..:: Written .:. Off ::..

I have to admit that I’m not a huge fan of Superman. When it comes to comic books, I prefer darker characters like Batman, The Punisher and Neil Gaimen’s Sandman series. Superman was always too white-bread for me. I used to be a big fan of comic books but I have fell out buying them out of boredom. I haven’t picked up a new comic book in about 10 years.

I wasn’t planning on seeing Superman Returns until I started reading some of the advanced reviews, which were extremely positive. My friend, who was very enthusiastic about seeing it, called me yesterday and I decided to check it out.

First off, Superman Returns clocks in at 2hr and 45minutes! The movie starts off promising with credits reminiciant of the old Christopher Reeves movies. The first hour and half of Superman Returns was fantastic. I kept thinking that it was so good, it may be one the best comic book movies ever made! I was really glad at I decided to put aside my Superman bias and see the movie. But, as with any movie over two hours, the whole thing starts to wear thin. The main problem with the movie is that the story is really thin.

***No Spoilers***

The story goes like this, Superman leaves earth after Superman II and returns to find the world in it’s current state of chaos. He also finds out that Lois Lane has a boyfriend and kid. Lex Luthor, who just gets out of prison, is hatching a plan for world domination.

The main issue that I had with this movie is that it builds up to a big nothing. Lex Luthor’s plan sounds great on paper, but pans out an anti-climax. There is no payoff at the end of this movie, and after sitting there for almost 3 hours, I felt like the whole thing was a big waste of time. The thing that makes it worse is that the first part of the movie is just as good or better than any of the previous Superman movies. It’s a shame because the movie looks great and the performances are excellent.

One thing of note that I have to point out for you writers out there is the refreshing way Lois Lane’s new boyfriend is handled. Usually in these movies, the writers tend to make the new love interest a total jerk so that the audience will be happy when the lead characters get back together. Not so in Superman Returns. The writers made Lois’s boyfriend such a nice guy that Superman’s advances make him seem more like a creep stalker. For once, the writers didn’t take the easy way out.

There were also a lot of plot holes in the movie. The next section contains major spoilers, so if you haven’t seen the movie, read at your own risk)

***MAJOR SPOILERS***

1. The only thing that can weaken Superman is Kryptonite, it takes away all of his powers to the point that even old Lex Luthor can beat him up. If Kryptonite is so powerful, how is it that Superman can land island made of Kryptonite and not even realize it? Earlier in the movie, Luthor holds the Kryptonite up to Superman’s son and the kid cringes away from it.

2. Lois Lane is the worst mother on the earth. Not only does she put her son in danger by taking him on a yacht while following a story lead (which turns out to be Luthor’s boat), after she and her son are rescued, she makes her boyfriend take her and the kid back into danger to save Superman.

3. Clark Kent shows up after a five year absence, which happens to be on the same day that Superman shows back up, and no one really notices (except the kid).

4. Superman comes off as a stalker when it comes to Lois. He cruises by her house at nighttime and spies on her and her family. He uses he X-Ray vision to see where she going so that he can follow her. Very creepy.

I’m terrified to announce the third edition of Tastes of the Darkness, the carnival of horror. So dim the lights, turn up the brightness on your monitor and enjoy…
The Promise by Deborah Woehr

Theo scratched at his face. I knew what that meant. My place was in the sidelines while the men gloated over their victory. That was all right because I knew I had won mine.

Voices in the Attic by Stephanie Vann

“I can hear you. You can’t fool me.” Marian spun around, her eyes wide open to reveal almost the entire white. “I can hear you, talking about me. Whispering in corners.

Odds… By Jean Bandi
The lightning isn’t the problem. The rain is what makes everything go bad, leaves everything under mud and mold.

The House That Jack Built by Benjamin Solah

This is the house that Jack built. Jack stood in front of it, unashamedly proud of the product of his hard labour. It still looked brand new, like he had built it yesterday. That was far from the truth.

