Dudes, this is honker.

I've just been invited to submit to a short story anthology - this is invitation only, since it's eleven stories total - the theme of which is, get this, the Four Clowns of the Apocalypse.

I think I want to. I should probably get away from this enchanting loony picture in my head, which features three clowns a la Krusty, called something like Crankypants, Bloomers and Eyepatch, all riding tricycles, and the fourth one, Doug, on a giant unicycle with the Flaming Pie of Justice, or the Big Red Bicycle Horn of Righteousness.

Any suggestions would be welcomed. And no, I'm not kidding.

That is so awesome.

You could write about the Four Clowns, and how the fourth clown, Doug, wants to get out of the game, but they pull him back for one last apocalypse.

HA! P-C, I love that. And knowing my tendency to want to explore the eternal verities, I'd likely wind up having him sulking over why the universe won't let him just go squirt seltzer at unsuspecting insurance agents.

Doug, the Sulkiest Clown of the Apocalypse. He rides the White Unicycle.

So what's Doug doing in the meantime?

What he really wants to do is direct.

Doug anagrams to Godu, the Clown God. Doug has Higher aspirations.

Oh Deb! Stay with the Krustyesque Clowns of the Apocalypse. Go loony. And Polter-Cow's Doug is too cool.

Dana, that's a good question. What do the Four Whatevers do when the apocalypse has been put in turnaround?

Hmmmm. His name is Sulky, yet he wishes to be Doug.

He rides the White Unicycle

Oh! Deb, have you ever seen Pinkman? He used to ride around Berkeley on a unicycle in a pink lycra bodysuit and a white cape. Marvelous guy.

The clowns are stuck with the apocalypse gig, even though they really want to do Vegas. They think they can compete with Cirque du Soleil and Penn and Teller. The problem is, they occasionally smite members of the audience by accident, so there's war breaking out in the third row and people are running out of the theatre covered in boils.

Hee hee hee. And the audience is always starving.

Congratulations on the invite, by the way! Have you written about clowns before? Any idea why they sought you out for this anthology?