Tag Archives: 365 days of writing prompts

Writing Prompt: Day 15

Posted on by
3

15.jpg

Day 15 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Pick a popular villain and write an untold backstory.

Shannon: Gaston age 10:

“What silly game are you girls playing now,” Gaston questioned the twins, peaking in from their shed’s window.

“Ugh,” they pouted in unison. “None of your business, leave us alone Gaston,” Laura shooed him away and shut the curtain.

He quickly hurried to the door before they could lock it. “Hey, I’m not asking to make fun of you. I was just out hunting with my dad, and we came back early. Maybe I could play too?”

“This game is only for girls,” Paula argued, sitting at the table pretending to drink from her teacup.

“You wouldn’t like it,” Claudia added, cradling her doll. “We are playing house, and doing girl things.”

He pondered how he could stay for only a moment before coming up with an idea, “Well, I could be the husband. I could come in after a long day of trading. You must need one of those.” He longed to stay. The twins were the most beautiful girls in the town, and he couldn’t understand why, but he wanted their attention more than he’d ever wanted anything in his life. He’d do anything to impress them.

“We don’t need a husband,” Laura laughed. “We want the prince,” Laura turned the chair to reveal a painting of the young prince that they belted to the backrest.

The sight of the young royalty made his fists clench, he teeth lock, and his nose flair. “Now what’s so great about him?”

“He has a castle,” Laura smiled.

“And servants,” Claudia chimed in.

“And we’d be princesses,” Paula cheered, “which means he would invite us to the ball.”

“Plus he is so gorgeous,” Laura swooned folding her hands together. The other two nodded.

“I’m better looking then him,” Gaston grumbled. “Anyway, the prince doesn’t even know you exist. I’m the best you’ve got.”

The twins broke out into a fit of laughter. “You don’t even compare to the Prince silly boy. You’re ugly, you’re weak, and you’re poor,” Laura listed. “Who could ever love you?”

“You’re wrong,” he shook his head backing away, feeling heartbreak for the first time, finally learning how they truly felt about him. His foot caught on the doorway and he fell to the grown.

“And clumsy,” Paula pointed at him, using her other hand to cover her laughter as the other girls joined her.

“Goodbye Gaston,” Laura waved before shutting the door.

Erin: “Sheldon, when do you think this need to be the best started,” my therapist asked from her upright position in her chair.

“When did your need to be sitting taller than your clients start,” I scoffed scrambling out of the indent I was slowly slipping into within the lounge chair. She wrote some notes that I would surely be able to find a way to see after our appointment. She was in for a long ride.

“This is the office I have been given. Would you prefer we switch chairs?”

“Yes,” I ordered, knowing that answer would make her life harder.

“Lovely,” she tried to smile like she didn’t care. When she tried to offer me a lift I swatted at her gesture.

“I can get up just fine,” I scoffed. After wrapping my arms around the chair and making a steady climb the tuna took her own seat.

“Is this more comfortable for you,” she asked making more notes in her book.

“If I didn’t have to be here that would be better,” I offered.

“This is a requirement of your probation,” she reminded. “Let’s do a word exercise. I will say a word and you say the first one that comes to your mind.”

“Grass”

“Blades”

“Teeth “

“Fangs”

“Sunshine”

“Fire”

“Money”

“Power”

“Krusty Krab”

“Challenge”

“Chum Bucket”

“Dead”

“Mr. Krabs”

“Giant”

“Sheldon”

“Small”

“Small”

“Weak”

“When was the first time you saw yourself as small,” she asked. Her pen was racing after that exercise.

“When I first went to school, that was the first time that I realized my family was different,” I remembered back to my first friend. I remembered the first time his clumsiness brought me to the hospital.

“How did being smaller than everyone else make you feel,” she continued to push.

“Vulnerable, looked down upon, underestimated,” I started listing.

“Was weakness something that you believed connected with size on your first day of school,” she asked looking at me with a soft smile. People thought I was insane.

“Being small is connected with weakness. When you look like me you have to take care of yourself. The world doesn’t owe me any favors and is not giving me any. If I want something I have to take it.” I grinned making plans then and her eyes finally showed some fear behind them.

How could he/she? Let us know.

Writing Prompt: Day 14

Posted on by
3

14.jpg

Day 14 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Your characters bond over something unique.

