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Free/automatic writings... guns & transmissions & updates & The Jetsons |
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I haven't done an automatic writing (or "free writing") for years, but I found it to be a useful tool then. I thought it might be an interesting experience to do it again. I had lots of poems and stories spawned from automatic writings in my teens, and I could sure use some inspiration now! So, giving it a go! Originally, this book was titled "Author's Spotlight - Season 5". The first 12 entries were for a previous year of "AUTHORS' SPOTLIGHT - Season 6"  .
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Review of:
I really like this poem! Your point comes across with crystal clarity! First, some things I really like: The entire third stanza is fantastic! The imagery is great and the ideas expressed in it seem heartfelt. The entire fourth stanza is also very well done. Especially the first lines, "This cultural mind controls our view. Your heart and soul are cut in two." I really like the entire personification of cultural control! I think you did it very well and accomplished what you were trying for. So many poems end with a line that is not as strong as the rest of the piece. This is not one of those poems. Well done! Some suggestions: "Smile, inside you're screaming." This may read better as "Smile! Inside you're screaming." or "Smile; inside you're screaming." or even "Smile. Inside you're screaming." I think it's fine as it is now, but that 'smile' seems to be calling out for something dramatic. It's as though the world is forcing you to smile, and inside you are screaming. I feel these are two separate thoughts. "Forcing me to honor your traditions / that you value more than me." When I first read this I was thinking 'Of course it values its traditions more than you do'. On the second read I saw that it could also mean that it values its traditions more than it values you. You might want to make it a little more clear which you mean. Maybe "Forcing me to honor your traditions, traditions valued more than me." or something to that effect if it's the latter. If the former, you could probably leave it the same. Of course there's also the option of leaving it just as it is and leaving it up to the reader. Again, I really really like this entire stanza. I just thought I'd mention this to you in case it wasn't done on purpose. "Grow up, but don't leave." For a first line, this is striking. What it means with relevance to the rest of the stanza is lost on me though. Don't leave what? The world? The world's culture? If you're happy with the line, by all means keep it. I just don't particularly understand it. "Raise one up to knock 'em down You lose a child to this beast." I figured by this line you meant to raise a child up and knock him down. If so, child is singular and " 'em " is plural (shortened 'them'). If you are referring to the child in the next line, " 'im " would make more sense. Quick fixes: *Note I usually try to keep grammar stuff down to a minimum, but it may not be possible. I'll do my best. "Learn how to be strong, but not more then us." This sentence is fine, but 'then' should be 'than'. "I hate your cliches, I'm not your property." This is two sentences. You could throw in an 'and' after the comma. You could change the comma to a semi-colon, or you could change the comma to a period. "Raise one up to knock 'em down" This is a complete sentence. It needs a period at the end, or a semi-colon since it goes so well with the next line. "Forcing me to honor your traditions / that you value more than me." This is an incomplete sentence. You could change the period to a comma, but the next line doesn't sound like it should be part of this sentence. The easiest fix would be taking out the 'that' so it will read, "Forcing me to honor your traditions, you value [them?] more than me" or something similar. ""For you something you will never need." I assume that first 'you' is a typo. "If I don't stop drinking I will die." This may be up to personal preference, but usually a subordinate clause ("If I don't stop drinking") is followed by a comma if it begins a sentence. (i.e. "If I don't stop drinking[,] I will die" Overall, I like this poem a great deal! The imagery is good, the wording flows nicely, and I happen to share the sentiment for the most part. I found this a very enjoyable read, but it could use an edit. 4.0 sound perfect to me. Well done and keep up the good work! This review was done as a task for:
 ***** Review of:
This is a really nice poem. I think anyone who can write a good villanelle poem is doing well. First, some things I like: "And I shall follow your steps in the sand;" While I'm not religious myself, I understand this line and much of the other religious imagery. You did very well with it. "Such Mastery! How can I understand?" I think that this is a very good line, and thus it is a good line to repeat. Though I don't understand why 'Mastery' is capitalized. I also like the fact that it's a villanelle poem of course! Suggestions: "Truly, it could only come from thy hand, / sprung up splendidly as words you did speak." I found the use of "thy" to be startling and out of place. It would be fantastic if you used this language throughout, but you don't. I don't see why this line needs a 'thy', yet you don't use 'thou' in the next line for 'you'. It just seems a bit odd to me that this is the only time you've used this kind of language. While I'm on the subject of the 'you', isn't any reference to God supposed to be capitalized? As in 'Him', 'Lord', 'You'? I believe this to be the case. "May I walk with you and in the end stand / for without you Lord - I am surely weak." First, this is a question right? It should certainly have a question mark. Second, I think it would be more effective without the dash. I think a simple fix would be "May I walk with you and in the end stand? For without you Lord, I am surely weak." I suppose there should be a comma before 'Lord' too. The flaws here are few, but glaring to my eyes. I was distracted by the seemingly random use of 'thy', and the other sentence I mentioned I needed to read numerous times because of the lack of question mark and the unnecessary dash. It gave it a look of being more wordy than it actually is. I also wasn't wild about the other line that was repeated throughout ("My eyes see beauty so vast and so grand!"). Overall I find this piece to be a 4.0, but with a bit of work it could easily be a 5.0. If you used the old fashioned thy, thou, thine,and the like, I think it would be that much better. Well done! This review was done for:
***** Review of:
This is a short and sweet piece of flash fiction that I really enjoyed reading. I could just imagine my little brother laughing his head off! I bet children would just love this story, particularly young boys. If that was your goal, you achieved it. I normally write about the things I like and make suggestions, but I liked everything and have no suggestions for this piece. Well done! This review was done for as a task for:
***** Review of:
I like this poem quite a bit. Your word usage is very good. There are only a few suggestions I can make. First, I think your use of the etc (...) detracts from this piece. I think it would have more impact with just a period in the second and third uses. For the first use I think it would more powerful with the etc removed and nothing added in its place. "But it’s there, right there" I think there should be a comma after that second 'there'. That's all the suggestions I can make. It's a nearly flawless piece! Well done and write on! This review was done as a task for:
 ***** Review of:
I enjoyed reading this a great deal! Though I do have some suggestions: "As we considered the possibilities and what purchasing a house might entail" I think I would replace the 'and' with 'of' unless this drastically changes the meaning for you. I think it would read more smoothly. "our local bank pre-approved us with a $90,000 loan." Instead of 'us with a', which seems needlessly wordy, 'our' would work nicely. "Realtor.com was the easiest, most informative site chock full of enough listings to boggle the mind." I stumbled over this line a bit. Perhaps a comma after site would make it flow better. Though I think splitting it into two sentences would work very well. "...informative site. It was chock full..." "...district we wanted for our son and would keep us close to our..." Changing 'and' to 'that' would make sense to me. But it's strictly a personal preference. "Yes, taxes was one of them." I don't think taxes is a collective (pun intended). Is it supposed to be 'taxes were'? I'm not one hundred percent positive, but I think so. Perhaps switching it around to say "Yes, one of them was taxes." would be the easiest solution. "...we chose was available, too." This just looks and sounds funny. Perhaps 'we had chosen was available.' "The drop in interest rates would allow us to up the ante and to look deeper into the neighborhood we desired for a home that would serve our long term needs, a place where we could settle in and not fear having to fix up." This sentence seems overly long to me. There are any number of ways to break it into two sentences, and I think it would be easier to read if you did. Perhaps "would allow us to up the ante. It would also allow us to..." or something similar. There really are lots of ways to do it. "$106,000 to 129,000." Missing the second dollar sign or is this a rule I'm unfamiliar with? I never write about money so I'm not entirely sure! "was divorced with two grown children and about to remarry." I think a 'was' after the 'and' would help reduce stumbling over this sentence. " It had seemed our destiny to find this home, so we had to seal the deal." Just a personal preference again, but I don't like using 'so' unless it's necessary. I think a semi-colon here would bring the impact to this line that it deserves! "find this home; we had to" Overall I thought this was a fun and somewhat sentimental read. I was not expecting it to be. I have had much the same experience! My husband and I lived in an apartment for seven years and went house shopping as soon as we found out I was pregnant. It's always amazing to find just that perfect house for you. It happened with us as well, and we got ours much like you did. We offered and the rejected until one day they said 'Alright!'. I think the wording for this piece could use a bit of work, though it was really good for the most part. It could definitely use a good edit. As it is now I think a 3.5 is fair, but I really enjoyed it, and it has a lot of potential! Congrats on getting your dream home! This review was done as a task for:
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| “But I’m scared!” Tommy shouted down to his friend. “There is no reason to be afraid. I am here with you!” His furry friend yelled. Tommy opened his eyes and looked down. He saw the giant talking raccoon, his best friend Corby, peering up at him. Then he noticed the sand beneath Corby’s clawed feet. It was so far down! Tommy squeezed his eyes closed once more. He clung tighter to the scaly bark of the tree that he found himself stranded in. “Corby, I can’t get down! Go get Mom!” Tommy wailed, not opening his eyes. “But I know you can do it. Just take it slow and don’t look down.” Corby said as he scratched behind his black ear with a delicate paw. As if on cue, Tommy looked down once more. His best friend was still standing below him. Corby had not had any trouble climbing out of the tree. Feeling dizzy, Tommy shouted, “Please! Just go to the beach house and get Mom! I can’t climb down!” Corby rubbed his nose with both paws. This, Tommy knew, meant that Corby was thinking hard. “Okay. Jump