Creative Writing Exercise #1

[Salinye]

(Is this the right place to post this? Wasn't sure, feel free to move it mods, if needed. :0))

 

This is a challenge I issued on my old board a long time ago. :0) Enjoy!! I can't wait to see what you come up with!

 

No man is an island...

 

Every dog has his day...

 

Don't look a gift horse in the mouth...

 

Etc...Etc...Etc...

 

 

These are examples of well known sayings. Pick a saying, any well known saying. Then write a short poem or story that has the same idea or idealism as the saying. Only the writing cannot have the saying in it.

 

That make sense? That's this writing challenge. No rules. Free form style. Don't tell us which well known saying you are using, and see if we can guess!! I can show you a couple of examples from my old board if you wish. :0)

 

~Salinye

Edited May 4, 2003 by Salinye

[Zadown]

Hmm? I think those are old sayings, not cliche's - cliche's are things like the hero in a movie always getting the girl and saving the world and surviving. And while cliche's are universal in these times of Hollywood mass entertainment reaching every place in the civilization, the sayings vary from one culture to another. None of those three examples is very familiar to me, for example.

 

Of course, old folk sayings are slowly fading so perhaps in a generation or two there is only one set of them with their roots in USA. *shrug*

 

But well, "hätäkös tässä valmiissa maailmassa" as we say here in Finland.

[Alaeha]

Actually, Cliches are plotlines that are overdone, overly used phrases, etc. An example of a more "true" cliche would be "like the plague". Generally speaking, you should always avoid cliches like the plague. They are, after all, old hat.

[Salinye]

Hmmm Okay, so I need to edit the exercise. Thanks for the info!! I'll do so right away. :0)

 

~Salinye

[Salinye]

(This was written silly and spur of the moment. *grins at Wyvern* I hope I didn't do you an injustice. OH, and I broke a rule, my saying IS in the story. blech can't even obey my own rules!!)

 

Kevin was quite impressed at all the beautiful baked goods that he saw through the shop window. hmmm perhaps we could buy our wedding cake here. He thought to himself as he pulled the glass entrance door open. A resounding "Bah-BING" rang through the small shop as he entered causing a rustle and shuffle to be heard from the unseen back store rooms. Kevin stood admiring a tall wall full of cakes when a scaly winged almost dragon appeared behind the counter.

 

"Hello, I see you are interested in my many WONDERFUL and equally fair priced cakes." Wyvern said to his newest vict—customer.

 

Kevin smiled. "Yes you do good work. I especially like this one." He said pointing to a three tier white cake edged with burgundy roses.

 

"Oh yes, yes. You have good taste, that is an especially fine one, which is why it's twice as expensive." The almost dragon said with a sly smile.

 

"Twice as expensive!!" The patron exclaimed. "What makes this cake so much finer than say, that one?" He asked pointing to another three tier cake equally as beautiful but edged in Blue.

 

Wyveryn looked to the second cake the man pointed out. "OH, that one is a different story altogether. THAT particular cake is triple the price of a normal cake." He stated matter of factly. "Really, a bargain if you ask me."

 

The man could not believe what he was hearing. "You know, you're not much of a salesman. Don't you have any cakes that are normal priced, or on sale?"

 

The almost dragon fluttered his wings at the word "sale" as cutting prices to please the patrons was deeply against his beliefs. Besides, he felt that the Triple the price WAS a sale! "Well, if you are looking for bargain cakes, you may wish to view the wall behind you." Turning the man looked at the array of cakes on the wall behind him seemingly identical to the ones on the wall before him.

 

"These cakes look exactly the same, why are they priced so much lower?" He asked flustered.

 

"Well, those cakes are rubber." Wyvern walked over to give one of the two tiered cakes a squeeze resulting in a loud "Squeak". "Although, the squeak costs extra." He informed the man.

 

Kevin ran an impatient hand through his hair trying to remain calm with the swindler before him. "Are THESE cakes made of rubber as well?" He asked pointing back to the original wall of cakes he was observing.

