Author - Artist - Voice Over Actor

Tag: writer

Happy New Year – 2024

MY VOICE ACTING GOALS – 2024

1 – Full Time Job

2 – Make myself known to Casting Directors

3 – More Regular Voice Over Auditions

4 – Book Voice Over Roles

5 – Start a regular Stream

6 – Be part of an Improv Group

7 – Play at least one Dungeons & Dragons game

8 – Be able to afford more VO training

9 – BLOG MORE

DETAILS OF MY GOALS

1 – Full Time Job
I am seeking a production position in television animation, but open to other positions in and out of the Entertainment Industry:
Production Coordinator.
Administrative Assistant
Executive Assistant
How can I support your company? Ask for a resume.

2 – Make myself known to Casting Directors
Get to personally know at last 10 Casting and Voice Directors at
Animation studios such as Disney, anime ADR directors, games, and commercials.
Who should I reach out to?

3 – More Regular Voice Over Auditions
A minimum of 500 Voice Over Auditions.

  • Audition for Animation roles at Disney (and elsewhere.)
  • Audition for Commercials on a regular basis.
  • Audition for Anime ADR.
  • Audition for Hoyoveres games like Genshin Impact.

4 – Book Voice Over Roles
• Book a minimum of 10 animation/anime roles that I can talk about by the end of 2024.
• Book a minimum of 25 commercials I can talk about by the end of 2024.

5 – Start a regular Stream
Start with prerecorded posts on YouTube and then stream live either on Twitch or YouTube to discuss my experiences and what I’m pursuing.
If it works out, I might create a VTuber.
What should I Stream? Thoughts?

6 – Be part of an Improv Group
Before Covid I got to sit in on one Improv session, and took an Improv Class at Fullerton College. I’d like to attend at least 4 Improv Sessions in 2024.

7 – Play at least one Dungeons & Dragons game.
Have loved D&D for a long time, but have only played two games, both in my Improv Acting class.

8 – Be able to afford more VO training.
I want to take the “Singing for Animation” class with Voice Masters.

9 – BLOG MORE
I realize that I haven’t blog often, but I intend to do more this year. The blog may relate to what I Stream.

Tales of Yesteryear Told in Future Tense

The year 2020 hasn’t turned out the way any of us had planned it. But looking now my 2020 Vision from the beginning of the year and isn’t all that cloudy.
Along with being an artist and writer, I had begun training to become a voice actor for animation.
Things may have slowed down some, but they haven’t stopped. I’m still writing, and am regularly doing artwork for books by Airship 27 Productions.
I continue taking more classes towards my acting career.
At my wife encouragement I have joined a local chapter of Toastmasters – Toastmasters 4 Writers. What could be more perfect.
At a meeting nearly a year ago, before I officially joined I did an Impromptu ‘Table Topics’ speech which I won, and it set off my Determination to become a Voice Actor.
This past Saturday (August 8th, 2020) I gave my first speech. An ‘Icebreaker’ speech they call it, introducing myself to the group.
As I wrote my speech I began to realize the moment in my life that set me off on the road to being an artist, writer, and now actor. It all began with ‘Old Time Radio.’

What follows is my Toastmasters Icebreaker speech, entitled:
“Tales of Yesteryear Told in Future Tense”.
(Points to those who know what two radio programs that is a reference to.)

Tales of Yesteryear Told in Future Tense

New Cover Art for my first novel CLOCKWORK GENIE

I have done some reworking on the novel, and on the cover as well.
I digitally painted it in Painter and Photoshop.

Additionally I tweeked the subtitle:  A Paranormal Romance Mystery

You can buy a copy of the novel at any ebook distributor.

