Writing Exercise
Put your characters into a reality show and write a short story.
Side Note
I will be using Scout, Jennifer, and Katlyn from my YA paranormal book for this exercise.
Reality Show Information
The reality show is called Demon Hunting. It is a reality show that follows Scout, Katlyn, and Jennifer when they go out hunting. It is shot in Southern California and their hunting is for school training. This reality show is only aired for demon hunters to see on a private channel since they don’t want non-hunters to know that demons exist. but the team following the hunters on the show are not hunters themselves but good friends to those who are in the hunting world.
My Story
“Thank you all for tuning in to our new reality show Demon Hunting,” A short balding man said as he looked into the camera. “Today we will introduce you to our three teenagers we will follow around tonight.”
The cameraman scanned the camera to show the viewers the forest area around them before it zoomed in to where the announcer stood. The man cleared his throat. “We will follow them around school, around their homes, and especially when they go out and hunt down demons as a part of their training. We have full permission to do so from their parents, their school, and of course from the teens themselves.” The man looked around behind the camera and on either side of him as if he was looking for someone or something.
Again the cameraman scanned the are, but saw no one at first. He stopped when he saw a clown step out from behind a tree, seeming to materialize from the darkness. He glanced back at the announcer. “Hey, uh, Danny, is this supposed to happen?”
Danny spun around and faced the clown. His wrinkled grass green eyes widen at the sight of the scary clown, having hated clowns ever since he was a boy. Danny swallowed hard then cleared his throat to calm his nerves before he said. “You’re going to have to leave. You’re ruining the show.”
The clown blinked its crimson red eyes at the two before it tilted its head back. It let out a bone-chilling laugh that made Danny and the cameraman uncomfortable.
“Danny?” the cameraman said as he took a few steps backwards. He glanced behind him so that he wouldn’t trip over anything.
“Jim, keep shooting. We’re not going to let some guy in a clown suit ruin it for us.” Danny waved his hand at the clown, not realizing what it was. “Go, shoo.”
The clown shook his head and walked towards Danny and Jim. Both shook in fear as they watched the crazed clown headed straight for them. Jim held the camera and kept recording but his hands shook.
“Stop shaking or you’ll ruin the shot,” Danny growled at Jim under his breath so that his voice won’t be caught by the camera.
The clown stopped in front of the two men and laughed again. “You two won’t make it out of here alive,” the clown said in a low harsh voice. The clown snapped its fingers and two more clowns stepped out from behind some trees, laughing as they joined the first.
While the clowns reached for the scared men, three teenagers dropped quietly behind them. All three wore black and blended in perfectly with the night. The teens stood up and without making a sound, they each grabbed the shoulder of a clown.
“Leave our new friends alone, Trinket,” the girl behind the middle clown said.
The clown known as Trinket hissed and turned to face the teenage girl. He gnashed his yellow pointed teeth together at her. “Scout, how nice of you to drop by.”
“It’s good to see you too, Trinket. I see you found two new buddies since we killed your last two a month ago,” Scout said with a grin.
“And I see you, Katlyn, and Jennifer are still alive. What a shame!” Trinket growled, spit flying out of his mouth. “Well that is about to change.” He snapped his fingers again and the other two clowns turned, and leapt at Jennifer and Katlyn.
Trinket slashed at Scout with his gnarly fingernails but the teen was too fast. Scout jumped backwards, her hands out i front, stopping the hit. Scout kicked at the clown and she slammed her black boot against his knee. It forced Trinket to crumble to the ground.
Danny and Jim took the opportunity to hide behind a large clump of thick bushes. Jim set up the camera to film the fight then down down behind the bush again.
Jennifer spun away from the clown that attacked her, blocking blow after blow. Katlyn leaped back up into a tree and ran along the branches. The clown that had attacked her ran up another tree and gave chase.
While Katlyn fought the clown demon in the trees, Jennifer flipped away and was pushed up against a tree. The clown laughed and ruthlessly scratched at her, catching Jennifer’s shoulder with a claw. Jennifer yelped and grabbed her shoulder as blood seeped out between her fingers. Seeing the blood excited the clown demon even more and it tried to scratch the young girl again.
Jennifer caught the clown’s hand, even though her injured shoulder throbbed, and twisted the demon’s arm hard to the left. The demon let out a scream filled with pain and struggled to get away, but Jennifer held on tight, refusing to let the demon escape her.
Katlyn dropped from the trees, her hair a mess, and her clothes torn a little. Next to her, the clown’s body fell, revealing the demon had black blood instead of red. Katlyn squatted down as she caught her breath, brushing her hair back from her face.
Jennifer slipped her hand behind her as she continued to fight the other demon. She pulled free a dagger that she had hidden under her shirt. The sharp blade glinted in the dim moonlight when she pulled it free. Jennifer slammed the knife into the clown’s neck. Black blood squirted out over her and the ground around the clown. The demon’s body fell and Jennifer gave Katlyn a high-five. She yelped and grabbed her injured shoulder, Katlyn moving in to help her stop her own bleeding.
Scout leaned backwards when Trinket slashed at her face. She stood up and punched Trinket in the face. The force caused Trinket to stumble backwards, but he recovered quickly. Scout and Trinket fought while Jim, Danny, Jennifer, and Katlyn watched.
Scout flipped over Trinket and grabbed the demon by the neck. She wrapped her legs tightly around his neck and knocked him off his feet. The two crumbled to the ground, but Scout refused to let go. “This time you don’t survive.”
Trinket hissed at her but it was cut short when Scout twisted her legs. A loud snap rang through the quiet forest and Trinket’s eyelids fluttered as his demon soul left his body.
Scout let the body go, stood up, and brushed off the dirt from her pant legs. She joined her best friends and face Jim and Danny. The two crawled out from behind the bushes and stood up. They brushed off the twigs and leaves before they walked over to join the teenagers.
“So you do this often then?” Danny asked.
“Yes, we do,” Scout said with a tired smile.
“Great,” Jim said as he picked up the camera, recording the girls. “When is the next hunt?”
Katlyn laughed at Jim and Danny’s eagerness to join them for another hunt. Two non-demons were ready to go to the next one even when they had been scared. “In two weeks.”
“Then it’ll be just us following you three around, recording, and seeing how you live your lives outside of hunting and fighting demons,” Danny said. He looked at the camera. “Next time, we will follow the girls around school. We hope you will tune in two days from today. Good night and stay safe.”
Jim stopped recording and the group headed out of the forest together while the clowns melted into the ground behind them.