OCTOBER 31, 2014
Guides and Prompts
Doorknob & BodyPaint Archives
Issue 60
Financial problems abound.
Personal problems grow daily. The
environment is eroding from under our feet with glaciers melting, floods, and
earthquakes. You have tried everything to bring about a change except one. You have resisted calling on your personal
saint. After all, you don’t really
believe you have one. But, finally,
things are so bad that you buy a candle, light it, call out “Help!” and wait
for results. And, what results,
everything changes. Write a story about any saint/s (including the New Orleans
Saints) and the miracles they make/do within the limits of our contest
guidelines (hoops):
DORSAL
In the title story of David Means' short story collection, “Assorted
Fire Events,” the author footnotes his narrative of fire-related disasters with
sentimental "asides" that suggest an autobiographical
twist.
One morning in
Rochester, my aunt--mother of five, member of a fine upstanding family with no
deep-felt hardships (apparent from outside), on the way to her job at the high
school--took a can of gasoline, placed it in car, drove to a quiet cul-de-sac
and poured the gas over head and body and lit herself on fire. She died a
few hours later, flesh consumed.(3)
(3) This is a
horrible, tragic fact. It made the Times.
Write a 450 word or less story within the general theme of
the issue using the device of footnotes.
To share with us, place your story in
comments.
