Thoughts so far?

I'll continue with part 3 of the story in a day or two, but for those of you who stumble across my little creative home here on the interwebs as it's just getting on its feet, what do you think of my efforts so far?  I've got plenty of ideas and topics to write about, some in this same jungle-adventure theme and some completely different, though I'm just going with the flow at the moment.  It's a lot of fun coming up with stories off the top of my head, but I've never taken a writing class and I hope I'm not butchering the actual grammar and story structure too badly...

Looking forward to comments and looking forward creating more content for y'all while delving deeper into this wacky and wondrous universe known as "storytelling"...

Trying my hand at a first-person short story, part 2.

Continuing my first short story.  This is part 2.  I'd recommend reading part 1 first...  ha!

     Reaching back and grabbing the spear I had fashioned from a bamboo reed and my pocket knife, I pulled it to the ready as the rustling got louder. It was dark and I was in an unfamiliar place, but I remembered to control my breathing and focus instead of allowing my nerves to get the better of me. My mind played tricks as I hunched over in anticipation of what was about to come charging out of the brush, and then suddenly I saw it!

     A lone coconut rolled into view and came to a stop at the edge of my camp. The rustling ceased and that was it. I realized the snap I heard must have been from a branch the coconut hit when it fell from the palms that towered above me. “Bloody hell..." I said with a snicker, setting down my spear and gathering the rest of my belongings, "Guess the joke's on me!”  With everything packed I threw the satchel over my shoulder and set off towards the temple, walking in time with the eerie beat of the islanders' drums. Clutching the spear in my other hand, I silently vowed to make quick work of any other killer coconuts that might try to ambush me...

     Slowly I hiked down the side of the mountain, keeping one eye on this mysterious temple that grew larger as I approached, and keeping the other wandering in my periphery out of caution. I could see the natives dancing around the large pyre they had built in the center of the grounds and I also caught sight of the two hapless folks who were locked up in cages. I was close now... Very close. I could very well be visible if one of them happened to look in the right direction, so I searched for cover. Remembering the rocky outcroppings and trees I saw bordering the temple from my camp, I picked out their silhouette and sneaked over to them.

     Crouching down and gathering a better view, I set my spear and satchel down next to me and began to go over the plan in my head. The large stone headpiece on top of the left side of the temple was my target. From the features I was able to make out at my distance, it seemed to show the face of some being, perhaps one of this tribe's ancient deities. During the daylight hours the tribesmen had been slaving away trying to make some type of repairs or modifications to it. There was a huge crack running across the bottom and it was being propped up by a few timbers.

     Being sure to avoid their patrolmen, I would sneak over to the corner of the temple and pull out the makeshift grappling hook I had created from a length of rope and a large iron hook I gathered from that boat wreckage I stumbled across on the beach. Out of sight, I would do my best to swing the grappling hook onto the largest timber that supported the headpiece, sneak around back to my hiding spot with the length of rope, and give it a mighty heave. With a bit of luck, yanking that timber out would be enough to cause the headpiece to roll over and fall off the top of the temple, making a loud enough crash to attract the attention of the islanders. With the captives' cages being on the complete opposite side of the temple, I should have just enough time to rush over to them, break open the cage doors, and grab their equipment which was piled only a few feet away from them.  Then the three of us would disappear into the jungle before the tribesmen knew what was happening.

     It was perfect.  I was ready.

     The drum beat grew louder.

     All of the tribesmen were now fully immersed into their dance ritual. Their efforts were so focused that it seemed as if they had become one with the movements of the flames from the pyre. It reminded me of the meditative, trance-like state one enters when practicing Zen.  For a moment it was both beautiful and fascinating, but I quickly snapped out of it and focused on the task at hand.

     Seeing the last patrolman disappear behind the other side of the temple, I knew the time had come. Picking out the spot where I'd throw the hook, I quickly grabbed it from my satchel and crouch-walked over. The coast was clear! Standing up and focusing on the large timber, I started to swing the hook around to pick up momentum for the throw. As I readied myself for the release I wondered, will this all be worth it? Will these two people I was about to rescue have the means to get us out of here? After all, if they were stranded also with no way of escaping this island, things would probably get a whole lot worse for the lot of us. Being stranded is one thing. But being stranded with a band of crazy native islanders chasing after you?

     Well now, that's a whole different ballgame...

