KazG

Woohoo! Well done Ath! 😊 And thanks, Sandra, for stimulating dormant brain cells .

Hugely impressed with the variety of proper, fully-fledged and entertaining tales arising from that simple six word start, each then heading in its unique and individual direction; a process which I find fascinating and reassuring, i.e. there is no one and only right way of doing it and all are of equal merit.

Neil
Instant scene setting,…[Read more]

Seven stories already in this month’s competition – and seven days to go, so if you’re dreaming up a dialogue please don’t leave it too long. And if you are in need of inspiration, you’ll get it by reading those already posted.

I dreamt about you last night.

Really? I haven’t thought about you for ages.

Ooh! Harsh.

Aha – Sorry, Jack. That sounded terrible. I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just, well, you know – the kids and all that. I don’t have much time for myself.

How old are they now?

Callum’s ten and Orla will be seven on Saturday. Most of this shopping is…[Read more]

“I dreamt about you last night. No, don’t look like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like it’s a line or… like I’m being…?”
“What?”
“I dunno. Overly sentimental.”
“OK. I won’t then.

…Well you can’t leave it hanging like that. What was I doing in this dream?”
“That’s the thing. I can’t actually remember. You know what dreams are like.”
“I know what my…[Read more]

The Sanctum of Dreams

“I dreamt about you last night. You were in the sanctum.”
“Well, that’s hardly surprising, is it? Given what’s about to happen.”
“No. I suppose not. It was just so…”
“So…what? Are you going to share? Or just sit there looking worried? I’m not a mind reader.”
“Yet.”
“Ha! True. Well, tell me about it. I don’t like to see y…[Read more]

When The Magic Ends

‘I dreamt about you last night.’
‘Sally, about that.’
‘No, please don’t say it. Things used to be so magical.’
‘But that was then, can’t you see? People move on. You’re not that kid I first met. There are others –’
‘Always were. From the very start you didn’t try to hide it let alone show any remorse. That deep chuckle…[Read more]

‘I dreamt about you last night, or rather I dream about this every night.’
‘You’re not John. Who are you? Do I know you?’
‘It’s me, Gran. It’s David.’
‘I don’t know anyone called David.’
‘Sure you do, Gran. It’s just that you don’t remember. I’m Moira’s son. You remember Moira, don’t you? She was your daughter.’
‘Moira’s dead. She had a…[Read more]

Are we allowed ‘he said/she said’ and scratching of heads, or is it pure dialogue you’re looking for?

Congratulations, Sandra – an excellent story. And thank you, Sea, for the feedback and setting a challenge I could rise to.

Thank you Sea, not least for the challenge itself, which forced me to face and write a scene I had been putting off; I look forward to the time that bottle of wine is anything but virtual. And yes, I was glad not to be the judge this month, so many differing emotions to choose from. I’ll be back in the morning with a challenge for November.

Apologies for the delay in posting these results…You know what I’m like with feedback but I did my best.

Firstly, though, many thanks for taking the time to post an entry 🙂

Sandra – Great use of short, staccato sentences and broken sentence structure to indicate disorganised thought. Sharp intake of breath when I realised where this was…[Read more]

A week left to get your rage on the page or your venom on the vellum!

There’s a monster inside of me.

It was born when Noellia moved into number 14.

The car started it. A shiny new Fiat 500. Electric. In powder blue. Parked on the drive. I looked at my own clapped out Fiesta and felt the first stirrings of new life, deep in my chest.

She fed the monster well, did Noellia.

Had an open house, she did. Invited…[Read more]