Amazon Kindle

Smashwords

Barnes and Nobel Nook

Hikky from MIDNIGHT HORROR SCHOOL

Years ago, my wife and I had the opportunity to write several episodes of the Japanese animated series MIDNIGHT HORROR SCHOOL, created by Naomi Iwata
The show was a relative success in Japan and many other countries around the world, unfortunately they were able find a market to sell the show to here in the U.S.A. So we were never able see our episodes broadcast in English.
I would have really been nice to show them to people, especially to help promote our animation careers for other series.
Maybe it’s not too late.

Hikky and his school friends are objects that human students loose during the school day. Such as a pencil that falls off your desk. At night the school becomes magical and all these lost objects become alive and go to their own school. There they learn to do amazing things and to one day graduate and become one of the Wonders of The World.

It was a fun series to work on. It got me my first animation writing credit and membership into the Animation Writers Caucus of the Writers Guild of America West.

Libraries

While at last weeks Sister’s in Crime meeting it was mentioned how this was National Library Week, and it got me to thinking of the Libraries in my life.
I suppose the first library I knew was the one in Elementary School, it was a side room to the Multi-Purpose room, and didn’t have a lot of books, but enough for what was needed for the school.
The second Library was when our town opened up a brand new city library. There had been a previous library, going way back to when it was shelves in a corner store. The main library is now a museum, but when the new library was opened my mother made certain that I was the first one there when the doors opened and I was the first to get a library card in the new library.

I was never a great reader growing up. Having to take special course to help improve my reading.  Thank goodness for those instructors because they let me know that it was okay to read comic books. “If he’s reading, let him read.”

Later, in Junior High and High School, I spent a lot of time at the school libraries.  Mostly it was to get away from the bullies of the school. I didn’t have a lot of friends then, but I did have books.  I probably read more books during those lunch hours than I had anytime previously.  I’m very thankful for those times.

I would continue to go back to our city library, renewing my library card every few years.

Now I live in another city with a great big library dedicated to the arts. I know I’m going to be spending a lot of time there.

And perhaps one day, one of my books will be in a library near you.  Would you check me out please?

Meet the Artist

Meet the Artist by KevinPSB4

I found out about this a little late, but thought I’d do my own drawing and throw it in the mix. That’s me, or a bad clone.

“The Crypt”

Been rereading HP Lovecraft this past few weeks. He’s not my normal read, but I like it from time to time. While reading the story “The Tomb” an idea of my own popped in my head whole though the ending surprised me. Wrote it in about three hours, and took a couple of days to edit. It maybe more Bradbury’s Dark Carnival than Lovecraft.  What follows is my very short story (Flash Fiction?) Let me know what you think.

“The Crypt”

by Kevin Paul Shaw Broden

The sun was only minutes from setting when I drove between the freshly white washed walls and rod iron gates. There would be less than half an hour before the caretaker would lock up for the evening so we didn’t have much time.

“Thank you for coming with me Arleen,” I said to my fiancée next to me as we drove between expansive green fields dotted with flat rectangular stones.

“Of course, John. I know family means everything to you.”

“I’m glad you understand. Especially since most of my family is here.”

My car left the newer green lawns behind and pulled on to gravel-covered paths between ancient trees that stood sentinel with weeping branches for those they guarded.

After parking, Arleen and I walked deeper into the darker and older parts of the cemetery.

Before us stood dozens of massive stones, each with my family name etched and carved into the marble and granite with a litany of names and dates. This land had once belonged to my family, and this had been their private graveyard. Over the years as the family spread out, and the population of the town increased, these fields were donated to the community and a necropolis was born.

I led Arleen between the cyclopean monuments, telling her of this great uncle, or that great great-grand father who went insane.

“There seems to be a lot of that in your family tree.”

“What?” I asked with great concern.

“You’re marrying me, aren’t you,” she laughed at her own joke. I did not find it all that funny, but politely smiled.

“Back here we have the oldest of my ancestors. They’re all in the—”

That’s when I saw them.

Three teenage hooligans huddling around iron-gate of my ancestors’ final home. One of them was rattling the lock and chain that sealed the ancient crypt.

“Hey, stay away from there,” Arleen shouted at them, “That’s private property!”

