His Story / Her Story

These are the community stories created by First Friday participants at Creative York

His Story

Once upon a time, there was a young man in York, PA who loved Wolfgang chocolate. But the real story was just how sweet he thought the lady in the competition was. How could he show her his true feelings? Ah, he knew the answer-- build her a house of candy. The house had Gummi Bears and Snickers bars and it even had a hot chocolate fountain. He then thought of making her a candy cane crown, because she's the most beautiful princess he’s ever seen.

When he shows it to her, she gasps and says “That is a very interesting candy house. Can I go in?”

“Of course,” he said, “if you will be my princess.”

“Well,” she replied. “I’d rather be your queen than your princess.”

The man was undaunted by her reply. “My love, your title does not matter. But no matter what, we will love animals and children.” Then he was silent for a minute. “But in thinking about our relationship,” he said, “You should know I am ONLY a jester.”

And the woman did not mind that the man might not be a prince or a king. She loved his kind heart. And she didn't ask for much. All it took to make her happy was for someone to give her a bouquet of flowers once in a while.

Still, she did not want him to think she was so easily won. “I am not for ultimatums, kind sir,” she said. “But I would like to share this lovely candy house with all the townspeople. They, too, must see how creative you are. And what a gift you have given me to share. Thank you for showing me what love is.”

So they moved into the candy house, which to them felt just as grand as a castle, and invited all the townspeople and animals to live there with them.The man became her personal jester, but he made everyone laugh. They were very happy.

They put signs around town that said, “free love here.” Their signs attracted a crowd of lonely souls. But because the man and his princ- Queen - shared their own blessings with others, they all lived in happiness forever.

The End -- or is it just the beginning?

*Please pardon any mistakes I made in interpreting what was intended to be written, and any clarifications or embellishments I may have made -- if you inspired me and I got carried away, then the night was a success!!       

Her Story

On a cold cold night in February, there was a house made of candy. In the house lived a witch. The witch had a kind heart.

The child's heart was not as kind. The child put the witch in the closet. The witch escaped out the window. The witch ran to the other side of the yard to see what was on the other side of the fence. She found a purple doggie digging a hole.

The dog dug so deep, he found a supersonic broom to escape on. And the witch escaped with him. The dog flies into the night with the witch. And they hear the music of David Bowie.

At the sound of Under Pressure, the girl’s unkind heart melted into liquid chocolate. The doggie, named Nelo, tried to eat the girl’s melted chocolate heart and became vegan. Nelo shared the heart with some other dogs. They were named Dublin, Bianca, and Mick. Unfortunately, the dogs who ate the chocolate heart turn evil every time they hear songs by David Bowie or Queen. They turn into crazy zombies! When they hear the songs, they start to scream “We will, we will, eat humans!” [Cue guitar solo]

Then, the child whose heart had turned into liquid chocolate floated down from heaven and turned the zombie dogs into cuddly puppies. The witch couldn't help but fall in love with the cuddly puppies. The puppies grew into even cuter dogs and had even cuter, cuddlier, puppies of their own. To this day, the witch and her ridiculously cute and cuddly puppies roam the earth.

The end -- or is it just the beginning?

*Please pardon any mistakes I made in interpreting what was intended to be written, and any clarifications or embellishments I may have made -- if you inspired me and I got carried away, then the night was a success!!

Chain of Events

I'm creating posts about the writing games I have created to save lengthy explanations in individual emails to panels or forums where I might offer them.

                                                                Chain of Events

What is it?

I started Chain of Events as a prompt in the Flash Fiction After Dark game, but it can take as long as multiple rounds of FFAD and I realized it could stand alone. This game is community storytelling at its finest. 

 

                                                                                             

How do you play? 
Participants sit in a circle or around a table(don't have to, but it helps). They write the first line of a story (I have some story starters, if needed)on strips of paper I provide (one per person). When their line is written, they attach the ends to make a chain link and pass to the next person (if they use a story starter, they will have an extra link). The next person adds a line to the story on a second/next link, attaches it, and passes it on. Play continues until the chains have gone full circle. Then, final results are shared. 

          
            "Her Story"                      "His Story"      

Who is the target player? 

This is a writing game for the whole community. Anyone that can write a sentence (or even just a phrase, or with parent help) is encouraged to take up a pen and play!

How many can play at once? How long does a game take?

I introduced this game at the February First Friday event at Creative York. First Friday is a drop-in event, so instead of many stories coming full circle, those who dropped in -- over 40 participants -- added their links to create two stories. Like FFAD, time for Chain of Events also depends on the number of participants. I see the game running 30 minutes to an hour.

