The Boogeyman by Ray Prew

Am I one of the few not on vacation around here?

Good story, I didn't expect that exact ending. The megalomaniac character development should have given it away, but history shows us that it take one of those, a few good propaganda specialists, and a small army of thugs to take over a country. So with that in mind I considered that an option for the ending before I got there.

At least they got this mad man before he destroyed a world.

RT

Good story, I didn't expect that exact ending.

And yet the author started to prepare that ending right in the second paragraph. Well done, indeed. (as Sergio might put it)

At least they got this mad man before he destroyed a world.

A world, that might only exist in his own imagination, that is. At least it might be hard - using the usual meaning of east and west with regard to sunrise and sunset - to find a world that actually has a west and east pole.

Aside: I'm not quite sure whether the author really intended for his main character to eat a popcorn stuffed sausage in the end.

[TaoPhoenix]

Aside: I'm not quite sure whether the author really intended for his main character to eat a popcorn stuffed sausage in the end.

It's clearly a typo - but of the worst kind! And the creepy meaning is that it's not a sausage!

My writing tip for all today is, "watch for the spell-check-proof typos!" These are the ones that will never be picked up by a spell check because they are legit words - yet the altered meaning could ruin a whole story!

[TaoPhoenix]

Good story, I didn't expect that exact ending.

And yet the author started to prepare that ending right in the second paragraph. Well done, indeed. (as Sergio might put it)

At least they got this mad man before he destroyed a world.

A world, that might only exist in his own imagination, that is.

... And somehow this weakened the story for me. In a variant of the "Alice" ending, or the "Walter Mitty" ending, for me the reader's feeling is a bit of a sad sigh.

Anyway, for me, my quota of these kinds of stories is rather low, because all the descriptive fantasy power is "legit" in this venue, and creates great worlds to explore. So to have it all be someone's dream in a psych hospital is a crashing downer indeed!

Even "One in a million" as a phrase doesn't mean much anymore, because that means there's 200 of these types here in the US. I know, history and all that, but I don't see that kind of one-man resurgence these days. Even loose knit organizations can't do it, like Occupy. A mindshare revolution today would have to be a ferociously connected group with ties to all kinds of different angles of power to leverage.

first off thank you all for your kind review of my story! however, I'm a bit confused some of you mentiond my character eating a popcorn stuffed sausage? I don't recall typing anything like that I rechecked the story and saw no reference to any sausage stuffed or otherwise.

[Wormtongue]

The exact quote, Ray, is "I grab a bowel of popcorn." We think you meant "bowl". As bowels were often used in the past as sausage casings, the confusion arises.

The exact quote, Ray, is "I grab a bowel of popcorn." We think you meant "bowl". As bowels were often used in the past as sausage casings, the confusion arises.

Oh, I like this more gruesome version better. It saves a step.

OOPS! i must pay closer attention to my spelling! LOL

This was a nice little piece that I really enjoyed reading. It had a very interesting premise (to me, at least) and above average execution. Nice work, Mr. Prew.