Young Authors write about LIONS!

My Creative Writers had lots of fun with last week's PICTURE THIS challenge. Take a look at some of the stories inspired by this photograph!

Photo by: Derek Keats

Random

By: Luke N.

I see a lion that isn't so silent as the other. One is asleep and the other is on guard for everything that passes by their turf. The lions are the last of their kind. 

Then, a purple lion steps onto their turf.  The awake lion is very curious, especially when a three ton purple with green dots Tyrannosaurus Rex runs by chewing gum. Another purple lion is riding on the big dinosaurs back! It was the weirdest scene the lion had ever seen - especially when a two thousand pound  polar bear walks by. It goes "BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!" as it stomps the day away!

Before the lion goes to sleep, he sees a parade of OREOS walk by. It is the Tribe of Ordorbeos! They walk by singing their song, " Oreo... Oreeeeo! Oreo... Oreeeo!

A parade of gum marches by and some hamburgers to top it off! The lion also sees a parade of chocolate covered lollipops run by to catch up. Then, they turn into strawberry flavored lollipops that walk on the moon.

The moon is a giant rock candy  that shines grey. The sun shines bright like a lemon drop.

Wait! It was a lemon drop. The people of Notre Dame came holding jellybeans in their hands. 

The lion sighed and fell asleep. He awoke to find that he was swimming in a pool of jellybeans. They vanished.

The other lion woke up and said, "What did I miss?"

The Magic Place

By: Cooper F. 

I see two lions sitting near a field, and the male is alert and the female is napping. 

There is a forest near them. They go into the forest to go hunting, and the forest is really a portal that makes them a plant.

In the plant world, you can press a button and be changed into another plant.

Somehow there was a miniaturized mouse in a miniaturized hot air balloon, and they were not plants. The mouse told the lions, who were now plants, that he was the owner of the plant world. 

The mouse told them that if you come into the plant world from the top, you and your item that brought you there would be miniaturized and NOT turned into plants. 

The lions felt paralyzed. "But how did you set up this magical place?" said one of the lions.

"I saw the symbol for "pie" and pressed it," said the mouse. "That's how I got this rigged up."

What I See

By: Ben 

I see a lion and another lion. One is alert, and the other one is taking a nap.

The lion saw a ladybug in sunglasses and a jet-pack on, and he said, "I now own this 200,000 acres of land.

The lion refused, "No! This is my land, and I have a jaw and I'm not afraid to use it!"

The ladybug said, "Let's make a deal. You get 100,000 and I get the other 100,000 acres of land."

The lion agreed.

The ladybug wanted a motorcycle, so he said to the lion, "Can I have $20,000,000,000?"

The lion said, "No, you can't have $20,000,000,000 or whatever it costs.

"But I want a motorcycle SO badly," said the ladybug.

"Why didn't you say so," said the lion. "I have a motorcycle you can have. I rode it when I was young. It has flames!"

"Awesome," said the ladybug. "I also want a radio that has Justin Bieber songs on it, and a karaoke machine so I can sing to it."

"Man," the lion said. 

"Do not call me 'Man' again," said the ladybug.

So the ladybug got his stuff and left. They lived happily ever after.

The Death

By: Sydney S.

I'm Fero the Lion, and I have a wife named Taro. We are lions.

I want to tell you about the time I met humans. I was in the green grass, in the safari day dreaming when suddenly I was in a HUGE net. It was made of metal.

I was soon tossed into a truck - an ENORMOUS truck. It smelled like flowers. The ride was bumpy. I soon heard the radio and went to sleep.

I woke up in a place called Professor Watermelon's House and was underneath a pile of bookworms.

I then saw my wife, and we began to rip our way out. When we got out, I saw Professor Watermelon in his bed. He was writing a book called LIONESS IN THE SAFARI. We sat there for sixteen hours until Professor Watermelon said, "Don't cut me please! I just want to have you for pets. I want to write a book about you and teach you how to crochet a bookworm for my creative writers.

I felt his hand touch me. It felt cold and soft. I stood up and I said, "ROOOAAARRR! I will help you but only if you give me food and you don't kill us and you won't take our skins. DO YOU HEAR ME? ROOOAAARRR!"

"Yes, I promise," said Professor Watermelon. 

