Welcome to the one hundred and fiftieth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a monologue prompt of ‘fortune’, so here is my 294-worder.
He’ll know what to do
They all warn me it’s my fortune he’s after but I won’t listen. He loves me, really he does. Besides, it’s mine to do with as I wish and with him being older than me… almost twice my age… he’ll know what to do with it.
He was my dad’s Bank Manager so he’s going to be good with money, isn’t he? Says he has some investments in mind but they’ll tie up my money for a few years, but that’s fine. What do I need it for? The house is all paid for, I have everything I need already. It’s not how I want it yet, it was mum’s taste, not mine, but Teddy likes it, so… Teddy’s my fiancé by the way, Edward Thomas. Doesn’t like me calling him Teddy so I don’t when he can hear me but it’s better than Edward or Eddie. Eddie’s common, like a binman and Edward is too stiff, but then he is a banker, takes things too seriously sometimes, has a sort of worried look but it’ll be alright once we get married.
Everything will be ok once the kids come along. Teddy says he doesn’t want any but I know he’ll change his mind. Besides the house is too big for just the two of us, and what am I going to do all day? But then I’m not going to look after them, we’ll get a nanny to do that, an old one like Mary Poppins or better still that Nanny McFee. Don’t want Eddie getting to like her too much.
He should be home shortly, says he’s going to take me out to dinner, got something important to tell me. I can’t wait! I hope it’s French, haven’t had snails in ages.
***
5pm Fiction now takes a break until the New Year because I’m starting my fifth NaNoWriMo tomorrow and then (or hopefully during) will be getting some other eBooks online in December. 
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, NaNoWriMo, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-ninth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story to include the following keywords: school, risk, cinema, late, old – so here is my 226-worder.
Easy to compare
Ella felt such a fool, standing outside the cinema in the pouring rain, waiting for a guy she’d never met, never even spoken to.
Her best friend Simon had nagged her to find someone and when Ella had made no sign of doing so Simon set her up on a date. An old school chum, he’d said. Wouldn’t say anymore.
Ella had gone to the same school and could only think of one guy she’d fancied – her best friend, and of course she couldn’t say anything to him.
She’d met a few guys and it was easy to compare them all but they would never be Simon. But he’d never even looked twice and they were so close yet not in the way she wanted, that she daren’t risk ruining that bond. She’d tried to forget him, her job took her away quite often but he’d always be at the back of her mind, on the end of a phone, a knock at the door.
She looked at her watch, 8.10. The film started in 5 minutes. Yes, he had to be a friend of Simon’s, because he was always late.
“Hello.”
Ella looked up, at the face of her blind date. Her heart leapt as he smiled and said, “Sorry I’m late, shall we go?”
Ella nodded without speaking and took the hand he offered, walking side-by-side by her oldest friend.
***
The 5pm Fiction slot will be taking a break (after no.150) for November and December as I’ll be embarking on my fifth NaNoWriMo. Do join me if you’re taking part too. Then I’ll have December off to upload other stuff and perhaps start editing that novel. No.151 will be back in 1st January (or thereabouts).
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, NaNoWriMo, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-eighth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story with the following sentence start: ‘The bells chimed as…’, so here is my 294-worder.
Warped out of recognition
The bells chimed as Steve and Amy wandered round the old square. It was lunchtime and the smells of Crepes Suzette and pommes frites were enticing them from different directions.
Amy spotted a free table at a corner café and yanked Steve’s arm. “Steve! Quick!”
“I’ll catch up,” he said, pulling away. “I want to have a look at something,” and he headed for a nearby newsagents.
“Oh, Steve, I’m hungry. Don’t be long.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t. Order me anything.”
Steve’s concentration fell on a tall, narrow stand of postcards with a variety of Parisian views. One card however had leapt out. No cathedrals, museums or parks, but a solitary figure almost warped out of recognition.
“Dad,” Steve whimpered, grabbing the card before spinning the carousel for an indication of the price.
He paid the one euro and held the card to his chest as he walked to the café.
“I’ve ordered you a cheese baguette and black coffee… Steve?” Amy looked at her husband’s face, then down at his hands. “I didn’t think you did postcards.”
“I don’t… usually. I had to this time.”
“Let’s have a look.”
Steve handed her the card.
“Who’s this for?” Amy asked, looking at the card.
“Nathan.”
“Why?” She looked up. “Oh, Steve, can’t you let it go? It’s been years.”
“No. Have you got a pen?”
Amy fished around in her bag then handed him a blue thin felt tip. “Will this do?”
“Fine. Won’t be writing much.”
Steve sat down awkwardly on to the silver metal chair and stared at the picture. The card wobbled on the uneven table.
Amy searched her bag again and gave him a book to lean on.
Steve wrote the address then a simple message: ‘I’ll never forgive you.’
***
The 5pm Fiction slot will be taking a break (after no.150) for November and December as I’ll be embarking on my fifth NaNoWriMo. Do join me if you’re taking part too. Then I’ll have December off to upload other stuff and perhaps start editing that novel. No.151 will be back in 1st January (or thereabouts).
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, NaNoWriMo, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-seventh in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story with a mixed bag: village hall, clown, 1970s, war, shy, so here is my 354-worder.
Scream like a girl
John Talbot was not usually shy. His job made him outgoing but as soon as he walked into the 1970s village hall, his heart raced. She’d not seen him, he was sure of that, and when she did, he knew she wouldn’t recognise him, not without his costume… without the mad multi-coloured wig, the red nose and ‘war paint’ as his mother Mildred used to call it; the white, black and red that was supposed to look humorous, make the children laugh.
For all the years he’d been an entertainer, nearly thirty, he’d always had mixed reactions. The majority loved him, but there had been one or two at every venue that had gone crying to their mothers. Mothers who’d whisked them away to play with balloons or eat yet more cake and ice cream, but not before they’d glared in John’s direction as if it was his fault he was there, not the parent who’d booked him for their spoilt brat’s birthday.
