HER MAJESTY’S POLTERGEISTS

You’re probably asking yourself “what the f*ck” is this post about? I use the above post title to make a point. As you begin your chaotic path toward short story greatness, keep in mind that there’s more than one way to write a story. Sometimes, the best way is to simply come up with a messed-up title.

“Her Majesty’s Poltergeists” was a screenplay that a buddy of mine and I worked on about . . . five or six years back. He thought up this beautiful title and then gave me a plot that was so weird, so borderline Monty Python, that common courtesy prevents me from mentioning it on this blog.

But the title was so good that I wrote a screenplay around it. It’s violent, funny, British, and has ghosts in it. The difference between writing a short story and a 120-plus-page screenplay is that the short story’s a lot easier.

So, whenever you’re stuck for a short story idea, don’t always try to construct a plot in your head. Think of a messed-up title instead. In fact, think of a few and scribble them down somewhere. Hell, make a list of them and pick one. Then write a story around it.

IT CAN BE DONE.  Think of “Machete”, wherein (movie god) Robert Rodriguez wrote a full-length movie around a fake trailer.

Now, I double-dog-dare someone (anyone) to write a short story around any 10 of the titles below. I just went to my day job and kept a piece of scrap paper nearby. By the end of the day, I had a healthy list of titles in my head (try it, this might work for you).

10 Titles

1. Party Cam
2. Love’s For Other People
3. A Soul For A Soul
4. Ghost Pimp
5. Beauford The Ninja
6. Santa, version 12.0
7. My Kid The Rap Star
8. The Zombie Games
9. Samurai Nun
10. Why I Married A Dragon

You can write any genre you want – from a love story to horror to sci-fi. Don’t worry about length either. Just wrap your mind around the title and see what shakes loose. I don’t wanna see it. But if you want to post a comment on what the story was about, I’d appreciate it.