Shannon: I sat down at my usual table in the library to get an early start on my homework. After whizzing through two Spanish worksheets I moved onto my assigned math problems. I got through the first equation with help from my notes, mimicking the one we went through in class. However, the next word problem had me stuck on where to even start. I’d have to save this one for my tutor after school. As I skipped it I realized I’d have to do the same with next one, and then the one after that, and another, and who was I kidding there was no point in continuing.

Why sit and struggle when I could spend my time doing what I really enjoyed. I pulled out the full script of The Things I Hate About You that I tried to discreetly print off using the library’s printer the week before without success. The librarian gave me the stink eye the whole time, not sure what I was up too, but I tried to pass it off as a homework assignment. She wasn’t buying it.

In my English class last year we had a lesson plan on scripts, and I’ve been obsessed with reading them ever since I got my first glimpse. I wanted to write my own someday, but I knew there were so many hidden secrets and rules I had yet to discover. For now I’d stick to studying them, and stepping into the writer’s initial vision.

“Excuse me,” a guy interrupted me when I was halfway through Kat’s dialogue. “I’m sorry I don’t mean to bug you, but are you reading a script?”

I was a little taken off-guard at why he wanted to know, but he wasn’t wrong, “A…yes,” I nodded and he immediately sat down in the chair next to me.

“Cool, I’m James by the way,” he introduced himself quickly, and continued to speed talk through what he had come over to say, “I love screenplays, and no one I ever met understands what is so special about them, but they are amazing right? There is so much thought that goes into these movies that no one ever gets to see. It’s like behind the scenes access. What movie are you reading? I’m reading Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” he continued to ramble without giving me a chance to answer. I laughed at his ability to keep going as if the conversation involved both of us. “Oh no, this is just a homework assignment and I just ambushed you didn’t I,” he cringed. “I tend to do that I’m sorry.”

“No, no, no,” I stopped him from getting up, feeling the need to say it three times to slow him down. “I do read them for fun, I’m reading Ten Things I Hate About You, you are absolutely right about everything you said about screenplays, I loved reading the Monty Python script,” I continued to list, “And my name is Mia. I think that’s everything,” I smiled.

He looked a little embarrassed, but happy at the same time. “I guess I got a little excited. Tell me more.”

Erin: The first seven times I met my best friend we didn’t talk. We were both sat at a bench in the park. I was there every weekend and it was becoming abundantly clear he would be frequently aligning up with my visits. “I’m Kenneth,” I introduced myself one day.

He told me his name that day and that was the end of our conversation. He didn’t want to talk, and to be real, I didn’t when I was there either. A few weeks later as we both sat in silence. He invited me to get brunch with him. We did.

As we worked on our giant omelets we discussed our love of turning off our electronics and spending a few hours when we had a free chance people watching. As we slowly became closer it became abundantly clear we had a lot in common and a lot to talk about. We never talked at the park though. The park was for quiet, reflection, and judging.

Whoop, there it is. What weird things can you come up with that people could bond over?

Writing Prompt: Day 13

Posted on by
3

13.jpg

Day 13 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Write a story where someone gives someone else flowers for an unusual reason.

Shannon: I placed the flowers in front of him on the kitchen table. “Who gave you these,” he questioned.

“No one,” I explained, “Actually, they’re for you.”

He gave me a funny look, like I had lost my mind thinking this gift was something he could appreciate. “Why,” he tried to mask his disapproval.

“They’re called forget-me-nots,” I attempted to lead into the true reason.

“Ah,” he flashed a smile with an uncomfortable amount of force. “I like how blue they are,” he humored me. “My favorite color, is that why you picked them out?”

“No,” I sighed. They were a front for what I really wanted to say, the good news before the bad. “I picked them because I want to break up. I’m sorry. I don’t think this relationship is working for either of us anymore.”

He started staring at the petals, and I watched his mouth curve in a sad smirk. He looked blindsided. The one reaction I didn’t want see. “Mmm,” he hummed, “So you are another girl that hates me now?”

I shook my head, “No,” I argued, “Why would I give you flowers if I hated you?”

“I don’t know, I don’t understand you. Why would you give me flowers at all? This isn’t exactly a situation that can be brightened with flowers,” he placed his head in his hands.