He went to the bar and ordered a whisky. He’d had a few of those in his time but tonight he’d just have the one… seeing as he was driving.
He stared in her direction, not at her, not obvious. John was an expert at how to look in a crowded room, only he usually had make-up to hide behind.
It was the black kid’s birthday he remembered her from. The sister of one of the mother’s, there to help make up the grown-up numbers, although compared with John she’d hardly have been called a grown up. John figured she’d have been late teens, early twenties, less than half his age, and tall. He liked tall. Anyone approaching six feet was a bonus. And that smile, he remembered that smile.
Someone behind him coughed but John ignored it and took a swig of his whisky, then shuddered as it ran down his throat. The person behind him coughed again and said John’s name.
John spun round, expecting to see someone he knew but instead saw his clown costume staring back at him.
He dropped his glass and screamed like a girl.
***
The 5pm Fiction slot will be taking a break (after no.150) for November and December as I’ll be embarking on my fifth NaNoWriMo. Do join me if you’re taking part too. Then I’ll have December off to upload other stuff and perhaps start editing that novel. No.151 will be back in 1st January (or thereabouts).
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, NaNoWriMo, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-sixth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story with a one-word prompt ‘worry’ and past, present and future tense! So here is my 167-worder.
Do his best
Norman worries that he’s not clever enough to pass the test, that his mind will go blank when he turns over the exam paper, wade through the layers of sheets until he’s finished or the buzzer goes.
Jean will tell him repeatedly until it’s time to go, that he’ll be fine, but until he gets the call or the letter comes he won’t relax. He’ll pace the hall waiting for the phone or the postman, he doesn’t yet know which it’ll be.
The car will wait in the driveway until he knows. If he fails he’ll try again but at 72 he doesn’t want to wait. He wishes he’d taken his test years ago, before the written exam but he’s read all the books, watched Jean do all the manoeuvres, then paid more attention when her eyesight started to fail, before the trouble with her toes, he’d notice her wince when she accelerated. So he’ll smile at the examiner, turn over the page and do his best.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com.
The 5pm Fiction slot will be taking a break (after no.150) for November and December as I’ll be embarking on my fifth NaNoWriMo. Do join me if you’re taking part too. Then I’ll have December off to upload other stuff and perhaps start editing that novel. No.151 will be back in 1st January (or thereabouts).
You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, future tense, literature, NaNoWriMo, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-fifth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a second-person viewpoint story containing a doctor, horse rider, toothbrush, balloon and shy – so here is my 251-worder.
Not the wisest of actions
You had no way of knowing that the toothbrush was going to find you a husband. You used it to clean your dog’s teeth but when the doctor asked how it got stuck in your ear, you had no real explanation. You’d had an itch.
It was Doug’s eyes that you noticed first; deep brown, almost black, with long, dark eyelashes and a smile… such a contrast, teeth like a photograph model’s. You would have liked him to be taller but an inch was better than same height. Your high heels could languish at the back of the wardrobe in favour of kitten, they were in fashion anyway.
By the end of the appointment you’d arranged a date – him too shy to ask, so you had… after checking his office for family photos and his hand for a wedding ring.
A year after you were married, you’d started feeling sick, put it down to a summer cold but he recognised the symptoms and brought home a test kit. You swelled like a balloon and missed your horse, but Doug had been cautious, insisted that you take a break, so you’d agreed, on the condition that he took lessons.
And as you watched him trot round the field on Bracken, you’d fallen in love with him all over again, seen the look he’d given you that first meeting, and knew that whilst sticking a toothbrush in your ear may not have been the wisest of actions, you’d do it all over again.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-fourth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a dialogue about a burglary… in 100 words.
Rumbled
“Frankie!”
“What?”
“There’s someone downstairs.”
“Mmm?”
“Frankie, downstairs! I heard something.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course I’m sure. I heard a loud noise, like a window breaking.”
“OK, stay there. I’ll go and have a look.”
“Shall I call the police?”
“Wait until we know for sure.”
“But what if…”
“It’s probably nothing.”
***
“Anyone…? Hello? Who’s there?”
“Hello Frankie. Sorry, did I startle you.”
“Gran? What you are doing down here?”
“I was thirsty.”
“Then why are you…? What’s that noise? Is there someone else here?”
“Er, it’s…”
“Gran, spill.”
“OK. Ernest. You can come out now. We’ve been rumbled.”
###
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-third in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a monologue with the following keywords (taken from http://creativecopychallenge.com, their #142): odd, receive, drum, announced, rub, plant, issue, adhere, computerize (or in my case computerise, I’m English), and dig. Here is my 533-worder.
Doing a job I love
It had felt a little odd. Being given something like this for doing a job I love. And you couldn’t really call it that. Playing in a band a job? To receive an award for playing the drums was an added bonus. I’d been given a single drum, just a cheap thing, when I was very young, my mum says two but I think I was younger than that because I don’t remember getting it, just it being there.
When my name was announced I hadn’t been expecting it so it took Bondie digging me in the ribs for me to realise that they’d said my name. He’s stronger than he thinks. I was rubbing my ribs for weeks after that.
I think he’d been on something; weed, blow, or some such. He was always more rock ‘n’ roll than me. It hadn’t been an issue until that night, when he’d insisted on joining me on the stage. He could play the drums and had never received an award so I thought, “what’s the harm?”
If only he’d adhered to the rules; walk up the aisle, to the podium, say ‘thank you’ to the celebrity who hands you the statue (in our case it was the teen pop sensation Jimmy Penn) but his brain just couldn’t computerise that. I don’t think it computes anything these days.
He had to go up there didn’t he and dig, dig, dig. OK, so we’re not a fan of the weak pop music that climbs the charts faster than we ever did in our heyday but he’s still sore that Jimmy beat us to the top of the album chart when we released our Greatest Hits. A term I use loosely as the record company in their limited wisdom to make it a double CD when we’d only had half a dozen ‘hits’ (top 40) so the rest were more fillers than a tub of sandwich spread. That’s one thing I hadn’t noticed; that he’d not been eating, Bondie, just drinking, picking at his food, fork never reaching his mouth, although it’s big enough.
