2015 WORD COUNT = 18133
words
I did have another post planned
for today but, due to some forgetting, incompletion and general words in the
air, I think I’ll put it off until next week.
So what’s going to happen instead?
If I’m honest I’m just going to
wing it. You see I’m all over the place at the moment. This isn’t a bad thing
as there isn’t any panic. It’s a good kind of ‘all over the place’. It’s busy.
I’m really getting into things
with FRACTURED DAWN now. The main
page for the blog is looking better (though I can’t wait until I have a proper
webpage for it) and I have a decent looking logo design now. It can only grow
as each episode adds more characters and expands the world.
If you haven’t had a chance to
check it out yet then go here for the first episodes and see what you think.
And let me know here on the blog or over on Twitter. Feedback could be helpful
at this early stage.
I’m also getting stuck into my
contributions to the next FlashDog anthology. It’s still early, deep within the
planning stages, but something is there (actually four somethings are there).
Of course, being the pessimistic
fellow that I am, I’m starting to feel that ‘second album’ pressure. The last anthology
was good, really good. But this one has the potential to be a hell of a lot
better. So I don’t want to be the one that has their name on a real stinker of
a story. Or, worse still, it’s excluded because it’s so bad. I’m hoping I
honour my inclusion, because I damn well want to be invited back to the next
party.
And talking of Flash Fiction, I
kinda messed up over the Easter holidays and completely forgot to post my
entries from last week. So instead of doing a separate post when I’m four days
late, it makes sense to lay them below.
MICRO BOOKENDS
It’s the eleventh ‘Chris And Mike
vs’ story and this week I went for action. The alley and the look on the kids
face immediately brought to mind those on foot chases from movies and I just
went with it. But Chris and Mike don’t run away like little girls, do they?
CHRIS AND MIKE vs THE SCOURGE OF THE
NILE
“New
plan,” said Chris. “Run!”
The
creature’s roar pursued Mike and Chris down an alleyway. They rounded a corner,
narrowly missing two goats and a small boy. Mike scooped the boy up without
breaking stride. They ran on, zigging and zagging, as the jaws of death closed
in behind.
Once
clear of the village, Chris turned and held out a golden amulet, one which
channeled the suns energy directly at the creature’s chest.
The
lizard man exploded.
Eventually
the villagers emerged from their homes, cheering. Mike put the boy down and
picked a few chunks of meat from his hair.
“Great,”
he said. “I didn’t bring a change of clothes.”
FLASH FRIDAY
I struggled a little with this one but not the same way
as usual. I came up with an idea pretty quickly, only I wasn’t too happy with
it. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get away from it as I spent the morning searching
for other characters in different situations. As the clock ticked away I conceded
and got to work on the piece I entered. I think it’s better than I expected but
not one of my best.
A lot of people mentioned it had an Indiana Jones vibe.
However, the inspiration came from the opening scene to The Fifth Element.
MISREAD
Why
didn’t he listen to me?
The
stupid, drunk fool. A teacher too afraid to listen to his student, too obsessed
with making a name for himself. And what did it get him?
Dead.
“Don’t
be silly,” he’d said. “The symbol above the door pertains to life eternal. Don’t
you understand? This is what man has been searching for? This temple is the key
to immortality. It is a gift from God.”
But
he didn’t see the symbol above it. The rock face was a little damaged and it
was hard to read but it was there. I could make it out but I was always good at
reading the language. That’s why the Professor hired me.
So
why didn’t he listen?
The
symbol above meant harvest; ‘To Harvest Life Forever’. And that’s what’s going to happen now because
that idiot ignored me and opened the doors. Now he’s dead and the whole of the
world will suffer.
All I
can do now is run. Run through the desert. Run back to civilization. All I can
do is warn people.
Because I saw what came out of that temple and it was not a
gift from God.
Oh
God, why didn’t he listen to me?
ANGRY HOURGLASS
Another week without an entry at the Hourglass but I have
a good excuse. I was lucky enough to jusge again and I enjoyed it more than the
last time. Of course, this might be because it was a bank holiday, my wife took
my son out for the morning and I had a nice, chilled Easter egg to keep me
company.
There were some great stories on offer and I got to experience
that eureka moment when I found the winner. As soon as I finished it, there was
no doubt in my mind. You can check out Voima’s fantastic story here.
And that’s it, another short post. Hopefully I can get
some better stuff prepared for the next few weeks while I hunker down with my
current projects.
Don’t forget, if you fancy giving Flash Fiction a go then
head on over to any of the sites (links on the main blog page) and see where it
takes you.
See you in seven.
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