Hamsterdammed

Abstract

“Hamsterdammed” is a clever story about writing from the perspective of an enterprising but controlling hamster named Ernest. Ernest scripts the life of a human Lucine, and Lucine’s life follows the rather dull rhythms of Ernest’s scripts until, one day, Hamsterdam’s Script Submitter fails. Ernest and Lucine both have to learn what it is like to write and live more spontaneously. Peyton Donovan wrote this story for WRS 101. This wonderfully inventive piece has some important messages about the tension between invention and structure in writing.