So there I was, mouth open to say a few unrehearsed words and ended up goldfish-like while Bondie spouted.
Bondie’s real name’s James… Bond, but he hates that. His mum was a real fan and we all reckon that she married a Bond just so she could have a son with the right name. Had the boy straight away, stroke of luck really, then the two of them left when he was still young. Probably why he is the way he is.
Anyway. He’d said his bit and I thought we were going to leave… he’d said plenty for both of us, what was I going to do, apologise? Pretend it didn’t happen? But then Jimmy called him by his real name, don’t know how he knew, Wikipedia I suppose, and well, Bondie flipped and went for the jugular, Jimmy’s jugular. Did enough so the damage was done. Only temporary, thankfully, but he had to cancel his tour. Bondie received so many “thank you” letters after we could have wallpapered our bus… the one we toured on not long after the awards ceremony.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-second in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story including the keywords: trudge, grass, thirty, clock and mark. So here is my 170-worder.
Stupid is
Billy trudged down the stairs.
“What’s the matter with you?” Emily asked.
“If only I could turn the clock back.”
“Why, what’s happened?”
“Sgt Chambers, that’s what’s happened.”
“Oh, Billy. You’ve not been smoking grass in your car again, have you?”
“No! Gave that up months ago, you know that.”
Emily gave him that ‘look’.
“OK, weeks.”
“So what happened?”
“Said I was speeding.”
“Oh, Billy.”
“I wasn’t.”
“Really?”
“OK. Thirty-eight in a thirty but everyone else does it… was doing it.”
“Just because everyone else-”
“I know.”
“I suppose if he was in an unmarked… Billy? Don’t you ever look in your mirror?”
“Yeah. Mirror, signal, brake.”
“So you only look when you’re turning?”
“Don’t need it just driving. It’s stupid.”
“Stupid is doing thirty-eight in a thirty with a police car following you.”
“I know that now.”
“You knew that the first two times. One more and-”
“I know. My licence.”
“And probably have to take your test again. You’ll be seventy next year.”
“OK, mum. I’ll behave.”
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and forty-first in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story starting ‘Tempted as he was…’, so here is my 385-worder.
As if a new-born
Tempted as he was, Franz was no thief. He knew no-one would see, he was the only one there, but he’d never stolen anything and at 72, he wasn’t going to start.
The diamond glistened, taunted. It would have made a lovely necklace for Doris but she was no longer around to wear it.
He knew with the door already open there’d be no alarm. He could just hold it, he’d gloves on so there’d be no fingerprints, hold it for a minute or two, look for imperfections he knew wouldn’t exist.
He opened the door further, watched for any sign of life, electronic or otherwise, but no lights flashed, no alarm or shouting. He reached inside, leather glove touching gem, and picked it up, out of its red velvet caress and held it as if a new-born, just for a few seconds, then placed it back.
Hovering his hand to one side of the stone, he rested the tip of his index finger into the fleshy mound of his thumb and flicked the diamond off its perch as if it were a Subbuteo figure, and watched it drop on to the velvet floor of the bullet-proof glass case. Again he waited for a reaction, someone to witness his mischievousness, but there never was.
He picked the locations carefully, entered at the weakest point, entering but never breaking. Meticulous research, years of experience, at least a dozen visits beforehand, mill amongst the hundreds of patrons. To the guards, the staff, he was just a little old man walking stiffly with a smart black cane. No-one would notice him pressing down on the handle, taking photographs of his possible routes, items of interest.
He’d come to the Van Lief Museum for a Winkel painting, turn it round, just for fun, prove to yet another ‘great institution’ that their security was a joke, but then he’d seen the open door to the diamond and that had been an added bonus. Would it be enough? He wasn’t sure, so on his way out went to the Winkel and didn’t turn it round, but tilted it slightly so the river painted on it would ripple, the people on the boat feel the shift, and as he closed the window behind him, he smiled and went out into the night.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and fortieth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story with a mixed bag: bakery, MP, diary, shop, key, hot – so here is my 378-worder.
It’s ’ot in ’ere
The latch clicked on the shop door. Thomas Farrinor put the key in his pocket, patted it and headed home. Though this Sunday had not been a day of rest for Thomas, it had been successful, and he was now just looking forward to peeking at his sleeping children before he and Annie went to bed.
As he walked home, the shop’s next door neighbours started to feel a little uncomfortable.
“Bleedin’ ’ell, it’s ’ot in ’ere! Fanny, open the window!”
“Can’t, Joseph, it’s stuck.”
“You stupid wench, let me ’ave a go. Oh my God!”
“What?”
“There’s a bleedin’ fire outside!”
“Where?”
“Every bloody where!”
At a comfortable home near Westminster, Fire Chief Charles Lombard was hammering on the Lord Mayor’s front door. A sleepy man in an expensive-looking dressing gown appeared at the threshold.
“Sir Thomas, have you heard?” he said frantically.
“Yes, Charles,” he yawned. “A travesty.”
“Sir Thomas, we need action!”
“Er, yes, right. What needs doing Lombard?”
“Everything, Sir. It’s going to take the whole city unless we do something.”
“Er…” He paused, rubbing his chin.
“Sir!” Lombard continued, his voice increasing in urgency, “we need to create firebreaks. Demolish the houses, sir.”
“Isn’t that a bit drastic?”
“We have no choice, sir. People are dying!”
“Oh, yes, well…”
“The Duke of York has offered the Royal Life Guards.”
“Tell him we are grateful, but no.”
“But, sir…”
“You have men, do you not?”
“Well, yes sir, but…”
“Then that’s the end of the matter. Your men will contain it and you shall be praised for their actions.”
“But sir…!”
“Good night Lombard.”
“But…”
“Good night!”
