Ventriloquist Dummy
All posts tagged Ventriloquist Dummy
On art and crime.
Published January 12, 2014 by mandileighbean
It has been a week since the last time I wrote anything substantial, and I am incredibly pleased to say it is because I have been busy, and not just with work and other ordinary, expected responsibilities. As of late, I have been noticing more and more that an important and integral part of being a writer is striking a healthy balance between living and working, especially because the two are inextricably linked. That symbiotic relationship can prove to be a vicious kind of cycle if that healthy balance is not struck. Writing, at its heart, is a terribly lonely profession. When a writer is hunched over a keyboard or a notebook, fervently typing or scribbling, that writer is utterly alone. He has created a world he can only enter until the work is complete and, if he is any good at what he does, becomes accessible to readers. The process varies in time and intensity, but no one can argue that writing is not time consuming. And writers write what they know, meaning that life experiences serve as inspiration and fodder for creation. Time must be spent away from the writing desk among others, being social and being daring. But then time must be spent recording and manipulating these observations and events into art. Both exercises must be constantly, consistently, and congruently adhered to. This past week I've been away from my desk and consequently, I firmly believe I've learned quite a bit.
WEEKLY WRITING PROMPT #10: "The owner of a puppet theater goes on a crime spree with an inanimate accomplice."
Charles sat in the back of the police car with his knees rammed up against the divider. There wasn't much room and he was terribly uncomfortable. He realized this should have been expected, but then again, he honestly had not believed he'd be caught. Charles had assumed that when the call came over the radio that a man with a dummy had robbed four banks in four hours, the attentive officers would laugh, shake their heads, and tell a joke or two at the rookie dispatcher's expense. What else could a story like that be other than good-natured, old-fashioned hazing? Charles figured the disbelief and incredulity would buy him time and by the time a squad car reluctantly arrived on scene to assess the comedic situation, he'd be long gone with enough money to live comfortably for quite a while. Unfortunately, poor Charles had been wrong, just as he had been wrong about so many other things in his life. The cool, metallic cuffs suddenly felt tighter against his thin wrists, and they were pointedly digging into his lower back, so he leaned forward for relief. Charles was only afforded a few inches and the new posturing only served to complete the appearance of complete and utter defeat.
The rear door on the opposite side of the car clicked open and a jovial-sounded cop carelessly threw Buster in beside Charles, and then slammed the door shut again. Buster was splayed out and resembled a chalk outline, the accomplice made victim. His left arm stretched out and over his head towards Charles, as if he were asking for assistance in shallow gasps as the air or blood rushed out. His other arm lay uselessly by his side, and his legs were twisted around themselves. What bothered Charles the most about Buster's inadvertent positioning were the eyes. Painted on, they were soulless and only stared. Currently, they were staring up at Charles and the manufactured grin, meant to be welcoming and disarming and friendly, looked cruel and like it lacked compassion. The dummy lacked all empathy and sympathy, and his cold eyes were locked on Charles.
Charles hadn't meant for Buster to get wrapped up in any of this. When the bookings stopped – hell, had they ever really started? – and the savings dried up, Charles knew he and Buster were in for a rough patch. But when Myrtle had kicked them to the curb, hollering something about Charles needing a real job and always picking a wooden boy over her, Charles finally grasped just how desperate his situation was. Walking the rain-dampened pavement in the twilight, with Buster cradled carefully in his arms, Charles knew he needed a fresh start. It would be best if he was somewhere else, where his art would be appreciated, where ventriloquists were in high demand and often admired.
Charles needed to get to Las Vegas. Charles also needed money. He had no way of doing that; his mother had cut him off and Myrtle had very recently done the same. He might catch a gig in the next month, but that time frame wouldn't cut it. He needed dollars fast. Hence the robberies with a fake gun Buster had as a prop for when they did their cowboy and Indian routine, which upon reflection, Charles realized was incredibly dated and most likely not funny. Well, he certainly had all the material he could handle now, didn't he?
Charles hung his head and cried.
Posted in: Humor, Writing
Tagged: Alienated, Alone, Art, Aspiring Author, Aspiring Authors, Aspiring Writer, Aspiring Writers, Author, Authors, Avid Reader, Avid Readers, Avid Writer, Balance, Bank Robbery, Broke, Career, Challenges, Conversations, Creative Writer, Creative Writers, Creative Writing, Creative Writing Prompts, Crime, Crime Spree, Debut Novel, Desperation, Events, Experiences, Extrovert, Fresh Boiled Peanuts, Fresh Start, Friends, Healthy Balance, Her Beautiful Monster, Imaginative Writer, Imaginative Writing, Inspiration, Introvert, Invitations, Isolated, Mandi Bean, Martin Sisters Publishing, Money, New Jersey, Novelist, Poor, Poverty, Prompts, Puppets, Read, Reader, Readers, Reading, Responses, Robbery, Social Gatherings, Travel, Ventriloquist, Ventriloquist Dummy, Week, Weird, Work, Write, Writer, Writers, Writing