Dark Fiends by Angela Englund

The captain woke with the sudden impact of her muzzle to carpet. She moaned and wondered why she had rolled out of bed. She tried to raise an arm to rub her offended nose, but found the hand would not follow the arm.

Killed By Death! By Fred Charles

Jones locked the basement door of the farmhouse and knew that he was about to die.

Jones locked the basement door of the farmhouse and knew that he was about to die. The killer pursued him all night thought the vast cornfields of Lancaster County, but now, the chase was at an end. He walked down the plank board stairs and put his weight on the railing to deaden his footfalls. Not that it mattered. He was trapped and the killer would tear the house apart to find him.

Jones leaned against the wet stone wall and slid down onto the dirt floor. Hunger sucked the strength from him and fear of dying made him shake. The killer had taken all of his friends and family. Even if he had the strength to fight back, there was nowhere for him to go. The places that he once thought safe, no longer offered him solace.

The basement door was flung open by a powerful blow. The killer descended the stairs, wrapped in a heavy coat buttoned to his neck. Grimy hair hung over his eyes and was matted to his cheeks. Jones shrunk against the wall as the killer loomed over him.

“Please, don’t”, Jones said. “I’ve never done anything to you.”

“I know, but that don’t mean I ain’t gonna kill you anyway,” the killer said. “I didn’t like it at first, but I have to admit, I really enjoy it.”

The killer smiled and drew a piece of wood sharpened to a nasty point from the inside of his coat. “Do you know how long it takes to make these things?” The killer said. “The Lord’s work can be hard, but dammit, it’s a lot of fun sometimes.”

The killer slammed the stake down into Jones heart. There was no pain.

As Jones watched the flesh crumble from his outstretched hands he wondered, for the first time in centuries, if there was a hell.

Dinosaur Jr. Live! Check it out!!! 

One of my favorite bands of the early 90s was Dinosaur Jr. This band, along with the Pixes, practically invented what most people considered guitar-heavy grunge. The original line dissolved before Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit was even a thought in Kurt Cobain’s drug addled brain. The reunited lineup of Dinosaur Jr. recently appeared on the Henry Rollin’s Show. They performed a killer version of Forget the Swan. If you were a fan of grunge or just want to see three guys rip it up, go to this link, and click on Exclusive performance. Make sure you stick around for the killer guitar solo at the end and watch drummer Murph pound the crap out of his drums.

Crappy Morning 

I woke up this morning to find that some piece of crap stole my Sirius Satellite radio out of my car. I’m really bummed that this happened right in the driveway of my quiet suburb. What bothers me the most is that the radio has a serial number that is linked to my account, so unless there is someway to hack the thing, it’s useless to whoever stole it.

Hey everyone! I took last week off to catch up with some personal things and I also took a mini-vacation with the wife and daughter. We headed into Amish country and did a lot of fun stuff which I will post about later this week.

Tastes Of The Darkness Blog Carnival Submissions

Submissions are due on June 28th for the third edition of the Tastes of the Darkness Blog Carnival! All that you need to do is:

1. Write a horror-based Flash Fiction Story between 300-1000 words.

2. Post the story at your site by June 28th.

3. Email me the story and a link to the story. My email address is: FredCharles@mac.com

I encourage all of you writers out there to give this a try. There is no theme this time around, so you can write about whatever you want.

Writers Blog Alliance Sci-Fi Carnival

Horror not your bag (baby?) Then wander over to the Writers Blog Alliance for their Sci-Fi Carnival. You can get details for this carnival at their site. The deadline is July 1st.

My Writing

I'm currently working on a few writing projects. I had the courage to print out my novel. I combined all of the chapters into one document totaling 400 pages and 85,000 words. Unfortunately, I've come to the determination that it needs another edit as well as some rewriting. I still hate the first two pages. I have rewritten them probably around 20 times and I'm never satisfied. I have decided that I need a completly new opening, so I'm racking my brain for something new.