Four days, 13,500 houses, 87 parish churches, 44 Company Halls, the Royal Exchange, the Custom House, St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Bridewell Palace, the General Letter Office and three western city gates later, English naval administrator and MP Samuel Pepys was at his desk in Axe Yard, the area later known as Downing Street, scribbling away in his diary.
Meanwhile over in EC3, Thomas and Annie Farrinor, accompanied by their three boys, shuffled through the cinders of the King’s Bakery, Pudding Lane. Thomas hugged his family close to him and wondered, once his bakery was rebuilt, what he’d need to do to get King Charles II’s endorsement again.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything. You can contact me and find me on the internet, view my Books and I also have a blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-ninth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story from a single-word prompt: scarf, so here is my 330-worder.
A different kind of speechless
As Tom tied the scarf round his wife’s neck, he wondered if he could ever tighten his grip, pull hard, squeeze the life out of her, but instead tied it tightly enough to last the evening, easy to loosen when they got home.
He smiled weakly as she turned round, and she went to speak but no words came out.
“We’d better go,” Tom said, then followed her out through the open front door.
As Tom drove to the theatre he wanted to tell her about his day, share his mundane, but pretended to concentrate on the road instead, glancing at her occasionally only to see her steadfast gaze through the front windscreen.
He wanted his wife back, the woman whose shopping basket had overbalanced as he’d walked past, the woman who’d blushed as he’d helped her, while staring at her long black hair… a different kind of speechless.
Pulling into the kerb outside the theatre he switched off the engine and put the blue card on to the dashboard, setting the timer and pushing it in place, into the fold of plastic joining the windscreen.
As Tom and Arabella entered the foyer, they waited as a man in front of them collected his ticket. Expecting the man to walk into the theatre, Tom pushed the wheelchair forward as the man moved but then halted as he turned round. It was then that Tom recognised him, his hair a little greyer, but there was no mistaking the dark eyes. The eyes full of sorrow as they’d faced each other in court when Tom had listened to Jack Creaton recount how he’d hit the Italian woman crossing the road as she went to collect the cake she’d ordered for her tenth wedding anniversary.
Jack’s shoulders slumped as he looked at Tom, but said nothing. Tom was debating whether to speak when the woman in the ticket office called ‘next’. Jack looked at Arabella, bowed his head, coughed and left the theatre.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-eighth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a second person viewpoint story with the following keywords (taken from http://creativecopychallenge.com, their #141): sheet, energy, beat, stupid, doughy, speck, void, vein, conscious, jovial. Here is my 378-worder.
Feeling stupid
“You’re as white as a sheet,” Mark says.
You do feel a little pale, devoid of energy. “I do feel a little… well, beat,” you reply.
“Beaten.”
“Oh yes,” you reply, feeling stupid.
“Your skin’s all…” he continues. “How do I put this nicely? Doughy.”
He’s made his point, you think, and wonder whether he’s hinting at you to go home. But he’s the boss, he could just say so. Tell you to your white doughy face.
“There’s something on your top,” you say, hoping to feel better by pointing out one of his flaws. You feel this to be the most innocent of a very long list.
He looks down at the speck and blushes. A dark contrast to your pale hue. “I’m trying a new shampoo,” he says and you realise now what the white speck is.
“Well, your hair looks very healthy for it,” you lie and want the ground to open and for your size 8s to take you down into the void.
You see a vein pop out on his neck and realise that it wasn’t blushing that was making his face go red. “Are you alright?” you ask but before he can reply he slumps to the floor.
Scraping your chair back, you crouch down beside him and put a hand above his mouth, palm down, to check for breathing. You’re relieved when your palm feels warm.
Having established that he’s conscious, you get up (even in his condition you don’t feel well enough to leap) and phone for an ambulance. Your office is near the hospital so it doesn’t take long.
By the time it arrives he’s sitting up and talking but he’s got a nasty rash on his neck.
“Hello!” the blonde paramedic beams, a little too jovial for your liking but apart from the rash, Mark doesn’t look particularly ill. “What seems to be the matter?”
If I knew that, you start to think, but then tell yourself off for being so mean.
“Oh dear,” the paramedic continues, “nasty rash you have there.”
Mark smiles at her, looking somewhat embarrassed.
“New shampoo?” she asks.
He nods.
You watch in silence as the couple gaze into each other’s eyes. If you didn’t feel queasy before then, you certainly do now.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-seventh in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a dialogue from the prompt of ‘thistle’, so here is my 222-worder.
Thistle
“Thistle.”
“Sorry, madam?”
“Yes, young man. I’m after a thistle, the bigger the better.”
“I’m sorry we don’t-”
“Then I want something with thorns. Roses.”
“Certainly madam, we have a wide range of-”
“No, she’s Scottish. She’d get the joke more with thistles.”
“How about-”
“No. It’s got to be thistle… oh alright, anything else Scottish?”
“I’m sorry, madam. I’m not really up on my Scottish varieties but I could get you Tommy. He’s from Scotland, he might know.”
“No, it’s fine. I’ll just have a wander and see what you’ve got.”
***
“Excuse me, young man.”
“Hello again, madam. Did you find something to your liking?”
“No. Your haberdashery department is rubbish.”
“Haber…? I’m sorry. I thought you were looking for a plant.”
“I am. Thistle. You have roses, like you said, and heather, but they’re only sew on. I don’t have time for sewing. The dance is tonight.”
“Dance?”
“Line dancing. Every other Thursday night, and it was lovely before Aileen joined, and now she’s hogging all the men. It’s not fair.”
“I don’t quite understand why you want-”
“The blouse she was wearing, had lovely tulips on it.”
“Then I have just the thing for you, madam.”
“You have?”
“Right by the tills. Never sure why it’s there but there it is. A cactus transfer. £1.99. Iron on. Job done.”
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-sixth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a dialogue starting ‘Lifting up a flap’. Here is my 332-worder.
