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As January is the start of the New Year my obvious thought was New year – new beginnings – but then I thought let’s widen that theme of ‘New’, so write about anything new that motivates, or perhaps daunts, you, or the main character/s of your story.
Think….New Year resolution. New crime scene. New house. New relationship. New car. New baby. New planet suddenly appearing in the heavens… New anything…..
Write about this ‘new thing’ based in fact or fiction in whatever way sparks your creative mojo.
Not including any title you give your offering, you have up to 500 words, if you need them, just have fun.
Winds of Change 460 words
The New Year came in accompanied by a furious gale. Undeterred, Eva wrapped up warm and left her husband sleeping off the New Year’s Eve excesses.
She sat on the bench up on the hill which overlooked the northern town where she had lived all her life to this point. As she mused upon all the happy and sadder times, a flutter within caused her to lay a gentle hand upon her stomach. She smiled to herself.
‘Winds of change,’ she murmured and closed her eyes, needing to capture this moment; this place firmly in her mind’s eye. Tomorrow, she and Danny would lock up their small terraced house and venture forth upon the first stage of their new adventure – a nondescript chain hotel near to the airport.
The hotel on the Mediterranean island was, in complete contrast, a riot of colour and festivity and the couple relaxed in the sunshine looking out over the blue sea and talked of the opportunities this next phase in their life together would bring. After a week, they moved into the bungalow the company had provided as part of Danny’s prestigious promotion package. They set about nest building.
A few months later, a glass of sparkling water by her side, Eva lay back in her chair on the bungalow’s terrace and let out a contented sigh. After the heat of the day, the balmy breeze was very welcome.
‘Winds of change,’ she mused once more as the image of that northern hillside came unbidden into her mind. As if in agreement, her unborn baby stirred vigorously.
‘Not long now, baby, before we meet you and begin yet another chapter,’ she whispered.
Danny called to her as he returned home from work. ‘Come on, lazybones! Time to get changed or we will be late for the company’s gala dinner.’
Reluctantly, Eva roused herself and went inside to shower and change.
Since arriving, although Danny worked hard at his new job and she had occupied herself making the bungalow into a real home for them and their unborn child, her life had seemed one long round of formal dinners, dances and wifely excursions to the beach for group picnics and to historical sites to gain insights into present and past culture of the island. She was feeling exhausted, even though she had help from a motherly local woman with the household chores. She sometimes longed for the quieter pace of life they had lived in England and hoped that, when the baby arrived, she would be able to excuse herself honourably from some of the events at least.
One month later, Eva and Danny stood hand in hand, smiling down at newborn Dawn, as a warm breeze filtered in through the patio doors of the bungalow.
Fingers crossed, yet another resolution
New book and a new – and very welcome – experience for me: a “How To” write book received as a birthday present which I found many times more compelling, educational; entertaining and personally useful than the many “How To” books on writing I own: a dozen on my bookshelves, and knowledge of one discarded as not even being worthy of its slender shelf room.) I admit the title was a little daunting – “How to write like Tolstoy” when the only time I tried reading him was when, having gone into labour with my first born, four and a half weeks early (and I novel-informed of hours of straining agony) I took ‘Anna Karenina’ into hospital with me. Don’t think I made much past the fourth page, so any thought of attempting to emulate Tolstoy’s writing never happened) But Richard Cohen’s book grabbed my attention from the first, I found it compelling, amusing – the chapter on writing sex scenes is titled ‘Just like Zorro ‘ – apt and educational and have inserted several Post-it notes for further action on my current wip from ideas gained from chapters on Points of view – a new approach to structure seems an idea worth trying – and Rhythm in prose writing , and as 2026 is the sixth or maybe the twelfth year ‘Finish ‘Snap’ – the fifth novel in my ‘Love triangles with murder’ series – has been a resolution I’d better get on with it. Thanks for the prompt, Terrie
[230 words]
Just a reminder that there is less that a week until the the January comp ends and there are only a couple of entries so far . If you have something you think will fit the fairly broad remit of the theme then do please submit it .
500 words
Jim’s ballet exercises weren’t about dancing, they were about muscle fitness, until he was bent over, clutching the Aga rail which was his barre, and the shooting pains in his back were a quiversful of landed arrows. Gasping for breath he thought of that painting of St Sebastian, a dreary affair in his view, inspirational of nothing. But, ha! Sceptics’ revenge, his only view now was downwards to old baggy trousers, feet in thick wellie socks, and a circle of floor. Jessie his dog walked over to add to the small selection of sights.