After that, we were best friends. We would play, run, eat, write, talk, sleep, nap, and watch TV together. We had SO much fun.

BUT on September 11, 2009 the twin towers fell, and they fell on us. I ran and ran and ran and ran until I found my wife, Taro. But when I get there, it was too late. She was dead. 

I went back to Africa and got killed by an alligator. So. that is my story, and I will have more.

My name is Faro, and I am a lion, "ROOOOOAAAAARRRRR!"

Jade the Rat and the Cookie Mix-up: By Lauren B.

Photo Credit: Brian Boucheron

Jade the Rat and the Cookie Mix-up

By: Lauren B.

 

Chapter 1: The Scout

 

There once lived a rat named jade.

"I am awesome!”

Yes, Jade was one amazing girl.

"I'm a boy!"

Okay, anyway, Jade had four sisters, two brothers and one baby. All of them were annoying to her.

"I'm telling you one more time and one time only that I'm not a GIRL!  Second of all, they weren't just annoying.  They are SUPER annoying - the kind of annoying that drives you up a tree! There's a big difference here!”

Let's move on. One day while Jade was walking down Main Mouse Street, he met a girl mouse.

"Finally!”

When jade walked up to the girl she said, “Hi, I'm a Girl Rat Scout, would you like to buy a box of chocolate chip cookies?”

Jade thought about it. In his head, he remembered that his mom had said to never trust  any Girl Rat Scouts, but he loved chocolate chip cookies.

Jade looked at her 1 more time.  She stared at him with gleaming eyes.  Jade couldn't resist it. He said, “Okay, one box of cookies, please!”

“Coming right up!” said the girl as she gave Jade the box with a wink.             

 

Chapter 2: Mixed Up

 

When jade got home, his mom asked him where he had got those cookies. Jade quickly said he had gotten them from the marker. He didn't want to risk telling his mom. He would have to do a lot of explaining, and he hated explaining stuff to his mom.

After escaping from his mom he ran to his room and opened the cookie box and took a bite from one of the cookies. He spit it out and ran down stairs.

“Mom, I bought a box of cookies from a Girl Rat Scout, “he told her. “And she said they were chocolate chip, but they were actually oat meal raisin cookies and you know I hate oatmeal raisin cookies.

“Well, I am really ashamed of you,” said Jade’s mother. “I told you almost every day not to trust Girl Rat Scouts!  You’re going to have to deal with them on your own!”

 

Chapter Three: Cookies

 

The next day, Jade marched up to the spot where he had met the Girl Rat Scout, and he tried to find her. There she was standing right in front of him.

“Give me back my money,” said Jade. “You said that you would give me chocolate chip cookies, not oatmeal raisin cookies!”

“Yes I did,” said the snotty rat. “But when you asked for it, you said ‘could I have a box of cookies?’  You didn't say what type, so I picked for you and since we were running out of chocolate chip cookies, I gave you oatmeal raisin cookies!  And no, I will not give you your money back and I promise that!”

 

Chapter Four: Arrested

 

Ding! It was almost like a light bulb had struck Jade's head! He had an excellent idea. He would call the police because the police arrest anybody even if they didn't do a serious crime. The Girl Rat Scout would be arrested before you could say supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

When Jade went to the police station, he told the police officer about the crime. The police officer said that he wanted to meet the selfish stinking rat! When the girl saw the police she ran away screaming, and she was never seen again!

 

FUN FACTS ABOUT RATS!

1. Dead rats are often seen in the road.

2. Crows eat dead rats

3. Their favorite food is mac and cheese

 

Lauren: What a fun story. I am so happy that you found the creative writers MUSE after reading the WEEKLY MUSE on Rats. I am very proud of you, Lauren. I can't wait to read more of your stories. You certainly have TALENT!

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

Titanic: By Jaiden

Titanic
By: Jaiden

If you want to read a story with princesses and happy endings, you might want to put this down. Did you know, 100 years ago there was a boat that was unsinkable, or so they thought?

100 years ago 2,228 passengers got aboard the Titanic. They were going to go to America, all the way from England. Sadly, the Titanic only made it halfway to New York City when the Titanic hit an iceberg.  But let’s go back a few hours earlier when everyone was boarding the ship.