I paused, surprised to see him so upset. I didn’t think he would give me the time to explain. “I didn’t buy them thinking they’d be your band-aid. I hate doing this. I can’t stand that just because I don’t want to date you anymore it means I am supposed to say goodbye forever,” my words caused his face to reappear. “I also don’t want your only memory of me to be how we broke up,” the word was harder to say than I expected. “We had some really good times didn’t we,” I smiled, as my eyes started to water.

He nodded.

I reached out to cover my hand over his and squeeze it tightly. “Than promise that when you think of me in the future you’ll remember the good times,” I begged.

He stared for a bit, but his eyes slowly lightened, “Of course. How could I not,” he gestured to the flowers in an attempt to lighten the mood for both of us.

Erin: Logan is my lab partner. He is the quite mysterious black haired kid in the back corner of the room. Sometimes when I look back at him our eyes lock for a moment and he blinks once holding the contact before going back to looking at the professor. I always feel like he knows something I don’t.

As we go through rewording our report to meet the template requirements we were given he slides my computer out of my reach. “What are you doing,” I question, a little skeptical of what my favorites and search history will reveal about me.

“It’s my turn to type,” he doesn’t even look up, just starts transferring our notes.

“Cool,” I oblige. My experience with male lab partners had been spotty. I know that I shouldn’t categorize the bad partners by their private parts. In my defense, at one point in time one of them told me he knew I would do the work if he didn’t, because I was a girl. That slightly justifies my sexism, right?

“You’re very intelligent,” he says in the middle of typing.

“Pardon,” I’m not sure how to react to his statement.

“I’m checking the grammar,” another thing other lab partners “trust me” to do. “How you write shows how smart you are.” He looks up. His eyes are a mix of gray and blue. The muddling of the blue suits him. He holds my eyes longer than he ever does in class.

“Thank you. The fact that you say that, makes you intelligent in my opinion.” He gifts me a chuckle. “I am absolutely famished. Do you want to meet me at the Pizza Pit?”

“You don’t have to invite me,” he offers as we both packed our bags.

“Every rational student has eaten by now. I can’t eat a whole pizza by myself. You’re coming.” Logan has his lip pierced, so when he smiles the metal flashes the light in my eye.

I order without him, because mysterious boy may have stood me up. The bacon chicken ranch pizza is placed on the table and not even seconds later flowers are placed next to them. I shoot my confused eyes to the culprit muddling up the perfect table of pizza. Logan. “Um, they’re just to thank you.” He seems confused by my confusion and the whole restaurant is flooded by discomfort.

“I have to be your lab partner,” I remind. Reaching to the bottom of the physics hat has resulted in me getting flowers from rose tattoo boy, Logan. Logan, is my lab partner. Logan’s flowers look like Logan’s tattoo. I’ve always been well aware of his presence in our class, but the name I learned from the hat of fate.

“Yeah, but you didn’t have to invite me to eat with you. I’ve never been invited to hang out with anyone outside of class,” the blue in his eyes intensifies in the light. His voice is like frosting, I find his statement hard to believe.

“Well oh boy, now that you brought me flowers this is a date,” I shrug.

The blush that overcomes his face gives his harsh appearance an innocence, “this doesn’t have to be…”

“Too late,” I enjoy the red being upped a shade at a time.

“I didn’t mean to make you feel obligated.”

“Hey idiot. I’m smart remember. You brought me flowers for being nice. I want this to be a date,” I take a bite of the pizza. “You’re not vegetarian are you Logan?”

“No,” once his lip ring escapes him pulling it into his mouth it sends off countless happy flashes.

I would give you flowers for reading this, but that seems like…impossible. The story is the only gift we have I guess.

Writing Prompt: Day 12

Posted on by
3

12.jpg

Day 12 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Write a story with a heavy focus on numbers.

Erin: At 4:02am I woke up. I ate 20 cheesy chips. After 42 minutes of flipping between 7 channels, I turned off the television. I climbed the 14 steps back to my room. I burrow under the 5 blankets I had piled on my bed.

I slept for exactly 7 minutes. The other 6 hours and 31 minutes were spent pinching my eyes shut and trying to pretend I could control the thrashing of my heart enough to lull into a sleep. My mother checked on me 4 times within the span. She had undoubtedly been up even longer than me. I imagined that pretending to sleep would make her more secure, but my actions may have had the opposite effect.

