Here’s what you get in every issue of Into the Storymaze: writing insights or a work-in-progress; something creative I’m digging; a highlight from my comics-writing credits; plus a quote that’s got me thinking — both about right now and what’s next.
Twisty Little Passages
One of the best ways to explore a Storymaze for yourself is to give yourself a trigger or prompt and just see where it takes you: maybe it becomes a poem, a personality description, a plot line — or, in this case, a very short story. You can grab a random headline off the interwebs, a photo off Pinterest, an old newsreel clip on YouTube. One of my favorites is the Storymatic set of cards I’ve long been a fan of… but haven’t used enough. Pull a combo of 4 cards, to include 2 character traits, mixed up with 2 incidents or situations. Combine them together and — well, look where we’re at.
This random draw was “beekeeper,” “up all night,” “bumpersticker offers excellent advice,” “reluctant participant.” It’s cleaned up for typos (aside from those I missed), but basically a first pass, no edits. I’ll be sharing a few of what’s come out of these Storymatic experiments as audio reads; this one’s all words, words, words. (If you’d rather listen this time out, here’s that version.) Interested to know if there’s a pref for one format over the other.
“You are the next generation of a proud tradition." Beekeeper General Octavius Plott spoke with a clipped, regimented air as he strode in front of his "troops." These were the men and women who stood in ranks before him, clad in their crisp white bee suits, wide brimmed bee hats, heavy mesh veils hanging down in front of their faces. They had each paid $1,495.00 each for the privilege of learning the craft from a master, so they could be master of the 10,000 to 60,000 bees that would soon be buzzing in each of their take home hives.
Sweat ran down Mitch Nedrick's forehead. It was more than the heat, even though that was considerable inside the suit, with its elasticized ankles and wrists cutting off any airflow. It was also the expense, a big ticket roll of the dice that had taken his bank account down into just the double digits. In both cases, the protective gear allowed for no relief. He had to suffer with the stinging moisture running down into his eyes. As in so many things since he'd lost his job, he had to live with it.
The Beekeeper General held up one gloved hand, where a single bee perched on the end of a finger. "You may be worried about being stung," said Plott. "I myself have been stung 627 times." The Beekeeper General visibly winced. "628. Each is a privilege, a privilege in serving these fine creatures, in learning from them, in having them share their bounty with us."
The job hunt had been leading nowhere except for long days on the road, and long waits in traffic on the road home for another sleepless night. It's in another slow crawl along the road that Mitch had found himself staring at the back of a battered Kia, drawn to the one bright spot to grace his day: a dazzling yellow bumper sticker.
On the left side, an illustration of a smiling bee. On the right side, a drawing of a dripping honeypot. Bridging the two, the punny sentiment, "Bee Nice To People." For whatever reason, it stuck with Mitch — another pun — and he detoured from home to make it to the Milne Public Library an hour before closing. Still time to use the public internet access to start learning about beekeeping.
"The basic hive configuration consists of seven components," Beekeeper General explained, pointing out each. "The hive stand, the bottom board, the hive body, the queen excluder, the honey super, the inner cover and the hive cover. Let's open this up and meet some of our new friends, shall we?"
The fee for the course wasn't what drained Mitch's bank account. It was the insurance. Accidental death, high premiums and a payoff to a shady broker to be sure the policy went in without a hitch. As a kid, Mitch remembers being stung by a bee and swelling up like a balloon, cutting off his ability to breathe. It was a warning story repeated every summer by concerned and loving parents, "You're very allergic, Mitch. You can't take a chance out there! Nature is not your friend. You have to be careful, just one sting and you could die."
"I believe you will find that beekeeping provides many sweet rewards," Beekeeper General Plott said. "There is, of course, the opportunity to make money from honey and beeswax. Another boon are the by-products — or bee-products, ha-ha — that come from these, such as natural remedies that can treat pain and ailments. Then there is the natural boost to the environment from having bees pollinating your garden and the nearby surroundings. And you can not put too high a value on the sheer enjoyment, entertainment, even stress relief of simply watching these marvelous creatures at work and play."
The reward for Mitch would be the fact he'd listed those loving parents of his as the beneficiaries on his big ticket insurance policy. Losing him would hurt them in the short term. But the long term was what mattered. They'd be taken care of, in spite of his inability to hold onto a job that mattered, in spite of the fact that he couldn't help pay for their needs.
Just so long as it seemed like an accident. Mitch slowly raised the hat and veil off his head.
He could breath easily again. It was going to be okay. So close to the end, he didn't have to live with it anymore.
He waved the hat and veil violently in the air. The bees that had risen from the hive when it had been opened took offense at his motions. So did his fellow students, who backed away, confused and worried.