Eva, a little girl, boarded the ship with her family. Her mother had a gut feeling that her family was in serious danger. Eva’s mother finally said, “I don’t think we should board the Titanic.” Eva’s mother knew that the “unsinkable” ship was sinkable.

A few hours later, Eva’s mother slept at day and was awake at night, fully clothed, and was ready to save her family at any given moment.

Eva’s mother said that she felt a bump and woke up her husband and Eva. Her husband went up on deck to see what had happened. Eva’s father came rushing down and told them the dreadful news. They ran up on deck and got into a lifeboat. Eva said that they rowed the boat really far out so that the Titanic wouldn’t come after them and pull them under as well with the many people who died with the Titanic.

Eva said that she could hear the screaming people crying for help, and she could hear the commotion still when they were rowing away from the dreadful Titanic.

Eva recalled when the lights went under; she knew the Titanic was lost somewhere under the ocean.

Finally, when all the lifeboats were together, they spread the people out on the lifeboats, so that on every lifeboat there were an equal number of people.

Eva got separated from her mother until they got rescued.

Eva said that the most pathetic thing she saw were the women searching for their husbands and quickly finding out that they had gone down with the ship.

To this day, the Titanic lays over 13,000 feet below the ocean’s surface. Today, Eva Hart and the rest of the Titanic survivors are all dead.

Even though the Titanic is at the bottom of the Ocean and is home to many animals, the Titanic will still be remembered as the unsinkable boat that was sinkable. The Titanic’s story will be spread for many years but will still be at the bottom of the ocean forever.


Jaiden,

I am so happy that you found the MUSE in my Titanic post. I can tell that you were inspired by Eva Hart's story, and while you were researching the MUSE, I bet you imagined what it would have been like to be on the Titanic that dreadful night. I really like your story, and you are becoming a remarkable writer! I am very proud of you, Jaiden. Keep writing!

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

The Soccer Moon: By Ryan T.

The Soccer Moon
By: Ryan T.

Once there was a moon. Now, I am not talking about the one that stands there in your sky. I'm talking about a moon that could walk and talk and all of that.

One day the moon came across a sign that said “SOCCER TEAM, NEED PLAYER, THE ROARING RHINOS.”

The moon said, "Oh what a wonderful idea. I will tryout soccer, and I will try my hardest."

He went to the place that it said on the sign. He went and the coach came up and said, "Hey, are you ready to play soccer!"

 And the moon said, "Yes, coach!"

Then the coach asked, "What's your name?"

And the moon said, "Moon."

The coach then said, "An unusual name but ok, welcome to the team."

The moon said, "Awesome!"

Then the coach said, "Ok, so Moon, that sign is pretty old and we have already started but we are having one more game and this is going to be the championship game. I want you to try your hardest, alright?"

 And the moon replied, "Yes, Coach!"

So the team had practiced passing to each other. Moon was nailing the passes, left and right. He was doing great speed and great accuracy. Then during water break, the coach was impressed and he came up to him and said, "Have you ever had experience on a team?"

And the Moon said, "Nope, it is my first time playing."

And then the coach walked away. They did shooting and other sorts of drills and then the practice was finished.

The moon was excited because the game was tomorrow, and then the moon went home, got in bed and visualized himself scoring a goal....

The next day he woke up, and he was really excited. He got his soccer gear on and went to the field. He went to his team and when he arrived he started announcing the line-up.

"Ok George, I want you as center defense. Harold, I want you as left defense. Thomas, I want you as right defense. Bob, I want you as right mid field. Steve, I want you as left mid field. Then Ryan and Moon are the forwards.”

So we started the game, and Ryan passed it to Moon and Moon passed it to Ryan and Ryan passed it to Bob and Bob shot and SCORED!!!! So that was the first goal, but when the first half ended, it was 2-2 tie. The coach said, "You guys are playing well out there, just keep it up and we might win."

So they went out on the field and they scored another goal.

But out of nowhere, a kid from the other team scores. There was only 5 minutes left in the game and the last minute was amazing.

So Moon did not give up because he wanted to win, so he got the ball and there was 5 seconds left. He beat one guy, 4! He beat another one, 3! He beat another one, 2! He beat the last guy, and he was in front of the goalie, 1! He shot and he ......... SCORED!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He was going down the field celebrating and his teammates hugged him and he was so happy. He always remembered that day, and he is still playing today.

