When the first snows fell, Eun-Ji crept past the empty garden. The small mountains encasing her valley were hidden, obscured by millions of falling flakes, and the pines wore bone-white winter coats. The day whispered of potential. Of magic. Trees shook in a wavering line, but was it the wind or a troll caught between … Continue reading Beside the Garden — Draft 4
Welcome to the latest draft of my garden/tunnel/monster fantasy short story. I've removed the first two drafts of the story, as it was getting fairly long. If you want to catch up, you can find the other drafts here: Draft 1 Draft 2 When the first … Continue reading Beside the Garden — Draft 3
Eun-ji's monster didn't show itself the first few times she worked alone in the garden, but she could feel its presence. The garden grew in a small unused plot of land beside the restaurant. Mom planted it in the early spring when Eun-ji could still see her breath in the mornings. Though the land sloped gently … Continue reading Beside the Garden — Draft 2
Smooth rock cradled Siz as she cracked her eyes open like stubborn nuts. I live again, Siz she thought. Did being alive always hurt this much? Siz felt an ache in her core, thin talons scratching in her middle. Meager flames licked across her folded wings, playing shadows along the smooth rock beneath her. The … Continue reading Novel Chapter — Siz the Phoenix Pt. 2
Deep violet filled the baking classroom's windows while Jun kneaded a fresh batch of cookie dough. Most of his classmates had left for the day, but a few scraped beat whisks through eggs, crushed nuts with mortar and pestle, or clattered metal trays. Putting them out of his mind was easy enough. He hummed the … Continue reading Sauna — Final Rough Draft Pt. 2
Today I'm playing leapfrog between my computer and the kitchen. Sherrah and her mom are cooking a dozen side dishes for the holiday weekend, so I have several duties. Lift heavy things. Reach high shelves. I'm not very tall, but in my house, I'm a giant surrounded by petite Korean women and young children. Open … Continue reading Transportation – Rough Draft 4
I really have to come up with a better title for this story, but it's not a pressing concern at the moment. Last time I worked on this story, I had a lot of ideas for the end but none for the beginning. Today, no matter what, I have to write the opening lines of … Continue reading Transportation Draft 3
Last night I made the final revisions to "Crybaby" and spend this morning submitting it to various magazines. Now I have to wait a few months to hear if anyone is interested. I've been neglecting my novel in favor of other short stories. It's okay if I switch between writing tasks, but I have to … Continue reading Update / U’gre Draft 3
Here is the second part of my final revisions for this story: Living in a small neighborhood must have helped. Games of freeze tag or day-long battles of capture the flag lasted forever like the syrupy hot summer days during which we played, lasting forever. During hide-n-seek, I snuck through the neighbors’ laundry as it … Continue reading Crybaby — Final Draft Pt. 2
When I write my rough drafts, I always write the first few pages here, then retreat to Google Documents where I finish the story. Since I've been struggling to tie my story "Crybaby" together into a cohesive whole, I want to share that process with you. I'll share some of the critiques I received at … Continue reading Crybaby — Final Draft
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