Inspiration often strikes in the quietest moments. Over Labor Day weekend, I sat on a bench overlooking the still waters of Lake Huron. The surface was so calm it looked like glass—reflective, serene, deceptive. It reminded me of a line from the movie Deep Blue Sea, where a character, standing above an oceanic research station, remarks:
“Beneath this glassy surface, a world of gliding monsters.”
The line refers to sharks lurking below, but the imagery reaches far beyond the literal. Glass reflects like a mirror, yet it can also distort—warping what we see, hiding truths, creating illusions.
What lies beneath a polished surface? What dangers—or wonders—glide just out of view?
This week, explore the tension between appearance and reality. Use the idea of a “glassy surface” or “gliding monsters” to inspire your work across genres:
- Fiction: A character peers through the “glass” of a perfect life—only to find something monstrous beneath. Or perhaps a respected figure’s reflection hides a darker truth.
- Nonfiction: Write about a time when appearances deceived you—or the world. When did calm waters mask dangerous currents?
- Poetry / Prose Poem: Explore the tension between reflection and distortion. What happens when you break through the surface?
- Research / Hybrid Work: Investigate the mysteries of the deep—new species, unseen ecosystems, or the science of perception itself.
- Visual / Experimental: Contrast clarity and illusion, surface and depth, beauty and menace.
What glides in the shadows, waiting to be seen?
Time to plumb the depths.
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