The End

Congratualations, Ryan, for the publication of your story on my blog. What a great way to use the Moon as your MUSE.

The Firedog (By: Jada)

There once was a dog, a big and good old Dalmatian who was actually a stray. It lived in a small, ugly looking, wrecked and dull doghouse.

The Dalmatian wanted a home, but not just a home – he also wanted to do BIG things, like help people.

I want to do BIG things, thought the Dalmatian. I want to help fireman!

One day, when there was a terrible storm, the Dalmatian hid in his doghouse. After a few minutes, an old woman came walking down the street. She was going to get her mail when the Dalmatian’s eyes met with hers.

“Oh my, you poor thing,” said the old woman. “You don’t have an owner, do you? I don’t see a collar, so I want to help you. I’ll feed you loads of food and water. I hope you are a boy, because I am naming you Dally the Dalmatian.”

She sat Dally down and let him play, eat and drink.

Right when Dally finished his food and drink, he could talk to humans.

“Thanks for the meal,” he told the old woman. “But your house is too small for me. I need more room for myself.”

The old woman understood, and they said goodbye.

One day, there were tryouts for being a firedog!

He went back and told the old woman, and she was nice enough to drive him to the fire station.

“We need a new firedog,” said the fireman named Frank. “Our old one retired.

“Pick me,” squeaked Dally.

No other dog wanted to take the job, except Dally. Just when Dally got a little too happy, another dog walked in. It was another Dalmatian.

The old woman left Dally and the other Dalmatian to be trained.

“What’s your dopey name?” asked the other Dalmatian.

“Dally,” said Dally.

“Mines Winston, and you are SO not going to win! I’m gonna win, dumbie!”

“Don’t call me ‘Dumb’,” cried Dally.

“You’re ugly looking, too!” yelped Winston. “And I’m gonna make sure you don’t win.”

Winston bit Dally hard on the throat and shook him back and forth with his savage teeth, ripping Dally’s skin.

Finally, Winston let go and threw Dally into a shelf of books.

When the trainer dog finally arrived, he smiled at Winston and frowned at Dally.

“Well, I’m afraid Dally can’t participate,” growled Winston. “He is a dumb dog and hurt himself.”

“Winston, it looks like you get a head start on training,” said the trainer dog, “But at the end of the week there will be a quiz on how to be a firedog.”

Dally was sent back in bandages to the old woman. The old woman fixed Dally up right away, and the next day he felt better. He went back to the fire station to begin training.

“You are still not going to win,” said Winston.

But Dally wouldn’t fall for it. He wouldn’t give up that easily. Dally practiced sliding down the fireman pole. He practiced jumping into the big truck. Both of these challenges got him into bandages again.

The old woman frowned. “Are you sure you are okay?” she asked.

“Yup,” barked Dally.

Dally would never give up. He would keep trying!

On the final day, Dally grew very nervous. They started off lifting weights.

“Use those strong dog muscles!” the trainer dog yelled.

Finally, the quiz began.

“Who can slide down the fireman pole the neatest?” called the trainer dog.

Dally won the first challenge! Dally won the second challenge, too!

The third challenge was the most important challenge, and if Winston won this one, it would tie the score.

Who was better at putting out a small house fire?

Dally won this challenge, too! What a great day this was. Dally had never felt more proud!

“No!” cried Winston. “You are amazing, and I am a STINKER!”

Dally was the new Firedog!

The old woman came to visit Dally at the fire station once and a while. And Dally’s job became easier and easier. One day, Dally settled down, had a wife and some kids, and was better off with a lot of happiness.

The End

A Note from Professor Watermelon: Jada, what a great story! You are a very talented young author, and I can't wait to read more of your work. When you originally shared this story in class, I was so inspired that I wanted to write about Dalmatians, too. If you haven't taken a look at my "finding the MUSE" post on Dalmatians, I invite you to do so. Also, take a look at Sparky, the National Fire Protection Association's Dalmatian mascot. He reminds me of "Dally"! Take care, Jada, and stay in touch!

Photo Credit: Justin Otto

Bat Hero! (By: Sophie R.)