Read the stories created here:

                            His Story / Her Story

 I'd love to hear your ideas and suggestions for Chain of Events!

Phyl Campbell is Author, Mother, Dreamer. Right now, she's in over her head with book projects whose

(author-self-imposed) deadlines pass her by. She waves at them and only cries a little as they pass. Sometimes Mother and Dreamer get in the way of Author, and sometimes Author catches up. Check out Phyl's author page on Amazon. 

Other articles of interest:
A Muse Meant
Finding Pink Elephants

Quick and Dirty Publishing Guide

Flash Fiction After Dark

I'm creating posts about the writing games I have created to save lengthy explanations in individual emails to panels or forums where I might offer them.  The videos are the results of individual rounds of play.

                                                                  "Star Struck"
                                                                       

Flash Fiction After Dark

What is it?

FFAD is a game I created (and it continues to evolve and improve each time I play it). I describe it as Cards Against Humanity (or Apples to Apples) with only the prompt cards. I also describe it as host aided community storytelling. Some people compare it to a written improv game or a game like Who's Line is it Anyway? 

How do you play? 

Participants write their own responses and either the host shares the responses collectively or the participants share their own. As host, sometimes I read only and exactly what is written on the cards. Other times I use the responses to fill in parts of a larger story. 

                            "Pet Care"

Who is the target player? 

I have played this game with teens only, adults only, and a mixed-age group. 

                          "Favorite Holiday"

How many can play at once? How long does a game take?

Time for FFAD depends on the number of participants. Having less than 5 is not ideal. This is a game of the more, the merrier! Games are played in rounds, so could run from 15 minutes to an hour. I have had an adult game go for two hours without it feeling tedious. And one six year old who would have happily played all night if we'd have let her.  

                              "Western"

                  "Last Thing on the Shopping List"

                     "My Parents Made a Mistake"

I've even started making gameplay cards -- just like a real game show host!

I'm building collections of both holiday themes and generic prompts. I'd love to hear your ideas and suggestions for FFAD!

Phyl Campbell is Author, Mother, Dreamer. Right now, she's in over her head with book projects whose

(author-self-imposed) deadlines pass her by. She waves at them and only cries a little as they pass. Sometimes Mother and Dreamer get in the way of Author, and sometimes Author catches up. Check out Phyl's author page on Amazon. 

Other articles of interest:
A Muse Meant
Finding Pink Elephants

Quick and Dirty Publishing Guide

The Importance of Being Human

I want to write something important. Something powerful. Not because I view myself as important or powerful, but because the subject I intend to write about is so very important to me. I want to write about people and their right to exist. 

Most people don’t question their right to exist. Existence should be a given. I am; therefore, I exist. It should be an inalienable right. 

Inalienable. Remember that. 

When orders are signed to make someone an illegal alien by people who are immigrants or children of immigrants, it is the worst sort of privilege. Getting honest, poor, hardworking people to buy into the rhetoric of fear is the worst kind of betrayal of the privilege someone has been given to help someone else in need. If one believes, as I do, that we are only made strong long enough to help each other, then one understands my dilemma. 

I can’t be too heavy-handed with facts and articles supporting my position. To do so is elitist. I can’t appeal to my own experiences. That rhetoric is anecdotal, and I can’t prove that my experiences are symbolic of the rule rather than the exception. 

I don’t have the money or the power to overwhelm a media outlet – much less all of them – with my version of facts. I can’t buy advertising that will repeat my words verbatim until they are accepted as truth no matter how outrageous they might be. But I have a laptop. And sometimes I think I can write a little. I have to try. 

If I were in a position of authority, especially if I could have been in such a position years (decades, centuries) ago, I would not allocate money to foreign defense. We live in a country a hemisphere away from the problems of Africa and the Orient and the Middle East. If people want to abandon those problems by coming to our shores, we should let them. We should take great care of them so that they want to bring their loved ones to the Utopia our country promises. We should not send soldiers to change their countries’ ways of life. Our soldiers should be here learning as much as they can about new immigrants, understanding their language and culture and helping us adapt to each other. 

