Published: March 02, 2008 02:07 am            

SUNDAY SERIAL: Chapter one

The News and Tribune is challenging its readers to write the Sunday Serial. We published the introduction on Feb. 17 and gave people one week to submit the first chapter. A panel of staffers picked their favorite entry, which is being published today.

Now, we’re asking you to write the second chapter. Entries (500 words or less) must be in our office by 10 a.m. March 9. Our favorite will be published — along with a photo and bio box of the local author — in the March 16 edition. The Sunday Serial has four more chapters to go, so don’t miss your opportunity to be one of the featured authors. The entire story will be published on April 27.



THE RULES

The deadline for the second chapter is 10 a.m. Monday, March 9. All entries must be 500 words or less, include a title and the information below. Entries will not be returned. If your entry wins, it will be published with your photograph and a short bio box about you in the March 16 edition.



Author information:

• NAME:

• CITY OF RESIDENCE:

• EDUCATION and/or CAREER INFORMATION:

• HOBBIES:

• HAVE YOU EVER BEEN PUBLISHED? IF SO, WHAT AND WHERE:

• WHY DID YOU WRITE CHAPTER TWO?



Send entries and photographs to:

• BY MAIL: Sunday Serial, Tribune/Evening News, Attn: Roni Montgomery, 303 Scribner Drive, New Albany, IN 47150

• BY E-MAIL: roni.montgomery@newsandtribune.com

• PHOTOS: Electronic images must be 200dpi resolution, 2-3 inches wide and in jpg format.







INTRODUCTION

If she had to rip the house apart with her fingernails and eye teeth, she was going to find it. Dresser drawers clattered to the floor, cabinet doors were flung open. She pawed through soup cans as the tears started. No luck.

God only knows where he’d been putting things since he came back, she thought. And where was he today? There certainly was no time to wait around for him. Five minutes, maybe.

Dogs were barking. She froze. They were definitely together, on the move. Probably looking for something, and if they were, it was definitely her. She didn’t have five minutes.

She retied her mother’s old boots, fast and tight. She grabbed an armful of meat and tossed it out the hole where her back door used to be. Would it distract them? Worth a shot; they sounded a block away, at most.

She limped down the three stairs, biting her lip. Without a last look at the only home she’d ever known, Simone ran.

— Eric Scott Campbell



CHAPTER ONE

By Tony and Hannah Smithson



The empty streets were nerve-wracking. The absence of the people who would normally be there, combined with the distinct feeling of being watched made the bile well up in Simone’s stomach. Still, she ran.

Running was difficult, but the pain in her leg and the fear in her heart acted as a counter-balance to the weight of the gun in her hand. She hated guns, even though they had been a constant presence in her life. Now there was no one here to rely on, and she had to take matters into her own hands, literally.

As she headed down an alley, Simone decided that she was better to be in the open, better to see them coming than to be ambushed in close quarters. The levee would be a good spot, and it wasn’t far away. The strength of the Ohio would watch her back, and from there she could make her way along the floodwall to safety. But where could she really be safe? She knew the buildings downtown would be perfect, but the thought kept nagging her ... You always thought you were safe before.

The smell of the river, earthy and pungent, was comforting. She’d spent her childhood along the river, looking for fossils and searching for treasure in the piles of debris left by falling flood waters. She wondered if kids were still allowed to play along the river, but, of course, all of that was different now.

Simone snapped back to reality, knowing there was no time for childhood memories. Although the gun would help, she knew she wasn’t going to make it alone. The pain in her leg blurred her thoughts and turned her stomach as she ran down the empty streets, but she was spurred on by the sound of the dogs barking again. For a moment, she wondered if Eli was there looking for her. No ... by now he would have realized that she had taken off for the streets. Suddenly, it hit her. She knew where he would be. He would go to where they had met and spent so many hours talking about everything imaginable.

As she took a right onto Bank Street, she noted that the town looked sad and empty, but ominous at the same time. Their Southern Indiana town wasn’t quite ready for an evacuation — doors had been left open as people had fled, possessions dropped as those rushing on the streets searched for their loved ones. Simone adjusted her grip on the gun once more, fearing for her life now more than ever. She’s seen enough movies to know that when you’re this close to safety you’re also in the most danger. Never before had the trip to the New Albany Inn seemed so painful and grueling, though she could not recall a time when she had wanted to get there faster.

Her breath created puffs of clouds against the chill as Simone eased through the doorway, past the broken glass. So many memories ...





ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Name: Tony and Hannah Smithson (collaboration)

City of Residence: Floyds Knobs

Education and Career Information: Tony has a bachelor’s degree in English from Indiana State University, and has recently accepted the position of vice president of production for Bliss Communications, Inc. in Janesville, WI. He has spent most of his career in newspaper operations. Hannah is a freshman at Floyd Central High School, and does not yet have a job.

Hobbies: Tony enjoys spending time with his wife, Melaney, and their three children (Eli and Amelia, in addition to Hannah). He is also an avid home brewer. Hannah spends her time reading, writing, playing piano, and taking time with her friends. Both Tony and Hannah are active in church and community activities, and they occasionally enjoy embarrassing themselves on the golf course.

Have you ever been published? If so, what and where? Tony has had articles published in trade journals, but has not written professionally. Hannah has not, to her knowledge, ever been published.

Why did you write chapter one? This was a father-daughter project, and it let us share our imagination. We had fun with the various crazy twists and turns that were possible (inbred hillbillies? No. . .), and we worked together to craft a story that would answer some questions, but not too many. Regardless of the resulting 500 words, the process brought us together and allowed us to connect and learn about ourselves and each other in a fun way.

        

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