then.” “Jump! Are you crazy?” Tommy’s belly flipped and flopped at the thought of jumping from his perch. With teary eyes he called down once more, “Please just go get her!” “No. You know your mom doesn’t like me, Tommy. Climbing down might be scary for a few minutes, but jumping will only be scary for a few seconds!” Corby’s words made sense to Tommy, but he still did not want to jump from the tree. “But I will hurt myself if I jump!” “No, you wont. I will catch you!” said Corby with confidence. “I know you’re strong, but I don’t think you can catch me,” said the scared young boy. “What if I crush you?” “You wont crush me! I’m too tough to be crushed!” The fur on Corby’s striped tail got bushier. Tommy could tell that he had hurt Corby’s feelings. “Well, are you sure I wont hurt myself?” Tommy asked in a shaky voice. Corby nodded and waited with his short arms outstretched. Tommy took a deep breath and tried to be brave. “Okay, Corby. On the count of three alright? Make sure you catch me!” Tommy closed his eyes as tight as he could. He eased his grip on the bark and counted, “One… Two… Three!” He leaped from the tree limb and fell through the air for what felt like a long time. Tommy slammed into the ground hard, landing on his hands and knees. After a moment of shock he started crying. “Corby! You dropped me!” Before he could say another word to his friend, his mother was at his side. “Thomas Michael! Are you alright?” his mother asked while feeling his arms and legs for broken bones. Tommy sniffled and wiped his nose on his sleeve. “I’m okay, Mom. I was just surprised is all. Corby said he was going to catch me.” “Tommy! You know imaginary friends can’t catch you!” his mother scolded gently. “But Corby isn’t imaginary! He’s real!” Tommy shouted. His bottom lip trembled and he tried hard not to cry again. His mother hugged him gently and said, “Okay! I was just coming out to tell you that your lunch is ready. How does a peanut butter sandwich sound?” “Good! I’m hungry!” Tommy said as he climbed to his feet. He took his mothers hand and began walking toward the kitchen. “Can Corby have one too?” “Yes, of course. Corby will have one too.” |
| Season five of the Author’s Spotlight has been a mixed blessing for me. At times I really enjoyed myself. Other times I was tempted to rip my hair out in frustration. Which of these two emotions will become more prominent remains to be seen. Right now, I have had enjoyment and frustration in equal amounts. Some of the prompts have been worded in a confusing fashion. The one that springs immediately to mind is the “Editor’s Take” for Day Four. This could be taken to mean a number of things. I assumed it meant an editorial. If that were the case, I could not imagine why the word ‘editorial’ was not used. Another participant thought it meant the article was to be ‘edited’. For example, having an extra copy of the article where the editor had gone through and suggested changes to make it more dramatic. This made sense to me as well. I still am unaware which, if either, it was intended to mean. There were a few such cases, and they always made me anxious. The group task has been unfulfilling and uneventful thus far. Members of the group come and go. They are active for a moment and disappear the next. No one seems able to make a decision for the group. Because no one wants to make others in the group unhappy, we are getting nowhere fast. I will be writing a verse for our song, but I have no idea when the others will get theirs done. Oddly enough, this leads me directly into the most fun aspect of the Author’s Spotlight. I have made friends in my group that I will continue to speak to long after this contest ends. As indecisive as we all are as a group, each person is very nice and talented from what I have seen. I will miss not having a reason to speak with them as often when the contest is over. If we don’t win the group task, there will be little reason for sadness. I made some new friends. I have also written, and more importantly finished, seven pieces of prose and one poem in the six day run of this contest. There will be more before all is said and done. As I have difficulty finishing anything, this is amazing for me! Of the thirteen works that I have completed in the last ten years, eight have been for the Author’s Spotlight. For this, I am very grateful. I have also been pleased with the quality of a few items I wrote for this competition. You never know when or where inspiration will strike. I think it is remarkable that it has struck me more than once since this contest began! I am an inherently uninspired person. While writing for the Author’s spotlight, I have regained some of my long-stagnant confidence. It was depressing to have written nothing of worth in ten years time. It has done wonders for my ego to have written a few pieces that I like and seem to speak to others. I have lost a great deal of time with my family in the past week, for which I am sorry. What I have gained outweighs what I have lost in most ways. My family will still be here next week, and I with them, but I will have a glow of self-assurance that had dimmed in recent years. Overall, this contest has been good in many ways, and bad in a few ways. In writing this, I have realized that I am happy to have taken part. It no longer ‘remains to be seen’. The enjoyment has outweighed the frustration after all. |
