Challenge 214

Tell Us Another One

Gary Inbinder proposes a challenge based on Mary B. McArdle’s “Downburst”: Write a story that ends “But Daddy, we missed the fireworks.”
Does Jeff Crouch’s graphic art “In the Garden of the Moon” reflect what Cyrano discovers in his initial exploration of the Moon? What other scenes in The Other World would you like to see depicted?
In Beth Scott’s “Changeling,” evil little David steals his natural development from others. Does David seem to have a pattern in his choice of victims? At the end he is still only five years old. Write a sequel to the story about David’s career when he’s a high-school student, or age 25 or later.
Bill Bowler’s “Heart Too Hard” has a sad ending. Can you write a sequel in which little Hanako’s parents come to see the error of their ways?
Luke Jackson’s “Infocommunicado” :
1. Is the story allegorical?
2. What is the double meaning in the computer’s final response?
3. Can you write a flash fiction story in which the player outwits the game that won’t let him quit?
Suppose the junk-food loving parasite in E. S. Strout’s “Inside Job” is countered by a nanotech “silver bullet” or “smart bomb”: what conversation might ensue when the two sentient micro-beings meet?