Tag Archives: Fiction

Six Sentence Sunday 19th August

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I managed to keep up to date with my prompts during Swanwick. The following sentences are from a piece I wrote whilst I was there 🙂

The morning sun was beginning to rise as Sam made her way down to the lake behind the hotel. The shadows from the trees fell onto the still water, and gave the lake an eerie feel. Sam shivered as she sat down on a bench and watched a solitary duck glide silently through the murky water.

She felt sleepy, the tablets had begun to work. She knew she had to time it perfectly, or for the second time, she would fail. She waited, listening, to make sure there would be no one around to rescue her.

Oh dear, very depressing….well, you know what prompted this don’t you lol…..

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On The Pull

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Nooooo, not me, I’m a married women…..but then so is she 😉

This is the piece I wrote that was inspired by the “powder room” photo on Saturday 🙂 In first draft, I’m still experimenting with first person POV.

“Quick, hold the door and keep watch.”

“But Sara, I can’t physically stop people coming in?”

“Yes you can, go on, stand in front of the door.”

I rested my weight against the door and tried to focus my attention on the flock wallpaper rather than my friend, stripping down to her bra and knickers.

“I don’t know why we have to go through this every time. You looked fine.” I muttered under my breath.

Sara laughed as she pulled up the scarlet Lycra mini dress.

“Oh please, you know if Dave saw me going out like this he’d kill me!”

I had to admit she was right. Sara’s husband was possessive. She was only allowed to see me once a month and as far as he was concerned you didn’t need to dress up for Bingo. But then, he didn’t know that we never actually went.

Sara folded her jeans and T shirt and placed them in her bag. She was already wearing high heels, Dave loved her in stilettos.

“Right, all done, just the makeup.” She twirled “How do I look?”

I wanted to say like a whore, but I bit my tongue. It wouldn’t have worried her anyway, that was the look she wanted.

“Great, very sexy.” Well, it was partly true.

She quickly applied some more makeup and pouted her blood red lips.

“Now, just a little something to get me in the mood.” She winked and laid a small mirror on the shelf above the sink. I bowed my head and listened to her snorting.

“Do you have to do that in a place like this?”

“Oh, stop being such an old woman Chlo. Right, let’s go get em.” She shrieked with laughter and as she leaned over my shoulder to the door handle, she paused. “and don’t forget, if I pull, I’ve stayed at yours tonight.”

I smiled, I knew the drill.

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Hmmmmm, not too sure where that one is going. Perhaps tonight, Chloe will tell Dave the truth?

I’m open to suggestions?

Six Sentence Sunday 5th August

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This weeks offering…..

“Dad, can we go to the park today Dad?”

“Tommy, please, just let me finish this work, we’ll go later.”

I watched my son as he pouted and stomped out of the room, slamming his feet down on the polished oak floor as heavy as he could.

Don’t listen to anyone who says working from home is better than being stuck in a depressing, grey office. Give me fabric covered partitions and queuing at the coffee machine any day, especially during school holidays.

I pick up my pen and continue writing my report.

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Ahhhh, poor Tommy. Something tells me he’s not gunna get to the park today 😉 I don’t envy parents who work from home when the school holidays come round. It must be a nightmare!

My Love/Hate Relationship With 50 Shades

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I finally finished 50 Shades of Grey *slumps exhausted into a heap* 😉 Actually, it’s the quickest I’ve read a book in a long while lol.

I’m not going to do a review, I read it as a “writer” because I was intrigued about this whole phenomenon. Why were some people dissing it? I like to make my own mind up 🙂

So, I’ve decided to do a Love list and a Hate list….perhaps then I can decide how many stars to give it on Goodreads 😉

What I Loved About 50 Shades
Christian Grey: Wow, what a great character! Yes, I bonded lol. I guess I’m just drawn to dark, mysterious men. Who is it that’s been cast in the film role? To me, when I picture him I’m thinking Christian Bale, sorry, can’t help it lol. I could see the connection to Edward (Twilight) but to me it wasn’t glaringly obvious.

