The mid-week rest period is here. It is time to take a breather and prepare yourself for the rest of the week push. It is kind of funny how a small rest while engaged in some trying work can give you a second wind. This is really true of writing. I know after a few hours pounding the keyboard I am ready for something little different. Sometimes I take a break from the novel (third in the series) and do a little story. This is actually how story Wednesday came about. After two days of dealing with protagonist angst, it is really quite nice to let the brain rest and allow a story to flow where it may. After that exercise it is nice to return to the problem of the day with a new outlook. I’ll bet this works in other than writing situations as well. Try it and if your boss catches you writing a short story explain it is in lieu of a coffee break.
This week’s story is about a person who is in the situation described above and caught by the boss writing a story. It is titled: Caught. Hope you like it.
Caught by John W. Howell © 2014
“So Al what are you doing there?”
“Uh . . . I’m just relaxing a minute.”
“Relaxing? It looks to me like you are writing something with a number two pencil no less.”
“Well yeah Frank. I’m writing a little story.”
“A little story? You are writing a story? About what?”
“Oh it’s about the office.”
“You have time to write stories? You know I’m still waiting for the Dilbert contract.”
“Yeah I know. I should have it to you by this afternoon.”
“Well that will be good considering it is two days late. Let me ask, will you be done with your story by then?”
“Oh it’s all finished.”
“All finished? Can I read it?”
“Why would you want to read it?”
“Well the way I look at it, you wrote it on company time and therefore it by rights belongs to the company. I represent the company so I have a right to read it.”
“I was using my coffee break time.”
“You union Al?”
“No.”
“Then coffee break time does not officially exist. It is a custom not a right. Hand it over.”
“It’s kind of personal.”
“Al?”
“Here you go.”
“Alright let me see. Humm the story opens with you coming into work. You grab a cup of coffee. More break time huh Al? Then you go to your cube. Boy this is exciting. Then your boss comes in and catches you writing a story. This sounds like real life Al. He demands to see the story. Uh Huh. While reading the story a large black shadow creeps up from the floor and surrounds the boss whose name is Frank. Geeze Al this is crap. Let’s see where was I? Oh yes here it is. The boss calls the work crap and then the large shadow . . .”
“Go ahead Frank. Then the large shadow does what?”