The boys turned at the sound, their faces drawn, eyes sunken; they looked like skeletons freshly up from their graves.

Quickly glancing about I spotted matches, aluminum foil, syringes and the rest of their drug paraphernalia sitting atop cousin Herbert’s stone. I half smiled realizing that if he was alive he’d probably join in their festivities.

The tallest of the three, who perhaps hadn’t yet lost his manhood to the drug, snarled at us. “Whose property? Ain’t nobody here to complain. Go away if you know what’s good for you!”

“This is his family!”

“Oh, it’s his family is it? Maybe he’d like to join them.” At the man’s words the other two pulled out knives.

Arleen now really was scared, but I took her hand and gave it a squeeze of reassurance that everything would be all right.

“You do know there are reasons why that gate is chained and locked up strong,” I said as one of the boys turned back to attempting to break open the old rusted lock.

“Ya, to keep out thieves like him!” Arleen snapped at them with a renewed surge of confidence.

“There ain’t a lot that can keep me out.” The man snarled again.

“Perhaps,” I let him have his ego, “there are some locks that aren’t meant to keep people out, rather they are to keep things from getting out.”

It took a second to sink in to their drug addled brains. The two knife wielding lowlifes looked at me then glanced at the old rusted lock and chain on the crypt’s iron door.

“Follow my lead,” I whispered to Arleen as the leader of the small gang swatted the heads of his compatriots like the stooges they were.

“Don’t listen to him, you fools. He’s just messing with you. There’s nothing there—”

“Shush.”

“Don’t ‘shush’ me!” He snapped back at me.

“I wasn’t talking to you.” I replied matter-of-factly, but stared into the darkness of the crypt behind him and then said; “Go back to sleep, they won’t be bothering you much longer.”

Arleen looking at me like I was crazy, but I again squeezed her hand in reassurance.

“Who the hell are you talking to?” He shouted at me.

I sighed, “You see, my family doesn’t like to be disturbed.”

“Do you think we’re mad?!” He shouted.

“There is little doubt.” I replied with a smirk and then made my eyes go wide with fear and took a step back.

“I warned you,” I said with as much terror I could muster and pointed a long finger toward the crypt behind him.

“Run!” I screamed and pulled Arleen with me. We took off towards the newer plots, but at an angle I could keep an eye on the three drugged out trespassers. They must never have confronted anyone like us before for their leader just stared at us in utter confusion. His lackeys were even more so. One of them must have jumped at my sudden shout and stepped backwards bumping into the rod-iron gate. The rusty old chain rattled into the darkness of the crypt and echoed out against at them like a cold breeze on their necks.

That’s all it took. The three jumped and screamed as one and ran as fast as they ever could. They soon over took us and were many yards a head and running for the exit of the cemetery. Perhaps the caretaker would catch them, perhaps not.

We stopped running and I gave a loud laugh at such a sight.

“That was very cruel to do to them,” Arleen said but couldn’t help laughing herself as we headed back to the stones.

It was then, as the last rays of sunlight faded, we heard the rattle of the chain once more as it fell loose, followed by a low screech of rusted hinges of the ancient iron-gate.

My family had arrived to celebrate our engagement.

The End

San Diego Comic Con 2013 and #Mission818

As I write this thousands of people are arriving into San Diego for Comic Con International and many are attending “Preview Night”. I’ve never been there on Wednesday nights. It originally was a special “Preview” for professionals and retailers, but now it has grown to be nearly as busy as every other day at Con.

Shannon Muir and I will attend the convention Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. We are riding Amtrak trains to and from San Diego each day, but it is much more inexpensive and relaxing than trying for a hotel room.

We attend Con to meet up with many of our professional friends and network with many of the companies in attendance.

This year I am bringing #MISSION818 with me.

If you’ve been around my blog long enough, or a regular visitor and follower of my facebook or twitter feed you’ll know what #MISSION818 is. For those that don’t here is a brief description.

