Seriously, this year is speeding by! I am currently reading
Life on the Pharm by Damian Rentoule and I came across this quote that stuck with me. "The caregivers lacked the imagination to see a future that was not represented in the past."*
It rattled around in my head for a few days, so I decided this month's story would be built around that. It didn't quite work out as I'd planned (and I'm not that happy with it) but I'll put it out there and maybe return at a later date. (it reminds me a bit of this one, so if I worked a bit harder, I could merge the two perhaps). Sometimes the word count is a blessing, and sometimes it's a curse.
So mine is 100 words:
The
concealer worked much better here. You could hardly tell at all that she had a
black eye. There would be no need to wear sunglasses this time. She paused a
moment with regret and reflected that it had been a mistake to lack the courage
for a better future, not to have the imagination to see a life not replicated
by the past. There was nothing to be done about it now. It was too late for any
of that. Gingerly she touched the cut on her lip. It was almost gone. Things
certainly healed quicker in the afterlife.
Newbies, write a 100 word story (exactly) or one less than 30 words and put it in the comment - then link your blog (if you have one) so we can all check out your unfettered style.
*Life on the Pharm is a dystopian adventure, with a sci-fi feel - it reminds me of Fahrenheit 451 and Feed, in terms of the people stuck in gross machinations. Losing the sense of what makes us individuals, I guess. Only 40 pages in though....(just didn't want you to think it was remotely anything like my little 100 words above).
Linking with #WWU and later #WeekendRewind
In the afterlife, eh? I wanna read more of that one!
ReplyDeleteOoh I love dystopian adventures. What a fabulous quote. #TeamIBOT
ReplyDeleteAwesome work! Mine isn't nearly as profound, but I had a go. I ended up with nearly 500 words so had to edit most of it. Oh well. Here it is:
ReplyDelete. It seemed insurmountable but she had to do it. The noise wouldn’t stop. She struggled to put the heavy bags in the car. The struggle to get the bodies in would be even greater. The Monday morning traffic crawled. The voices kept on, shrill and insistent. Accusations and recriminations taunted her. She was running out of time. She had to move fast. There was a police car across the street! The only noise now was her frantic heart. She rounded the corner and shakily pulled over. She could drop the kids off here. It wasn’t a no stopping zone.
Hee hee!! I love this....
DeleteThis was me this morning as the Canberra parking police implemented the hitherto not mentioned changes to parking arrangements at our local school in time for term 3.
DeleteOh, I am intrigued by the afterlife bit! Tell me more.
ReplyDeleteI am feeling random this afternoon...
Sandra was beginning to believe there was a bug in her computer; and not the electronic kind, or the type to have six legs and antennae. No, she was sure there was an alien life force trapped in her machine intent on destroying her life.
Her first clue was in her ability to arrive anywhere on the right date because her calendar was out of whack. Her second was the abysmal state of her grammar. And the third, were the pop-up messages that kept appearing on her screen.
It was all proof she was sure, of a personal, destructive invasion.
Very kafka-esque. It's great (and maybe reflective of my digital issues at the moment!)
DeleteLove that story too, Jess!
DeleteSo I had a go at 30 words this time:
ReplyDeleteAir, air, she gasped for air. It was all closing in. No light. Darkness. Only when she realised she was holding her own breath did she really gasp for air.
PS I love that quote about the caregivers the future and the past, I think I'll come back to it xx
That's how I feel today (but I have the flu)....
DeleteOoh love the afterlife part. I love reading every one else's too. I'm way too shy to put anything I write here, but maybe one day I'll build up enough courage :)
ReplyDeletePlease do! I KNOW you'd be awesome at it!
DeleteI just watched High Fidelity for the 50th time....
ReplyDelete“That’s the price I pay, for loving you the way that I do” lamented Billy Bragg as the needle spun around the record in what had become his room in the Australia Street share house. 35 years old and back in a fucking share house. That old relationship had become too hard. He left her he told himself. “Keep the stuff, I just want my clothes” he’d said. He should have added “and some of our friends” but that didn’t seem to matter then. Dinner time. An $8 bottle of red and a bag of oven fries. Another dark night.
Great story! I love the line about 'and some of our friends' (and a big welcome!!)
DeleteDefinitely need to hear more of that story. The afterlife bit really grabbed me. Love it!
ReplyDeleteHmmmmm, the afterlife, intriguing. Zoe xx
ReplyDeleteOh, more please! That was fab.
ReplyDeleteOhh, I'm coming back here tomorrow to post something! Do we use that quote as a prompt for our story, or write absolutely anything (=100 words or -30 words obviously).
ReplyDeletePS. I think that story is great so far! Love the twist at the end.
Write anything - I just like to give where I got my starting point from...
DeleteI listen to too much older music.... 30 words....
ReplyDelete‘Hi Luka’ I say. She smiles uncomfortably, covers her face with a scarf and pushes past me coming down the stairs. ‘Are you ok Luka?. ‘Ran into a door again’….