Hello everyone. Last month I received 21 entries from 13 authors. Two were disqualified for only being 99 words. Four stories (from two authors) were submitted twice so the first versions were counted, the second deleted. I don’t know if they were the same but the rules state the first is the one that goes through to judging. There were a handful of stories where I was expecting (hoping) for a twist but none came. They can work really well so do considering giving your story a twist and the later the better: at least the final sentence if not, where possible, the final word for an “Ooh!” reaction.
The winning stories are ones that I reacted most favourably to. They were clever, surprising, eek-making (in a good way),or gave me a warm fuzzy feeling (without being sickly).
You may have chosen a different order or indeed not placed one or more of them so if you entered and didn’t find your story / stories here, don’t lose heart. You probably only just missed out so do enter new stories this month*, next month, whenever you like (but not in advance!). It’s an ongoing competition and free, so you could win at any time. There were new and familiar names this month so anyone could win… it’s all dependent upon whether your story grabs me, for whatever reason (whether it be clever, funny, unusual, quirky, or sweet).
Apart from the top three and highly commended, there are some ‘Honourable Mentions’. They don’t win anything but they were so close to being Highly Commended that I wanted them to know how close they came. It’s still something for them to put on their CVs.
*The theme for August is ‘leftovers’ and you can submit your entries (and do send three) at any time up to midnight (UK time) on Friday 31st August. Details and entry forms on https://morgenbailey.wordpress.com/100-word-free-monthly-competition. So without further ado, below are the successful entries this month.
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First place (winning free access to three of my online creative writing courses (currently worth £60 / $60) or a free edit and critique of up to 2,000 words (worth £14 / $18):
Barbara Young with ‘A Unique Opportunity’
The agent has brought two more eager faces. He describes me as a unique opportunity; an original Victorian sawmill, ripe for renovation.
She finds me charming and talks of ripping out the waterwheel and remodelling the pool as a Japanese water garden. Her husband will strip my interior – modernise, capitalise.
My cogs gleam in the dusty air as she bends close to my heart. He pulls her away, says I am dangerous and must be dismantled.
As the couple agree to put in an offer my blades twitch. Human flesh is soft and my teeth are sharp, hungry for work.
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Second place (winning free access to two of my online creative writing courses (currently worth £40 / $40) or a free edit and critique of up to 1,500 words (worth £11 / $14):
Diana Hayden with ‘Little Boxes’
Ten small boxes, covered in stained satin and decorated with gemstones, sat on the workshop shelf. Each box had a label. One said, “Jane H”. Another said, “hobo”.
Inside each box was an eyeball. One box, marked “Fay’s baby”, contained a much smaller eyeball.
It wasn’t until five years after my aunt died that the workshop gave up its secrets, and the police concluded she had been the Butcher of Basingstoke.
Fay is my sister. Her baby was abducted at six weeks old.
When I visit Fay in hospital she’s always crafting little boxes out of cardboard, satin and gemstones.
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Third place (winning free access to one of my online creative writing courses (currently worth £20 / $20) or a free edit and critique of up to 1,000 words (worth £7 / $9):
Christine Law with ‘The Loner’
Albert looked at his long gnarled fingers stretching out in front of him he picked up the spoon. It wasn’t good enough this broth of potatoes and peas. Pushing the spoon away, he swore grabbing hold of his shaggy grey beard.
Life had to become more exciting. He never got caught, mutilated bodies lined the odd passage. Grabbing someone from behind, dragging his nails inside their windpipe, one push before the fat trollop could scream. A grin appeared on his lips.
They saw him sitting in the library, watching, waiting sometimes. He raised a bushy eyebrow and smiled at life.
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Highly commended (winning my Entering Writing Competitionscourse worth £20 / $20) or a free edit and critique of up to 1,000 words (worth £7 / $9) – in alphabetical order:
- Angela Greenwood with ‘Go To Sleep’
- Charlene Mertz with ‘The Doctor Is In’
- Hilary Ayshford with ‘Obsession’
- Lesley McLean with ‘The Nightmare’
Honourable mentions (not winning anything but only narrowly missing out and still looking good on their CV) – in alphabetical order:
- Andy Morfett with ‘The Horror’
- Ian Marshall with ‘Breathless’
- Justin Rulton with ‘Uninvited Company’
- Patricia Cooksley with ‘Beach Babe’
Congratulations, everyone. The entries for this month are already drifting in. Remember, you can send up to three per month so rather than miss out on a chance by sending one story, do submit more.
If you’ve enjoyed these stories and / or just want to leave a comment, please do so below and / or you can email me at morgen@morgenbailey.com., although I won’t (can’t) discuss forthcoming entries unless it’s a general query.
These stories are wonderful. You had a tough job!
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