Characters | Teen Ink

Characters

July 14, 2011
By CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius


Have you ever wondered why your perfect plans are shattered? Why a seemingly perfect romance ended? Why good luck strikes at strange times? Why life seems like a bunch of meaningless chaos?

There is a very simple answer to all of these questions. We were created by an ancient race of aliens and are nothing but characters in their stories, created to alleviate their boredom.

As soon as they are old enough to write, they are given a computer software program and a manual with only the most basic rules of their writing universe. In order to create a new character, they must collaborate with other aliens to make sure two human parents give birth to a child. This child will be under their control from the moment it is born until the moment it dies.

You are always subject to the whims of your creator. Everything you say, everything you do is controlled by them. Usually, the aliens have jotted down things they want to happen during your lifetime. But some aliens detest this and make random decisions as to where your life will go. This is where chaos comes from.

Our planet is relatively new, but the aliens have become bored with it. The best writers among them have declared that the Earth is a cliché, boring universe. They have decided they want to write in a new, more exciting world, so they have taken a special vote. It was this vote that decided how our world will end.

“Why don’t we let a black hole swallow their planet?”

“Nah, we’ve done that already.”

“What if the Earth spontaneously combusts?”

“That’s way too cliché!”

“Okay, why don’t we knock their planet out of orbit and send it crashing into the sun?”


“That’s a stupid idea.”


“Fine. How about we give all their world leaders bad cases of paranoia and see what happens?”

“Sure. Why not?”

And so, our world will not end with a bang, but with slow decay. Our increasingly paranoid world leaders will declare war on each other and humanity will slowly die out. But, since the aliens lost all interest in us, we have gained something we never had before: free will. It is now up to us to decide our fates—and the fate of our planet.


The author's comments:
This was just a random idea that sprang into my head a few days ago. Feedback is greatly appreciated!

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This article has 330 comments.


on Jan. 10 2012 at 7:55 am
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks for commenting! I'm glad it made you think; that's the purpose of it.

M-star BRONZE said...
on Jan. 9 2012 at 10:52 pm
M-star BRONZE, Kalamazoo, Michigan
4 articles 3 photos 39 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Won't you come into the garden? I would like my roses to see you."- Richard Brinsley Sheridan

Wow, this is so cool! Honestly, I found it very interesting to read. After I was done, I actually started thinking what if we were just characters being controlled. I write stories all the time and I can't imagine my life being planned by someone else like I devise my characters. Brilliant! Awesome job!

on Jan. 8 2012 at 6:27 pm
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

I'm glad you liked it! :) Thank you!

on Jan. 8 2012 at 6:26 pm
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks for commenting! :)

on Jan. 8 2012 at 6:26 pm
alligator6 SILVER, Neenah, Wisconsin
6 articles 0 photos 31 comments

Favorite Quote:
What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger.

this is awesome! i love your creativity in your writing and you keep it interesting. nice work :)

on Jan. 8 2012 at 6:25 pm
babyrex4 SILVER, Buffalo, New York
5 articles 6 photos 191 comments

Favorite Quote:
\"You may only be someone in the world, but to someone else, you may be the world.\"

Author Unknown

Wow this is so brilliant! Its different from anything I ever read, you have a great imagination! Keep writing!

on Jan. 8 2012 at 5:55 pm
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks for the detailed comment!

on Jan. 8 2012 at 5:54 pm
sany.lastflame PLATINUM, Frederick, Colorado
33 articles 16 photos 255 comments
I found this short story to come off really strong. The beginning was interesting and kept me reading, which is great becasue not many things can do that lately. I like your writing style and it's definitely not boring. I like how you ended it, also, great word choice and diction. Overall, 5/5, honestly, great work!

on Jan. 8 2012 at 5:51 pm
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks for commenting! :)

on Jan. 8 2012 at 5:50 pm
Fabala_G BRONZE, Broomfield, Colorado
1 article 0 photos 73 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Try to learn to breathe deeply,
really to taste food when you eat,
and when you sleep, really to sleep.
Try as much as possible to be
wholly alive, with all your might,
and when you laugh, laugh like hell,
and when you get angry, get good
and angry. Try to be alive. You will
be dead soon enough."
William Saroyan

Wow this was creative!! I love it! Also almost persuasive, you make the idea of aliens controlling our lives seem almost plausible! This was great!

on Jan. 8 2012 at 5:04 pm
TheGirlWhoDancesWithSnowflakes SILVER, Sunnyvale, Texas
8 articles 0 photos 99 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Duct tape is like the force. It has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the world together."

Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another,
"What! You too? I thought I was the only one."
- C. S. Lewis

Ah! The reason it's difficult to critique is because there is nothing I can correct. :)

on Jan. 8 2012 at 5:03 pm
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks very much for the detailed critique! I'm still working on yours.

on Jan. 8 2012 at 5:03 pm
TheGirlWhoDancesWithSnowflakes SILVER, Sunnyvale, Texas
8 articles 0 photos 99 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Duct tape is like the force. It has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the world together."

Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another,
"What! You too? I thought I was the only one."
- C. S. Lewis

First, I want to point out how difficult it is for me to give a critique on this story. The plot was original, humourous, and light, though it was short. I liked the idea of all the bad things that haplened in humanity's lives revolved around the aliens who "wrote out" the humans' lives. I also liked the overall tone of the story; it was not stiff or boring, and it kept my attention to the very end. I also like how you had no grammatical or punctuation mistakes. It makes me incredibly happy to see excellent grammar! :) If I had to rate this (which I will), I would give this light and funny sci fi article a 5/5.

on Jan. 4 2012 at 8:31 am
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks for commenting! :)

Chrysaora GOLD said...
on Jan. 3 2012 at 9:04 pm
Chrysaora GOLD, Providence Forge, Virginia
10 articles 2 photos 63 comments
It's an interesting idea. I would suggest reading a story called Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clarke. It runs on almost the same lines, but differently. I liked this story though. It tells us to take control of our own destinies and such. Very good!

on Jan. 2 2012 at 2:48 pm
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks for commenting! :)

on Jan. 2 2012 at 2:03 pm
I was confused at first because I was thinking in a human mindset and not a foreigner but then I understood. It is a very interesting concept to grasp. Maybe our world will end like that...

on Jan. 2 2012 at 1:53 pm
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks for the thoughtful comment! :) I appreciate your take on it, especially since I didn't intentionally write it to be 'punk.'

on Jan. 2 2012 at 1:52 pm
CarrieAnn13 GOLD, Goodsoil, Other
12 articles 10 photos 1646 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." --Douglas Adams

"The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." --Marcus Aurelius

Thanks for commenting! :)

on Jan. 2 2012 at 1:52 pm
satellite23 GOLD, Cincinnati, Ohio
14 articles 0 photos 100 comments

Favorite Quote:
Prove it.

Very interesting idea, and i liked the political bash at the end. It was, in a way, 'punk,' which i love writing and reading about. It was just a bit too short and felt like there was something missing.