Story Submission

After what seemed to be about five hours, lying paralysed in the open sun, I replayed the sequence of events in my head. Driving the narrow winding mountain road; left front tire hit a jagged rock and blew out; lost control; over the side.

Thinking that waiting for help to arrive would be the best bet. The spot where the car left the road had no foliage though. There is no sign for other drivers that an accident had occurred. On my own then. Must get back up to the road.

I can't feel my legs or arms. Nothing really from my neck down. Don't know what injuries I may have. May be bleeding, don't know. I can move my head though. Luckily, I'm face down; can drag myself up the gravel incline to the road using my chin. Yes. That's what I will do.

Just keep nodding my head, slowly, slowly, inching forward and up. Neck tightening, aching; searing pain in my chin. Flesh grinding.

Blackness. Still moving. Night.

Dawn. Still pulling the inert weight with screaming neck and chin.

Midday. The road in sight. Blackness.

That was four months ago now. All the doctors, nurses, and visitors tell me that mine is an amazing story of grit, determination, and survival; like nothing they had ever seen or heard of. I am still quadriplegic. All the flesh and half of the bone gone from my chin. But I am a survivor, and will see this lack of recovery to the end.

Letter from the editor

Ms Jones,

Your story is truly amazing but is still lacking what we at Truly Amazing Real Life Stories are looking for. Perhaps if you could work in a medical breakthrough with months of physical therapy and maybe a budding romance between you and a doctor, then we may reconsider your submission to Truly Amazing Real Life Stories.

a reply to: FullHeathen

Bastards want blood, not real life stories... not even Lazarus's story would suffice!

a reply to: FullHeathen
it seems what they are asking for is a bit of marketability. In their eyes, you have given them a feel good story that gets a two minute time slot in the afternoon news. What they want, is a fiery narrative where the reader can feel your struggle, and relate to your passions!

Basically they want you to make some # up and add it in to make it sexy and exciting. it is totally your call of course. I commend you on continuing to struggle for normality. You should not have to add lies to your story to make it more marketable to them, but unfortunately that is sometimes how some outlets operate. They wont bother verifying if its any real other than the medical incident probably.

So you can add in late night love talks with visiting nurse, perhaps an argument with one of their jealous partners that only deescalate as the man realize what an idiot they were being as these women were just showing sympathy and kindness.

Not that you should, just that this is what the editors letter meant. Hopefully they pay you for it at least.

Good luck in your endeavor to take back control of your life my friend, I could not even imagine the struggle.

a reply to: Encia22

I thought that the blood was obviously implied.
The protagonist couldn't move around freely to see and describe it.

Thank you for reading.

a reply to: worldstarcountry

Good luck in your endeavor to take back control of your life my friend, I could not even imagine the struggle.

It is fiction, based on a reaction to someone telling me a story he read in a popular magazine. Some of it seemed a bit contrived.

a reply to: FullHeathen

LOL, no I meant blood as in the editors wanting a story so extreme that it could almost never have happened in real life.

Was the editor's letter your invention or was it in the magazine article?

Either way, it's an unnerving story.

a reply to: FullHeathen

I have to hand it to you, I think your writing is brilliant.

a reply to: FullHeathen

This is excellent!!!💥

a reply to: Encia22

Was the editor's letter your invention

Affirmative. My name is not Jones.

a reply to: QRST4D

a reply to: JJproductions
Thank you.
It's an experiment in unconventional story endings.

a reply to: FullHeathen

I like your new avatar too!

a reply to: JJproductions
Thanks.
I only wish Thoreau was bare foot.

a reply to: FullHeathen

you just gave me a seed of an idea for a personal project. thanks. big part of the reason I participate in the ATS writing community.

a reply to: FullHeathen


Enjoyed your tale. You allow us, the reader, to fill in the gritty blanks. Sometimes writers can describe things too much, and take away our inner mindview. I hope you participate in the upcoming Short Story contest. ;o)

a reply to: argentus

You allow us, the reader, to fill in the gritty blanks.

In this instance it was more a case of too lazy to research what particular angle of ascent for a 135 lb Ms Jones would be remotely feasible.

Experimental results: I can't pull myself across a flat surface by chin alone.

a reply to: FullHeathen

That was well written and believable to a certain extent. It did somehow seem a little contrived, to use your own word.

I think that it might have seemed less so had you written it from the 'third person' perspective.

Perhaps too an addition of some sort of other worldly inner voice or presence could add that extra element.

Just my thoughts after reading a few times, plus I recently watched a YouTube video with that 'presence' being claimed by some survivors.

You have a fine talent FullHeathen!

S+F

a reply to: FullHeathen

Great story.

And poor Ms. Jones. It's a sin they wouldn't consider her story of overcoming worthy of print.

It needs to play the right notes. Ms. Jones needs to be an empowered woman in a really patriarchal religion or environment, and the adversity she encounters needs to hit the correct notes of overcoming to sell.

Injury and survival isn't enough. It needs an overcoming of social obstacles as courage.

a reply to: midicon

Perhaps too an addition of some sort of other worldly inner voice or presence could add that extra element.

I had considered having her thinking a rather real life thought "I must survive for ..."
But then the irony would have been cruel, so cruel.