| I imagine the journey of a writer is never an easy one. That has been my experience. It seems that the harder I try, the less people like my work. If I slap together some words that mean nothing to me, it is always well-received. This began as a child and has continued into adulthood. I began writing children’s stories when I was still a child myself. The first was written when I was eight years old. It was about two girls, best friends, who dressed up their cat as a baby. The girls strapped the cat in a stroller and walked around giggling at the foolish adults who believed it was a human child. This story, and many after, were based on personal experience. My best friend and I dressed up her cat in a bib and bonnet. Adults would humor us, and for our part, we believed them. Long after childhood faded, I continued writing stories. My first poem came about by accident. My younger brother had to write a poem for school. Though I had never written poetry before, being two years older made me an expert in all things. I was explaining that a poem just had to rhyme when I spouted a stanza off the top of my head. My brother’s eyes grew wide as he heard the words, ‘There I sat where the willows wept, and the swans sang songs to sweeten the day.’ I felt the stanza to be very good, and set about finishing the poem. Which brings me to the first person who really influenced my writing. Mrs. Clark was my seventh grade teacher. She had taught my older brother years before, and seemed to hate me instantly. Nothing I did was good enough where writing was concerned. Friends who could barely read got higher scores than I did. I decided to wow her with my first poem, “Swan Song”, which I felt was still my best piece. I handed her a wrinkled sheet of white lined paper and asked for her opinion. She made huge sweeping motions with her red pen and handed it back to me. I had switched tenses after the first stanza. I asked her if she thought it sounded nice. She replied that what it sounded like didn’t matter because the grammar was wrong. I was crushed. I had a moment like this with my own mother as well. I didn’t typically let her read my poetry, but one day I showed her a piece that I thought was really good. She read it and shook her head at me. I had used the words ‘the gods up above’, and this offended my Christian mother. I told her that it just sounded better that way. She told me, once again, that how it sounded didn’t matter. For many years thereafter, I wrote poetry daily. It always rhymed and never had anything to do with strong emotions, but I got a great deal of joy from it. I also had learned never to share my poetry with anyone. This changed when I was a senior in High School. I took a creative writing class with Dallas Landry, which changed my style greatly. Of course he was concerned with grammar, but he was far more concerned with the concepts and feelings behind poetry. We could curse, write on any topic, and have no punctuation or capital letters. Dallas set my mind free from the chains of education and enabled me to write poetry from the heart. He also encouraged me greatly when it came to writing prose. He insisted that I had talent and that he enjoyed my work. Ever since, I’ve had a certain amount of confidence in my writing ability. Unfortunately I’m a very uninspired person with nothing to write about. I am slowly trying to change this and write for the sake of writing. With the help of many prompts, much like those Dallas had given me, I am accomplishing this goal. If left to my own devices, I try to make things perfect. Too perfect. I lose interest long before completing the piece. As of this moment, I have been writing again for one month. I had not completed a single poem or story since my creative writing course ended ten years prior. With the help of prompts and contests I have finished ten pieces in the last thirteen days. It is a struggle, but nothing in life that’s worth doing is easy. Word Count: 749 |
There has been no response yet from Sara - will be back soon  or Sairyn Raine . The questions asked can be found below, as well as a full interview with JoDe .Interview with Sara Ann 1. You win the lottery! Who is the first person that you will buy a gift for? What will the present be, and why? Hmm. I think I would buy my brother's college education (in a couple years, of course). It would help my parents greatly! 2. You go on a fantastic vacation, and meet someone who quickly becomes a good friend. Addresses are exchanged upon your departure. Are you the type of person who would send off a letter as soon as you got home, or would you procrastinate until it became too awkward to write one? I wouldn't write one right away. I would probably wait a couple of days to a week. 3. If you could bring one dead author back to life to write a single novel, who would it be and why? JANE AUSTEN! I absolutely love her work. When they invent a time machine, I'm going to get on line and go back and meet her! Her work has inspired me greatly. I'm actually currently rereading Mansfield Park. Interview with Aleisha Robert 1. If you could choose one household chore to never do again, what would it be and why? 2. Imagine that you are searching for a new dream home. What would be the first thing, other than the number of rooms, that you would look for and why? 3. If you could change careers and magically have the education needed for the job, what would you want to be? If you would keep your present job, why? Interview with JoAnneDeWitt 1. What was your favorite childhood game, and why was it your favorite? For some reason, 'Park & Shop'--which is weird--because I detest shopping. If you aren't familiar with the game, you had to get from your house to a parking lot (one die/'cause car only has one motor) and then go from shop to shop (with two dice/'cause you've got two feet) You were given a number of shop cards--and you had to finish your 'shopping' and get back to your car--and then back to your house. The only thing I can say about it is that I do make lots of lists and prioritize fairly well...so perhaps it wasn't a waste of time after all. 2. If you could visit any country in the world that you’ve not been to before, where would you go and why? This is tough...my first is instinct is to the British Isles...because I am an anglophile. I would like to experience all those little villages I've seen on years of Masterpiece Theatre, and see Scotland and Ireland. I'd like to experience the history of the place. But, I am torn. New Zeland has such a variety of terrains--it would be almost like touring the entire world. Everytime we watch 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy, I marvel at how they go from rolling, grassy hills to mountains, to forrests of ferns and huge trees, and then to snow covered mountains. Decisions...decisions...decisions....but in the end, I'm a history buff--so the British Isles. 