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diff --git a/old/65772-0.txt b/old/65772-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 79b10ce..0000000 --- a/old/65772-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,724 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Once Upon a Monbeast..., by Charles E. -Fritch - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: Once Upon a Monbeast... - -Author: Charles E. Fritch - -Release Date: July 5, 2021 [eBook #65772] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ONCE UPON A MONBEAST... *** - - - - - - ONCE UPON A MONBEAST... - - By Charles E. Fritch - - Pity the poor science-fiction writer who - creates bug-eyed monsters. You only see them - in print--he may have to live with a few!... - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Imagination Stories of Science and Fantasy - March 1952 - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -That's not my real name up there, and in a little while you'll discover -the reason why. If you read my real name attached to this, you'd think -it was just another fantastic yarn I batted out and then you'd forget -it. And you'd laugh. You'll probably laugh anyway--for awhile--but I've -got to get this thing off my chest once and for all. - -I was a struggling science-fiction author at the time it began--or -rather, just before it began. Nope, that's not right--struggling isn't -the word; it doesn't express the blood, sweat and postage stamps that -went into a creation, the hope and the futility that ran hot and cold -with each morning's mail, the psychological and financial insecurity -that comes to a beginner crazy enough to tackle such a field. And then, -to top it off, I got a letter from Donald MacDonald. - -That's not _his_ real name either, and in a little while you'll find -out the reason why. He's one of the all-time greats in science-fiction -and still is, and a fan not knowing his work would be suspected of -having lost his marbles. So a "name" author writes me a letter. Great, -huh? - -No. - -I'd sent MacDonald a batch of my manuscripts, humbly asking the great -man to favor them with a glance if a moment ever came while he was -resting a bit between dashing off novelettes. And would he kindly -let me know--frankly, honestly, without fear of injuring my delicate -feelings--what he thought of the work? - -He would. And did. The letter read: - - Dear Mr. ....: - - I appreciate your efforts at trying to crack the stf field, but I'm - afraid I'll have to disillusion you. I have read your manuscripts - with considerable care and am sorry to report that you seem to have - no talent for writing and especially none for science-fiction. - - I would suggest you turn your energies to something else--saxophone - playing, stamp collecting--anything else. If you insist upon - writing, however, have you considered fillers? - - Best wishes, - Donald MacDonald. - -What I should have done was go out into the country, and let the -gathering steam blow its lid. But I didn't. If I'd gotten an automobile -in motion, I would have run down the nearest boy scout just to see his -blood spatter. Instead, I sat down and wrote a letter to Mr. Donald -MacDonald. - -It was a fine letter, full of colorful phrases and split infinitives. -To hell with grammar at a time like that, I rationalized. I told him in -no uncertain terms just what I thought of him and his criticisms. I'd -be a science-fiction writer just to show him up for the incompetent he -was, I said. I guess I said a lot of things. It was a letter full of -more than fire and brimstone. It was radioactive. - -I mailed it. Then I had a beer. - - * * * * * - -Two days later, while I was bravely punching typewriter keys in a -desperate effort to make good my boast, a small, haggard-looking fellow -came to the door and rang the bell. - -"We don't want any," I said. - -He peered through the screen door and said, "I'm MacDonald," in a -nervous, uncertain voice. - -"MacDonald who?" - -"Donald MacDonald. May I come in?" - -"You're kidding. No, by God, you're not. You _are_ Donald MacDonald." - -He smiled wanly. "May I come in? I flew all the way--" - -"Just to see me?" - -"I--er--it was no trouble. I took a _skyorie_." - -"A what?" - -"May I come in?" - -"Sure, sure, c'mon in. Have a chair. Drink?" - -"No, thanks," he said, seating himself. "I'm afraid I've been--that -is--er--No, I don't believe so." - -"I got your letter," I said, suddenly remembering. My awe at the -presence of the great man was suddenly overwhelmed by a feeling of -"Now, what the hell does he want?" - -"And I got yours," MacDonald said. "That's why I'm here." He gazed at -my typewriter as though it were ready to bite him. "You didn't take my -advice?" - -"Hardly," I said, rather flippantly. "Once the bug has bitten you--" - -"Have