by Mayumi-H | Jan 9, 2013 | Short Stories
Week 72 for Julia’s 100-Word Challenge for Grown-Ups is a phrase prompt:
…you said you’d do WHAT?….
We have to incorporate the phrase above, but that means we get to use 105 words, rather than just 100.
My entry is actually a discarded holiday story, so I hope you won’t mind me going back in time a bit….
By Leaps and Bounds
“You said you’d do-”
“What?! I said, I’d help with rehearsal!”
“But, you know the routine. And we need a male dancer-”
“I’m not a dancer.”
“So, it’s not your preferred sport.”
“It’s not a sport at all! Sports are about athletes, and competition, not…glittered faeries jumpin’ about in tutus-”
“You wouldn’t wear a tutu-”
“I don’t care! I’m not doing it.”
“Fine. I’ll ask Joseph.”
“Wh-! Joe? He moves like a duck!”
“I admit, he’s not as good as you-”
“He can’t even land a proper sissonne-!”
“…Shall I take that as a yes?”
“Damn.”
“Don’t worry, love. You’ll make a brilliant Mouse King!”
James Streeter (ENB) as the Mouse King. Public publicity photo by Patrick Baldwin.
My sister and I used to have a tradition of writing holiday stories, which we’d then trade on Christmas morning to read. This was an inexpensive and fun treat (especially before we had jobs and thus money to spend), and it kept us busy so we weren’t clamoring around the tree at 5am. As growing girls tend to do, though, we fell out of this tradition long ago.
I still think about those holiday stories. With perhaps one exception, they weren’t very good (mine weren’t, anyway), but it was a special kind of joy to know someone was eagerly awaiting the words I’d written. I think that’s why I take part in these challenges: to give a little brightness to at least one person’s day.
WHAT did your characters do, this week?
by Mayumi-H | Jan 2, 2013 | Persona 4 Fan Fiction, Short Stories
I’m doubling-up on prompts again! (Why not start the year off right?)
Lillie McFerrin’s Five Sentence Fiction prompt is “ENDING” and week 71’s prompt for the 100-Word Challenge for Grown-Ups over at Julia’s Place is “…as midnight struck….”
As a side note, I rarely put forward for Julia’s challenges anything I personally would deem above and/or beyond the PG rating certificate (Lillie’s challenge comes with no caveat about rating, though I think we police ourselves well enough), but I’m rather liberal about mature subjects, myself. I leave you to be the judge if this is inappropriate.
“Between Them”
The first time they heard midnight strike together, there was just the job between them: script, soundtrack, timecode, a story due by deadline.
The second time it happened, though, they passed between them their own stories, of husbands, wives, and wanton regrets, kept secret until that moment.
By the third, between them there was nothing at all, save the taste of wine on fevered lips…and prospects of forever whispered in his dark hotel room.
So, on the fourth, while still wrapped around each other, he asked the question smoldering between them. And, in his bed, as midnight struck, she answered with a kiss.
I’ve stayed away from Robb and Emma for a while, but this double-edged sword of a mixed prompt plucked at my heartstrings a bit too much to ignore.
What ENDING did you create? What happened when midnight struck? Let me know!
by Mayumi-H | Dec 22, 2012 | Short Stories, Songbirds
It’s Week 69 for the 100-Word Challenge for Grown-Ups!
This week, Julia is being particularly timely, with the prompt of …Bah Humbug!….
I’ve been writing plenty of 100-word stories for the Nightingales, but this one struck a familiar chord in me, as it’s based on a true story. I hope you enjoy!
“Shattered Silence”
Despite the danger of discovery, Sally let herself whine. For so much sweeter than any cinder toffee was the taste of his shoulder, so much more warming than any port was his breath against her neck. Even all the wrapped, ribboned prizes tucked beneath the tree in the parlour – she’d trade them all for just a few more minutes clutched in his strong, stolen embrace…!
But Katie’s shriek – “It’s Christmas!” – followed by Billie’s less articulate echo after, shattered the moment like a delicate glass ornament.
Larry groaned. “First thing tomorrow,” he muttered, “I’m arranging for a vasectomy.”
Happy, safe, restful holidays to you all!
by Mayumi-H | Dec 1, 2012 | Persona 4 Fan Fiction, Short Stories, Songbirds
It’s Week 68 for Julia’s 100-Word Challenge for Grown-Ups! This week, Julia gives us the prompt of:
GREY
We’ve got 100 words to use to interpret the prompt, so, here’s mine:
“Fade to Grey”
“I made this,” Billie declared, as she sorted through ornaments. “And this-”
“I made that,” Katie corrected, snatching at the yarn doll.