 

Wyvern scurried back to that wall. "Oh no no no, those cakes are quite edible." He said coughing a small puff of black smoke seeping from the corner of his toothy mouth.

 

The man looked a bit relieved. "Well okay, so I’m only interested in edible wedding cakes. What is your starting price." Wyvern's eyes lit up at the word price, one of his favorite words.

 

"Well, these FINE can't find anywhere else wedding cakes with luscious frosting, delectable filling and the softest spongy cake in town could be yours for only six hundred geld."

 

"WHAT? SIX HUNDRED GELD?" The man cried out exasperated.

 

"Per tier." Wyvern added nonchalantly.

 

"YOU, sir. Are INSANE!" The man proclaimed as he spun on his heels to leave the scheme of a cake shop he was in. "I guess it is true what they say, you can’t have your cake and eat it to."

 

Wyvern scurried behind the man calling out to him, "Oh yes you can, for the right amount of geld, of course."

[Tamaranis]

Two figures, one short and one tall, stood near the center of a grassy clearing. It appeared empty, but their trained eyes could detect a small, almost playful magical creature darting about them.

 

"Hey Dad, I got one!" Glaous called out to his father, his voice filled with a mixture of excitement and pride.

 

The young boy had cast a net of magical fibers out into the air and managed to ensnare the creature. Dancing within the net, shedding multicoloured lights, was a wisp. It wasn't truly a spirit, just a bit of stray magical energy that tended to absorb past thoughts and emotions and act on them. Some people, as strange as it seemed to Glaous' father, would pay good money for wild wisps.

 

"Careful, they're tricky..." Glaous' father was an accomplished wizard, and it delighted him to see his son already wielding magic with enough skill to ensnare wisps. This was a fairly safe exercise. Wisps rarely became agressive unless they occupied a space of much recent violence and hatred. Even if this wisp did become ill-tempered, they weren't particularly dangerous, and it would be a simple matter to dispell it.

 

Suddenly two more wisps darted from a nearby copse of trees, and darted towards Glaous on a straight line. They stopped in the air three feet above his head, and orbited each other at an amazing rate.

 

Glaous' father chuckled as his son tried in vain to ensnare both circling wisps as he hastily stabalized the magic holding the first. They simply moved too fast and he couldn't catch them with enough fibers simultaneously to hold them in place. "First secure the one you already caught, then focus on those two."

 

"Dad," Glaous said, sounding exasperated, "I know what I'm doing." Glaous' father just smiled and watched.

 

The flight paths of the two wisps became increasingly erratic and Glaous continued trying to snare both at once. Though they weren't alive they seemed almost to be taunting him.

 

Then the two wisps began orbiting one another closely again, as they did so they spun is a slow arc around Glaous, and as he continued to fling magic at them. He nearly struck he father at one point, though the older man could surely have turned the magic away with hardly an effort. He called out an admonishing "Careful!" all the same.

 

The two free wisps passed infront of the snared one, the flowing magics collided with the static ones. The ties dispersed chaotically in every direction. The previously snared wisp and the two free ones darted for opposite corners of an imaginary triangle, fleeing the clearing. A fourth wisp generated by the interaction between the spells tauntingly did a few laps around Glaous before also retreating.

 

Glaous' father nearly collapsed laughing when he saw the startled expression on his son's face.

[Alaeha]

That one would be "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush", unless I'm mistaken...

 

Am I?

[Salinye]

Very good Alaeha. that's exactly right. :0)

 

~Salinye

[Tamaranis]

Note that I told Salinye what it was over mIRC...

[Salinye]

Yes, my guess was "Don't count your eggs before they're in the basket." LOL :0)

 

~Salinye

[Wyvern]

David Namesroks and Wanna Letterback both brush the dust off of their formal uniforms as they swiftly pace down the corridor towards the sealed gate labeled "Entrance to U.N Headquarters." The two officials stop a few inches away from the gate, lifting a panel on the wall to their right and typing in a few passwords onto a computer board that lies hidden there. After a few moments of waiting, the light on the panel flashes green and the gates to the U.N conference room are opened. Wiping sweat from their brows and making sure that their name tags are clearly visible on their chests, David and Wanna step into the conference chamber without further hesitation.

