Today started the first day of the Clarion West Write-a-thon 2024. My goal now through July 27th is simply to be writing every day and using this blog to keep all of you updated that have donated to the Write-a-thon to help other creatives take workshops to learn and grow. Maybe, I will start on my next novel as well. So far this month I have submitted to thirteen markets.
Tonight, I wrote a 1000k story called And the Sun No Longer Shone. It’s about a little bee who is one of the last from its hive to survive a terrible meteor blast. It wanders out into the world in search of nectar alone and weak. Its usual field where it fed has become choked with orange/brown dust and the flowers are only opening for a few hours in the morning after dawn. The nectar tastes dirty and rancid. The poor little bee travels further than it ever traveled before and comes upon a house in the middle of this wasteland, after passing through the field it used to gather nectar from, which is completely destroyed. It is so feeble and hungry, but it makes it inside. The family has perished at the supper table. The bee is hopeful though because it finds there are flowers inside the house, but soon discovers they are only flowers made of Legos, so it goes to ask the other bee where there is some nectar, but the bee is also made of Legos. The poor little bee is very confused by the plastic flowers and the plastic bee. It cannot understand why humans would create such things when there are real flowers and real bees in the world. “Are they not doing a good job?” it wonders. And then he curls up and dies.
Yes, this is a very depressing story, but the call for the story is how we interact in our natural world with the world we have created around us. I don’t think we always create things that are healthy for us even though we have the skills to do so. Legos are an awesome kids’ toy, but I use something we all love to show how we live in a world of blended reality between real and created nature. I also might submit this story for another call on how we seek out interactions and try to form bonds between us.
Insects are fascinating. People think they are tiny aliens, but I think they are tiny villages filled with tiny people. As a child I used to enjoy watching them for hours and gathering information from how they interacted with one another. I knew they had souls, and I would get very upset whenever anyone treated them as any less than living beings with feelings. I still feel drawn to them. They often play a large part in my stories. In fact, For the Sake of Brigid, found on Amazon, has bees as some of the main characters. At Godless.com it is on sale as an eBook right now for $0.99. Make sure to watch out for more insect stories from me because I am sure I’m not done writing about my fascinating bug friends.
Here is my fundraising page, if you would like to donate. I’m 38% there. Thank you to all my donors. I’m raising $500 for Clarion West this summer.
She Writes Fast 