1/4 of a phone ring sounded. In a millisecond of the ring being cut short my mother’s voice said, “Hello.” My fingers sent out signals to my body telling me it was not the call. There were three more of those while my mother and I complete 5/16 of a puzzle. When the real call came, mom let it ring 4 times. We wanted to know, but then again, we might not have wanted to know. As the fifth ring started she picked up.

She took 20 breaths throughout the call. 2 of them were used on, “Just let me know if my baby girl is okay.” 1 smile spread across her face as she dropped the phone. I was in her arms in an instant and I was no longer concerned with how many happy tears were rolling down my back, just that there were a lot of them.

Shannon: “Number 765 you are in violation of Code 49, what do you think you’re doing in Area 100 at night,” the guard shouted from behind the fence as he pushed the button to light up the number label on my shirt. The new uniform was a permanent nametag to keep us unified and accountable. However, I thought the dress code was more than obnoxious.

“Do you really want an answer or do you just want me to get down,” I yelled back from the tree branch I was sitting on, and then took a deep breath of the fresh air.

He was unlocking the gate door that I had climbed earlier to gain access to my favorite secret spot. “No, I actually would like to know,” he explained once he was standing below me. He was young, somewhere around my age.

“Oh, so you’re not a stiff,” I teased. His number was 601. Not much older at all. “If you must know,” I leaded back into the bark, feeling more at ease. “I like to look at the stars from up here.”

“What is so special about stars that you feel the need to break the law to see them?”

The extra year he had over me hadn’t made him any wiser. “There are so many stars that no one ever takes the time to keep track of them.” I looked up to soak in their power. “They are never labeled with a number, or their place in the sky. They are free to be exactly as they are. I wish I was a star,” I looked down at him with a sigh, depressed at what he might soon take away for good.

His brow furrowed at my desire. “Numbers keep us visible. No one gets left behind anymore. How would you like to be forgotten?” He pointed up at me aggressively, because I was questioning something so engrained in his beliefs.

“I would love to be forgotten,” I hugged the tree in appreciation.

He released a growl. “Get down now 765.”

Numbers, numbers numbers… Most writers hate them. Learn to love them.

Writing Prompt: Day 11

Posted on by
3

11.jpg

Day 11 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Better Man by Pearl Jam

Shannon: You need to tell him you’re leaving. You can do this. You are brave. You are important. Willow repeated her pep talk for the hundredth time. He can’t change your mind again. Not this time.

She heard his car pull into the driveway from the bedroom, and immediately her throat started to burn. As he opened the front door and dropped his keys on the table, her hands started to shake. What if I’m wrong? What if my life only gets worse without him? She made an attempt to steady her hands. She took in deep breaths as she counted his footsteps on the stairs. Five more steps, she closed her eyes and in one quiet movement laid back down and covered herself with the blanket. She couldn’t do it. She was a coward who wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

She decided to sleep, too depressed to do anything else. Not long after she heard him turn away to let her rest, she was transported to a different land. Finding herself in a cabin where she was cozying up to the fireplace, memorized by the flames. A man interrupted her with a gift of hot chocolate and she offered him the spot next to her. His eyes were crystal blue, a stark contrast from her husband’s deep brown.

“You’re beautiful,” he praised her as took her first sip. She smiled behind the cup. “Where have you been hiding,” he questioned, lighting up her heart. “Run away with me,” he tempted her.

She laughed. “I don’t know you,” she shook her head.

“You will,” he put out his hand.

That was all she needed. She took his hand and they started running through the building. He lead her outside into the snow, and somehow it wasn’t cold. He picked some up and tossed it in the air above her head letting it fall around her like white glitter. He did the same above his own head and grabbed her hand tightly. They began to float, making her weightless. She felt alive and happy for the first time in a long time. “Willow, Willow,” she heard her name trying to figure out where it was coming from. As it continued she finally realized she was dreaming and had no choice but to go back to her real life.

“I’m sorry about last night. I love you,” he kissed her forehead the second she opened her eyes.

“I love you too,” she lied, wishing he hadn’t woken her up, but she couldn’t live in her dreams forever.

“Are you going to make diner,” he asked with an encouraging smile.

She wanted to cry, but just nodded, finally getting up.

Erin: “You need to leave him,” Liza took a swig of her straight black coffee.

“He said he’s never done this before,” I continued to leave my latté untouched.

“He didn’t have to do it before. He did it last night,” Liza continued to be harsh.