I Liked Her Style: Yes, I did, it was easy reading. As I’ve said a lot of times on this blog, who cares about verbs, adverbs, show and tell (yes, I know the publishers do lol). If its a good story, engages the reader, then so what. I don’t consider my own writing to be “literary” and I don’t want it to be. If that really is crap writing then I may as well give up now! Lol. Seriously, i don’t believe my writing is any better. I don’t feel that I’m in a position to judge, people in glass houses en all that. It actually gave me hope that you don’t have to be the best writer in the world to be successful.

What I Hated About 50 Shades
The Repitition: Ok, I was warned about this before I started. The first thing that bugged me was the word “Equilibrium” which seems to crop up in every few chapters and IMO, stands out like the proverbial thumb. But the really annoying thing was the biting of the bottom lip. Towards the end I got to screaming point lol

The Sex: Ha ha ha, I’m sorry, but I got a bit bored. As a man, if you read this book, prepare to feel inferior lol. Hell, as a woman reading this book you could be convinced there’s something wrong with you! Lol.

Ana: Oh, what a wishey washey heroine, IMO. I just didn’t particularly like her. I had no sympathy for her to be honest. I know she was suppose to be a young naive girl, but I found that quite annoying. If she’s that naive and innocent, surely, she would have run a mile lol.

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E L James is making a fortune (check out this article). So I for one would LOVE to be known as a crap writer if it meant I could buy a swanky London pad with an indoor swimming pool lol 😉

Also check out this article which seems to echo my view that this book has something And this one which I think gives the best argument I’ve seen to date 🙂

I’m getting a little bored with all the “it’s badly written” comments. The same was said of Stephanie Myers and JK Rowling, and look where they all are now. Is it time, as writers, we wake up and realise that these books are what the public want? Isn’t a book that gets people reading who don’t usually read a good thing?

Kate Walker said at Caerleon that, in her opinion, the reason 50 Shades is so successful is not because of the sex. It’s basically a love story, centred around the emotional conflict of the two main characters. The “will they won’t they” element is what people keep coming back for.

what do you think…..Have you read it? Will you be reading it? And how does it make you feel about your own work?

22 Hague Avenue

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This is what I wrote in response to Saturdays photo prompt (first draft)…..

Helen watched the happy scene through the window as she stood outside number 22 Hague Avenue. Christmas Eve and bitterly cold, the desire to ring the doorbell was overwhelming. But, she remained rooted to the icy pavement beneath her feet.

Had she made the right choice 2 years ago? It was one of those forced situations in life where the decision had been unbearable.

She watched, transfixed, as the man lifted the small boy into the air. “Bobby” she mouthed as her eyes filled with tears. The boy laughed and giggled. He had changed so much, but that was inevitable, she hadn’t seen him since he was 6 months old. It took all her willpower to keep her arms by her side. A mothers natural urge to reach out and hold her baby. Helen slumped to the ground and silently wept.

She knew John would be a good father. Had been confident that Bobby would have a great life. But she couldn’t help wondering if Johns heart was still broken. Did he still love her and yearn for her as much as she did for him? The thought of him getting on with his life, finding someone else, was tortuous. What would he tell Bobby about her death? Would he tell him about the tragic accident where her body had been so badly mutilated she was unidentifiable by anything other than her dental records.

Pulling herself up she stood silently at the gate. Blowing a kiss towards the window, she turned, and tiptoed down the street to the waiting car.

“Are you ok?” The Agent asked, as Helen got into the passenger seat beside him.

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Not really sure where this is going, I guess I could go back in time to explain how she got to that point? Or just carry it on with her new life? Fast forward to the future? Any thoughts? 🙂

Too Many Choices

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Ok, so now that I’ve stopped working on But Not Forgotten and I’ve got over the shock lol, I’m ready to make a commitment to a shiny brand new WIP 🙂

I have 3 choices….help me mull them over and then give me your opinion.