Shannon and I are engaged to be married, and I plan to move to be with her in the Glendale/Burbank area, and so my Mission is find employment in or around the 818 area code before our wedding.

I would prefer to find employment with an animation production company or comic book publisher, but am open to other positions and companies in that region.

I am a scriptwriter, having written professional in television animation, and been hired to develop series for independent producers. I am also a comic book illustrator, novelist, and book cover artist.

If I could have the exact job I’m after it would Senior Vice President of TV Animation Series Development, but that’s not going to happen right away. In the mean time I’ll be quite happy to assist the guy in the position now. I’ll even bring my own broom.

For my professional friends on facebook and twitter, you know that as I further my career I tag them with #MISSION818. So, this year I will be wearing a #MISSION818 T-Shirt and you all can find me in the Comic Con crowd. See the photo to know what you’re looking for:

Feel free to stop me and say hi, and like my facebook post. More importantly, lets talk about what I can do for you.

Hope to write a Post-Con Blog next week, or maybe some on spot posts to my facebook page while I’m there and let you all know how #MISSION818 worked out.

Thank you all for the support.

Kevin Paul Shaw Broden
Four Names of Professional Creativity

Influences to Glory – Writers and Artists

Earlier today I was in the midst of a Twitter conversation that brought up our earliest comic book influences.

Every artist, and writer, has their influences. Not all of us will agree as to who the greatest or the worst, the most dynamic, narrative, or the worst is. But we all know who influences us.

For me, it goes nearly to the very beginning of reading comics. I had already read through a digest reprint of JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #100 (written by Len Wein, another important influence to me), which introduced me to the world of the DC Universe that wasn’t the SUPER FRIENDS of Saturday Morning Cartoons.

Here was not only the Justice League of America, but also another team that called themselves the Justice Society of America. As a little kid, all I knew was that these were alternate takes on what I thought were well-established characters.

Over the next few months I would beginning to pick up other comic books. One comic was THE NEW TEEN TITANS by Marv Wolfman and George Perez. The second was an issue of ALL STAR SQUADRON written by Roy Thomas and among many artists was Jerry Ordway.

These two books would truly build my view of the DC Universe. The Teen Titans very ‘science fiction’ based modern stories with highly detailed artwork, while All Star Squadron showed heroes in the midst of World War II and had heroes with magic based powers.

For a while I believe that Earth 1 took place in the modern day, and Earth 2 in the 1940s, so that even when they did a cross over story they were coming from two different points in time.  I soon learned that wasn’t true.

Anyway, back to my influences.

For writing, I couldn’t have picked any better writers to follow than Marv Wolfman and Roy Thomas. Yes, I’ll hear people mention who they believe are better with more complexity to their writing, but for me these two men were the foundational influence to me that everything grew from.

Where Wolfman knew who to emotionally grab me in one story and then tell great actions sequences in the next, Thomas knew how to handle dozens of characters sometimes at once.  Thomas also knows everything about what I was learning to call the ‘Golden Age’ of comics, and spent time in every issue telling something about it all.

Because of Roy Thomas and the All-Star Squadron, I quickly became infatuated by Golden Age, and I saw out reprint books of the original stories (there was no way I could afford the originals, but I found the stories I wanted).

As with most young comic readers I soon began to create my own characters. But I didn’t want to create them in my modern world. I didn’t fit in a New York that I saw through George Perez’s detailed art. I created my characters influenced by Jerry Ordway that I felt had a more ‘realistic’ style. His faces were and are great.

(Imagine my thrill later when Ordway was hired to ink Perez’s work on CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTH. The two were so perfect together.)

(SIDE NOTE: I would also discover in the back issue bings the John Byrne issues of FANTASIC FOUR, and I bought as many as I could afford over several years of collecting. The greats of these were those where Byrne’s art was inked over by Jerry Ordway.)

