Kerry’s Wednesday Challenge at Imaginary Garden with Real Toads features a quotation from Stephen King: “Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.”“In the spirit of the spooky season,” Kerry suggests we take a cue from Stephen King’s brand “of the macabre and grotesque, and do it with poetic precision.”
Foreswearing (or should I say eschewing?) pumpkins, bats and ghouls, she asks us to make this about psychological terrors.
Ooh. Having had more experience with psychological terrors than with bats or ghouls, I can say I’d much rather write about pumpkins.
If we do find ourselves inspired by a quotation from Stephen King, Kerry would like us to include it.
Mmm, yes, well, just the average writing challenge here, for a writer who has never read a word of Stephen King until today when I read a list of quotations. Some of them lit a spark, just a spark, so perhaps I’ll give this thing a try.
“Get busy living or get busy dying.”
“There is no tyrant as merciless as pain, no despot so cruel as confusion.”
“It's actually against my religion to laugh at men who are toting guns.”
INSTINCT by Kay L. Davies, October, 2011 ©
Some days a quote from Stephen King
will make my very pulses ring
in recognition:
“Get busy living,”
he said, “or get busy dying.”
I make myself get out of bed,
get dressed in very brightest red,
so I can pretend
my world will not end
no matter what the Terror said.
It gnaws at me, the Terror does,
and in my arms I feel it buzz
like bees in my veins,
until I’ve no brains
to understand just what it was.
Pain, confusion, that’s all I know,
With no hope: with nothing but woe.
I’m tired of living
and scared of dying,
like river slaves of long ago.
But then two robbers jumped at me,
One had a gun that I could see.
“Money or your life!”
From a moment’s strife
I knew what I wanted to be.
“It is against my religion
To deal with men toting guns.”
Thus I paraphrased
Stephen King's writing,
And then I just started to run.
No fear if the gun exploded
(it turned out not to be loaded).
I didn’t care,
I ran like a hare,
My life instinct had been goaded!
9 comments:
“Get busy living or get busy dying” is a great quote, and you've incorporated it beautifully...
Loved bees in my veins - oh, the Terror!
Definitely got me smiling with this one.
I've always found reality to be far more terrifying than fiction. You took something from this challenge and presented a scenario which is all too real.
Thanks for your participation on Real Toads.
Very clever. I like Stephen King's quote about pain and confusion.
You made me laugh !! that's a very nice poeme ! I don't like Stephen King I read two books and that was enough. I also saw two movies, but they are not to my taste, I don't know why because I love thrillers.
I'm not familiar this the lighter side of Stephen King. I still think Cujo and the crazed car Carrie.
Madi and Mom
Like how you weaved this tale from Stephen's quote..."gut busy living or get busy dying" fear and smiles in this one.
I've tried several Stephen King books and stories, but the one I loved the best is 'The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon'. Not too scary and no cars or telekinesis in sight. Just a scared lost little girl.
Kay, I love your quirky Canadian humor!!!! Enjoyed this read very much. I didnt draw from Stephen King, found something real and slightly scary to write about. Well done, kiddo!
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