3. Have you ever volunteered for any kind of community service (reading at a retirement home, cleaning on Earth Day, working a booth for a community function, etc)? If yes, what did you do, and if not do you intend to do so one day? I did volunteer for 'Reading Seeds', a program to help elementary school kids (primarily third & fourth graders) read and comprehend better. I was very disappointed in the program. The principal of the school I worked at was great! Most volunteers have only two kids to work with--once a week for a half an hour. I had a fifth grader, who had apparently been helped by a few years in the program and they wanted to keep him on-track until middle school. His teacher was supportive and caring AND worked with me. He would keep after the boy and even make deals with him to give up recess to work with me sometimes because of scheduling conflicts. And I had two third graders--who happened to be in the same class. The first was a Korean boy who read English extremely well--he had been included in the program just for more reading practice and maybe a little help in grasping more subtle things like English colloquialisms. The second boy was the only one who really NEEDED the program. But when I tried to discuss him with the teacher, she told me (and I quote), "Oh, don't waste you time on him." I always found him co-operative and eager, but I was fighting a losing battle--I got him one half hour a week--maybe! She had him almost thirty-five hours a week, and she had already decided he wasn't worth her effort and tossed him aside. This discouraged me greatly. Also, I found that I was - I don't want to say sick - but 'not well' every week. I spent my Monday mornings at the school, and would have some minor complaint every week. One of my friends is a grammar school teacher and refers to kids as 'little Petri dishes'. I had not believed her before this. To a certain extent, teachers are amazing just for surviving their pupils. After my nephew graduates from high school and returns to Connecticut, maybe I'll try again. But for right now...I'm done. |
| Two-Headed Child Becomes Millionaire Virulent Chemical Corporation Settles Out of Court By Sally Sultry Needling Press GRUBBINGTON - A sleepy little town in the heart of Georgia received a shock five years ago when a chemical dumping site was found near Taint Basin. Located in the Grubbington Hills area, the Basin serves as the town's primary water source. Locals were outraged to learn that Virulent Chemical Corporation (VCC) had decided to make the name Taint Basin into a description more than a title! The effects of the toxic chemicals being released into Grubbington’s water supply has allegedly caused a number of strange deformations amongst its residents. One Eleanor Spot, whose hair has turned a startling shade of violet, had a great deal to say about this scandal and VCC’s participation in the illegal dumping. “Jus’ look what they done to mah beautiful hair! If mah Pappy were alive tuh-day he‘da stood up in his grave and flipped that ol‘ Virbulen Chemical Core the bird! I don’ care what that Chemical Core says, mah hair wouldn’ta turned this coluh on it’s own!” She stopped for a moment before continuing, “Atleas’ I don’ think so!” Many of her neighbors feel the same way. Or at least they think they do. One such neighbor is Ms. Janice Winsome, whose 10 year old son, Conrad, has been dubbed ‘Two-Head’ by his classmates. Sadly, young Two-Head has been bathing, drinking and gargling this poisoned water for half of his life, and it has caused a drastic change in his appearance. He now has a head-sized, benign tumor growing from his neck. The bumpy skin looks so much like a face that this reporter expected head number two to wink at her! When questioned, the boy’s second head did not respond. His first, however, had this to say: “Mah friends hurt mah feelin’s a lot at school. We sued VCC for emo-shun damage! I could get mah tumah removed, but Mama won’ lemme.” When questioned about the possibility of getting the tumor removed, Ms. Winsome said that if God wanted him to have the tumor she was not going to have it removed. She was then asked why they weren’t suing Him instead of VCC. The response was an icy glare. Ms. Winsome began the process of suing VCC six months before the matter was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum. Winsome claimed that she could not recall the exact sum, a statement that this reporter is inclined to believe. VCC representative, Kurt Savage, stated in a press release early Monday morning that the rumors of a million dollar settlement were ludicrous. He commented further, saying only that the Winsomes got “enough bread to feed both heads for a few years”. Our sources, however, put the figure at nearly $1.2 million, making Conrad the richest two-headed person alive. When asked what he planned to do with his money, Two-Head responded, “I dunno. Is that enough fuh a new bike?” According to our sources, yes. See TWO-HEAD | Page 12 The Two-Headed Boy A Second Look Editorial by Joan Tangle Senior Editor - Needling Press In order to obtain an objective view on this startling issue, Needling’s readers must hear both sides of the story. And I do not mean from head one and head two! Unfortunately, Virulent Chemical Corporation was unwilling to answer most of our questions. We asked John Fault, Senior Vice President of Finance, for comments on the Winsome