So I’m creating my own characters, refining them, turning them into something more than just sketches on a page. I gave them names, and origins, not just the basic how they got power origins, but why and who the characters are with out powers.)

I was looking towards Roy Thomas and his interpretation of the Golden Age, that I began to emulate.

Three characters that I developed the furthest were The Torchlight, Speedstar, and a heroine I called FLYING GLORY.

I have written stories about all these characters, and as you all know, I took FLYING GLORY the furthest.

I’ve told the story already as how publishers were interested in a FLYING GLORY comic, one really liked the story that I told, but eventually it became clear that I couldn’t sells a Golden Age story when I was pitching it.

So with the help of Shannon Muir I updated the Flying Glory character, made her the granddaughter of the original and gave her a group of friends that supported her. THE HOUNDS OF GLORY.

Our webcomic FLYING GLORY AND THE HOUNDS OF GLORY, currently celebrating its 10th Anniversary of being online. Everything that I put into a script I owe to Marv Wolfman and Roy Thomas, and each panel of my art is so greatly influenced by Jerry Orway and George Perez (though I’ll never be able to draw hi details and crowd scenes).

Thank you Mr. Ordway, Mr. Perez, Mr. Thomas, Mr. Wolfman for you have made me the comic book professional that I am today.

Kevin Paul Shaw Broden

Four Names of Professional Creativity

NanoWriMo – A Novel this November

Am very proud of my fiancée Shannon Muir as she begins working on her latest novel as part of NanoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). As she types away at her keyboard, I know several of my online friends are doing the same thing.

I was contemplating starting one as well, but have too much to do this month.

You see, just days ago, I types the two most glorious words to an author, and I typed them twice.

“The End”

I typed it first on a short story, which I submitted to a publisher for consideration as part of an anthology.

Then I typed them again on my first novel.

Two years ago I did participated in NanoWriMo, and completed the novel I worked on that November, but it was far from perfect and had so much in it that there is no way I could truly consider it finished. Even now I know it needs a page one rewrite.

However, about two weeks into that NanoWriMo, I had an idea for a new story. The concept came to me whole, and while not wanting to interrupt the book I was working on; I jotted down a full page of notes of this new tale and put it aside.

But the more I worked on the story for Nano, the more my thoughts lingered to the new one. So when December rolled around, I jumped head first into the new novel.

The first draft of the story flew from my finger over the next few weeks, though I had to admit that the climax stunk. So in the rewrite I discovered other characters that lived with in my novel’s world and had their own parts of the story to tell.

As I asked more questions about the characters and the world they lived in the story expanded and became much better.

With Shannon acting as my editor, I went through several rewrites and the story kept getting better. Much more so than what I had originally jotted down in a flash.

Now the novel is finished and I am currently painting the cover art and formatting it properly to be release as an ebook, by the end of November.

All this resulted from NanoWriMo. My original book sits in a virtual sock drawer, and one day will come back to life.

This has been a great experience for me, and I wish an equally great experience to all my friends that are writing their novels this November.

Keep Writing.

Kevin Paul Shaw Broden
Four Names of Professional Creativity

That was a good movie, I had nothing to do with it

Wow – That was a really good movie, and I had nothing to do with it… kinda.

As part of my continual desire to work in the entertainment industry I have taking many temp job. Not as many as I would like, in the areas I would have liked, or for as long as I would have preferred. They have varied in the different types of companies and departments I’ve worked for.

The jobs have mostly been desk jobs, answering phones, typing, and filing.

One job I had a few years ago was at one of the major motion picture studios. Which in itself is a thrill to me, being able to walk the studio lots is really exciting. I don’t care if I see a celebrity or not, this is where the magic happens. I am part of that magic.

This particular job was actually for a producer and his production company that was leasing offices upon the studio lot. His regular assistant was out and I filled in for a couple of weeks. I answered the producers phones, arranged conference calls and meetings, filed, and arranged delivery of scripts and other required necessities. Another assignment I handled, usually during the down times of the day, is what is called “Script Coverage”.

