Short story exercise on not plotting (p.170-173, 2010 ed.)

[BGlenn]

In 1997 Mr. King commited an act of telekinesis. I received his transmission at work and eagerly took up pen and pad, raising my Dick and Jane fossil from the ground. I work in an aluminum refinery in a department that can aptly be described as the ******* of the plant. My little narrative began with a single line (as most do), then blossomed into a short titled Abilene. The words flowed from pen to page organically and without pretension, so I guess that means the project was a "success." However, the real lesson came later as I typed and tweaked the work on my computer. The pages in my notebook were smeared with dirt and dust. When we write it is easy to lose ourselves in the world we are creating and become disconnected (for lack of a better word) from "real life." This serves its own purpose in defining our craft, but good fiction is always smattered with the dirt of life. It is what makes a situation feel real to the reader and the writer. So thank you, Mr. King, for reminding me that no matter how dirty life gets, we can always find joy and meaning in something we do.

[arperkins]

Too bad this exercise has been shut down. I turned mine into a reverse rape role-playing situation. Poor Dick will do anything to keep that marriage alive.