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Looking for Luck

Poetry and prose by the young writers of Scholarâ€™s Playground in conjunction with 916 Ink

LOOKING FOR LUCK

Looking for Luck Poetry and prose by the young writers of Scholarâ€™s Playground in conjunction with 916 Ink

About 916 Ink 916 Ink is the only arts-based literacy nonprofit in the greater Sacramento region dedicated to providing creative writing workshops for youth, ages 5-25, to transform them into confident writers. We empower students to become the authors of their own lives, one published story at a time. Since 2011, we have served over 3,000 kids in the Sacramento Region, and published more than 100 publications. Our mission is to empower children and youth through creative writing. We envision a Sacramento region where every child and teen is given access to a creative writing program that leads them to believe in themselves and to understand the power of the written word. Learn more about us at www.916ink.org, or send an email to info@916ink.org to learn how to become involved.

DISCLAIMER

This is a work of fiction and poetry. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The author and publisher hold exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Copyright 2020.Â

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Dear Reader, What you hold in your hands is the hard work and dedication of a community of youth and adult writers working together to tell stories that inspire, entertain, and heal. At 916 Ink, we teach young people how to write, listen, and support each other in the pursuit of creating literary art. The words in these pages are carefully chosen and crafted to reflect their unique voice. This book is a celebration of “taking the yes,” which is a motto of 916 Ink students. “Taking the yes” means that students are unafraid to collaborate with each other and themselves. It might sound weird—how does one “collaborate” with his or her own self? By shutting down the inner critics in our head that tell us that we aren’t good enough, our stories don’t matter, or what we might say is stupid or unnecessary. Stories are how we create meaning and make sense of the world. What’s better than to teach young people how to tell stories, create meaning out of their lives, and understand the world? Creative writing carves a path to a better life. Writers know this, but maybe the rest of the world doesn’t. A writer is someone who truly gets to live twice—once through their senses and once through the page. Everyone needs writers. Favorite television shows? Go thank a writer. News articles? Thank a writer. Education? Writers wrote the curriculum. Business? Can’t happen without writers creating marketing tools and business plans. Writers make the world go around. By reading this book you’ve supported the growth of a writer. Thanks. Please consider making a donation to this great cause on our website at www.916ink.org if you’d like to further our mission of populating the planet with youth who can “take the yes,” and lead a happy life. Ink-tastically yours, The 916 Ink staff, the Board of Dreamers, volunteers, and youth writers

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Acknowledgments Anthony Ziba

Wordslinger

Brenda Nguyen

Wordslinger

Katie McCleary

Founding Executive Director

Michael Spurgeon

Founding Board President

DJ Waldow

Board of Dreamers, President

Beatrice Tetteh

Board of Dreamers, Vice President

Shelley Blanton-Stroud

Board of Dreamers, Secretary

Kathy Flynn

Board of Dreamers, Treasurer

Chris Worden

Board of Dreamers

Daniel Kaufman

Board of Dreamers

Lynn Lizarraga

Board of Dreamers

Rekha Tejpal

Board of Dreamers

Stacey Powell

Board of Dreamers

Vince Wong

Board of Dreamers

Xenia Schutt

Board of Dreamers

Ian Hadley

Executive Director

Angela Tannehill

Creative Director

Nikki Cardoza

Director of Programming

Allison Stelly

Development Manager

Paulette Greenhouse

Program Manager

Emma Hoppough

Production Coordinator

Maria Gavia

Office Manager

Will Evans

Outreach and Development Associate,

AmeriCorps VISTA

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From the Wordslinger Dear Reader, This was a summer unlike any other that we have seen, in so many ways. Most exceptional of all was the enthusiasm and creativity of the young writers we met through Scholar’s Playground. In a truly collaborative effort, several youth-serving organizations pooled their talents and their resources to launch a platform for impactful online learning. It was truly a pleasure to use this innovative platform to reimagine what a writing community can look like with our Inkers. We wrote epic group stories together, silly poems, and many pieces of fiction with twists and unexpected endings. It was truly humbling to approach the puzzle of online teaching with a measure of apprehension and be met by young writers with immeasurable grace for us Wordslingers as we toughed it through the inevitable technical difficulty here and there. They truly give us hope for the future of learning and the possibilities we can write together. Sincerely,

Brenda Nguyen

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Cohort One

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The Power of the Doppelganger’s Amulet Group Story

