Saturday Novel Experiment

I've always thought about being a writer. I have a pretty good vocabulary and enough professional experience writing and editing over the past three decades to have a decent idea about how to put words together. One of the reasons I started the blog, in fact, was in the hopes someone would see all this fine work and be unable to resist hiring me to do work I love, instead of work I'm merely good at doing.

So here goes. The opening paragraphs of something that may - or may not - eventually be bound together in one larger reading experience. I have no idea where this is going. Most likely nowhere. But I appreciate you for reading it.

-- Mark

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THE ADVENTURES OF MICHAEL MITTY
CHAPTER ONE

The phone sat on Michael's desk like an ugly taupe frog. It had steadfastly refused to ring all day. He stared at it idly, stubbornly avoiding the report he was supposed to be analyzing for his boss, Mr. Crickmeyer. Suddenly, the phone continued not ringing.

Michael sighed. He knew in his heart he was destined for great adventures, but so far his life had been nothing worth writing about. His father, now, his father had gone on adventures all the time. At least if you believed the stories he had told Michael all through his childhood. And Michael did choose to believe.

He glanced once more at the report lying there like so much coal to be shoveled into the mouth of the company furnace, and went back to staring at the phone.

And then, the phone rang. Michael was so shocked he gasped in a big breath and had to take a moment to settle his nerves. Then he picked up the receiver.

"Hello? Yes, this is Michael Mitty. Who? Really? Noooo! Is this Johnson from HR? C'mon, really? Welllll, yes. No, I suppose not. All right. Yes. Yes, Mr. President. Yes, sir. You want me to what? Well, I can hardly believe I'm the only one in the world who could ... no, sir. No, I can't disagree. Yes, sir. Yes. You can count on me, sir. Thank you, sir. Goodbye."

Michael's pulse raced. His brain raced, too, but couldn't keep up and fell behind. He could hardly believe he'd been given such an important assignment. A matter of national security. He didn't even know where to begin. But his country was counting on him.

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What will happen next? What do you think should happen next?