Once there lived an Indiana Bat who could write, and for some reason his family was being hunted down by a person named Alex.

So, every day he writes millions of notes about saving his family.

One night, the bat sent all his notes to the police station, thinking that the police would save them. But, no! Alex took the notes back and threw them away.

The next night, the bat made a sword and tried defeating Alex, but Alex hurt the bat’s wing.

Then, the bat decided to show the police what had happened. So, he went to the police station and flew over Alex’s house. The police followed.

The bat showed the police what Alex had done, and the police arrested him. The bat’s family was saved, and the bats were famous.

The End!

A Note from Professor Watermelon: Sophie, I am very proud of you, and I am happy that you were able to use the Indiana Bat as your MUSE! I can also tell that the story of "Charlotte's Web" was your MUSE, too. Sophie, you have a great imagination, and I'm so happy that you took my creative writing class for the second time! I hope I see you again in Indianapolis next year!

Artwork by: Sophie R.

The Mad Popcorn Scientists (By: Alexei L.)

In 1492, two scientists discovered popcorn. The two scientists, Ned and Ted, ate popcorn while they played checkers.

There was a knock on the door. This evil but dastardly man named Professor Watermelon came barging in. He swiped the popcorn and left.

Ted and Ned went flying through the door.

Professor Watermelon made three obstacles: a big vine forest, a fire pit, and a huge waterfall.

Ted and Ned took a sword out and went through the forest. After they went through that, there was a big bowl of popcorn. Ted and Ned left the popcorn behind so that they could catch Professor Watermelon.

They came to the fire pit. But Ted and Ned didn’t have anything to get through. They thought about it, and Ted had an idea. There were rocks that made a path to the other side. So Ted and Ned skipped and jumped all the way over to the other side.

Then, they saw another bowl of popcorn. This time Ned grabbed some. It took them two miles to get to the waterfall. Ned threw some popcorn at the waterfall.

Something rumbled. The waterfall just exploded in from of their eyes. So, they ran through the cavern and saw another bowl of popcorn. This time, Ted grabbed some.

Ted and Ned found Professor Watermelon, and they tackled him!

Ted and Ned locked Professor Watermelon up, and they finally got to eat their popcorn and play checkers.

The End!

A note from Professor Watermelon: Great job Alexei. You used Popcorn as your MUSE, and your story is full of action. Better yet, you kept my attention. And I love that you used me as your ANTAGONIST! Hahaha! I like your characters, and I liked how you kept your story moving along to the end. I'd love to continue seeing your work. Send it to prof.watermelon@gmail.com

Frankenstein vs. Terminator (By: Ryan T.)

Chapter One: Frankenstein Gets a Pet

Once upon a……. whatever.  So, once there was a freaky maniac named Frankenstein.  He really was always alone. He sits in his mansion watching TV and eating potato chips.  Finally, he got his tushy up and said, “I NEED A PET!!!” 

So, he went to the freaky pet store, and he went in and there was a real vampire sitting at the front desk.  “Hello, welcome to the Freaky Pet Store. How can I help you?” he said in a deep voice.

Frankenstein said, “Oh, can I have an 8 foot Cobra please?”  

“Sure,” said the vampire. “Here is the food, and give him 5 cups of blood to drink every day, and this one is well trained.

“Thanks!” said Frankenstein.

“No problem,” said the vampire.

So, Frankenstein went home and he said to the pet, “I am going to call you Bob.” The Cobra smiled.

“Looks like you like your name,” said Frankenstein. Bob nodded.

So they went home and Frankenstein made Bob some food.

“Ok, so this is your food and here is 5 cups of blood,” said Frankenstein.

Bob wagged his tail and ate it with delight.  Frankenstein smiled, and he sat on his chair and turned on the TV, and he went on to cartoons, and then the TV shut off, and then guess who showed up on the TV screen? It showed the Terminator.

Chapter two: The Talk

The Terminator popped up on the TV screen.  

The Terminator said, “Hello! Got a pet too?”  

“Yes, I did, and who are you anyways? Said Frankenstein

“Well, I am the Terminator,” said the Terminator.  

“I have heard many stories about you,” said Frankenstein. 

“So, I have a pet dragon and I bet he can beat yours,” said Terminator. 