In 2095, there was a town called Mystic Falls where vampires, humans, robots, and foxmen all lived. It was a beautiful and mysterious place but held many secrets and faults. It was written that four things would meet together, causing the city to change forever. One day, over at Mystic Falls High School, a redheaded senior named Abagail was just getting out of science class. She headed out to get to her car in the parking lot. She was one of the few high schoolers who could drive. Her friend Elana was waiting for Abagail by her car. “I have to take this to the mechanic,” Abagail said. “I heard there’s a robot over there that can help me figure out what’s making this weird noise.” They drove the car around to the school’s auto tech classroom. They were greeted by a red and orange foxman. “My name is Zeb. What can I help you with?” “Can you help me fix my car?” asked Abagail. “It’s been making a weird noise.” “Sure, my friend Robert can check it out for you,” said Zeb. A six-footthree baby robot opened up the hood of Abagail’s car and tinkered around inside. “Uh-oh. Back up, everyone! It’s gonna blow!” shouted Robert. Elana grabbed Abagail, and they both hid under a table as the car exploded! When the smoke cleared, Elana approached the car and found a purple amulet. It had her name and Abagail’s name carved into it. She said to Abagail, “Look, it’s the exact amulet from the vampire curse book.” “Who put this here? Why would they want to destroy my car?” Zeb, Abagail, and Elana all felt a chill down their spines, and suddenly shadowy figures appeared in the shop. One figure lowered their hood. It 10

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was Elana! Or someone that looked exactly like Elana. The doppelganger said, “I’ll take that amulet.” The group looked down at the amulet. Elana grabbed it and said, “We gotta go!” She enveloped the other three into her cape and used her super speed to whisk them into the forest. “Okay, what was that all about?” said Abagail. “Well, I have an evil twin sister. She hates me so much that she wants to destroy the most important thing to me, this town that I love. She won’t stop until she finds this amulet. We’re going to have to find the others to keep her from trying to take over the city.” Abagail’s face was completely bewildered. Robert said “beep-beep?” in confusion. Zeb said nothing. He had seen a great many strange things in this world. Robert said, “Beeeeeep beeeeeep.” “Looks like we’re gonna have to get more oil for this guy,” said Zeb. The group walked in the forest and wandered around the forest until they saw an old sign that was for a gas station. They arrived at the gas station and filled up Robert with gasoline. The gas container had several numbers written on it in a very intentional way. It showed an address, and the group followed the address to an old willow tree that held an old journal. As Elana grabbed the journal, an old witch grabbed her wrist softly and stated that she and her friends were the chosen ones to save the world from her doppelganger. The elf witch revealed that Elana’s doppelganger’s name was Anele. She also revealed the doppelganger’s weakness was in the journal and told them of the evil group’s hideout. LOOKING FOR LUCK

The weakness of the doppelganger was a white ash dagger, but only a human could kill the doppelganger of a vampire. If a vampire were to kill their doppelganger, they would perish as well. They left the elf witch. The group traveled farther into the woods on a hill. As they walked, they ran into a hard surface and realized there was an invisible house in the way. “This must be the place,” Zeb said They decided that they needed rest and that setting up camp would be a good idea. They headed back to the elf witch’s cottage and asked if they could stay with her. When they were inside, the group came up with a plan and started forming weapons. Robert had the ability to forge weapons quickly when given any type of metal. Robert had created a harpoon for a weapon. Elana could read minds. Abagail was armed with the white ash dagger to give the final blow to the doppelganger. Everyone turned to see that Elana was still outside. Elana blushed in embarrassment but stated that she needed to be invited into the house. “I’m sorry my dear, you are invited into my house,” the elf witch said. “All right, so how are we going to defeat your clone?” Zeb said. “Well, I have the ability to run fast, see in the night, cast spells, and enter people’s minds, but whatever I can do, the doppelganger can do as well.” Abagail said, “I have a plan. How about one group lures Anale in and the other group sets a trap and attacks the enemies?” Zeb said, “Me and Robert will be group two, and we’ll lay an explosive smoke screen that will stun the evil ones, and we can grab Anale so Abagail can stab her.” Abagail stated, “That works! And me and Elana will lure the doppelganger herself by waving the amulet around.” The following morning, the friends hatched their plan. 12