Numerous scripts are delivered to the producer each day ending up in his ‘slush pile.’ Agents, representing their client writers, send these scripts with the idea that it would be ideal for the producer to consider it for production. The producer, however, doesn’t have the time to read each and every one of these scripts; it just isn’t possible or he’d never be able to get anything else done like produce that movie you worked so hard on to write.

So one of the producer’s assistants (little old temp me at the time) reads the script for him and writes a brief summary about it and whether he should consider purchasing the script and eventually producing it.

While working for him I read multiple scripts, wrote up my thoughts about them and if I thought they would make good movies or not. Two of the scripts were terrible, one was interesting but I wasn’t certain could find an audience in the current market.

The fourth script was a super hero movie. As a comic book fan this was something I could get into even if it was bad. I also recognized why the agent had sent it to this producer for he also has connections to comics. So when nothing else was going on in the office I sat down to read it.

Interesting. This is a super hero movie from the point of view of the super villain. I like. Oh, that next bit was unexpected, and the villain wins. Or does he?

After finishing the script I wrote up my summery and opinion and told the producer that he might like this one, and to consider it.

Several days later my temp job there ended as the regular assistant returned.

A few years have now past and a certain big headed, blue skinned, super villain is stomping all over the adverts for an upcoming film. Okay, another super hero film, cool. Then in the last couple of weeks before the release of the film they start showing a new series of commercials for it with certain scenes that seem very familiar. So I was very curious to see if this was the film I thought it was.

So yesterday, my fiancée and I got the chance to attend a studio movie screening:

MEGAMIND

I sat there enjoying the entire film, and loving the fact that the audience was laughing at all the right places, and the story held together very well.

About ten minutes into the film I no longer had any doubts. Here before my eyes was a successful animated super hero film, and it was the script I had read several years earlier. I got a bit of a thrill of that. Especially since I had written up positive Script Coverage for my producer.

Megamind had an opening weekend as being number one at the box office earning $47.7 million dollars (according to the Hollywood Reporter).

As much as I would like to believe that what I wrote about that original script got this movie produced, I know that isn’t so.

Remember how I said that agents send out copies of their client’s scripts to producers. They do, to multiple producers and studios. The producer I was temping with at that time was probably only one of many that received a copy of the Megamind script. He did not produce this movie, nor did the studio where I temped.

Somewhere out there in the great Hollywood wasteland is another assistant, maybe a temp, who wrote up script coverage, which made it to the right producer at Dreamworks. I tip my virtual Script Reader’s hat to them. Maybe they’ll read one of my scripts someday soon.

Kevin Paul Shaw Broden
Four Names of Professional Creativity

My Job Search is Jinxed

Okay now you guys are forcing me to actually write something for this week’s blog. In the last hour the site has received 14 visitors, 27 in the last day. That’s more than I’ve had at once since I began this blog.

Do I really have anything to say that’s worth reading? I’m humbled.

Now, where was I?

I did promise you something about how my job search is going, so I should keep my promise.

Even mentioned in one tweet that I thought my search was jinxed. Don’t really in that. But sometimes it sure can feel that way.

Here are a few examples:

Once I “unofficially interned” with a producer at a 3D computer animation house. I helped him with a few scenes of the show he was on while he helped me assemble a good portfolio of work to submit. I modeled props like guitars, trashcans, and buildings, and even lunar traveling tanks. I also did composite work that had a space ship fly along a street not too far from my house. I then submitted the work to the company he works at. A few weeks later I got my tape back and a letter saying I wasn’t ready. Disappointed, true, but the bad part was that very same day while I was there everyone else received their pink slips and the company shut down.

It’s not my fault, I swear.

Another time while working through a temp agency, I got to work for several weeks in the consumer produces division of one of the major studios. After which I received a glowing letter of recommendation from the studio’s rep of the temp agency, they looked forward to working with me again. Not long after that the representative left the agency and I never got another job from the studio or any other company.

