What is This Idea Anyway?

Is it a short story or is it a novel?

I was doing a little ‘pretend’ jog around the neighbourhood on my day off and I was struck by this idea (of a man having a heart attack while jogging–as you may have guessed, I am not that great of a jogger). I saw the opening of my story. It rolled out in front of me like a red carpet. Voice. Character. Every detail of the opening was visible to me. It was as though I was standing above this guy while he fought off the light. A novel lay stretched out before me.

Or was it a screenplay? I think it was a screenplay. With a middle-aged man like Kurt Russell from 15 years ago as the lead. Or that guy from The Big Labowski. He’s looking back on his life and his errors. Reliving it, really. Realizing he’s been a jerk. But the story is fresh. It doesn’t feel like it’s been done a dozen and a half times before–which it has.

I wrote out the beginning yesterday. It’s about 250 words. Maybe 500.

Last night as I tried to fall asleep, I thought about it some more.

I think it might be a poem.