“Oh now that is a different subject. I believe that my pet, Bob, can beat your dragon,” said Frankenstein.  

“Well, if this is going to be a argument, there is a volcano crystal in my world and it makes you powerful. I am going to get it,” said Terminator. 

“Really,” said Frankenstein. “I am going to get it before you.” 

“Really! Then, I will pull you and your pet into my universe, and we will see about that,” said Terminator. 

“Noooooo!” said Frankenstein. Right when he said it, he saw the room twirl around and then he was gone.

Chapter three: Terminator’s world

Frankenstein fell on hard ground. He got up, and his pet was confused. 

“I think we are in Terminator’s world.” said Frankenstein. 

Bob nodded. Then Terminator went over to them. 

“Hi, this is my world. As you can see, you are going to battle me and my dragon,” said Terminator. 

“Terminator, what have you done?”  said Frankenstein.

“Well, I teleported you to my world,” said Terminator. “You have to battle me, ok,  so let’s go.”

He guided Frankenstein to a place. 

“Here! Wear this, and here is a sword! We are going to battle each other,” said Terminator. 

So,  they both put on their gear, and they stood at the edge of the volcano. 

“So, Frankenstein up on top of the volcano, there is a crystal in the air. Grab it and run down as fast as you can,” said Terminator. 

They stood there and waited for it to begin.                

Chapter four: The Battle

“Let’s go,” said Terminator.

So, they ran up the volcano, and Terminator swung his sword at Frankenstein. Frankenstein blocked it. Then, Frankenstein started battling with his sword, and then he ran even more.  Then Terminator tripped him, and Frankenstein landed on the ground.

This is your last look,” said Terminator.

Bob bit him hard.

“owwwwww!!!!” yelled Terminator.

Frankenstein kicked him, and Terminator flew and landed face first. 

“It’s on!” said Frankenstein.

Frankenstein ran up, and then Terminator jumped in front of Frankenstein. 

“Give up!” said Terminator.

“No,” said Frankenstein. 

They had a sword fight, and then terminator cut Frankenstein. 

“Oww!!” said Frankenstein. T

Then, Frankenstein kicked Terminator hard, and Terminator fell to the bottom of the volcano. 

“Oh, it’s on,” said Terminator.

Terminator called his dragon, and it was an electric dragon.  It struck lightning at Frankenstein, and it hit Frankenstein in the stomach.  Frankenstein fell to the ground huffing and puffing.  He felt like it had struck his soul out.

“Ha ha!” said Terminator. “I’m winning!”

“Not anymore,” said Frankenstein.

His eyes turned gold.

“What the heck?!” said Terminator.

Frankenstein smiled and threw his sword at Terminator, and it hit him. 

“Oww!!” said Terminator.

“Frankenstein! Someday I will get you!!!!!!” said Terminator.

He had a big black hole, and Frankenstein ran. Then, Terminator threw a grenade, and then Frankenstein caught it and threw it back at Terminator, and it blew up. 

Frankenstein ran up the hill, and finally he got the crystal.  Terminator jumped at him with a sword, and then Frankenstein grabbed a sword on the ground and stabbed Terminator. 

Then Terminator turned into gold dust.  Frankenstein went down the volcano, and he saw a portal. He and Bob jumped in the portal.  Then Frankenstein and Bob were at home with the crystal.                

THE END!!!

Frankenstein By: Alex K.

Once upon a time there was a man. The man loved monsters. He got invited to a science club. The man learned that if you have enough energy to shock a brain of a dead person, it would live again.
Five years later he built himself a castle. One night he heard a sound that was coming from the basement. He went downstairs to take a look. He saw a dead person in bars. It was saying something. It said “I want to live”.

So, he got a medal bar and stuck it through the dead guys head. He got two balloons and rubbed them together. Just then, a lightning bolt shot out of the balloons. The dead guy hopped up and did the tango with the man.

Then the dead/alive guy said, “Pumpkin!”

One minute later they were watching TV and NASA said that an asteroid was coming towards Earth. So the dead/alive guy got some rocket boots and a ray gun and went into space.

He blew up the asteroid with the ray gun. He went back down to Earth, and a whole crowd was cheering for him. He was very popular. He got a nickname called Frankenstein.