settlement. “I think the Winsomes are crooks! Just because that boy is an inbred freak doesn’t mean that…” At this point, the phone was taken over by another representative who tried his best to gloss over the comments of his colleague. When asked for details about the case, the representative, who refused to give his name or title, had this to say: “The only reason that we agreed to settle this situation out of court was to spare that child the embarrassment. The Winsomes certainly would have lost the case, but Janice Winsome would stop at nothing to get some money. That includes doing irreversible damage to the child’s ego. We had no desire to drag the poor boy into court. We gave them a settlement large enough to see that the child’s second hea… excuse me, tumor, could be removed. While I do hope that this settlement gives Conrad Winsome the ability to live a normal life, I very much doubt that his mother will let him see a dime of the money. Still, being a civil-minded corporation, we at VCC thought that it was worth the risk.” When asked to comment on the actual amount of the settlement, the anonymous representative had nothing to say. Despite numerous attempts to contact other members of the VCC faculty and legal representatives, we received no answers. Our readers deserve to know the truth of this matter! Did Conrad “Two-Head” Winsome receive enough money for an operation? Or did he receive far more, as our sources have informed us? Needling Press demands answers! We at Needling Press would also like to extend our congratulations to the Winsomes for duping a major corporation out of some unneeded funds. Conrad, we salute you. Twice! Word Count: 863 |
| Beep. Beep. Beep. I roll over, trying to hit the snooze button, but miss. Too late. My husband groans and stretches, no doubt wishing he hadn‘t drunk so many martinis the previous night. 'But the gin is great, and the vermouth is expensive!' had been his slurred explanation. I close my eyes and hope he isn’t too grouchy. The bed springs creak as he stands and heads for the bathroom. Rattle. Rattle. Aspirin tablets jump out of their plastic bottle. There is a muffled waterfall, followed a few minutes later by a flush. Soon water bounces off the walls of the shower. I stagger to my feet and head for the stairs with my bathrobe swishing over my shoulders. The coffee pot gurgles as its timer goes off. Metal clangs against metal as I retrieve a frying pan from a low cupboard. Thump. Thump. My daughter’s bottom hits the last two stairs, and she tumbles into the kitchen muttering. “You left your rollerblades on the stairs again. Didn’t I ask you to pick them up last night?” “Yes,” comes the mumbled response from my apple-cheeked young daughter. Her bare feet patter across the linoleum floor. Crack. Fizz. Crack. Fizz. Crack. Fizz. Eggshells discarded, three eggs sizzle in the frying pan. A few strips of bacon join the eggs, hissing and popping. My husband enters, clearing his throat. He grabs a coffee cup and pouring replaces the gurgling for a moment. His chair at the head of the table squeaks in protest as he sits down and starts rustling the morning newspaper. I peer over at my daughter from my place near the stove. She rubs her eyes and yawns. “So are you going to move those rollerblades?” “I’ll do it after breakfast!” I cock an eyebrow at her exasperated sigh. “Come on, Mom! I swear I’ll move them right after I eat!” she whined. Click. The radio blasts. My husband hums along to a Beach Boys tune as he reads the sports section. Cereal pings into a bowl to his left. “Carrie Ann! I’m making you eggs!” She scrunches up her face and pretends to vomit. A hand slams down on the table as her father shouts, “That’s enough of that young lady!” The jolt from his falling hand upsets the bowl of cheerios, which cascade over the edge of the table and roll throughout the kitchen. Trying to catch the bowl, he upsets his coffee cup. Splash! “Damnit! Now I’ve got to change!” he snarls as he stomps back up the stairs with coffee dripping from his tie. Orange juice sloshes from pitcher to glass. My daughter slurps at her drink while crunching a piece of toast smothered with Smucker’s Concord Grape jelly. Her chair scrapes across the linoleum as she pushes it back. The vase in the center of the table teeters, and I brace myself for a crash that never comes. She jumps up and races over to the stairs, clomping after her father. I glance out the window at the squirrel chittering in our neighbor’s tree as I wet a rag to mop up the spilled coffee. My husband pounds back down the stairs. “Sorry, honey! I’m going to be late for work,” he bellows as he yanks open the front door. The car’s engine rumbles and trash cans clang as he bumps over the curb on his way down the driveway. My daughter rushes into the kitchen, smacks a kiss on my cheek, and heads for the door. “Bye Mom!” she calls over the still blaring radio. “What about your rollerblades?” I grumble as the door slams behind her. Air whooshes around my head as I fling open a cupboard door to grab a container for leftovers. It shuts with a muted clink. Plop. Plop. Plop. The untouched eggs and bacon fall into the Tupperware dish. A wheezing breath escapes from its corner before I slap down the lid. I slide over to the radio and snap it off. Much deserved silence permeates my soul as I wander upstairs to get dressed, and I find myself wondering if this is to be my station in life. Am I to be the one whose voice rises above the din? I snort back a bitter chuckle. Keeping the family together through mundane and unnoticed tasks is a dirty job, but that's where I stand in this household. And that's where I stand in history. Word Count: 711 |