Choice number 1 The Daisy Chain idea I had for my 26 characters (the ones I did for the Blogging A-Z Challenge). I love the idea of this, but, 26 characters? Is that too much? I’ve come up with an idea that links them all together, and I’ve kind of got an ending. But, in a time where agents are telling us that publishers are steering away from huge tomes, and this will definitely be a large book, is that sensible? It’s definitely got a concept, and it’s definitely different.

Choice number 2 The Jersey war story. Now, I love this idea too, but, it will take a lot of research. If I did decide to try to get it published I would immediately be labelling myself as a historical fiction writer (do I want that?). Are people not sick of war stories?

Choice number 3 My original Nano 2012 idea was for a story told from 2 different viewpoints, about someone who goes missing. I watched a TV show that had a section about missing persons and they talked about the families, what they go through. That piqued my interest. So yes, that one has concept, and is different too.

So can you see my dilemma? lol

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I’m not quite at that stage where I’m hitting my head, but I will be soon if I don’t make a decision lol. Nano is looming 🙂

Advice and thoughts much needed 😉

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Home Sweet Home

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Here’s what I came up with for Saturdays birdhouse picture 🙂

George lay down his chisel and admired his work. The small plain pine birdhouse lay in front of him on the kitchen table.

“What colour should we paint this one Sam?”

The black Labrador laying at his feet looked up when he heard his name. Then immediately put his head back down on his paws.

George eased his elderly frame out of the chair and bent, rummaging in the cupboard for his paints. He groaned as he tried to straighten.

“I think this one should be red don’t you? Mum liked red didn’t she.”

Sam scratched his ear and rolled over.

;

Several hours later George sat back and stretched. “This is a good one Sam, she’ll like this one. We’ll just have a cuppa, give it time to dry, then we’ll go for a nice walk.”

He filled the kettle and looked out onto the small green below the flats. Memories of his wife standing on the grass, throwing seed to the sparrows as she’d done every morning, played in his mind. She’d hated moving to this flat. They’d both missed their garden, the one they’d tended for over forty years. The one with the birdhouse George had lovingly made for Eileen, just after they’d moved in. Year after year they’d watched the sparrows raise their babies.

How long had he been alone now? Ten Months? Eleven? The tears welled in his tired grey eyes. He preferred remembering her like that. Not how she’d been in the final months of her life, when the cancer had taken hold.

;

Arriving at work that morning, Clare found her colleague Diane standing outside smoking a cigarette.

“Hi Clare…..look!”

Clare spun round and looked at the wall Diane was pointing to.

“Is that the bosses idea of brightening the place up?” Clare laughed.

“No, Jim doesn’t know anything about it. It wasn’t here before the weekend that’s for sure. My mate Sue told me about this, apparently they’re cropping up all over town, have been for about a year now.”

The two women stood, both deep in thought, looking at the small red box. They held their breath and watched as a tiny male sparrow alighted on the roof. It chirped and then was joined by a female.

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Photo from Wikipedia taken by Fir0002

Well, I tried, ok, it was sort of happy, but sad at the same time lol 😉 It must be awful when your spouse dies, when you’ve been together that long 😦

Ok, I’m depressing myself, and probably you lot too lol. I actually got quite upset writing this 😦

Let’s pretend that if I continued this story, George’s son calls him, they’ve just moved into a huge house and it’s got a lovely garden. They want George and Sam to go and live with them and look after the garden. Oh, and he’ll have his own granny flat. Better? 😉

Six Sentence Sunday 15th July

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Today’s six sentences are from a prompt (using Judy Reeves book) I did earlier this week entitled “My real name is…..”

My real name is Jane, Jane Smith, but who remembers a Jane Smith? So for the past 5 years I’ve been Verity Delaney, which is far more interesting. In my previous life I was a housewife and mother. I spent my days cooking, doing the laundry and picking up my husbands underpants from whichever room he decided to de-robe in.

I bet you’re asking yourself what kind if woman walks out on her husband and two kids because she’s fed up with her life? A life she chose in the first place.