Trying my hand at a first-person short story, part 1.

Toying around with some first-person action and building a little subplot.  This is part 1.

     Taking a deep breath, I let out a long, drawn out sigh as I gazed over the horizon. The late afternoon had become my favorite time of day on this island, when the overwhelming heat and humidity slowly began to fade. The gentle tropical breeze rolling up the side of the mountain danced over my skin, and the last drops of sweat scurried down my face until dropping from my chin to the ground. The sky would soon begin to dim and reveal the full beauty of the colors of dusk in the tropics. For the moment, however, all I could do was look off into the distance and pretend that I wasn't in the particular predicament which I currently found myself.

     "This is pretty much what I thought it would be like," I thought to myself, "when I used to dream about living a simple life on a tropical island somewhere..." But that really didn't make my situation any easier to bear. True that I had only been here for a few days, but being stranded with no apparent way out will do that to a guy, especially when your only company happens to be a group of ornery natives who just tossed a couple of other expats into a bamboo cage!

     Finishing my usual dinner of roasted crab legs and coconut milk, I laid back to take a nap. There wasn't much else I could do with the remaining daylight, but once the night fell, I knew what my plan was and I absolutely had to be well rested and alert to make it work. If what I had observed last night was a regular occurrence, there would be plenty of work to do if I wanted to have a chance at gaining entrance to such an ominous and dangerous place without becoming a permanent resident myself. Aside from the odd ritual these natives had performed, at least three of them were wandering the perimeter of the temple on what I could only surmise to be a patrol. Did they know somebody else was here? Were they gearing up their defenses for more unexpected visitors? I had my doubts. There happened to be a lot of dangerous wildlife on this island and none of these islanders strayed too far from their temple, so my guess was that they were protecting their sacred grounds from predators.

     These thoughts and others bounced around my head as I closed my eyes. I was well out of sight and safe for the moment, and I figured that I'd hear the sound of their drums and wake up once the nightly ritual began. I had everything I needed to try to rescue those two poor saps (and their equipment) and all my preparations were in place. Now it was just a matter of timing. If everything went according to plan, I could fire off the distraction, spring the cages, snatch the gear, and get these two to safety all in a matter of minutes. Then we could have the last laugh as we watched the islanders from a safe distance, scratching their collective heads and trying to figure out what the hell had just happened. Afterward, hopefully my new friends would have some means at their disposal to get us all off this godforsaken island.

     It seemed like I hadn't been asleep for more than a few minutes when the chilling sound of drums began to pierce the air. Opening my eyes, I saw that it was in fact night, and the time had come to put my plan into action. Slowly I rose to my feet, getting in a satisfying stretch on the way up. As I gathered my things, an odd feeling shot through me. I could almost sense some kind of disturbance on the gentle breeze that continued to flow through the air around me. Slowly turning around, it was then that I heard rustling in the brush and the loud snap of a branch breaking on the ground next to my camp...

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The Great Adventure begins...

I've created this blog as a way to express many of the stories and fantasies which linger in my mind.  For a long time I've held on to a dream of becoming a writer, yet until now have never taken a step towards making that a reality.  I love to entertain people and bring them fun and excitement, and hope that through writing I can impart the same feeling of magic and wonder onto others that my fantasies bring me when I immerse myself into them.

I'm a huge daydreamer.  I've always dreamed of traveling the world, interacting with different cultures, and lending a hand wherever I can, but in my own unique way.  I'm pretty unusual (and a bit eccentric) but this has been a boon to my creative potential, or at least I'd like to believe as much!  I'm the kind of guy who could entertain himself for days on end with only a rock, a couple of toothpicks, and my own two hands if I just so happened to be trapped at the bottom of a deep cave in the middle of the jungle somewhere.  So, why wouldn't I try writing stories about crazy stuff like that?

I think it would be very satisfying (and a terrible amount of fun) to experiment with storytelling in the form of short stories.  One day I may try to write a novel, and some of these stories will tie into that particular theme while others will not and meander off in a completely different direction.  If things go well and my creative abilities and writing skills ring true, perhaps I'll make a lifestyle out of it.  If not, well... at least I'll be having a lot of fun.

I hope that you enjoy reading what I create.  Thank you for visiting and I hope you decide to pull up a palm frond, grab some coconut milk, and stay for a while!