A Christmas Story Evolves by KM Rockwood

I’ve just started on my Christmas short story for Writers Who Kill.

Every year, several of us bloggers present short stories, some original and some previously distributed, as a holiday gift for our readers.

These stories are fun, and I love writing them.

I wanted to begin working on it so I have enough time to present it for critique. It always amazes me that I’ve missed so many obvious errors and inconsistencies that honest critiquing brings up. Even after I’m sure there are no problems for anyone to find. Ha.

Last year, I must have been in a dark mood. My Christmas story was a tad noir, although, since it’s a Christmas story, it did have a “happy ever after” ending. Or at least a hopeful ending.

This year I wanted something lighter that would be more enjoyable to write.

Stories in the news often provide me with inspiration. Recently, I read a horrifying report on applesauce packets for children that contained cinnamon contaminated with lead. For a few years, I taught special education in an inner-city school in Baltimore, and the effect of lead poisoning on some of my students was heartbreaking.

But on to the story. Suppose up in Santa’s Village at the North Pole, Gunnar, who manages the warehouse for cookie baking ingredients,

decides he’s going to save some money and orders several hundred pounds of powdered cinnamon from a new, cheaper supplier. Only to discover, days before Mrs. Claus has scheduled production of cinnamon stars, that the cinnamon he has on hand is contaminated. Of course they can’t use that.

He will have to report the problem to Detrick, the elf-in-charge, who will probably demote him. Should he try to fix the problem before he reports it?

His original supplier can ship it, but it will take over a week to arrive. However, if Gunnar can get down to Baltimore, he can pick it up immediately from the loading dock.

Gunnar has never been away from the North Pole. He decides it’s preferable to ask for forgiveness than permission, so he sets off. I can already tell that the characters are taking over from me, and the story is getting out of hand.

For one thing, Gunnar runs into problems at every turn, and this is expanding into a novella, not a short story.

Everyone at the North Pole is well-intentioned. If an elf sees someone who needs a hand, he or she will help out, no questions asked. The human world is not like that. It’s full of both people who need help and people who are dangerous. Gunnar has to deal with a lot. Baltimore is a long way from the North Pole, especially if one has to rely primarily on train and bus transportation.

Gunnar arrives in Baltimore on Saturday morning, discovering to his dismay that he can’t pick up the cinnamon until Monday. Mrs. Claus’s cooking-baking schedule is going to have to change.

And Gunnar needs to find some place to stay until Monday.

Another character of mine, Jerry, a homeless vet who lives under a bridge with his massive demon dog Lucy, steps in with an offer to share his quarters and meager provisions. I had not anticipated him appearing in this story, but there he is.

After Gunnar arrives back at the North Pole, I will be able to cut out a number of scenes, eliminating vast swaths of the narrative without ruining the story (I hope.) Gunnar and the elves won’t be happy about that, but I will appease them with a promise that the entire novella will remain intact, ready to be released in its fully length and glory, should I ever decide to publish my Santa’s Village stories.

I hope everyone will enjoy the Christmas stories this year.

Do your characters ever take control and dictate how a story goes?