Thud on the floor
“Lifting up the flap, I knew there was no way I was going to get the newspaper through.”
“So what did you do?”
“I took the middle section out.”
“Of the letterbox?”
“What? No, don’t be silly. The newspaper. Wednesday’s property day. Most people throw that bit away anyway. I was tempted but they pay for the whole thing, don’t they, although it would make my life easier. Monday’s my favourite, thinnest of the week. Not much sport on in the winter, so nothing to report.”
“So you took the paper apart and posted both bits through.”
“I tried but made the mistake of putting the property bit through first and it got stuck. Stupid letter boxes on these new houses, they’re so hard they rip the paper to shreds, so I have to be extra careful. It takes ages round the new estate but Mr Jeffreys swapped my route with Billy-”
“So you’d put the property section through. What happened then?”
“I tried to, like I said, but it got stuck. Wasn’t sure whether to push or pull.”
“And…”
“I pushed. Didn’t want it back, did I? Went through eventually and didn’t half make a thud on the floor. Most people have mats so you don’t notice but I noticed that thud.”
“And you looked through the letterbox.”
“Yeah. Don’t know why now but something caught my eye, I suppose.”
“Describe what you saw.”
“A body.”
“Mrs Thompson.”
“Yeah, only I didn’t know that’s who she was. I only have numbers on them, not names.”
“And where was she lying?”
“There.”
“By the foot of the stairs.”
“Away a bit, sort of between the stairs and the radiator. All twisted like, like she’d fallen down the stairs but…”
“Go on.”
“But it didn’t look natural. Too much blood. You break things, bones, when you fall down the stairs, you don’t bleed.”
“You know a lot about-”
“CSI. I watch them all, but don’t tell mum will you or she’ll go mental.”
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-fifth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story with the following keywords (taken from http://creativecopychallenge.com, their #140): in, out, far, near, use, abuse, thrust, launch, smile, die. Here is my 200-worder.
A figure to die for
“In or out?”
“Eh?”
“Are you coming in or going out?”
“Neither.”
“Then why are you standing there?”
“’cause I’m waiting for someone. Not that it’s any of your business.”
“I was only trying to be friendly. Holding the door open.”
“You needn’t have bothered.”
“I can see that now.”
“And…?”
I was just in the mood today for an argument, and it didn’t really matter how far I went or how near to my face his was, I wasn’t going to be wrong. I didn’t want to use any violence, and I didn’t think it would come to that, but I wasn’t going to take any abuse from a thug like him. Shaved head or otherwise.
He thrust his hands into his pockets. They didn’t look deep enough to hold anything dangerous.
I was on my way to a friend’s book launch so didn’t really have much time to spare but didn’t want to leave. But he was ignoring me and looking in the opposite direction. I followed his gaze and my heart nearly stopped when I saw who he was waiting for; a girl slightly older than him with an award-winning smile and a figure to die for.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-fourth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story starting ‘Fred pulled at the zip…’, so here is my 157-worder.
Valentine’s Day
Fred pulled at the zip but it was stuck fast. “Damn thing!”
“Do you need any help in there, sir?” the female shop assistant asked.
“Er, no, I’m fine, thank you.” Fred replied feebly.
“Well, if you need me, please shout.”
Shouting was the last thing he felt like doing. He looked in the mirror and his heart sank. How had he come to be in this position? He knew how much this outfit meant. If only he couldn’t get out of the damn thing.
He tried again at the zip but the end flew off and hit the mirror.
“No!” he wailed as he realised he’d have to spend the rest of the day in this red and black basque.
He pulled off the tag so the assistant could scan it at the till, then as he put his business suit back on over it, he vowed never to shop for underwear for his wife again.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-third in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story with a mixed bag: pineapple, pterodactyl, spoilt children, blue lips, jealousy. Here is my 215-worder.
Such a pterodactyl
“Dad! Maisy won’t share!”
“Eddie, you’ve got your own.” Simon pointed out.
“I’ve finished it.”
“So you have. That’s not Maisy’s fault.”
“But hers is pineapple.”
“Then you should have ordered the same.”
“But I didn’t want to.”
“And?”
Neither of the children replied.
“Yours looked nice Eddie. Cranberry Crush, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, but…”
“Oh Dad,” Maisy piped up. “You’re such a pterodactyl.”
“What?” Simon asked, face screwed up.
“It’s a dinosaur,” Eddie explained.
“I know,” Simon replied. “But I don’t…”
“Never mind, Dad,” Eddie continued looking longingly in the direction of his sister’s dessert.
“OK,” Eddie said when Maisy had finished. “Are we done now?”
With her lips blue from the pineapple and damson ice cream, Simon smiled at his daughter.
“Something else?”
Maisy shook her head.
“Really? You two usually work backwards; dessert, main, starters. Not hungry?”
Maisy shrugged her shoulders.
Eddie grabbed a menu.
“And you Eddie?”
Eddie nodded enthusiastically but stared at his sister’s blue lips. “Anything blue.”
Simon laughed, but before anyone said anything else, the fire alarm went off.
“Shouldn’t we evacuate?” Eddie said, proud of his knowledge of the word.
“I’m sure it’s only a drill or someone’s burning the toast. Can you smell smoke?”
The children shook their heads.
“Well, then. Go on, have whatever you fancy.”
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-second in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story from a prompt of ‘father-figure’, so here is my 429-worder.
Knew better
Emily knew better. She’d been told over and over. Only she thought she knew better. That it didn’t matter. She’d been out to the ice-cream van a hundred times, probably more, but always hands clasped tightly to grandfather, grandmother, or mother. Never alone… ’til now.
***
It was a classic scenario. Hot summer’s day, ice-cream van, little girls in school uniforms. A dream scenario to Frank. He’d promised the judge he’d behave, told the parole board enough times so they believed him, but he knew better. They thought he knew better.
