Allison Urban

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Excerpt

This is insane, I thought as I slid down the ladder into the underground. I half expected to slip on the slick metal and meet a swift death at the bottom of the shaft. Instead my feet snapped into a practiced, stabilizing position, which helped me fly down the rungs fast as my heart was racing. I held my breath as I neared the bottom, jumped down and propelled myself around the corner, out of the main tunnel and into the shelter of a shadowy offshoot.

I stood perfectly still for some minutes while my burning lungs strained to restore themselves. My back was pressed against the crumbling stone wall, legs tense and ready to run as I listened for any sign of a patrol. If I’m going to get caught, this is where it’ll happen. Stomach acid lapped the back of my throat. All was quiet but for the buzzing of a distant generator and the metallic crackle of a flickering incandescent bulb. I took a deep breath and stepped into the light.

I could see only ten yards in either direction, but a marking caught my eye. I knelt down, placing my palm on the damp ground for support and peered at the base of the tunnel wall. There was a diagonal scratch too straight and decisively drawn to be an accident. It was just as the old woman said it would be: left side angled upward, indicating the direction to take. I shook my head in disbelief, jumped to my feet and rushed into the darkness.

Bio

I'm the proud owner of a BFA in Digital and Experimental Media Arts (DXARTS) from the University of Washington; I studied experimental video, digital sound synthesis, and mechatronics and worked in a variety of mediums including digital video, performance, and installation.

In recent years, I've written short stories, poems, screenplays, and novels, but since graduating they've been for my eyes only. I hope to change that in the coming months.


Writing Description

Writing has always been a secret pleasure, a path to an internal world that often seems more real than my life. Today, I'd like to begin sharing that road with you by asking for your support and sharing the results.

Writing Goals

Here is what I propose to do over the next six weeks:

1) Write 500 words of my new short story every day, no matter what.

2) Send a weekly email updating you on my progress and sharing my experiences. I hope my tribulations will help you along your own path toward art-making, whatever that may be for you, or if nothing else, at least entertain.

3) Compile whatever I have at the end of six weeks into a complete story. Seth Godin challenged me to share my work with 50 people, so that is what I intend to do despite the nausea and sense of impending doom every time I think of it. If you'd like to be one of the 50, please let me know. I'd be delighted to have you.

Fundraising Goals

One day I hope to attend a Clarion Writers Workshop, perhaps even with a seed from the work I do over the next six weeks. Some of the best in the business have been through it, including one of my favorite writers, Kelly Link, and my beloved mentor Kelley Eskridge. Your support will help ensure Clarion West's continued existence. Also, it will make me feel like a million bucks.

Thanks for being here. Here's a present.

Website

http://allisonurban.com


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