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Robert and Zeb sneaked around the side of the house, up the hill, and laid their trap. On the other side of the house, Abagail held up a mirror to the sun to reflect its light off the amulet into the sky. Inside the invisible house, Anale noticed the amulet’s gleam. Like a moth attracted to the light, she burst out the front door and ordered her henchmen to scout the area. Another evil witch, some werewolves, and angry vampire spirits started inspecting the hill to find the amulet. They noticed a lump of dirt and one of the werewolves stepped on it with one paw. Suddenly, an explosive smoke screen stunned all the guards and they fell to the ground. Anale was furious. She used her powers to make the group hallucinate. Robert gave an alarm beep. “BEEP-BEEP. HERE THEY COME” Zeb looked up. The henchmen were awake again! The dark ones started trying to fight them. Zeb shot his harpoon into the air while Robert attempted to deflect the attacks. Abagail said, “How is this happening? Which one is Elana, and which one is Anale?” Anale gave an evil laugh. “You will give me the amulet now.” Out of the shadows, the elf witch appeared. She waved her hand and froze time for everyone except Abagail. Abagail looked around, astonished. The wise witch said, “Do it now!” and pointed at the dagger coated in white ash. Abagail took a deep breath and stabbed the evil twin with the dagger. Suddenly, time unfroze. Anale gasped her dying breaths. Then she shriveled into white willow dust. LOOKING FOR LUCK

“Excellent work. Until next time,” said the witch, who then disappeared. Abagail stood still. Her friends all gathered around her, cheering and congratulating her on her bravery. Abagail tried to smile, but while everyone was happy, she whispered quietly to herself, “It’s not over yet...”

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Gloomy Days Kaylee Nguyen

A dull brownish leaf danced by my dirty, scratched-up feet. The rain poured down from the gloomy gray clouds. I was glad it was raining; it covered up my tears trickling down my face. The wind rustled by my blood-stained rags, which were originally a pretty color of lilac. My hair was stringy and wet, and the weather perfectly fit my mood.

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The End of Earth DeMarion Boyd It was a wonderful day. I was always sleeping until—BOOM. I woke up and looked outside. It was a huge drift. Then a huge spaceship came out with lots of scary people.

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Cohort Two

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Searching for the Powerful Amulet Scepter: Looking for Corn Group Story

On the planet Mars, there was a magical amulet scepter that had the ability to emit fire and ice. It was coveted by Markus the Evil Wizard. Over outside the outskirts of Grainville, a half human, half alien named Alex lived in a small house with his grandmother Rachel. Alex lived a simple life farming grain and helping his grandmother take care of the farm. Although Alex seemed fairly normal, he was very smart. He had a UFO car hidden in his grandmother’s barn. Every night, after doing his chores, he would research with the books he checked out from the local library. Alex was especially interested in finding treasure so he could provide for his grandmother, and he searched for clues on how to find the magical amulet scepter. One day he received a mysterious letter. It said, “If you see this, then you are old enough to see the truth. Travel to the ice mountain town called Icelis and find the corn villager.” Alex left a note for his grandmother, and by sunrise he had taken off in his UFO car. He arrived in Icelis after a couple days of travel. Alex parked his UFO car in the fields and began to walk through the cold town. He bumped into a young person. “Excuse me, my name is Alex. Can you help me?” “Hi Alex, I’m Andy. Andy Whyatt.” “I’m looking for a corn person.” “Chill bro. Corn Person lives in the big house north of town up the mountain. But you won’t make it up there without a guide. I can help you out.”

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Alex and Andy started their travel up the winding path up the mountain. Suddenly, a growling pack of wolves rushed to block their way. They backed up slowly. Andy reached into his bag and threw a slab of meat for the wolves off the side of the road. As the wolves chewed away at the meat, Andy and Alex ran up the mountain even farther. Out of breath, the two individuals stopped by a cave. “That was a close one, but nothing too difficult. We’re just a hop, skip, and a jump to Corn Person,” Andy said. As the duo approached a house on the mountain, they heard a large crash coming from the house. The two looked at each other and sprinted toward the house. Upon arrival, they saw a giant, shriveled, rotten corn cob. But she was being attacked by a giant snow monster. Corn Person was known for their famous sweet and salty corn. During their youth, they found the scepter while farming and were confronted by an evil wizard about it. Corn Person immediately hid it in a giant corn maze, keeping Markus the Evil Wizard lost about the location. Their name was Amizzia Brent. “Help me, please! This monster is crushing my kernels!” Alex took a sword out of his bag and sprang at the monster. Andy grabbed his trusty machete and attacked the monster from behind. Both of them struck the monster, and the monster dropped Amizzia Brent instantly. The monster ran deep into the cold mountains. “Thank you, gentlemen. I was about to be popcorn if that beast held me for even a second longer.” Continued on next page