The bees swarmed in attack formation at Mitch. He squeezed his eyes shut as he felt the stings lance into his forehead, his neck, his cheeks. He felt the areas begin to expand, waiting for the allergic reaction to expand across the rest of him, cutting off his air. The end wouldn't be pleasant but at least it would be over at least it would —
Mitch opened his eyes. The Beekeeper General stood in front of him, a stern but curious expression on his face. "You should really keep that on," he said, nodding at the hat and veil.
"I thought I was allergic," Mitch gasped. But it was emotion, not anaphylaxis, that had him so choked up.
"Maybe you were, at one point," General Plott said. "Physiology changes. What was once fatal now just hurts. And that passes."
The Beekeeper General waved his hands gently around Mitch's head and neck, dissipating the bees gathering in that space. He took the hat and veil from Mitch's hands, and slid it back over Mitch's head.
"Let's serve. Let's learn. Let us share their bounty."
"Yes," said Mitch. "Let's."
Treasure Seekers
Bend and activate your imagination with convoluted — but working — solutions to crazy situations in Randall Munroe’s What If? “What If…” is, of course, the classic and powerful springboard for any good story sitch. Randall Munroe is the physicist and roboticist who pens the most excellent nerd-science webcomic XKCD.
In these pages, Munroe applies serious and entertaining thought to out there questions like, “Can you go for a swim in nuclear reactor’s containment pool?” “What if a pitcher threw a baseball at the speed of light?” and “What happens if everyone on Earth is in the same place and jumps at the same time?” You’ll laugh and wonder at the answers. (Truthfully, I don’t know what you’ll do — but that was my reaction!) And if you’re of a creative mind, there’s a lot here to get your own stories springing
Yes, that cover image is pondering the outcome of feeding a T-Rex to a Sarlacc. If that possibility doesn’t excite you… you may be in the wrong newsletter.
The Comics Labyrinth
Here’s the first of many cover visits to a particular favorite, a co-creation of a character with Margaret Clark and the amazing Klaus Janson. Terror, Inc. was a mercenary for hire with the unique ability to seize others’ body parts and swap them out: grab a locksmith’s hand, and Terror would suddenly have the skills of that victim to utilize in his trade. (I hope that doesn’t sound too genteel. It’s really quite delightfully grisly.)
While gaining those abilities was a boon for his violent work, Terror would also have to deal with the emotional baggage attached to the stolen part — and the fact it would soon start to rot away, like most of the rest of him! He was ruthless, acerbic, natty, and all business. How we got a character this bizarre going, I’m still not sure — but delighted that we did. :)
Terror’s assignment in this first Marvel issue is was to kill arms dealer, Roger Barbatos. (More on Terror’s non-Marvel past in another episode.) The twist is, Roger can’t die. For an assassin who prides himself on a job executed with efficiency and profit, it’s a bit of a puzzle: Roger’s protection comes from a pact with hell itself.
Part of that contract was written in research I had going while auditioning for a relaunch of Hellstorm, the Son of Satan. (Pretty sure they were going to lose the SOS part for the more uptight nineties.) When I didn’t land that gig — damn you, competition! 😉 — I leveraged some of those ideas into the diabolical intrigue that would help Terror finally achieve his body count. In the roundabout way of making a story happen, sometimes the details are in the devil.
More recent versions of Terror by much later creative teams working the funny book pages seem to have missed the mark on his dress code and manner of speech. (He’d never be droppin’ his gees, Terror wannabes — pay attention to all the character clues we left for you!) Extra special shout out to editor Marc McLaurin for thinking of the epic Jorge Zaffino as artist for most of this too-short run. His artwork may not have been the most “commercial” for the time, but his ferocious, bold style helped define the way I’d forever see the character in my head.
Web of Intrigue
“To go out of your mind at least once a day is tremendously important. By going out of your mind, you come to your senses.” – Alan Watts
Amazing Times
How’d we end up here together? Maybe a detour off the dark web! But I’m hoping it’s because you subscribed to this share-out of projects I’m working on plus things that have me jazzed. I’m D.G. Chichester. Which sounds very pretentious, and tweed jacket and pipe — so feel free to just call me “Dan”, and have a go at the last name as Chai (like the tea) Chester (just like it looks). I earned my word-cred writing comic book titles like Daredevil, Terror Inc., Nick Fury Agent of SHIELD and Clive Barker’s Hellraiser, along with all manner of digital widgets and websites in the world wide web of advertising. I keep my storytelling cred by trying new things — this is one of ‘em, with more on the way. I like weird and sometimes creepy tales, so if things here bend that way — now you know why!
Folks seem to like the comic book adventures I’ve written, so if you haven’t checked one out — please do. Many are now available in fab collected editions.
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Painting works much the same way for me. A series of prompts or moments of inspiration conspire to create a story/image on canvas. I hope you're able to explore TERROR INC more in the future. This is a character who, for the most part, has gone unrecognized. At least ... the real Terror.