Chuckling, Sally turned, to catch Larry’s reaction. He wasn’t watching the girls, though, but staring at his reflection in a tiny glass ball.
“What’s wrong?” she asked softly.
He ran his fingers through his fringe, frowning. “I’m going grey.”
Sally hummed. Growing old didn’t appeal to her, either. Although, the idea of growing old with him charmed. So, pulling at one pale strand with a grin, she teased, “I made this.”
Larry blinked, then laughed. “You certainly did!”
Let’s admit it: no one really wants to get older, see those lines and fading colors in the mirror. But, when you find someone worth the time and effort, it makes the changes seem not quite so terrible as they might otherwise be.
George Clooney and Helen Mirren: proof you can go grey and still be awesome.
This story is one rather close to my heart, as today marks the fifteen-year anniversary of when my husband and I met. (Fifteen years! Oftentimes, it feels more like fifteen minutes. …underwater. No, no; just kidding!)
Personally, I see more grey in the mirror every day. But, like my Songbirds above, I’ve managed to find someone with whom the prospect of growing older doesn’t seem so scary.
What does “GREY” mean to you?
by Mayumi-H | Nov 17, 2012 | Fearless, Process, Short Stories
Though currently embroiled in my NaNoWriMo tale of soldiers and stowaways, I was abruptly struck by Julia’s prompt for this week’s 100-Word Challenge for Grown-Ups:
…the silence was deafening…
WordPress and Twitter friends itsjennythewren and sjbwriting said I should feel free to indulge my pestering inner muse on this one, though, so I’ve done. (Make sure to check out their blogs, too!)
If you don’t like my story, that’s fine. Sometimes, we just have to write for ourselves.
“It should have stayed that way”
The blaring horns, the cawing gulls, even the roar of rolling waves…none of them matched the sounds of Ross’s heartbreak: hitching breaths exploding like dynamite, staccato bursts of emotion spit wet and raw between his teeth.
Yet, still, he was beautiful.
And that beauty pulled, like an undertow, until his sobs became a muffled gasp of surprise from around the briny clasp of his lips.
A heartbeat later, he pulled away, his eyes clear and full. Not of love, though. And even the practised platitudes couldn’t make vanish that look of betrayal.
Wordlessly, he rose, and left. And for Neville, the silence was deafening.
I feel a bit bad that my WordPress readers only get to see this tortured side of poor Neville, when he’s really one of my more well-balanced characters. Love grows in different ways for each of us, though, and this love between him and Ross is integral to the depth of their friendship.
“Good old Nev.”
Others might say I’m pandering with my portrayal of Neville, because his sexual orientation gives no conflict to the main plot. But I always felt that, even if there’s no sexual affair between them, his love for Ross made him more honest than virtually any other character in the story. The story (and Ross) needs that. I don’t think I could make Neville straight and have him be the same character or give his perspective equal weight than it has with him being gay…and still a little bit in love with Ross.
How did you answer this week’s prompt? And/Or: What are your feelings about a character’s identity affecting (or not affecting) the plot of a story?
by Mayumi-H | Oct 22, 2012 | Fearless, Short Stories
I’m returning to Julia’s 100-Word Challenge for Grown-Ups this week, where the prompt is:
“…it can’t be that time…”
For those of you unfamiliar with this challenge, we’re to write a 100-word story using Julia’s prompt (in this particular case, we’re allowed to go to 105 words, since we have to incorporate the specific prompt phrase). Here’s mine:
“Let Go”
Tears came, despite her willing, and a rough scratching stifled the words from her throat:
“It can’t be that time,” she told him, as her hand hovered above the faint stubble of his cheek. How round it used to be, how full, when tickled laughter had been his only language. No longer, though: his face had grown so long, so narrow, like the rest of him, the very reflection of his father long past.
Now, she had to let him go, too.
She sniffed. “I’m not ready to say goodbye!”
A quiet sigh escaped him. Then, he chuckled. “Mum, I’m going to miss the bus…!”
I recently read a post over at Itsjennythewren’s blog about researching publishers. One point Jenny mentioned was that each character should “feel like they are the main focus in the book.” I have quite a few characters to deal with, so I don’t know how successful I’ve done at that bit. But, I do like thinking about each character’s life, no matter how little page time that character might get. Hopefully, this little vignette – about Maggie, Ross’s mum – manages her perspective successfully.
What did time take away from your characters, this week?
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