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“No problem. Ms. Ammizia, I’m from the town below, and I brought up this out-of-towner that said he needed to see you.” Ammizia’s eyes grew wide with elation and joy. She looked at Alex and said, “It was foretold that a hero would wield the amulet to save the world. Come, let us go through the maze. There is where the scepter lies.” Ammizia led the two young men to the upper ground area to a corn maze. The maze had a cornfield that was six feet in height. She stopped walking and gestured that they had to go through the maze to get to what they were seeking. Both Alex and Andy were lost in the maze for hours before getting to the end. At the end of the maze, they saw a blue door that emanated a luminous light. As they stepped through the door, they ended up traveling to another corn maze. “What is this!?” Andy cried. “No worries, Andy. I feel like we’re getting closer.” The new maze was positioned underground. The new maze had blue glowing corn, and Andy stated, “This doesn’t look right. Don’t touch that corn.” They wandered through the maze for another several hours. Just when Andy was about to tell Alex they should give up and turn back, Alex found the scepter. It had a silver circle with an orb in the middle and corn symbols all across its handle. “We did it!” said Alex. “I can use this to help protect my town!” Suddenly, Markus the Evil Wizard appeared. “I’ll take that!” he said with a grin. “Well you can’t have it,” said Alex. “What if I told you I have your grandmother captive in my lair? You wouldn’t want her to get hurt, would you?” “Don’t listen to him,” said Andy.

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Alex turned the scepter in his hand, thinking about what he should do next. He could feel its fire and ice powers. The wizard lunged at Alex and tried to grab the scepter out of Alex’s hands. They wrestled on the ground, swinging at each other. Andy came in and kicked Markus in the back, and the wizard had no choice but to release the scepter. Markus turned around and shot out a magic missile at Andy, who fell to the floor. He shot another one at Alex, and the scepter clattered to the ground. The wizard picked up the scepter and laughed. Just as he turned to leave, he noticed the glowing corn. “Hm. This looks pretty tasty. Would make a good addition to my victory feast in my lair.” “No! You can’t pick that,” said Andy. But it was too late. As soon as Markus picked the corn, the whole maze started to shake uncontrollably. Frightened, Markus dropped the scepter. Andy made a quick dash for the scepter and used it to blow a hole through the maze. “There’s the portal! Let’s go, Alex!” The two boys rushed for the exit as the cave crumbled around the evil wizard. “NOOoooOOOo,” cried Markus as he turned into dust and washed out the entire maze. Alex and Andy returned to Icelis. “I guess it’s time to say our final goodbyes,” said Andy. “Thank you for helping me. I’ll visit you soon,” said Alex. He returned home to see his grandmother.

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I Want to Be Kind Tristyn Saeyang I want to be kind because I want to help people that really need help. The first thing I want to do is teach people how to cook. If they learn how to cook, they can save their money.Â Also, they can have a more healthy lifestyle. Next, I want to give my kindness to other people by teaching them how to paint. The benefits are that they get to use their imagination and can paint whatever they want. Finally, I want to teach people how to read. What you get out of reading is getting smart, and it can expand your vocabulary. Lastly, being kind can get you somewhere in life. Being kind can help you achieve goals. If you are kind to someone, it will maybe lead to them being kind to other people. Also, it can make you share your kindness more and more. That is it about being kind.

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Cohort Three

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The Brave Mutant Boy Group Story

