Plot Beasties and Belated ROW80 Check In

ute plot bunny asks, what genre have you fallen into?

What's a plot bunny? you ask.

Me! I'm a plot bunny, he replies, whiskers twitching.

He's so cute that you have to put your hand out and pet him.

Suddenly you're surrounded by swashbuckling pirates. But your finger's still on the bunny's fur and the scene changes. You're on an undiscovered planet. Caught in a wild west town. Or maybe...

Plot bunnies were invented by Jill McCaw during our last writers' houseparty, at The Mall at the End of Time, and elaborated on by the rest of us. Touching a bunny - actually, at this point, it could be any beastie - transforms the world of your story and brings on new challenges for your characters.

"A plot beastie latches onto a character and clings for all it's worth. Characters are helpless: they believe, they act out, they experience real fear and risk. In so doing, they face the core illusion of their lives, and must struggle against the one thing they have worked very, very hard to avoid. In short, the plot beastie exposes comfortable illusions and challenages characters to face who they truly are, to realize not just dreams, but the simple truth of who they really are."

Now we're setting up an anthology of plot bunny stories, and everyone's invited to contribute!

The official submission request is through here. All genres and styles are accepted.

And ROW80? I'm editing my plot bunny story as we speak!