What did I do?

A third example was when I had a job interview at another one of the studios. It was to be in a department that handled advertising for the television network and its Internet presence. I met with two executives. The interview went really well, and everything looked like it was going to happen. They really liked me. Then a week later a hiring freeze came down on the entire company. Not only did I not get the job, they didn’t hire fill a position they desperately needed to.

Yes, I know everyone is suffering in this economy and there are a lot of people out of work. I have no right to complain, because I have a family who can take care of me. But the truth is, I’ve been struggling on this job search a lot longer then this ‘downturn’ has been happening. I’ve been searching for a job for a whole lot longer.

I knew the freelancer’s life was going to be hard. I wasn’t fooling myself. If I’m going to be a writer and artist there are going to be times when there isn’t work. So I’ve been looking for a “day job” which I can do when not drawing or writing. I’d prefer to find one of these jobs in the entertainment industry someplace, but I’ve been looking elsewhere too.

Guess what… it’s just as hard as finding that writing assignment.

They say it’s “who you know” that will get you a job. Well, I know quite a few people at several studios, production houses, and comic book companies. But that hasn’t made it any easier. Plus the fact everyone you talk to wants you to apply online makes it hard to be personal and sociable while trying to convince them to hire you.

So whether it’s jinxed or there just aren’t any jobs out there, it’s real frustrating to feel like I’m so close but the doors just won’t open.

Yet, I don’t give, and I can’t really complain because I know there are others who are in far worse shape than I. Did you know that 1 in 7 American’s are in poverty.

My mother is on the board of FULLERTON INTERFAITH EMERGENCY SERVICE that helps family in the North Orange County area. Watching these family line up for two bags of groceries reminds me that I’ve had things pretty good, and I’m quite blessed.
(I’ll go into FIES in more detail another time.)

So I keep moving on. Maybe the “day job” I’m suppose to have isn’t anywhere near the entertainment industry, but I’m not giving up.

No matter what keep going, keep doing. Even where we are at now, we’re all successful, and no jinx is going to stop us from succeeding.

Okay. Done. A day late, but done.
Thanks everyone for reading. I’d like to know your thoughts.

Best,
Kevin Paul Shaw Broden
Four Names of Creative Professionalism

A Story – That Grew from Fallen Fruit.

It’s been a week since my last blog, and I’ve promised myself to write more often. So here’s the next one. Kinda.

If you read my previous blog, I gave an example of how stories just come from the most mundane things in life. Like fruit falling from a tree outside my office. The example was a few lines of a story that came to me from that thought (go back and read the blog “Growing the Fruit of a Story” if you don’t know what I’m talking about.)

Not knowing if there was really a story in those lines and in that fruit, yesterday I began to see where it took me. What follows is a short story entitled “Falling Apples.” It could probably use two or three rewrites, but I want to show you what can result from just writing about anything.

– = –

“Falling Apples”

by Kevin Paul Shaw Broden (c) 2010

Sharon Little lay back in her bed to rest and think. Actually she didn’t want to think. She wanted to put the world away from her and not have to think about the events of the day. Today she had officially broken up with her boyfriend, and had the restraining order to prove it.

Jack had been wonderful on the first few dates they went out on. His only flaw was that he tended to drink a little too much. But then in later dates he began to expect more from her. She wasn’t ready to have sex, but he was insistent. It was okay, but nothing earth shattering like she expected it should have been. Then when he drank he all but raped her.

The hitting began when she refused his advances. Sharon wanted to believe that it was the alcohol that acting and not Jack. But in the morning he was just as mad at her, this time claiming that she had embarrassed him in front of his friends at the bar.

She put up with it for another month, but she was determined not to be one of those women that always went back to their man no matter how dangerous it was. It was after a black eye and broken tooth that Sharon went to the police.

