Story Idea vs. Execution

It’s fascinating when two writers use a similar concept to create very different stories. Take Emma Burnett and Christopher Blake’s recent tales of humans-turning-into-plants-to-repair-the-Earth.

Burnett’s flash piece, “Instructions for Rewilding the Wasteland,” in Radon Journal is terrifying, gorgeous in its spareness, and dripping with dread and guilt. Here’s an excerpt:

“Try not to wince as they insert a stent. Try not to dry heave at the color of the liquid in the bag dripping into you.  … Shudder as your skin hardens. Cry out as your fingertips split. Glance to the side. Catch a glimpse of your arm. Whimper softly. Wonder if your voice will remain at the end of this. Wonder if your eyes will.”

In contrast, Blake’s short story, “In Every Seed, A Hope,” from the new soilpunk magazine Tractor Beam mixes anger and sadness with lighter notes of forgiveness and redemption:

“And as the years pass, the seasons grow no milder, but our stomata sense that the acceleration of the carbon concentration in the atmosphere has slowed, then stalled.  What we’re doing, what Rose is doing, it’s a drop in the bucket, but somewhere out there other drops must be falling too.”

It’s made me think about how much an author’s personality, beliefs, or just how we are feeling at any one moment, might determine where we take an idea. I also wonder if I could apply this to some of my abandoned stories. Maybe I’ve got the speculative element right but am stuck because I need to push myself to try a different tone, voice, ending or length. There are so many possibilities to experiment with.

Most of all, it’s a reminder that there’s no reason to worry if another writer comes up with the “same” concept as I do. We all inevitably make our version a unique reflection of our life experiences, dreams, and fears – and that’s a wonderful thing.