Friday, January 3, 2014

Trifextra Week 99: 3-Word Resolution

The folks at Trifecta are asking for three-word resolutions this weekend. Here's mine:


Joyfully slay pests. 

I have missed the Trifectans and the weekly challenges. In truth, I have been working on my collection of short stories and need to catch up on all the great entries over there. I also wrote a tiny piece for the Iron Writer Winter Open since I won a weekly challenge many weeks ago. You can read that piece here. More to come soon!

Friday, November 1, 2013

NaNoWriMo? Sure, why not?

You know what I needed? Another thing to do. Another goal. Another deadline.
So I decided to do NaNoWriMo again this year. I put in a hard-fought-for 1695 words today, and I'm pretty proud of it, considering it was written with much distraction and sleepiness. This year, I am being a NaNo rebel and working on a collection of short stories. Most of them are outlined, but many are not. Tonight, I worked only from my recollection of what I jotted down on the back of a JoAnn Fabric coupon. It's not amazing now in its raw form, but after editing I think it will be worth a read. Good luck, fellow NaNo-ers. Don't neglect your posture and finger stretches.

Thursday, October 3, 2013

The Nature of Beasts

I won The Iron Writer Challenge #31! Check out my story, which uses the four TIW elements for this challenge (a Delorean, a peanut-butter-banana sandwich, a ventriloquist, and a griffin), below.


The Nature of Beasts

Traffic had all but stopped—even the taxis—when they pulled into a parking space. Pedestrians crowded the sidewalk. “What’s all the ruckus?” Monty Conjure growled, switching off the Delorean’s engine.
“Is that,” Jeannie Conjure gasped, squinting through the windshield from the passenger seat, “a phoenix?” An elephant-sized beast covered in feathers and fur stomped toward them from two blocks ahead. They could feel the impact of its steps. Its tail swung side-to-side, denting cars and mangling lampposts. Screaming drivers abandoned their vehicles and ran.
“No, it’s a griffin. Note the lion-like body. A phoenix is just a bird that explodes.”
“Yes, darling. You’re right,” Jeannie conceded. She was bored with him. His tricks, on and off the stage, weren’t magical anymore. But she was confident an insurance payout would help her achieve a change of pace. As she handed him half a peanut-butter-and-banana sandwich, their traditional pre-performance meal, she noted a tiny dot of green ink on the plastic wrap. “You should eat, Monty.”
He took the sandwich, his stomach turning a bit at the sight of Jeannie’s ropy, liver-spotted left hand. Beneath another sparkly black dress, her once-sleek figure was flabby. Lately, she refused to perform many of their standard tricks and claimed to be too tired to learn new ones. The sword bit was getting sloppy and they planned to replace it with a levitation act, which she enjoyed because she could put her feet up. He often daydreamed of doing feats of magic with a fresh girl who wouldn’t spoil the act or mock his moustache. He also daydreamed about how easily, during an act of prestidigitation, a sword could slip. “Where do you suppose this animal came from?”
Jeannie looked distastefully at a darkening banana slice slipping from the edge of his still-uneaten sandwich and shrugged. “Maybe it’s part of our opening act.”
We are the opening act.”
“That explains why we’re parked on the street.” She sighed. “It’s nearly time.”
“We’ll eat in the wings.” He pressed a button and the car doors rose, crane-like, attracting the attention of the griffin. Now only a block away, it tilted its massive eagle head and stalked toward them.
Jeannie stepped out of the car on shaking legs and drew a long breath. There was only one defense she could think of.
“Oy! We’ve got loads of lovely carrion over here!” called a disembodied speaker.
The griffin skidded to a stop just three car-lengths away, its claws tearing chunks from the asphalt. Shrieking, it stomped down an alleyway in the direction of the voice.
“You’ve still got it. Best ventriloquist I ever knew,” Monty proclaimed as he kissed her forehead. She snatched the sandwich and tossed it into the street.
“You can show your gratitude by buying me dinner later,” she said, smoothing her dress. “If that thing comes back, it’s going to scuff the car.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve been thinking of upgrading.”
“A new car? You’re full of surprises.”
Chuckling, he put on his top hat and took her hand as they walked into the theatre.
- Read the other entries here and think about participating in an upcoming challenge!
Thanks to The Iron Writer community for this opportunity!

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Brought to You by the Letters

A magnetic Five-Sentence Fiction

Brought to You by the Letters

Their daughter was years past playing with the magnetic alphabet, but his wife was not. Every weekday morning he found a message from her--"I HEART U" or "MEET MOI FOR LUNCH"--spelled out in primary colors using the letters that had not yet broken or slid beneath the refrigerator.This Monday morning it said, "TH0SE SHOES Q JUST NO".

He sighed as he returned to the bedroom to change out of his loafers (which had, admittedly, seen better days), a bit disappointed in today's note. Inside his dress shoes, six plastic letters met his toes and he grinned as he dumped them out onto the bed, knowing what they would spell. 

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Mixed Vegetables


For this week's Trifextra, a famous trio


Mixed Vegetables

Self-conscious Corn comforted supple Squash when she lost her flowers and her fruit swelled. Corn encouraged shy Bean to explore. Together, the two shorter sisters grounded Corn. Frost claimed the trio together, peacefully.

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Iron Writer Update


This is a spoon I found in the woods. It has no bearing on anything.
You can read my crazy 513-word Iron Writer Challenge entry and three others here

Saturday, September 21, 2013

The Iron Writer Challenge: 31

I came across The Iron Writer Challenge on Twitter a few weeks ago. The concept is this: four writers are given four (unrelated and pretty darn random) elements that must be used in a flash fiction piece of about 500 words. Oh, and the story has to be written in the span of four days. I'm not sure why this seemed like a good idea to me with my full (over-full, really) schedule, but I signed right up. The elements for my challenge are: a live griffin (the mythical beast), a Delorean, a peanut-butter-and-banana sandwich, and a ventriloquist. Strangely enough, as soon as I read this list I had an idea. I'm on my fourth revision and ready to call it done, but since I still have another whole day, I'm letting it marinate just a little longer. It's certainly one of the stranger things I've written.

The stories will be posted on The Iron Writer site this Thursday. Be sure to check it out--and think about signing up for your own Iron challenge!