It took another week before the courts would give her the restraining order, and she wondered if there was anything this piece of paper could really restrain. While she was leaving the courts, Jack shouted at her that she was his, and that he’d have her or no one would.
There were many lawyers and police officers that had heard him shout the threat but there wasn’t anything they could do. He’d have to break the restraining order for it to actually do any good.

Now evening had come and she was lying atop her bed. Not ready for sleep yet, but she was exhausted all the same.

As Sharon closed her eyes there was a sudden ‘thump’ on the roof of the house, directly over her bedroom. It was followed by a whisper like rumble and then a ‘thud’ just outside her window.
She jumped at the sound, but quickly relaxed knowing what it was. Just outside the house was a large old apple tree. There was good crop of bright red fruit. Every so often an apple would drop from the higher branches and strike the roof of the house and then roll down over the tapered rafters.

It was almost a relaxing sound, so familiar and safe. Almost a funny sound and she smile at it. Sharon closed her eyes once more.

A few minutes went by and another apple hit the roof and rolled down and struck front lawn with a wet thud. Most of the apples in the tree were over ripe, she had already harvested far more then she could eat. A third hit the ground seconds later, and she was certain some animal was up in the tree getting a late dinner.

Then another struck the roof, then another, and another. A minute late it sounded like a hale storm hitting the house. Sitting up, she could see them falling past her window, like meteors falling toward earth.

With a sense of fear Sharon wondered what could possibly be shaking the tree so hard. She got out of bed, slipped on a pair of sandals and found the flashlight that was plugged into the kitchen outlet.

Flipping on the back porch light she slid open the glass door and stepped outside. With the beam of light ahead of her she cautiously made were way around to the side of the house. It was much darker. She could hear the rustle of the tree up ahead, and more apples hitting the ground.

Nervous to even contemplate the though, she had to speak the words, “Jack, is that you? You’re not allowed to come around here any more.”

There was no response, except that the tree shook once more and apples fell.

“Don’t make me call the cops on you.”

More apples fell.

Getting closer, Sharon raised the light upward into the tree and saw movement.

A family of raccoons was running around the branches of the tree. They were playing and eating apples. They may have also been a little drunk on the fermented fruit.

A smile came to Sharon’s lips and she let out a breath of air.

Maybe things weren’t as bad as she feared.

“Don’t eat too much,” she playfully scolded the little animals, and turned to go back inside.

As she turned, her sandal covered foot struck one of the rotting apples on the ground. It squished and her foot slid forward. The flashlight flew through the air as Sharon fell backwards.

Sharon’s head struck the corner of a brick planter, cracking her skull open.

Apples fell upon her body.

It was the next afternoon when Sharon’s ex-boyfriend Jack was arrested for her murder.
After all, there were more than a dozen witnesses to his threat.

THE END

– = –

Well, if you’ve read this far it must not be all that bad, so thank you for sticking with me.
When I wrote the original lines last week I knew this was going to be a suspense story, but knew nothing more about it. So the story was as surprising to me as I wrote it as I hope it was while you read it.

Now the suspense continues, as I have to figure out what to write for next week’s blog.
Thanks for reading and for all your support.

S.A.S.E.

It arrived last Friday. That little number 10 envelope with my name printed both in the center as well as the return address corner. And a nice little stamp I had placed upon it just over a month ago.

It was a month ago, on my birthday that the postal system’s website told me that they had delivered my fantasy novel manuscript to a big name publisher in New York. Now one day short of being exactly a month, I receive the REJECTION LETTER (Que: menacing drum beat.)

The letter spoke of how it was a difficult market to break into, and how my manuscript didn’t fit their needs at this time. It also said that I shouldn’t give up, that another publisher might buy it, and wished me the best of luck on my future writing career.

Yes, it was the basic form letter, but that’s okay.

This was not the first rejection letter that I had ever received, and since I don’t plan on giving up writing this won’t be the last rejection letter either.

Now on to more writing.

Kevin Paul Shaw Broden
Successful Writer
Four Names of Creative Professionalism.

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