you had anything accepted?" - -I stared at the rug, hating the man for asking. "No, not yet," I -admitted grudgingly, "but--" - -"Then the bug hasn't _really_ bitten you yet," he said. "You'll know it -when he does." - -"I--uh--guess my letter was a bit--er--abrupt," I said, not knowing how -else to fill the silence. - -"You were pretty mad," he admitted, "and I don't blame you; I should -have known better than to tell you that way. But in this game, -you've--well, you've got to learn to take criticism. If your work's -bad, admit it and throw in the towel." - -"And mine's bad?" - -He shrugged, avoiding my eyes. "I'm afraid so." - -But the steam had been released and the period of mourning had ended, -so "I'll improve," I told him. - -"You're wasting your time." - -"Possibly. What I can't understand, though, is why a big name in -science-fiction comes way the devil out here just to advise me to stop -knocking my head against a wall." - -"Perhaps more than your head is at stake," he said. - -"What?" - -"Nothing," he said hastily. For a moment his pale face held a haunted -look, and he rose, looking like a man unsure of himself. "I can't talk -you out of it, so I'd better go." - -"Wait a minute. Just what did you mean by that other remark?" - -Donald MacDonald glanced around him as though he were afraid invisible -beings might be eavesdropping. "You really want to know the reason why?" - -I nodded. - -"Your work is good," he said seriously. "Too good. Not up to par on -some points, but in a few years you'll be going places. That's why I -sneaked away from them and came here--to beg you to reconsider, to stop -this writing now, before it's too late." - -"You mean--you _can't_ mean--you're not--afraid of competition?" - -He waved an annoyed hand. "Competition, hell! There's always room for -more. You don't understand," he went on, screwing his face into a look -of determination. "I'm trying to save your peace of mind, your sanity -perhaps. The mind is a great and powerful thing, sometimes dangerous. -All these things--these alien creatures that a science-fiction author -creates--" - -"Yes?" - -But he had straightened suddenly, a look of terror on a face gone -ashen. He went to the door like a man being pushed, fumbled for the -knob. "I beg of you, for your sake, forget it," he called back. Then he -was gone. - -I went out on the porch but MacDonald was not in sight. I heard a -strange noise as of the flapping of great leathery wings. A shadow -passed across the lawn. I looked up. - -Nothing. - - * * * * * - -The next morning I got a small envelope in the mail. The letter inside -read, "Enclosed is a check for your story THE MONBEAST...." I sank into -the softest chair in the world and read those wonderful, wonderful -words, and held the check in my hand and read those wonderful, -wonderful figures. I was so in a trance I hardly noticed the tiny -decimal point that scampered on tiny legs across the check. I hardly -felt the small, sharp bite--but.... - -My first acceptance! It was incredible the exhilaration that flowed -through me in that instant. It was like a much-needed shot of -adrenaline, like cool springwater to a thirsty man. I had a check for -a story someone thought enough of to publish. I was an author. A real, -live, honest-to-goodness author with a check in my hand to prove to a -critical world that I wasn't a bum after all. Suddenly the world was a -big, wide, wonderful place to live in, and I loved everyone in it--even -the poor, disillusioned Donald MacDonald. - -But why stop here? I thought. There were more checks where that came -from. If I could sell one story, I could sell two, and then three, and -four. So I did. In a way, it was something like digging my own grave. -You don't understand that now, but in a little while you'll see the -reason why. - - * * * * * - -After I had haunted the newsstand for about three months, the great day -came. THE MONBEAST was the last story in the magazine (at the time I -thought they really should have featured it) and my name was misspelled -on the contents page, but it was a great day just the same. A day of -triumph. A day for rejoicing. I'd had several stories accepted during -the several months' interval, but this was the day that the fruits of -my labor became evident to the world. - -I walked home with a proud, firm step, casually displaying the magazine -to the vast public eye, to friend and foe alike. I tried to act -nonchalant, as though this were old stuff to an established writer like -me. It was a day of glory, of triumph, rivaling Caesar's victorious -march into Rome. - -That evening I read the story over and over again, marveling at the -perfection of its form, savoring the exquisite flavor of each delicate, -richly-hued, word, the uniqueness of each choice, well-turned phrase. I -fell asleep