 

Seating themselves in their respective seats at a large round table hosting numerous members of the U.N, David and Wanna catch their breaths for a moment before the former exclaims:

 

"Very well... would anyone care to brief us on the current situation?"

 

A man wearing glasses seated at the opposite end of the table clears his throat and shuffles some papers before responding:

 

"The situation is very grave... yes, very grave indeed. A band of organized vagabonds known as the "Others" have demanded the rights to certain letters, and are threatening to steal the letter "U" from the U.N!"

 

Wanna Letterback's eyes widen as she hears this information, and she immediatly jumps out of her seat exclaiming:

 

"Dear God! We mustn't let them steal the "U"! I vote that we, the U.N, be called forth to put a stop to their actions before they can do any serious harm!"

 

"Agreed!" cries the rest of the U.N attending. "In order to take immediate action, this meeting is ajourned!"

 

;-)

 

OOC: Wyvern whistles innocently...

[Wyvern]

By the way, just to clarify things for those who I haven't revealed this to yet, the play on famous sayings in my little story is:

 

"Do U.Nto Others as Others would do unto 'U'"

 

;p

[Katzaniel]

Alenya, Basil, Cre, Denton, Ebixia, Fuhra, Gresco, Horace and Iridium stared angrily at each other across the room. Denton furrowed his brows at Ebixia, who stared in elegant frost-laced airs towards Horace, who grinned evilly but irrepressibly ill-willed at Cre. Basil looked moodily towards Gresco, who pointedly refused to face Alenya, who squinted at Iridium, who eyed Fuhra suspiciously. Fuhra, however, smiled nonchalantly at the ceiling.

 

"I don't know what's up with you all, anyway," she stated matter of factly.

 

Basil exploded at her. "You know very well!" he declared, a moment before Ebixia dropped ice into the room with her own accusatory harrumph, and the next moment the room exploded.

 

"It's your fault we're here!"

"You saw how Cre put us here!"

"Horace said she knew what she was doing!"

"It's all Iridium's doing!"

 

Denton sat nursing his wounds among the rest of them, but he muttered "I don't know how that dynamite exploded, Fuhra, but you can't blame us for the hostility. If it had gone off when we expected, none of us would be here waiting for the nurse."

 

"We have to try again," added Gresco. "But how can we trust each other?"

 

Cre's own mournful tones added the words, "Seven o'clock, someone said. Someone else said they would start it at six-thirty, somebody told me it would take half an hour to burn... I can't remember who said what, my head hurts so much, but it exploded at one o'clock! How could any of us have been ready?"

 

That started its own burst of complaints, but Fuhra waited patiently for it to die down before saying her piece.

 

"One o'clock? Then it's all up to whoever made the clock. My head hurts too, but you don't see me trying to lay blame." She pulled the cloth contraption out of the bag gingerly, along with some thread. Her hand hovered near the bottom, then added a single line of horizontal thread to the number between the large crosstitched six and eight.

 

Horace giggled at that. "That's all it was?"

 

Basil boomed bitterly. "Whoever made the clock!"

 

Gresco shuddered. "And we would have screwed it up again."

 

When the nurse came, they were all smiling at one another again. This time, they knew the dynamite would explode when they expected it to. Luckily, none of them remembered that Fuhra herself had sewn the clock.

[Nobody of Consequence]

Hmm ... interesting idea. Let's see, now ...

 

 

 

We, the monkeys, will not enter into correspondance regarding the degree of creativity or effort involved in this production

 

The stableboy shaded his eyes from the morning sun with one hand. He turned, looking into the empty stable once again, and with a final sigh, let the large gate clang shut.

[Tamaranis]

Apparently Because I cheated, I'm not supposed to say the answer, so hopefully no one saw it.

 

The Clue, ie the cheating, to Katzaniel's entry is "The number of people present is important."

 

Oh, and Nobody of Consequence: Brevity is the key to communication?

Edited May 25, 2003 by Tamaranis