And there was this one little girl. She looked like a Lucy. He liked the name Lucy. Used to have a cat called Lucy, until his father took it away. Told him it had been run over but Frank knew. His father looked guilty, just for a second, just long enough for Frank to know. He knew everything that his father did. And vowed never to be like him. But he couldn’t escape. Just like the little girl who’d gone to his car to see the puppy, holding the ice-cream that had already started melting. Only there was no puppy. He couldn’t have pets after Lucy. Couldn’t bear to let them go. He wouldn’t let her go… this little girl in her navy blue and white uniform. So smart. With navy blue shoes and long white socks.
They had holes in them. Not old, like his socks but symmetrical, like the middles of flowers. Frank loved flowers. His mother would buy fresh ones every week until his father had lost his job and they’d run out of money.
But Frank had plenty of money now. He’d look after Lucy like she was his flesh and blood. She’d forget, and call him “father”. She’d be the sister he never had. The daughter he’d always wanted.
***
She knew it was wrong. “Don’t talk to strangers” that’s what she’d been told. Only there was something familiar about him. He reminded her of her father. The little she could remember. And his smile. He had a nice smile. Friendly. And she was in need of a new friend.
It had never been the same since they’d moved. So many times after her father had gone away, all those years ago. Her mother had promised that it would be fine, that there would be plenty of little girls for her to get on with, but she’d had that look in her eyes that Emily had seen before. Her mother had said that this was ‘it’ this time, that they’d stay, but Emily knew better.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirty-first in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a second person viewpoint story including the keywords: thread, simple, blue, suspect and time… so here is my 233-worder.
Almost
You stare at him and wish he hadn’t done it. It was a simple enough request; time for yourselves, just the two of you but he’d thought better, involved the whole family. You thought you knew him by now, that he knew you, but you realise that two years counts for nothing when you’ve spent little of that together.
He steps forward and kisses your forehead. You normally find it endearing but this feels patronising. You hear his mother sigh, proud of his son… the perfect team. Better than him and you.
You look down as he picks a thread of cotton off your blouse, his favourite top, the one he bought you for your nineteenth and you suspect that he had help.
At fifteen years your senior you liked his maturity but as you look around the room you feel almost a child.
Then he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a box, the blue velvet box that you recognise from his briefcase, the square diamond large enough to feed a country.
The room is silent, waiting for what everyone expects to happen next.
You shake your head. You know you shouldn’t, but you can’t help it. For once you do what you want.
You mouth a ‘sorry’ and turn to leave but he grabs your arm.
“Don’t you dare,” he hisses under his breath, the smell of whisky almost overbearing.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and thirtieth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a dialogue from a prompt of idiosyncratic, so here is my 133-worder.
Idiosyncratic
“Well, well, well…”
“What?”
“He’s at it again.”
“Who?”
“Old Fred.”
“Oh, Harry. Leave him alone.”
“What?”
“He’s just old. You always have to find fault.”
“Mavis, I tell you, he’s up to no good.”
“Why?”
“It’s his green bin. He’s stuffed it full of lemonade bottles.”
“So?”
“Well, it’s not right.”
“Ours is full of wine bottles; that’s worse surely?”
“He’s idiosyncratic.”
“What’s that?”
“Quirky. Odd.”
“You’re like a walking dictionary, Harry.”
“And that’s what you love about me.”
“If you say so. Listen, come away from the window. He’ll see you and think you’re idio-whatsit.”
“Syncratic.”
“Yes. I still don’t see what’s so odd about drinking lemonade at his age.”
“That’s the thing though, Mavis, from the way he’s struggling to move them, he’s not drinking them, they’re all still full.”
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-ninth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a monologue about a journey, so here is my 225-worder.
To no-one in particular
I knew it was going to drive me mad, the sixties CD, but it’s become his favourite and who am I to complain? Not that he’d listen if I tried to. A six-hour drive up to Edinburgh and this is all we have. At least it’s by different artists. Cornwall was Pat Boone crooning to no-one in particular. Not to me, that’s for sure and certainly not to Eric. Doesn’t approve of all that same sex malarkey. I think it’s fascinating, the connection they have, and some say they’ve always known but the only thing Eric finds interesting is who the service station cafés are run by. We only stop at English ones, no Costa or Pret a Manger for Eric.
That’s one thing that first attracted me about him, how patriotic he is, and so vocal, but then I realised to what extent and, well, it became an obsession… not quite to BNP level but it wouldn’t surprise me if he was on that list that someone published on the internet.
He does his computer does Eric. Never lets me go messing about on it but then I wouldn’t know where to start. I’d be too afraid I’d delete something important, and it must be important or he’d not keep his door shut, make me knock when I take him his cups of tea.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-eighth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story including the following keywords: pocket, borrow, meaning, steal, lack, so here is my 159-worder.
Something borrowed
It was the ‘something borrowed’ that meant so much to Laura. She’d had a pocket especially sewn into the wedding dress to keep it safe. Her grandfather’s pocket watch. Nothing special you might think and it wasn’t at the time he’d given it to her, just sentimentality but when her mother died it took on a whole new meaning.
It had been sitting on her mother’s kitchen table when Laura had collected the dress and taken it to her for safe-keeping. Only now it was her mother she wanted to keep safe; buy her a new heart, steal one, borrow one.
Remaining on her bedside table or in her jeans pocket for the three week’s between her mother’s death and the day she became Laura Elliott.
As the music started, Laura turned to her father and they both stepped forward. She wasn’t sure whether it was his lack of emotion that was holding hers back but she was grateful.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-seventh in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story starting ‘Russell stared at the photograph…’, so here is my 240-worder.
Less than green these days
Russell stared at the photograph sitting on the window ledge above the cooker. Sarah would laugh at him if she could see him now, only she couldn’t, wouldn’t. The first Sunday after she’d died, he’d forgiven himself and knew she would have too; a roast for one.
Three months later and he was still serving up double portions – one sat in front of him, the other in front of the empty chair; the chair with the Border Collie cushion. The cushion he’d bought for her last Christmas; the Christmas they’d not expected to see together.