In fact, if our soldiers only went overseas to protect people, and not cheap oil, I think we would be closer to living in a Utopia. And if we are going to invade a country for its minerals (oil and coal are not scientifically minerals, but legally, they are included as minerals in terms of mineral rights), the least our leaders could do is be honest about it. American employees are getting pulled off US oil rigs because foreign oil is so abundant and cheap. Instead of making the connection between foreign wars and cheap imports, people are being told to fear and blame immigrants for their joblessness and resulting poverty. Poor and tired – exhausted, really – people believe what is pounded at them by the people in charge. It takes a long time to start to question authority and power, even to the absence and abandonment of logic. 

So clearly, I have a soft spot for immigration. I happen to find people inalienable. 

Then I get hit by the two by four of how I can care about people but not be pro-birth. And the simple explanation is that I don’t consider every ejaculation or menstruation a baby. A more complicated explanation is that I’m not a doctor. I have, however, been pregnant. And the juxtaposition of those two informs me that I can not make laws to account for every pregnancy situation. 

Without looking at improbable statistics, I would wager that there is an unplanned pregnancy for every couple desperate to conceive their own baby. I don’t know why the world works that way. I do know that these unplanned pregnancies and childless couples cannot be paired together like some crazy TV reality show match game. I wish it were that simple. On top of that complication, there are wanted babies who cannot be saved by current medical advances. Abortion of these babies to save the mother and provide a chance for a viable baby to be conceived and born seems the most humane course of action. 

In the meantime, pitting two groups of emotional, vulnerable people -- the childless and the unplanned pregnant -- against each other is the very definition of cruel. Chances are neither has the money or the resources to help the other, if and when they are able to connect. Then disreputable people sweep in, hoping to profit from both sides – selling babies, stealing babies, keeping children from loving families, allowing children to stay in abusive households or squalid orphanages. This behavior is inhuman and inhumane. If we spent the time and resources fighting THIS instead of constant legal battles over reproductive rights, I believe we would have much better results. 

Because I love little people, I support abortion. Not just choice, but abortion. I can’t prevent child abuse. I can’t prevent cults and sex trafficking and a lot of bad behavior. Ideologically, however, I can support the idea that if people only had babies they wanted, loved, and were ready, eager, and able to care for, then we would have additional resources to crack down on bigger problems that result from children who are uneducated, poor, bored, neglected, targeted, and abused. If instead of shooting people who walk into Planned Parenthood, or shouting Bible verses at them, people held signs –as my friend suggested – offering to pay expenses or adopt unwanted children or provide emotional support, I could believe in the goodness of the common person that I sometimes fail to see. Abortion is not the only reason people go to Planned Parenthood. The pregnant woman murdered in Colorado a little over a year ago was not there to have an abortion. She was murdered by a mentally unstable man who believed fake videos about Planned Parenthood’s only purpose. I happen to think that people supporting the actions of that mentally unstable man should reflect long and hard before proclaiming a pro-life stance. I tire of the rhetoric that Planned Parenthood’s only purpose is abortion. I especially tire of this rhetoric from craft stores who buy cheap goods from countries with mandatory child limits and forced abortions. 

It’s not about the money, either, people. I get that soulless argument a lot. Funny, I’m not supposed to complain about a portion of my taxes supporting war or the death penalty – but people can sure complain about paying for other people’s condoms, boxes of pills, IUDs, or abortions. Dollar for dollar, there is no argument. I’ve also seen enough parents complain about other people’s children’s behavior in grocery stores to know that if there was a free box of condoms that a judgmental shopper could hand a parent – well, let’s just say my grocery store trips could be a lot more interesting. 

It is too about the money. If money weren’t an object, traffickers wouldn’t traffic. Not drugs, not people. If everyone had the resources to truly do what they wanted, we might all live on private islands and not give a damn about anyone else. There are rich people for whom the true value of money is as meaningless as Monopoly money is to me – but they need to keep score with their balance sheets. The acquisition of wealth is a great game, and there is little room for second place – no room for losing ground. If we eliminated money – as some stores and government offices have done, going cashless to prevent robberies – some people would still have more than ten cars, a private jet, and a yacht while others would only have the rags on their backs or maybe a couple trash bags’ worth of possessions. Overwhelmingly, the people living paycheck to paycheck with underwater mortgages and massive bills will give more of themselves to help those seeking handouts in soup kitchens. Equally overwhelmingly, a rich person could write a check for funds they would never miss that could do more good than a thousand poor people helping poorer people. Which is why we allow charities to exist. 

Which is why we should crack down on charity fraud, kickbacks, and related bad acts. 

Which is why we should be mindful of rich people eluding taxes and fine them heavily for not compensating their employees fairly and pocketing the difference. 

