September 15, 2020

IDEAS ON TUESDAYS 463


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. Regarding horror, I found this insight in line with WIRED FOR STORY: “ We seek out…stories which give us a place to put our fears…Stories that frighten us or unsettle us - not just horror stories, but ones that make us uncomfortable or that strike a chord somewhere deep inside - give us the means to explore the things that scare us…” – Lou Morgan (The Guardian)

H Trope: Horror-Comedy: Comedy Dominant (https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HorrorComedy)

Ava Williams yanked the outboard motor starter. It didn’t start.

Up the beach Elijah Turner, heir apparent to his daddy’s Gators & Taters chain of fast-food restaurants, shouted, “You want me to come over there and give you hand?” He laughed his hyena laugh.

Ava shook her head. “No thanks, but you can come with and dangle your arms in the water for me. If you want, you can dangle your head in the water, too, see if a gator might be interested in helping Humanity get rid of one more parasite!”

Eli flipped her off good-naturedly. She flipped him off with heat. She couldn’t stand the twit. As far as she was concerned, he could…she focused her energy on starting the outboard and yanked it. This time it started. Reversing, she headed out onto the marsh. She wanted some peace and quiet from her parents as they argued about getting a divorce. “Can’t even agree on how to get divorced,” she muttered.

She’d started relaxing when her cellphone blipped. Scowling, she took it out. The message was from Eli – they’d been friends once, in middle school, until she found out that he was more interested in getting some kind of “benefits” she wasn’t interested in passing out. They’d stayed friends for a while, but he eventually found someone in school who wanted what he did. She smirked, though according to gossip…She read the message, “MA SAYS WATCH OUT FOR METHIGATORS”

She rolled her eyes again. Dismal Swamp was on State land, a zillion miles from Nashville which did have a meth problem. But meth wasn’t a big deal in Pocahontas or Bolivar, the nearest “big cities” to the Swamp. Besides, hyperactive alligators couldn’t be any worse than a hyperactive neighbor boy with “benefits” on his mind.

She sighed when she heard the sound of a second motor roar to life. Eli’s boat motor was for trolling – she’d be able to stay ahead of him all day if she wanted to. While she wasn’t looking for ‘gators, she was pretty sure Eli would be on the lookout. She started to grin. Maybe she could kill two ‘gators with one shotgun to the teeny-tiny brain.

She started to aim for shore – which was a dicey proposition at best in Dismal Swamp. Quicksand was common, and the fact was that ‘gators made their way into southern Tennessee almost half a century ago. Eli had ‘gators on the mind – not because his boat, motor, and the rest of the junk in his life came from his daddy’s famous restaurants. Serve him right if he had a face-to-face with an “alligator”. She saw a sandbar and headed for it just as she heard the whine of Eli’s motor clear the point. He’d be able to see her beaching her flat-bottom and figure he could chase her down and maybe get a little handsy.

She gave herself a goose of speed and hit the beach so she wouldn’t have to step into mud. She was lucky – there was already a trail leading from the beach inland. Smirking, she skittered in, pushed the grasses back and squatted down. Her gator “roar” was something she was well-known for in school. Pocahontasa High School had even approached her to be the voice and body of the school mascot, “Pokey Gator”.

She settled, listening carefully to the whine of the motor as Eli looked to land on the sandy beach. Suddenly, the motor stopped…

Names: ♀;♂ Most common names in Tennesee 2020

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