Far Horizons: Tales of Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Horror. Issue #20 November 2015 | Page 11

struck out three acts, and followed the hero’s journey
to the bitter end. With each passing day, his word
count increased.

And The Devil
Came Down To
Nanowrimo

Now and then, the devil would look up from
his labour to watch his prey’s progress. Time was
passing. Soon the month would be over and the
challenge would be complete. He would own the soul
of Jesus at long last.
At the same time, Jesus sat on the opposite
side of the coffeehouse. A chilly decaf coffee frappe
perched beside him. His table was located on the
sunny side of the coffeehouse, his laptop loaded with
Scrivener. Jesus set his daily target goal at 1667 words
per day. With organic intuition he wrote a character
driven novel full of the trials that people may face
in their lives. Was it fate or free will that drove his
characters? Only they would know which. Jesus
trusted the characters to tell him what to write. He let
his story unfold, writing by the seat of his pants. He
seldom glanced at the devil. In tune with his inner
muse, Jesus wrote his story in a slow and steady
manner.

By Wendy Van Camp
It is known that the devil likes to challenge
certain individuals for their souls. What is not as well
known is that he once challenged Jesus to a writing
contest. Here is how the story may have unfolded.
During the month of November people all
across the planet participate in National Novel Writing
Month. Their goal is to write 50K words toward a
rough draft of a novel. During this event the devil
sauntered into a local coffeehouse where Jesus and a
few of his disciples were enjoying coffee and scones.
The Devil challenged Jesus to a writing contest. If
the Devil could write 50K words before the end of
November, he would take Jesus’s soul.

On the last day of November, the Devil

The son of God quirked a grin and gave a
wink to the Devil. “I accept your challenge. If you
win, you have my soul. If I win, you will no longer
torment humanity.” The two shook on the challenge,
as gentlemen often do. The disciples witnessed the
bargain, and Jesus and the Devil began.
The Devil ordered a Vente coffee with an extra
shot of espresso before taking a chair at a little table in
the shadows. He opened his laptop and began to write
the rough draft of a novel. It would be a story about
lust and power, of world conquest and domination.
The stuff of best-sellers. His fingers hammered the
keys of his writing machine, creating a staccato tattoo.
The Devil