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I’ve been trying to practice 1st person recently. I was very anti it, but the more I’m doing, the more I like it 🙂

I wrote about 300 words for this prompt, not too sure where it’s going….yet 😉

The Jersey War Tunnels

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I’m ashamed to say that I knew nothing of the suffering of the Jersey people during WWII. I guess the Channel Islands are too far away for it to bear any impact on the average spotty 14 year old sitting in a History class of a mainland British school.

My trip to the tunnels was educating and alarming. It’s a very thought provoking place. How can you say you enjoyed your visit in the knowledge of all the suffering that went on there? The atmosphere is heavy, cold and eerie. But, at the same time I found it inspiring. I carried Louisa May Gould’s ID card with me, at that stage, unaware of her fate.

The strength of us Brits in times of trouble is somewhat famous, and many would argue quite unique throughout history. So I emerged into the warm daylight from the dark caverns filled with a sense of hope and admiration.

Louisa was a widow when the war started, with 2 sons.

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This photo was taken in 1939.

One of her sons was killed in action, so when she discovered that one of the Russian prisoners had escaped the Nazi’s who were using their prisoners as slave workers, she said “I have to do something for another woman’s son.” She ended up hiding Feodor “Bill” Buryiv for nearly a year in 1943/44.

Betrayed by a neighbour, she was arrested in May 1944 and sentenced to 2 years imprisonment. Sent to France and by August of that year she was in a concentration camp near Berlin, Ravensbruck.

Unfortunately, when the Germans received word that the allies were closing in, they fled the camp, but not before killing everyone in it by constructing make shift gas chambers. Louisa died on the 13th February 1945.

I guess what drew me to this story is that I am a mother of 2 sons myself. Would I have done the same thing? I really don’t know. Louisa knew the consequences, what would happen to her if she got caught. But I guess, that desire to help a young man, when she couldn’t help her own son, was overpowering.

So that’s the basic story, and I’ve been toying with ideas, and the question, how to tell Louisa’s story. I could do it from the POV of “Bill”? Or what about her other son, the one that didn’t get killed in action, how did he feel about it all? Or how about the neighbour, the one that betrayed her. Why did that person do that? Who were they? Or just stick with Louisa’s? And then there’s the choice of 1st person or 3rd person lol.

I think that one of the overriding things that makes me beleive I’m a writer is the fact that I question everything and often describe myself *goes into London mode* as wanting to know “the ins and outs of a ducks arse” lol. Horrible saying I know, but one I grew up with as a child….haven’t got a clue who came up with that one! Anyway, I need to think, I need to make a decision…hey, I need to research lol

Which POV would interest you the most?

The Prayer

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Here’s what I wrote in response to Sundays photo 🙂

“Have you seen them?”

“Seen who honey?”

“The men, the men in the van.” She grabs my arm and digs what is left of her bitten down finger nails into my skin. I steer her towards the bed and ease her down gently onto the rough blanket.

“How are you doing Jan?” I ask. She turns towards the window as I prise my arm from her grip. “Has mum been in to see you?”

She remains silent and stares at the window.

“Jan, I miss you.”

She turns, a wry smile forming on her face and pats my leg. For a second, there is a flash in her eyes, a moment of recognition. A glimpse of my beautiful sister, the woman she used to be before this disease took over.

“Have you seen them?”

I don’t need to ask who this time. “I’ll come and see you next week Jan.” I stand and hug her, but she flinches.

I hold back the tears as I walk to the door and turn. She’s staring at the window, lost in her own world.

I make my way to my mothers room with the smell of disinfectant filling my nostrils. I pause at the door and wonder, when will it will be my turn.

There’s a whole debate isn’t there, on whether mental illness is hereditary. Not really sure where this story is going, or even what genre it is lol 😉 I think I’d have to do a lot of research into mental illness if I wanted to continue with it. It must be soul destroying to see someone you love end up institutionalised 😦

Sorry, hope I haven’t depressed you all too much lol 😉