| I was married once. Aside from a few burnt omelets everything was going great! That was before my Writing.com addiction kicked into full swing. Well, it didn’t kick into full swing so much as rocket! One day I was a normal person, and the next I was a sleep-deprived crazy woman in a bathrobe and curlers, staring endlessly at a computer screen over mountains of coffee cups. Soon after, my husband began to notice his omelet’s char to egg ratio was on the rise. It wasn’t long before every meatloaf or fish stick looked like a charcoal briquette. He was about to leave for work one day, when he commented on my recent shift toward uni-colored food and the ever present dishes “soaking” in the sink. I told him that he hurt my feelings. His response? “Why don’t you go on Writing.com and write a stupid poem about it!” So I did! When he got home, he took a look at me and our rubbish heap of a home. I never knew an accountant could sprint like that! He didn’t just leave me. He hurdled the mailman! It wasn’t long before I started dating again, and I found the perfect guy! He was a Writing.com junkie himself. Our first argument came about when I refused to call him by anything but his handle! I guess he didn’t approve of being called LovintheWritin in public. This relationship didn’t last long. It seems that calling out “Oh WDC!” in bed is unacceptable even to a Writing.com junkie! What did I do with my new found freedom? I began my own review group. We only review items that are about writing.com! That’s the only topic worth reading about anyway. It’s strange that there’s only one person in the ‘Writing.com is the Only Genre’ group. Maybe if I wrote a series about vampires taking over the website people would join! I guess others just aren’t as crazy about Writing.com as I am. Everyone is always talking about how they have to get going because they need sleep, or need to go to work, or need to get back to their lives. They just don’t know what they’re missing! Why have a life of your own, when you can just write about having one on Writing.com? Word Count: 381 |
| “Why did I do this?” I wondered aloud. Of course, I already knew the answer. I wanted to be appreciated. I wanted to be alone. I wanted to be treated as an equal! At that moment, all I wanted was to survive. I took a quick look over the edge of the park bench-sized ledge on which I found myself. The view made me feel faint. I returned my helmeted head to it’s resting place against the rock and resumed chipping away at the wall to my left. My small utility knife would be useless soon, but it gave me something to focus on. I never would have found myself in this position if it weren’t for Kim Connor. Connor had been working in the Tharsis region of Mars longer than anyone else employed by NASA. He acted as though he owned the entire planet, but it was to be expected. Connor was a volcanologist, tephrochronologist, and an expert on Martian topography. In short, he was the best man to lead a reconnaissance expedition in the Tharsis Bulge. I had been excited to explore Olympus Mons, the highest mountain and volcano in the Solar System. Being a lowly geologist, my opinion did not matter to one so highly educated as Kim Connor. We had spent six weeks going over some of the other volcanoes in the Bulge. I felt as though we had gone over Pavonis Mons grain by grain, yet there was no end in sight. Doctor Connor refused to move on to Olympus Mons, insisting that we needed to survey the other enormous volcanoes in the area before tackling a job as big as Olympus. One morning as I leaned over a small pile of stones collected from the eastern side of Pavonis, I caught the end of a heated conversation. My comm crackled for a moment as the men came into range. I could make out one of the voices as no other than Kim Connor. The other, though muffled, sounded like one of the newly acquired technicians whose names I had forgotten. It seemed that the technician shared my opinion; he wanted to go to Olympus Mons. You’re wasting your breath, kid. I bent back over the specimens I had been working on, but my thoughts stayed on the young technician. That was when I came up with the worst idea of my short life. Later that day, I went to find the technicians and inquired about the man I heard arguing with Connor. The voice had belonged to a young sandy-haired man named Jake, who turned out to be every bit as anxious to reach Olympus as I was. Changing our comm settings to lock onto each other’s signal, we had a brief private conversation in which I illuminated my brilliant scheme. Jake was eager and willing to try. We decided to meet at 02:00 the next morning at The Pits located very near where my rock samples were collected. The Pits was the recon team’s nickname for the line of eye-shaped pits that flanked the eastern side of Pavonis. When I reached our rendezvous point at 01:00, Jake was waiting for me. We set out, circling the base of Pavonis to the Northwest where Olympus Mons waited patiently for us. As time passed, I began regretting my decision to meet on the Eastern flank, but it was the least conspicuous course we could have chosen. I got to know Jake very little during the trip, each of us in our own crawlers. This was just as well in the long run. You can’t mourn long for someone you never really knew. After many hours inside my crawler, we finally made it to our destination. Olympus Mons was directly ahead, and I allowed myself a moment of premature but joyous whooping. Jake and I had a steep cliff to scale before we could reach whatever treasures lay in wait on Olympus. Jake reached the cliff before I did. I thought at the time that he was incredibly fast but in retrospect, not fast enough. When I pulled up we unloaded our weighting gear and set to work, climbing as quickly as we could. Jake made better time than I did. He was nearly 20 feet above me when our comms stopped working. Finding it impossible to communicate while using our arms and legs to cling to the rock, we climbed in silence. I saw the falling stone before Jake did. He tried to swing himself out of the way, but the medicine ball-sized chunk of the