She’d been given six months at best and had seen another four. Christmas, New Year, just short of Easter and now it was summer. The time of year she’d spend her days in the garden. That she wouldn’t be so pleased about; the dying plants, unmowed lawn, less than green these days, bird food containers.
Work had been understanding. “Take all the time you need,” Simon had said. He’d known how Russell had felt then – but not now. Jane had got better, lived, thrived. She’d helped Sara those first few months but when it became clear that there really was no hope the gaps between visits grew wider until she stopped coming – to the house, to work, to the funeral. Russell had considered quitting his job but he’d needed something to focus on – a return date – another set of walls to stare at all day.
***
Another cheery tale… sorry about that.
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-sixth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story with a vicar, grandmother, tennis, post office, wolf so here is my 338-worder.
She’d expected a whooshing sound
No-one believed Izzy when she talked about the old man. She’d cried wolf too often, told people about her imaginary friends. This time he wasn’t so imaginary.
The Johnson family had moved into the Old Post Office a fortnight before Izzy had started seeing the old man. Him rushing from room to room, turning his head left to right, right to left, as if watching a tennis match. Izzy loved tennis. Her Uncle Frank had taken her to Wimbledon the previous summer but now that was a distant memory. The house was cold, old and Izzy missed their place back in Weybridge; the rambling vicarage that had gone with Daddy’s job except Daddy no longer went to church – none of them did.
Izzy was sitting on her bed playing with Ruby Rabbit when the old man ran from the bathroom to the back bedroom, the spare bedroom that was still piled with boxes.
The man came out just as quickly, and disappeared into her parents’ bedroom.
One thing that surprised Izzy about him was the silence. She’d expected a ‘whooshing’ sound as he ran. Everyone makes a ‘whoosh’ when they’re in a hurry although she didn’t think anyone was as rushed as the old man.
It wasn’t long before he came out of her parents’ room and headed for hers. He’d just reached the threshold when he spotted Izzy and screamed. A noiseless scream which Izzy knew should have been loud, as loud as Mummy when she sees a spider, shuts the door to it and waits for Izzy’s daddy to come home.
“Hello,” Izzy said calmly. The man stopped screaming. It was then that she noticed something in his left hand.
“What’s that?” she asked. He held it out to her and she went to look closer, to take it, but he pulled it back, held it to his chest.
Izzy could just about make out a figure; a woman about the same age as her mother, but old-fashioned, wearing clothes like her grandmother used to wear.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-fifth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story from the prompt word of ‘bank’, so here is my 133-worder.
A glint of gold
Johal’s heart sank as he looked at his bank statement. His holiday to Goa had taken more out of both him and his savings than he’d expected. His next stop was to have been Tesco for a bag of ice but now he decided to go to the pound shop and buy some plastic trays instead.
As he walked home he passed the antique shop and stared at the window. Few items were priced and he could see why. A glint of gold caught his eye and he grinned as he spotted a familiar item; a small Indian elephant lead by a man in national costume.
As Joahl took a mouthful of water, the elephant’s price tag made him cough… if this baby was worth £1,000 what was adult version at home worth?
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-fourth in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a second person story about a house move, so here is my 342-worder.
Everything that doesn’t remind you of him
You don’t remember it being this eerie. Brighter in the estate agent’s brochure, but then the house was full of someone else’s belongings, a young couple. New baby. Outgrown their love nest.
Your love nest died with Nick. No breadwinner to pay the bills so you took a part-time job, then full-time but it still wasn’t enough so you’d down-sized when it had become apparent that you’d not cope… coping was the last thing you’d wanted to do but you did it for Nick, or the memory of him.
He was the one who held it all together, took you in his arms when he saw the tears forming, his large brown eyes melting your heart every time.
It had surprised you when you’d opened the door to the two policemen that you’d not cried then – you didn’t in front of strangers, even at the cinema with a sad movie. This was the strength you’d been wearing ever since.
Looking around the shell of each room, the piles of boxes with their names in black letter; lounge, kitchen, bedroom, you wonder if this is where you’ll spend the rest of your life, in a little old house surrounded by everything that doesn’t remind you of him.
“If anything should happen,” he’d said, as if he’d known, “move on, meet someone else.” But you’d known him since school and couldn’t imagine anyone else’s arms around you, although you know Ted at work has a soft spot for you.
You put the kettle on and start opening boxes. The kitchen is easy so you start with that. One cupboard’s already full when the kettle clicks off and you make yourself a cup of tea. You always have, even Nick could never get it how you like it; little tea, little milk, little sugar. Weak on the outside, strong underneath – that’s what he’d said, knowing he meant you.
And now you are, you have to be, and as you look at the next box you take a deep breath and pull open the flaps.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-third in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a dialogue including the words: stage, photograph, project, page, discover… so here is my 262-worder.
Stage left, Henry!
“Stage left, Henry!”
“Over here?”
“No, left!”
“Your left or my left?”
“There is only one stage left… like starboard and port.”
“I thought it was port and starboard.”
“Whatever, Henry.”
“Not that I remember which is which of those.”
“It doesn’t matter. Just put the tree ten feet or so to your left.”
“As I face the front or…”
“As you are now. Move… the… tree…”
“I hear you.”
“OK. Now when Romeo comes towards the balcony…”
“Balcony?”
“Yes, Henry… the balcony.”
“But I thought we were setting up for the final scene.”
“Why would we want a tree for the death scene?”
“I did wonder.”
“Then why didn’t you say anything?”
“I don’t know.”
“No, Henry… balcony, foliage, so Romeo can climb…”
“Climb?”
“Do you know this play at all?”
“Of course. It was one of our school projects.”
“Project?”
“To design the set, yes, then photograph it. I still have them somewhere… the photos, not the set… obviously.”
“Obviously. Now, so we’re on the same page…”
“Page? They’ve given you a script?”
“No, Henry. It’s just a saying.”
“What do we need for the death scene?”
“What?”
“You know, the end… when they die.”