It was the year 2105. Humans evolved and were trying to survive. In the city, many of the buildings were covered with green vines, tree roots, and poisonous ferns that had very large leaves. The plants were releasing chemicals that were fatal to the human population. Many people lost their lives due to this poison. Due to the severity of the poison, humans soon had to wear mask as a means of not getting infected and sick. But others became mutated by the poison. These mutants had powers that included removing poison from the plants. Jimmy Nickles was one of these mutants. Although Jimmy could remove the poison from other people, humans were afraid of mutants. Mutants had rougher skin, like tree bark. Their skin was very pale, and their eyes were red. One day, Jimmy Nickles went to the store to grab some medicine. He had to wear long jeans and a hoodie so the store clerk wouldn’t know he was a mutant. The store clerk was known to have a mutant prejudice. Jimmy grabbed the medicine from the store’s pharmacy aisle and got in line. As he was waiting, a man behind Jimmy started talking to him. “You’re a mutant, aren’t you?” “You have me mistaken.” “You have superpowers? You can heal my family.” Jimmy looked concerned for the man. “I mean, I can, but---” “Why are you not trying to help my family? I’m jealous of your powers. If you don’t help me, I’ll let the store clerk know you’re a mutant.” Jimmy then said, “Just let me buy my medicine first, and I can help.” When Jimmy got to the front of the line and gave the store clerk his medicine to scan, the store clerk looked at him very suspiciously and noticed that Jimmy was a mutant. The store clerk then gave Jimmy twenty percent off on his item, and Jimmy left the store quickly. 24

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The man in line yelled, “Hey! You said you were going to heal my—” Jimmy ran so swiftly he didn’t hear the rest of the words the man said. Jimmy got back to the forest to administer the medicine to the sick people in the forest and gave them water. The next day, Jimmy went through the forest on a normal day but ran into another mutant. This mutant was limping and holding his side due to his kidney being punctured by a bullet. They locked eyes and both heard a voice saying, “Get back here.” The other mutant smiled and ran deeper into the forest. A burly man appeared seconds later. He looked focused and stern. He lunged and tackled Jimmy to the ground and got him in an armlock. “AHH! Hey guy, what’s the meaning of this?” “Don’t play with me. Mr. Domino needs those documents back,” said Agent 47. “What are you talking about? Mr. Domino?!? I don’t know who that is! I don’t know who you are!” “Yeah, right. You’re coming with me.” The burly man grabbed Jimmy and took him into a downtown office building. After entering the building, they both walked through a single door where a man was sitting down. The man had a fedora on and a sport jacket with beige slacks. His shirt was a white-collar shirt but wasn’t pressed and was a little wrinkled. “So, you thought you would get away. Well, now I have you. You are going to be in prison for a long time,” said Mr. Domino.

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“Look man, I don’t know what you’re talking about, but—” Jimmy was interrupted by a single raised finger from Mr. Domino. “If you give me the documents now, we can lower your sentence.” “For the last time, I don’t know what you’re talking about! My name is Jimmy Nickles, and I live in the forest. I don’t have any documents, and I’ve never seen you or your bodyguard here.” Mr. Domino looked skeptical but decided to throw Jimmy in a holding cell. Agent 47 took and imprisoned Jimmy in one of the small holding cells. After an hour, Mr. Domino checked in on Jimmy and said, “Ready to tell me where the documents are?” “Sir. I don’t know what you’re talking about. What are these documents?” “So, you really don’t know?” “No, I was in the forest, and I ran into another mutant with a bullet wound, and he took off deeper into the forest.” Mr. Domino then realized that Jimmy had no wound on his side. “Can you show me where he took off to?” “Yes, but you’ll have to let me out. “ Mr. Domino opened the door of the cell and let Jimmy free. The group then went back to the forest, and Jimmy began communicating with one of the plants that was located where he had met the wounded mutant. “I know where he is!” Jimmy said. The group traveled deeper in the forest and found an old cabin. As they opened the door to the cabin, there was a huge explosion that blew them backward. Then another mutant appeared. Jimmy got up and asked the mutant if he saw a mutant with a bullet wound go by. The mutant said, “Yes. Just behind the cabin.” “Quickly!” Mr. Domino ordered. “We have to catch him.”

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The group of three went to the back of the cabin and found a mutant with white bandages around his abdomen. “Don’t come any closer or your documents are bye-bye,” said Lucrey. The injured mutant then took out a gun and pointed it at the group. The heroes took a step back. Mr. Domino and Agent 47 looked worried, and Jimmy was apprehensive with fear. That fear caused Jimmy to begin creating an electrical current throughout his body. Lucray looked surprised and said, “Ummm, I don’t want the documents anymore. You can take me to jail.” Agent 47 grabbed the mutant and put him in handcuffs and locked him in a cage. Jimmy and Mr. Domino then headed back into the forest, where Jimmy stayed and had some lemonade and pizza.

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THIS BOOK WAS PRODUCED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

WITH MAJOR SUPPORT FROM

AND FUNDED IN PART BY

The Albert and Elaine Borchard Foundation

The Sacramento Office of Arts and Culture, with support from the City of Sacramento.