I'm working on a few new Flash stories too. I plan on participating in both blog carnivals mentioned above. I'm also working on two new Jaxx stories. The first story is called SPIDERS and takes place after Jaxx exits the black hole from THE EATER. SPIDERS is becoming a bit longish and no longer qualifies as flash fiction as I begin to add more detail to this universe that I'm making up as I go along. The other story occurs before THE SUCKER. I know that this is confusing but from my point of view, it's fun to write Jaxx's story both backwards and forwards. You can read the storys out of sequence as well, since all of them should stand on their own. The idea is that when Jaxx enters the black hole, he begins to move both forward and backward in time, so that is how his story will unfold.

I know. I never do things the easy way. It's a condition that I have.

UPDATE 

I wrote my Tastes of the Darkness flash story into WordPress. When I went to edit it, all of the text was gone! I was truly terrified. I ended up rewritting the whole thing into Word and then copying it into WordPress. I won't make that mistake again.  

I will be signing off for about a week. I have some personal stuff to take care of. I hope that all of you had a great weekend. 

Metal Mark just did a review of the Kiss album Destroyer. While reading the review, I decided to put the album on. There are two clunkers on this album, Beth and Great Expectations. When Great Expectations came on, I was floored by how bad the lyrics were. I don't think that I have ever really listened to this song. Well, I did today and was laughing so hard at the lyrics, that I had to post them here.

Only Gene Simmons can write a love song like this. Please keep in mind that a choir of children chime in during the end of this song:

You're sittin' in your seat
And then you stand and clutch your breast
Our music drives you wild along with the rest
You watch me singing this song
You see what my mouth can do
And you wish you were the one I was doing it to

And you watch me playin' guitar
And you feel what my fingers can do
And you wish you were the one I was doing it to
Well, listen

You've got great expectations
You've got great expectations

You're dying to be seen
And you wave and call my name
But in the day it seems that I'm a million miles away

You watch me beatin' my drum
And you know what my hands can do
And you wish you were the one I was doing it to
Well, listen

You've got great expectations
You've got great expectations
You've got great expectations

Then you feels these eyes from the stage
And you see me staring at you
And you hear between the lines, my voice is calling to you
Well, listen

You've got great expectations
You've got great expectations
You've got great expectations, do you want to play the role
You've got great expectations, you'd even sell me your soul

If you want to read some really good horror flash stories, check out Third Eye Writers for links to each story. 

I will be hosting the next edition of Tastes of the Darkness. If you would like to participate, send your flash story (300-1000 words) by June 28th, 2006. Also, provide me with a link of where your story will be posted.

I would encourage any of you who are writers to give it a shot, even if you have never written a horror before. It's good practice a lot of fun to participate in! There is no theme this time around, so just write whatever you feel like.  

The following story is my second contribution to the Tastes of the Darkness Blog Carnival. The them this time is betrayal. I have to admit that I really didn't feel like doing a straight horror this time around, so I settled for a little Science Fiction/Horror.

The following story is called The Sucker. It is the prequel to a Sci-Fi story that I wrote about a month ago, called The Eater.

T H E S U C K E R

One of my ex-girlfriends once described me as the kind of person who never has a pen. Tis’ true. I seem to be perpetually ill equipped in every given situation.

Take my current predicament. I’m crouched on the lid of a toilet in the bathroom of The Abyss, most notorious smuggler bar on Primus II. When I cocked the pistol that was wrapped in my clammy palms, the trigger popped off and clinked onto the tile.

Someone had set me up or at least hated me enough to want me dead. Maybe it was the Dex dealer who tipped me off to the spice merchant interested in the dozen illegal tallow fish I needed to unload. Or was it that waitress I stiffed at The Kat House, who knew that I was the only smuggler in town without any real back up. I looked down at the broken pistol and wondered if the merchant, who sold it to me knew that it was a busted. Here’s a piece of advice for you, never buy a gun that wasn’t made on Earth. We invented them and have been killing each other with them for ages.