‘No fool like an old fool, Jess,’ he said to her cocked head and keen blue eyes.
It had started as a new-year resolution to unstiffen his body, the YouTube videos of a ballerina, basic steps she’d said, and him ready to believe, never mind her looking about eighteen with the suppleness to match. Bodies were the same underneath and him being heavy and solid was proof of strength. The years spent wrestling with stubborn sheep, which activity needed many pushes and pulls, which were surely good. Lifting of hay and straw bales: muscle building. Walks over hilly fields: cardiovascular health. But for a while everything had been slower and the getting on and off the quad bike stiffer, especially in the winter cold. Meanwhile, Jess jumped into the back of the bike and leapt out again when sheep needed gathering. Low to the ground she went, stealthy, slinking, beauty in motion.
At the Aga he pushed the tea-towels and oven mitts aside, curled calloused hands into a good grip and summoned the old work-ethic, but for different reasons. The tasks: get to the kitchen table to sit down, but first stand up straight.
Another load of arrows. Or electrical shocks. Down he went, bent over again, forced to it, showing Jess a cruel mimicry of the movement copied from the ballerina. It had started well. He’d stood in first position, heels together, feet Charlie Chaplin, one hand on the rail. Bend forward first with a with a straight back, said the girl, weight going through your toes. Now curve your back downwards. Her free arm had swept widely and elegantly to the floor, like a bloke bowing at some old-fashioned dance.
Doubled over, Jim shuffled to the table while the dancer still sent out instructions. His wife found him a while later, the video thankfully finished. She listened to the tale.
‘Right,’ she said. ‘Let’s look at the NHS website.’
What heaviness of mortality was held in those words.
During the next few days he recovered while his wife and neighbours looked after the sheep, and he promised not to try ballet again. From the house he looked across the farmyard, where the cat was sunning himself on the wall in the first hint of warmth January had given. The cat stretched its back, tail up. Jess often did that too. You could learn things from animals. Jim imagined himself on all fours, spine stretched.
Thank you Jill, Sandra and Libby for giving me totally engaging entries composed in three distinct voices. This monthly challenge is always a great showcase for the talents of the members of Den of Writers.
Jill:- Lots of new beginnings in this piece. New start new job new house new baby. A well-crafted thoughtful story with lots of changes happening within it and you captured the theme of the challenge in more ways than one
Sandra :- Like you, Sandra, I have a small pile of ‘How To’ books all of which have been read once and not reopened since so it is good to hear you have discovered one with new approaches that inspire you . I enjoyed the way you cleverly linked the new book with an old memory too.
Libby:-. Just visualizing what he was doing made me smile and wince in equal measure. I enjoyed the wifely, matter of fact, solution to the problem and then laughed out loud at the final sentence which left me with a definite image of a farmer in wellies doing a sort of downward dog. I’m not sure Jim has retained any lessons from his initial foray into keeping fit.
Now for the difficult part of deciding who will take on the task of providing the theme for the next challenge.
Just when I was thinking this was going to be a ‘toss the coin’ choice between Sandra and Jill (because I enjoyed and appreciated them alike), Libby snuck in with an entertaining, slightly darkly humoured, description of Jims keep fit efforts. I truly like all the entries equally for their differing approaches and voice, and I found it tough to decide on one above the others.
After changing my mind several times, and because it tickled my sense of humour, I am going to nominate Libby for her imaginative and witty description of a farmers misguided keep fit efforts.
Well done Libby, like Terrie my mind was contorting to keep up; the wellies adding much to the scene. And thank you Terrie for a theme which was instantly fulfilled (and I’m still re-reading and finding further inspiration, except I can’t get my head around irony)
Congratulations, Libby – I, too, winced but enjoyed the humour in your story. I enjoyed Sandra’s offering also and even picked up a discarded copy of Anna Karenina after the mention, but could not get into it I fear. Thank you,Terrie for setting the challenge and for the kind comments. Mine was fiction but did have echos of much earlier life experiences and it was nice to remember as I wrote. Now looking forward to the February challenge. Jillx
Thank you, Terrie. That’s a lovely surprise! Thank you, Jill and Sandra too. The thrill of a new baby from Jill, with other newnesses too. And Sandra – creative writing books are such a mixed bag. I’m glad you have one which is properly helpful.
I’ll post the February comp later.
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