Joshua's Story Proposals

1.) Eternal’s End (Tentative Title)

Characters:
Man
Woman

Synopsis:

In a world where eternal life is made available, everyone kills themselves. Stacks of little red vials named 4Ever are sold commercially. A man, wealthy and frivolous, decides to purchase two of them, for him and his wife. 4Ever stops aging and gives the consumer an immune system in overdrive, rendering him immune against all diseases. The couple enjoyed their immortality for the first ten years until everything starts falling apart. Christian in belief and lifestyle, the man’s faith is tested as he questions the existence of a God. Now that he has gained immortality, religion is rendered useless and faith becomes a thing of the past. His life becomes a meaningless cycle of repetitiveness and everything has been stripped down of its weight. Later in the story, his wife kills herself, and he is left alone – to live a life that is no longer a life, but a composition of meaningless gestures that are made to pattern what life should be. In the news, consumers of 4Ever rise in suicide rates. Thirty years after taking a sip from a vial of eternal life, he holds a gun to his head and fears a Hell that he fully believes in, awaiting him.

Reasons for Writing the Story:
Death is an essential part of human life, and death gives everything on earth its meaning. If immortal life was given, the irony is that those who obtain it would rather kill themselves for life is not life without death. I wanted to tackle the importance of death in my story so that even though it is something to be feared, it must also be something to be embraced.

Research:
Philosophy of Death and Life, Aging

2.) Tiyanak

Characters:
A young boy
A Mother

*Story will be told in the POV of the young boy

Synopsis:
In the middle of his sleep, a young boy hears infant whimpers in their bathroom. The next day, her mother confesses of aborting her child, his brother. The little boy becomes angered by this. Frequently, he dreams of his brother – the both of them playing, until he becomes bothered in his sleep by little cries emanating from his bathroom. He inspects his bathroom and finds nothing unusual except for a pile of tissues covered with blood in the trash next to the toilet. Suddenly, a zombie-like baby emerges from the toilet, covered with rotting flesh. He picks him up and cradles him in his hands, wraps him in a towel and places him on his bed, beside him as he sleeps. The next day, he awakes to find nothing but a clean towel beside him. He becomes bewildered by this. In the following nights, the baby cries become partnered with a woman singing gentle lullabies. Bothered by his curiosity, he barges into his bathroom and finds his mother cradling something wrapped in silken cloth. The mother drops the object and on the floor smashes a jar, and amongst the broken shards of glass and chemicals lie a little lump of flesh and muscle – his brother, sprawled all over the floor.

Research:
Tiyanaks, Superstitions, Philippine Ghosts and Monsters

3.) Rue

Synopsis:

A young adolescent wants to connect with her grandmother who is a writer but cannot for she is senile. He then discovers her grandmother’s journal and lives her life through her words.

Reason for Writing the Story:
The story is about my grandmother Ruffie, who is the only writer in the family. I see her only during our family reunions, and even though I have this deep desire to talk and discuss with her matters of writing, I cannot, for she is senile and can no longer talk. She is a goldmine of stories and ideas, but I cannot penetrate through her age. I want to write about her - her life, and my longing to connect with her. This story is also to prove that writers are made immortal through their works.

Research:
Further observe my grandmother.