Demon's Door by Graham Masterton

poems about getting their revenge on wife-beaters, but off the top of his head he couldn’t think of a better one, so he said, ‘Sure. Yes. I’ll let you know. The Brentwood Theater? That’s on Wilshire, isn’t it?’
    Sheila said, ‘Yes. Wilshire. I’ll wait to hear from you.’ She click-clacked back to her classroom in her pencil skirt and he stood in the middle of the corridor watching her. No VPL. Maybe she wasn’t wearing a garter-belt. Maybe she was wearing a black lace thong. Maybe she wasn’t even wearing that.
    That afternoon it started to thunder, and Jim gave Special Class Two a list to study.
    As he handed them out, he said, ‘This is a list of one hundred ideas by a writer called Michael McClure, who is a well-known writer of what they used to call the Beat Generation. Nineteen-sixties hippies, to you. A typical idea in this list is “The Stars Are A Gas.” Another one is “Man Is A Panda.” Yet another, “War Is One Color.” It’s safe to say that none of you will understand what in hell Michael McClure is talking about.’
    â€˜So why do we have to read it?’ T.D. demanded. ‘You tryin’ to prove that we all stupid or somethin’? We already know we all stupid. We’re not that stupid.’
    â€˜You won’t be able to understand any of Michael McClure’s ideas at face value, but then you’ll be gratified to know that nobody can.’
    â€˜Well, if nobody can understand him, why does anybody have to read what he write? Especially us. What are we, like goatscapes?’
    â€˜That’s scapegoats, T.D. But no you’re not. This list of ideas will show you that words can be so much more than just descriptions, or explanations, or instructions. OK, words can tell you that the sky is gray and it looks like a storm’s brewing up. Words can warn you that you’re driving the wrong way on the freeway off-ramp, or that a candy bar may contain nuts. But words can also stretch your brain to its very limits, right to the very edge of your sanity. Come on, you know that from rap.
    â€˜Words can give you brilliant insights, even if they don’t appear to have any literal meaning. Words can do unimaginable things.’
    â€˜Like say what , for instance?’ asked Arthur, leaning on his elbow to show how unimpressed he was.
    â€˜OK – let me give you a comparison, from basketball. Think about Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s skyhook shot. If you had tried to tell people about that skyhook shot before he actually did it, it would have sounded impossible. They would have said, “ Nah – nobody can climb straight up into thin air like they’re going up a ladder.” But Kareem did, using the same muscles that everybody else has, and it was amazing. It was a revelation. What I’m hoping is that some of you may find a similar kind of revelation in this list by Michael McClure. A skyhook, inside of your mind.’
    Lightning flickered behind the San Gabriel mountains, and after a few seconds they heard the crumpling of thunder.
    â€˜I don’t think God approves of this Michael McClure dude,’ said Billy. ‘I think He’s trying to tell us to go back to reading Hustler instead.’
    â€˜Just get on and study it, Billy,’ Jim told him. ‘Make notes if it’ll help you. Tomorrow I’m going to ask you to write ten original ideas of your own. Ten off-the-wall ideas, like these are. Not just “Eating Ten Krispy Kreme Donuts At One Sitting Will Temporarily Make You Hyperactive.”’
    While the class shuffled and muttered and coughed and scratched their heads over their assignment, Jim perched himself on the corner of his desk to read through the menus they had selected for their last meals on Death Row.
    Leon’s was the first. Lox, eggs and onions for starters, followed by a triple-decker sandwich of knockwurst, pastrami, Swiss cheese,