with the magazine in my hand. - - * * * * * - -The next morning the monbeast was sitting at the foot of my bed. - -"Okay, okay," it said, blinking its bug-eyes at me, "don't act so -surprised. MacDonald warned you, didn't he?" - -"But--but--" - -"Sure, I'm real," the monbeast volunteered, scratching its scaly head -with a long-nailed finger. "That's the trouble with you guys. You're -full of imagination, but you can't face reality." - -"Where--where'd you come from?" - -The monbeast shrugged massive green shoulders. "The whole thing's much -too technical for me to worry about. All I know is us BEMs exist, and -we get to your dimension via science-fiction." - -"That 'power of mind' MacDonald was talking about?" I said, shuddering -a bit. - -"Something like that. Other forms of fiction deal with things native to -your world. Science-fiction regards us BEMs as real, so while we don't -ordinarily exist here, there's a stress created in the barrier between -us, and we come through." - -"Then you're really real?" - -"Practically. Right now, though, you're the only one who can see and -hear me. You haven't characterized me sufficiently so that the readers -will be convinced that I'm real. But that's okay. You'll improve." - -"Thanks. But now what about you?" I said, trying to not appear -overanxious. "Are you returning to your own dimension or are you -staying here for awhile?" - - * * * * * - -The monbeast grinned, showing the eighty sharp-pointed teeth I knew it -possessed. "Sorry, I'm here to stay. I'm your brainchild, you know, so -I'll have to stick to you." - -I gulped. "Stick to me?" - -"Only figuratively," the monbeast said. "But I'll be around." He -cocked a bug-eye at me and said gravely, "We'd better get a few things -straight right from the start. One of them is that as far as you're -concerned, I'm as real as that bedpost." - -"Real?" I tried to laugh that off, but the sound came out a little -weakly. "That's silly. You're just a product of my imagination." - -"Am I?" the monbeast said. - -He thrust the scaly face close to mine and yawned. Suddenly the room -became a turkish bath. - -"Okay, okay," I said hastily, "turn it off." - -Coolness came, and I breathed easier as the steam dissipated. - -"Secondly, you're going to create bigger and better BEMs and make them -more convincing," the monbeast continued. "With all you writers turning -us loose, we can have a swell time in this world." - -"But how can you?" I protested. "You said the readers wouldn't believe -in you, so you don't exist for them." - -"Science-fiction is growing," the monbeast said. "Everyday more people -are getting to realize that there is more to the world than those -things they see around them. They believe what they read in love -stories and detective stories. Science-fiction is next." - -"Suppose I don't want to create more BEMs?" I said. "Suppose I take up -saxophone playing or something and leave science-fiction alone." - -"You can't stop writing it now, any more than a true fan can stop -reading it. The bug has bitten you." He smiled a piano keyboard of -teeth and continued, "Besides, I could be obliged to--er--inspire you -just a bit. But you just work along with me, and we'll both do fine." - -So we did. - - * * * * * - -The monbeast isn't such a bad fellow after all, once you get to know -him. Neither are the other BEMs hanging around my house. Oh, yes, there -are others, lots of them. Hanging from the rafters. Under chairs. In -coffee cups. Everywhere. It's an occupational hazard, you know. - -Chances are, though, you wouldn't be able to see them--unless you're a -real gone science-fiction fan, and even then maybe not. But someday you -will. - -Someday you'll be sitting in your favorite chair reading your favorite -science-fiction magazine, and you'll look up.... - -Maybe it'll be sitting on the desk beside you, running one of four -hands through a nest of snakes on its scaly head. Maybe it'll be only -an inch tall and perched on the piano watching you. Maybe at first -it'll be just a warm, dank breath on the back of your neck. - -No telling _when_ it'll be either. Maybe next year, next month; -tomorrow. Who knows--perhaps even now. - -Here's a little tip. When you lay down this magazine, turn around -slowly. Have you ever had the feeling that something was going on -behind your back but when you turned around you saw nothing? What's -that? You think maybe you've got that feeling right now? - -Listen, on second thought, now that you know, maybe you better not turn -around. Take this as a gag. A nice big laugh. You'll be a lot better -off that way. - -What you don't know can't hurt you.... - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ONCE UPON A MONBEAST... *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. 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