Or.

Maybe it was the bad luck that ran in my family that got me into these situations. My mother said that it was a genetic flaw on my father’s side. “It skips a generation”, she would say. “Your father’s father had the mark and so do you.” The mark that she referred to was on the back of my neck. I’ve only seen it once since I need to use about four mirrors to view it. It was a birthmark that resembled a hand holding up a middle finger (at least, that’s what I thought it looked like).

Lucky me, eh?

I tensed as I heard the knob on the bathroom door turn. I was being pursued by a Zed. An alien. An organ grinder. The Zed were a race of bulbous and squishy aliens who made their money selling the body parts of other aliens. Blood Merchants. It was also rumored that they had a taste for human livers. Something in the organ made them trip out. Freaky universe, isn’t it?

The Zed used some sort of holographic projection trickery to make them resemble whatever race they were trying to impersonate. This one looked human. When I met the spice merchant tonight, I had him sussed from the beginning. I’ve had dealings with the Zed in the past; dealings that I’d rather not talk about at this time, thanks.

No matter how convincing the Zed disguise was, they could never get the language right. This one kept dragging the last word of each sentence that it spoke. I kept calling me “Jaxxsssssssss” instead of Jaxx. Its mannerisms were all out of whack too. When I went to shake his hand, it put out the wrong hand. It also kept shifting around the chair and seemed confounded by the straw sticking out of the drink it had ordered.

I played along for a few minutes but excused myself from the table as soon as we ordered dinner. It gave me a cold look when I departed, and I knew that it was aware of the failed ruse.

As the Alterians said, I was fuct.

The door creaked open and someone scuffled inside. When the lights died, I was glad to be close to a toilet. I held onto the pistol even though it was broken, hoping I could at least use it to bluff.

“Jaxxssssss?”

I said nothing.

“Jaxx, I know you are herrrrrre.” There were scraping footfalls coming closer to the stall.

“Don’t worry….wheeze can seeze you in the darkkkkkkk.”

There was a foomph sound and I knew that it must have shut off its holographic projector. I was almost glad that it was dark. Just seeing a Zed in its true form was enough to send you into brown trouser country.

I turned the gun around in my hand so that I was holding the barrel and cursed my Great Grandfather for passing down his unlucky genes to me. If the Zed got anywhere near me, I would bash it into the next life.

I heard a slithering sound near the stall door. I held the gun up, ready to strike when something spattered all over my face. The goddamned thing spit on me!

“Jesus! What did you do to me?” I yelled, slipping off the toilet seat and falling hard onto the bathroom floor.

“Jaxx. I know I would find youuuuuu. I hope that you are feeling okayyyyyyy. We would not want to damage that fat, juicy liver of yourssssss.”

The spit my face was sticky and burned my skin. I could actually feel my pours absorbing it. I began to feel lightheaded. “You piece of shit!” I yelled but I had to admit, the sensation was not unpleasant. I knew people that paid big money to feel like this.

I heard the stall door kick open but I didn’t care at that point. The drug had clouded my mind and I felt was if I was floating away. Something rubbery wrapped around my ankles and began to drag me out of the stall.

“Don’t worry Jaxxxssss. We won’t eat your liverrrrrr. At least not yetttttttt.”

As I drifted deep into haze, I mustered a smile, knowing that I’d abused my liver enough over the years with drug and drink that it would probably kill the Zed after the first bite.

I may never have a pen, but at least I can look at the bright side of life.

I've created a Flash Fiction Tab on this page where you can find links to all of the flash fiction stories that I have written.

I was also considering linking to flash stories that other bloggers have written. If you have a flash story and would like me to put a link to it on this page, please send me an email with a direct URL to the story. It might be a good way to get others to read your stuff and check out your blog.

I have also created a tab called Writing Resources. I intend to use this page to provide links to great sites and blogs about writing. I also am going to list articles that I think will be helpful to writers. If you know of any good sites or articles, feel free to email them to me.