Martian landscape hurtled toward him too quickly. Before I could even gasp, the stone had dropped out of sight taking Jake with it. Though in shock, I had the good sense to continue climbing before my strength was depleted. If my sense was really good, I would have climbed down. I had made it past the halfway mark when my foot slipped. I tried to find another foothold, but the fingers of my left hand were losing their grip. I managed a single scream as I plummeted toward the alien ground below. My next recollection was that of excruciating pain emanating from my right ankle. This was followed almost immediately by the exhilarating importance of such pain. I was alive! When I opened my eyes, the invigoration dissipated as rapidly as it had come. I found myself stuck on a ledge just big enough to hold my small frame, and my ankle was bent at an unnatural angle. I weighed my options, which were few, before I pulled out my utility blade. I began chopping the rock beside me, giving the wall’s surface a tiny nick with each sweep of my arm. I would make sure that everyone knew I hadn’t lost my sense of humor. Damn you, Kim Connor! I twisted my shoulders just enough to lie flat on my back, and surveyed my work before closing my eyes one last time. KY WAS HERE. Word Count: 997 |
I have chosen to interview Legerdemain  and kiyasama. No response has been received at this time from kiyasama, but Leger's can be found below.Interview with Leger 1. It has been raining every day for three weeks. Just when you think the storm will never pass, you hear that tomorrow’s forecast calls for sunshine! Luckily, tomorrow happens to be your day off, and you have the entire day to do whatever you want. What do you do? Wring out the stuff I left on the line before the rain started. LOL And go have a picnic in the park. 2. If you could go to dinner with any fictional character, literary or non-literary, who would you ask and where would you take them? Wile E. Coyote, we'd have a talk about a hostile takeover at the ACME factory and improve the situation over there. 3. You enter a hallway in a long abandoned mental hospital. This hallway is lined with doors that are closed and locked. One door is slightly ajar. Do you peek in or keep going? Uh, yeah, I'm a peeker. 4. Imagine that you are a vegetable, and you have the choice to be served either cooked or raw. Which would you choose and why? I'd need a good grilling first or some poor cannibal would have a coronary. 5. If you were a stand-up comedian being heckled by an audience member in the middle of your act, what would you do? Life is one big heckler, isn't it? I'd just laugh and keep moving along. Interview with iKïyå§ama 1. It has been raining every day for three weeks. Just when you think the storm will never pass, you hear that tomorrow’s forecast calls for sunshine! Luckily, tomorrow happens to be your day off, and you have the entire day to do whatever you want. What do you do? Movies. Movies. Movies! As in going to the actual theater...yeah, I know it's still indoors, but I love watching movies. What can I say? *lol* 2. If you could go to dinner with any fictional character, literary or non-literary, who would you ask and where would you take them? I would ask Mark Twain for dinner. I could use a few of his satirical social commentary and would love to see how or what he could churn up for our world today. I have no doubt if he was still alive, he'd have a lot to say. 3. You enter a hallway in a long abandoned mental hospital. This hallway is lined with doors that are closed and locked. One door is slightly ajar. Do you peek in or keep going? What would I be doing in an abandoned mental hospital in the first place?! I've seen enough horror movies to know that you don't go sticking your head into a situation that's none of your business in the first place. So I guess my answer would be...run the heck away from there! Wait a sec...unless the door was actually leading out of the building, then I might reconsider. 4. Imagine that you are a vegetable, and you have the choice to be served either cooked or raw. Which would you choose and why? Raw. Cooking makes me all soft and mushy. 5. If you were a stand-up comedian being heckled by an audience member in the middle of your act, what would you do? Make the best of the situation. Use the heckler as part of my stand up routine. That should keep him or her quiet, and get the audience on my side. A copy of my email to Legerdemain can be found below. A copy was sent to kiyasama which was identical but for 'Hello Kiyasama' in place of the 'Hello Leger'.Hello Leger, I have written to request a brief interview with you. The interview is being conducted for "AUTHORS' SPOTLIGHT - Season 6" . I know your time is valuable, but if you could answer the questions below it would be greatly appreciated.1. It has been raining every day for three weeks. Just when you think the storm will never pass, you hear that tomorrow’s forecast calls for sunshine! Luckily, tomorrow happens to be your day off, and you have the entire day to do whatever you want. What do you do? 2. If you could go to dinner with any fictional character, literary or non-literary, who would you ask and where would you take them? 3. You enter a hallway in a long abandoned mental hospital. This hallway is lined with doors that are closed and locked. One door is slightly ajar. Do you peek in or keep going? 4. Imagine that you are a vegetable, and you have the choice to be served either cooked or raw. Which would you choose and why? 5. If you were a stand-up comedian being heckled by an audience member in the middle of your act, what would you do? You can make your answers as brief or as long as you care to. If you do not want to be my interviewee, I understand. I do request that you please let me know if you prefer to decline. Thank you for your time, Cinnamon |
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