Which is why a college education should be freely available and not a requirement of entry level employment. And why we should crack down on and break up for-profit colleges that break promises they make to desperate students. 

Which is why we need a livable minimum wage that includes all medical care from conception to burial or cremation. And why such medical coverage should not be tied to a job or an employer whose ideology may differ from our own. And why it should be as easy to walk into a health insurance agency and establish a personal relationship with an agent as it is to walk into a car insurance agency or tax preparation office. When we are at our most sick and vulnerable, we are most human. We should not be beans counted in an office by people who only know us as numbers on a page. That we perpetuate this is inhumane. 

I believe that a person is strong to help someone who is not. I believe we can do more together than apart. I believe that self-care is important and self-sacrifice is admirable, but selfishness to the detriment of the common good is the reason the colonies overthrew the monarchy and the reason we should not allow ourselves to be ruled by a tyranny today. I believe in We the People and I believe in the American Dream. 

And if you still don’t – why not? How can I help you address whatever fear is holding you back?

Adult Publishing Workshop at Rustic Cup

Saturday, March 25 and Sunday, March 26
1-4PM -- each session starts on the hour Rustic Cup 50 W Maple Street East Prospect, PA 17317 This workshop is limited to the first 15 attendees.
Participant's Name (as Participant prefers to be called):
Participant Phone Number (only used if there is a problem with your order)
Email Address:
Select Workshop Day(s) and Session(s)
Sessions 1, 2, and 3 take place Saturday. Sessions 4, 5,and 6 take place Sunday. Sign up for individual sessions, or save $10 by signing up for a group of three sessions. You can even sign up for all sessions to receive unlimited Buy One Get One Free Private Consulting after the event (void after 30 days).	All sessions $100 and BOGO consulting Group 1 (sessions 1-3) $50, $10 discount Group 2 (sessions 4-6) $50, $10 discount Session 1: Book Publishing 101: Introduction to CreateSpace $20 Session 2: Book Publishing 102: Front and Back Matter and Amazon Blurbs $20 Session 3: Book Publishing 103: Cover Design $20 Session 4: Book Publishing 104: Formatting in MSWord $20 Session 5: Book Publishing 105: Images $20 Session 6: Book Publishing 106: Picture Books $20
Payment Options
Once you complete the sign up form, you will need to pay a non-refundable deposit to hold your spot. This $20 fee will be applied to the total workshop fees owed. You may pay the deposit or the entire fee in advance. You can mail a check to: Phyl Campbell; 2975 Stillmeadow Ln; York PA 17404 You can also request a Square Invoice to pay by debit or credit card. Once I send a requested invoice, you will have 72 hours to pay it or risk forfeiting your spot.	I will send a check within three business days. Please send a Square invoice instead

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Back to the Beginning

As we approach the New Year, I've decided to write a little something about each of my books, starting with the first one published. If this little blurb peaks your interest, please go check it out on Amazon.

Mother Confessor

Mother Confessor Book 1

In book one, young children gather around the Mother Confessor, eager for the only story she ever tells. Throughout the decades, they are shocked to hear of the kidnapping, frightened to learn about the murders, and overjoyed to learn that one of their own breaks through the "curse" to save a little girl from their hometown.

Mother Confessor Book Two

In book two, but as children get older, they aren't content to hear the stories.  They want answers they aren't getting.  Despite being their Mother Confessor, their storyteller is withholding information.  Do their lives depend on it?


Or get both books under a shared cover!

Mother Confessor 2 in 1 edition

Website Overhaul

A loving person sat me down very carefully and told me my website was too busy. This was months ago.

And they were SO right! I just didn't know how to FIX it.

It took me a long time  to clear my brain-space to figure out how I wanted to capture the last decade of my writing life (and some things predate THAT!).

So what I have now is by no means PERFECT, but it is BETTER.

I've made better use of the menu levels and I've updated a lot of links that I should have realized (but didn't) were dead. (Yes, I saw dead links. And they didn't know they were dead. Take that, M. Night!)

This is a weird transition for me in figuring out what Phyl Campbell Press will look like in the coming months. Will it be absorbed into Creative York on terms acceptable to me, as I hope? Will I keep it separate, as may be better for me and the baby -- er, business -- I have built?

Speaking of Creative York, absolutely go check out my classes on their page(s).

Check out Rustic Cup, too!  The owner is a wonderful soul who is getting me to think even bigger and bolder. We haven't solved all the world's problems yet, but I think we're closing in!  ;)