“I do know, but why are you asking?”
“I like to be sure. Balcony, foliage, tree… we’ve got those.”
“We have. Alright then… the marble bench, a gun and the poison.”
“And the dagger.”
“Dagger?”
“Doesn’t one of them…”
“You’re thinking of Macbeth.”
“But when Juliet discovers Romeo she thinks he’s dead and…”
“This is am dram Henry. We’re doing the film version not Will’s.”
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-second in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a monologue where your character is looking through a curtain, so here is my 465-worder.
Not red like I asked
Norman will be back soon. I know what he’s up to you, you know. Likes to keep me on my toes. I ask for one thing, he gets me another so I started asking for things I don’t want, just to see where his imagination takes him. Only as far as the corner shop usually.
Today though he said he was going to the parade, needed the DIY store. Always building something… to keep himself out my way, I reckon.
The lads are playing on the green again. I know their schooling isn’t up to much but surely they can read the ‘No Ball Games’ sign, it’s large enough. I’d point it out to them, only… well, you know, you hear such awful things on the news. Happened to one of my brother’s neighbours, terrible affair. He was never quite the same after that… the neighbour, not John, although it shook him up something rotten too, as he’d been outside only a few minutes before.
Safest place, your own home, although old Ted Richards had a nasty experience the year before last. ‘Distraction burglary’ the papers called it, but it was more than that, he had a black eye because of them. They got one of them, turned out to be the lad next door to Ted, with one of his mum’s stocking over his head… the pervert. Never did catch the other one, although they knew who he used to hang around with.
So that’s why I keep a vigil, make sure Norman gets home alright. I send him out because he needs the exercise, the allotment’s only a road away and I have to think of something, don’t I. Then I’m so relieved when he comes back, try not to show it but I’m not that good an actress really.
They’ve still not fixed the street lamp outside Mrs Jones’. It’s not got one of those stickers on it so I know it’s supposed to work and when you phone the council you get passed round so many departments that it’s quicker to go to the DIY shop and fix it yourself. Of course they wouldn’t let you if they knew… health and safety and all that.
She’s 93. I keep telling them… the council. Say Mrs Jones will be 94 next month, but they don’t listen. I suppose they would if I could get through all the options; press 1 for this and hash for that. No-one there to tell me what the hash is. Some American thing made with corned beef, I thought. Mrs Jones’ grandson could tell me – he’s good with technology.
Oh look, there’s Norman, carrying the plant I asked him to get. Not red like I said, but then he’s colour blind so not to know, is he?
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Welcome to the one hundred and twenty-first in this daily series that is ‘5pm Fiction’.
Late April 2011 I discovered http://StoryADay.org and the project that is to write 31 stories in 31 days. Anyone who knows me or follows this blog, knows how passionate I am about short stories so my clichéd eyes lit up at this new marvel. And just a few days later there I was, breathing life into new characters. This went on to become (with some editing of course) my 31-story collection eBook Story A Day May 2011.
I was nearing completion of the 2012 project when I decided that I didn’t want to stop at the end of May so 5PM Fiction was born. I put a load of prompts on the 5PM Fiction page and today’s was to write a story including the words: paper, red, nut, loyal and staple… so here is my 214-worder.
Others would knock
Barney shook the newspaper, folding the right half behind the left. Looking out into the office he tutted at the almost-empty scene ahead of him. Fair enough. It was lunchtime but he’d expected loyalty – eat a sandwich at their desks and work through.
Some of the red ink from a large advert for half-priced staple guns had bled through on to his blotting-paper desk mat. Pulling at one corner of the sheet, he yanked it out of the black leather, screwed it into a stiff cream ball and launched it at the stainless steel bin, laughing at the metal echo reverberating around his large air-conditioned room.
Swivelling his black leather executive chair towards the window, Barney growled as he watched all the people scurrying through the snow, some he knew, but others meaning even less to him. Outside the building’s main gate he spotted an old-fashioned hot chestnut cart patroned by many of his staff. He wanted to lift up his window, shout at them to get back to work but his office door opening distracted him.
Barney swung round expecting to see Joyce, his secretary, others would knock, but saw another familiar face, carrying a dish of chestnuts. Except it couldn’t have been who he’d thought, as he’d been dead for two centuries.
***
Photography courtesy of morguefile.com. You can sign up to receive these blog posts daily or weekly so you don’t miss anything… and follow me on Twitter where each new posting is automatically announced. You can also read / download my eBooks and free eShorts at Smashwords, Sony Reader Store, Barnes & Noble, iTunes Bookstore, Kobo and Amazon, with more to follow. I have a new forum, friend me on Facebook, like me on Facebook, connect with me on LinkedIn, find me on Tumblr, complete my website’s Contact me page or plain and simple, email me. I also now have a new blog creation service especially for, but not limited to, writers.
Unfortunately, as I post an interview a day (amongst other things) I can’t review books but I have a feature called ‘Short Story Saturdays’ where I review stories of up to 2,500 words. Alternatively if you have a short story or self-contained novel extract / short chapter (ideally up to 1000 words) that you’d like critiqued and don’t mind me reading it / talking about and critiquing it (I send you the transcription afterwards so you can use the comments or ignore them) on my ‘Bailey’s Writing Tips’ podcast, then do email me. They are fortnightly episodes, usually released on Sundays, interweaving the recordings between the red pen sessions with the hints & tips episodes. I am now also looking for flash fiction (<1000 words) for Flash Fiction Fridays and poetry for Post-weekend Poetry.
Tags: ebooks, flash fiction, literature, prompt, short stories, story a day, Story A Day May, writing, writing exercises
Everything will be ok once the kids come along. Teddy says he doesn’t want any but I know he’ll change his mind. Besides the house is too big for just the two of us, and what am I going to do all day? But then I’m not going to look after them, we’ll get a nanny to do that, an old one like Mary Poppins or better still that Nanny McFee. Don’t want Eddie getting to like her too much.
