Emma Robinson

Untitled, 300 words

Tilty Weston opened a tin of smoked mackerel and put half on his plate. Good for your heart, was mackerel, though his trouble was a limp and a few creaky joints. A tomato was next on the plate, and the frilled leaves of a Webb’s lettuce. A fine thing, a Webb’s. A sight of summer here in the half dark, though no surprise the…[Read more]

“… confounded me with his disturbing narrative…”

To explain a little in case this wasn’t clear: Four Ling leaves 🙂

Congratulations, Janette – nice work! And thanks John for the prompt.

Well, I’ve read your entries with great enjoyment. Jeanette gave a beautiful allegorical rendition of the passing seasons, Athers made me laugh with his tale of Norman, the folium-phobiac hoist by his own petard, Sandra found a silver lining and Barney completely confounded me with this disturbing narrative – I’m still asking myself, what the h…[Read more]

Captive No More

Immovable behind a wide table, the five children sat strangely motionless. From tallest on the right to smallest on the left, they patiently faced an audience seated on ten rows of scarlet-topped hotel ballroom chairs.

The tallest child spoke first. “My name is One,” he said quietly, but loud enough. “I am the oldest. I am…[Read more]

And thank you Ath for setting the competition and giving us all helpful feedback. Apologies for not mentioning this before.

Congratulations, John. I loved your yo-yo story. And thanks for organising, Ath.

Well, there’s a pleasant surprise for a Sunday morning! Thanks, Ath, and thank you fellow Denizens.
I’ll ponder a new prompt and put it up later today.

Well done, John. And thanks Ath!

Well done, John, and well deserved. And to everyone else too. I’m glad I didn’t have to judge between such good entries.

First day

The first day of school was always like this – nervous parents clutching little ones’ hands, milling in a crowd of growing frenzy. The sooner they were decoupled and the parents moved firmly on their way, the better it would be for everyone. But first reassurance was needed.

I moved through the group, cutting apron strings when no one…[Read more]

498 words including title

Photographs

Kirsty wasn’t interested in the marriage album but there was a folder of other wedding photos. She tipped the glossy prints out over the kitchen table: all those relatives and friends, held in their best outfits for decades.

It was fine to look at them now. The old emotions didn’t snag any longer. Her…[Read more]

Fascinating tale, Philippa, well done for sticking it out to a triumphant end. Looking forward to reading the book.

I couldn’t do this idea justice. The right person could really build the tension and explore the changing relationships of the three characters as the story builds. Interesting project for someone, but not me.

What a great crucible of an idea. I can see it as a film too.

Kudos for sticking with it all, Philippa – it sounds like it has really taken a toll over this year.

Looking forward very much to reading it – I am sure that it will be worth every bead of sweat, nibbled fingernail and tear shed.

And if it makes you feel better – Tilda’s just been published and even though we went through all the pages,…[Read more]