Athelstone

A never-forgotten Christmas

The telegram sent by my new-made grandfather, telling my father of my safe arrival, at five minutes to midnight on the twentieth December (and, according to my great-grandfather’s fish scales, weighing 6lbs 4 ozs) is explanation enough of why I don’t remember my first Christmas. To establish whether it was my sec…[Read more]

Running the Christmas Gauntlet

Brace yourself, girl. Everywhere is going to be madness today. Most of the throng will be feeling much the same way … which means shouting and kids screaming; means shoving and pushing … but take a deep breath. Concentrate on the list. You’ve successfully run the Christmas shopping gauntlet before.

The veget…[Read more]

Thank you, Terrie! And congratulations on a truly creepy story, Ath. And Jill for a heart-warming, magical tale – exactly right for the time of year.

Jill  –  a heart-warming  tale  with a hint  of  caution and a happy ending as  luckily the fairies didn’t try to whisk  Ellie away.

The warmth between Ellie and her grandma really shone through and I enjoyed how you blended something modern with a fairy tale too.

Libby  – I tried to  leave the scope  of the  challenge   a  little open…[Read more]

Only one more  day remaining  for anyone  thinking about submitting   something  for  the   November    competiton .

You asked for a heart-warming tale, Terrie, but my story, after I started it and got stuck, became the opposite. You’re welcome to disqualify it or not read it at all.

Content warning: includes postnatal depression

499 words including title

I Lied When I Said My Daughter Lived Abroad

After that walk up and down a steep crag, I sat beside t…[Read more]

Sorry, Terrie, no way do I have head space to do anything for this. Will aim to Do Better next time

I expect lots of you, like me,  are  creating and drafting  exciting  entries  for the  September  Song  competition  but  dont forget  there are only  fourteen days until the  monthly (November ) competition closes  and i’m looking forward to  reading  your entries for that  too .

Thank you for choosing  my  entry  Libby.

All the other entries  were of  such high  calibre  I had  been  thinking  ‘I’m glad  I’m not the one having to  chose one  above the others’  and now that’s going to be  my  dilemma at the end of  Novembers  competition  challenge .

What fabulous entries, all of them fantastical, brilliant and captivating. Halloween has prompted very good stories.

@jillsted – here was an enticing mystery with a comic touch. Told with great pacing and a strong atmosphere of folk tale, it hooked me from start to finish.

@purplewitch (Terrie) – what wonderful creepiness. I loved the rich lan…[Read more]

A reminder for anyone who, like me, forget this month’s competition deadline is tonight: the October monthly comp deadline is midnight tonight! You might have a suitable WIP hiding away somewhere…

This the result of apending 5 days writing with a gathering of Self-Edit participants.

Games people play

Monday morning’s plumping of the pillows of our marital bed effortful, thanks to both sleep and sex absent as snow in August throughout the weekend. Similarly,  energy enough to dissipate the sourness of my reaction when I noticed  the wor…[Read more]