use. My family
rolls its collective eyes when I say, "Hang on a second! I just have to
write down this idea..." Here, I'll include the initial inspiration
(quote, website, podcast, etc.) and then a thought or two that came to mind.
These will simply be seeds -- plant, nurture, fertilize, chemically treat,
irradiate, test or stress them as you see fit. I only ask if you let me know if
anything comes of them.
Each Tuesday, rather than a POSSIBLY IRRITATING
ESSAY, I'd like to both challenge you and lend a helping hand. I generate more
speculative and teen story ideas than I can ever use. My family rolls its
collective eyes when I say, "Hang on a second! I just have to write down
this idea..." Here, I'll include the initial inspiration (quote, website,
podcast, etc) and then a thought or two that came to mind. These will simply be
seeds -- plant, nurture, fertilize, chemically treat, irradiate, test or stress
them as you see fit. I only ask if you let me know if anything comes of them.
Change of pace for a bit – I’m going to
look at elements of EXTREMELY popular SF, F, and H; break them apart and use
each element as a jumping off point for a story idea…
H Trope: adaptational
heroism
Current Event: “Throughout
this work, we advance four primary ideas: (a)The concept of heroism is a way to
unify several types of courageous or brave actions that have largely been
treated independently in the literature to date; (b) that the simple presence
of risk accompanying prosocial behavior is not enough to define heroism; (c)
heroism is viewed as distinct from other prosocial activities, such as
compassion and altruism (and may represent an entirely different behavior); and
(d) that while heroism is primarily a positive and prosocial act, a simplistic view
of this behavior misses important (and sometimes negative) aspects of the
phenomenon.” (http://www.scribd.com/doc/161425346/A-Conceptual-Analysis-and-Differentiation-Between-Heroic-Action-and-Altruism)
Altered
Definition: This idea originally meant that when people write scripts of books,
they make the main character BETTER than they really were. No doubt – in the HP
books, H himself is a jerk. They maintained that pretty much in the movies, but
he STILL came across as “wunderkind”. I interpreted this to mean that a normal
person will become a hero under the correct set of circumstances: to win the
girl, save his parents, get the golden fleece, whatever. It takes a really good
writer to create a situation and character in which the character even CAN
become a hero…
“My baby sister
tells me you can help us find Carlos,” Carmita Rodriguez Cruz said. Her eyes
narrowed, “She’d better be right.”
Austin Ventura remembered
then that she was also taking kickboxing lessons – and that his best friend was
missing. “I’m not sure exactly where he is. I just know that there are certain
places he’s likely to be.” He dared, “We’re in probability together. You do the
math.”
She scowled darkly
at him, but didn’t contradict him.
Score one, he said
to himself.
Paulina Rodriguez
Cruz, sister to Los Traviesos Gemelos, said, “Quit flirting, you two! Carlos
has been kidnapped and we have to rescue him!”
Austin exclaimed,
“I’m not flirting!”
Looking at him,
Carmita said, “She’s right, A-man.” Looking at Paulina, she said, “¿Qué te hace pensar que fue secuestrado?”
“I have another
question for you, dear sister – what would he be doing out in the middle of the
night, by himself, without telling one of the three of us? Aren’t those enough
reasons?”
“The bigger
question is why would anyone kidnap him,” said Austin.
Carmita bristled,
“Just ‘cause he’s not rich like you, doesn’t mean that there’s no reason to
kidnap him!”
“You two have to
cut it out! Carlos may need us out there!” Carmita and Austin looked at each
other then looked away, hanging their heads. “You both know that Carlos is a
better person than all three of us put together.”
Austin felt a chill
run up his spine. He said, “What would that have to do with kidnapping?”
She shrugged. “I
don’t know. It just…felt right. Don’t you think?”
He grimaced as a
chilly breeze blew from across the parking lot, chasing bits and pieces of
leaves and paper over to them. “Much as I know about him, I have to say I
agree.”
“What do you
mean?” Carmita said. “I’m his twin. I’m just as good as him!”
“Better,” Austin
said.
“What?”
“You’re better
than him in everything. It’s like when you guys were conceived, you sucked all
the talent out of him. You got everything.” Carmita was glaring at him. He
added slowly, “You got everything except his good heart.” She opened her mouth.
Closed it. Opened it. Austin said, “You look like los peces de colores loco.”
“A crazy goldfish?”
she echoed, puzzled.
“Yep. You ever
seen one?”
“No.”
“Sure you have.
Someone who’s locked up and can’t do a single thing – and if they don’t start
moving, it’s gonna drive ‘em crazy.”
Paulina said, “Fits
you like a glove, Cabroncita.”
Carmita snorted
and said, “Let’s get going.” She tossed her gigantic purse over her shoulder,
“A-man, we’re gonna need your car.”
Names: ♂ Mexico; ♂ Italy; ♀ Spanish/French/Hebrew
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