Bottoms up

"Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life." — J.K. Rowling

 
Tell it, J.K. 


Image from the San Antonio Express News

I started writing this blog on the 4th of July. I started by saying: Break out the grill and loud colors and raise your flag. Enjoy your day off. Then I got distracted by other things, so here I am on the 5th of July. Happy belated Independence day!

I rarely read front page news because a. the stories are usually depressing and b. I usually don't have time. But, I had an extra day off yesterday, and I kicked it off by reading news. the top five stories were about Putin's kind words to Obama, a father who was sexting six women while his son died from heat exhaustion in the back of his car, F-35 war planes grounded for technical check-ups, and a mother and son who were trapped in a sinkhole. There's a little balance there, but I was quickly reminded why I don't make it a priority to read the news.
Next, I started writing this blog. Cue distraction: Homemade kimchi and a small cookout. Our veggie skewers tasted like lighter fluid but a series of successful food items followed, including veggie burgers for me (which could have been redundant) and a giant steak (see below) for my husband, along with a few gluttonously stuffed shitake mushrooms. We ate, we watched some fireworks on TV, we walked a block to watch fireworks in person and the rain tapped us on the shoulders until, finally, we turned back around and went home to watch more fireworks on TV. I consider that a successful holiday. Also, I came up with a writing prompt:



My husband's meal
before attempted theft.
(Note puppy face lower right.)

Scroll back up to the J.K. Rowling quote. This is the premise: a character who hits rock bottom. To make the plot a little more interesting, let's throw some karma in. What you put out, comes back is the idea here. Write a story in which the main character is going through a tough time, but his/her fate is determined with a simple action that seems unrelated (think specific). Resolve the story based on this small action. This could mean an act of kindness leading to another's act of kindness that resolves our protagonist's conflict later. Or, it could mean an act of selfishness leading to a dismissal when our protagonist is in need. Keep it to 1,500 words.

That's all I have for today, folks. If you write to any of my prompts, feel free to share the writings below. Or email them to me. I might love it an want to post it on my blog.

Speaking of which, I have a new story out that will be posted soon. Make that two, but I'll link them up later in the week. One's about a nudist who defines freedom a little differently than you and I (presumably); the other is about a dreamer who is disappointed in her dreams but realizes the reality she has is pretty good. I'll post these soon.