“He’s my fiancé,” I reminded.

“Exactly, which means yours is the only action he should be getting. End of story,” she rolled her eyes.

“Be quiet,” I looked to make sure no one else in the coffee shop was listening. “He is going to be my husband.”

“Have a little respect for yourself, you don’t need to be with a jerk like him,” she let out a grunting scream. “You deserve someone great.”

“Do I deserve kids and my beautiful wedding,” I asked suddenly having a hard time breathing.

“Yes of course, you deserve the world,” she smiled a soft smile.

“I’m 34 he’s the only one who’s going to give me that,” a few tears dropped from my eyes as the realization hit me of what I had said. This was not how my life was supposed to go.

The little smile she had faded. Liza shook her head and stood up, “find a new maid of honor.”

When in doubt a song will help you whip an idea out. Agreed?

Writing Prompt: Day 10

Posted on by
3

10.jpg

Day 10 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Make the reader believe an evil character is good, and change their mind with the last few words.

Erin: Marrying a chef was undoubtedly one of the best decisions I ever made in my life. When we were first dating that didn’t cross my mind. He was just a kind, funny and inspiring human being. That was all I thought I needed, but once I got a taste of what someone taking care of me felt like I was hooked. His food was like a mother’s hug and he never failed to have the table sprawled in warmth when I arrived home.

On special occasions like our anniversary he would decorate the dining room like he had that night. He knew how to get me and nothing turned me on quite like the smell of caramelized onions or simmering garlic. Our breath was an afterthought when my stomach was full. “Welcome home,” he placed chicken nuggets on the table.

That’s how I knew he loved me. I knew he had every reason to be too good for my favorite food, but he cooked it anyway. He was too good for a lot of what I brought to the table, but he never alluded to that fact once. “Ugh, I can’t say I love you enough,” I hugged him and reached around him to steal a nugget while he drew me in tight.

I bit into the ecstasy and couldn’t tell where my pleasure from his touch and the food separated. He spiced it up. My throat was taken off guard, “what’s the new ingredient.

“I added peanuts to the breading,” he hugged me even tighter.

“I’m allergic,” I tried to open my increasingly closing throat.

That caused his grip to loosen, “Darling,” he took a step back and placed his hands on my shoulders, “I know.”

Shannon: “So close this time, but again you’re too late, and you suck again. Guess you’ll have to try again next year,” Dean shrugged before slamming the door in my face.

“Why do you always sabotage my chance? Why do you hate me,” I yelled, finally letting go of the anger I had built up against him for holding me back for so many years. I was ready to move on to the next level but as long as he was on the testing committee I wasn’t going anywhere.

“Sabotage your chance,” he mocked me with a laugh as he opened the door. “In what way have I done that,” he questioned in his usual snake-like tone.

I clenched my jaw, and shook my head. Where to begin, “I don’t know, maybe when you gave me different directions than everyone else to lead me off track. Then there was the time you drugged my meal with a hallucinatory pill, getting me disqualified. Oh wait, or how about when you gave me a clue in a language spoken by an isolated island population. A form communication that wasn’t widely documented until after competition. You gave me that clue on purpose. It was your choice,” I wanted him to own up to it.

His mouth curled. “Why don’t you give up if you are so sure I’m out to get you?”

“Because than you win,” I felt my voice crack. “Than you’ll have succeeded in breaking me.” I held my tears back so I could remind him, “But I won’t ever let you.”

He nodded his head slowly, staring at me with more fear and emotion than he’d ever shown before. “I know,” he breathed out, “And I admire you for your determination.” He put his hand out in the first peaceful gesture he’d offered since I met him. I was reluctant, but eventually gave in and shook his hand. He moved in closer to pat my back at the same time. “You don’t want to win,” he whispered almost inaudibly, so the cameras couldn’t pick up on what he was saying. He spoke out loud again as he leaned back to avoid causing suspicion. “I’ll never forgive myself if you ever make it past that door,” he smirked for the viewers, but the look in his eyes told a different story.

Evil or good is subjective most of the time. Not today… make it black and then white.

Writing Prompt: Day 9

Posted on by
4

9.jpg

Day 9 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Write a love triangle where the main character feels forced by matters out of their control to pick one of the two options.

Shannon: “Choose,” was the word echoing in my head as I tossed and turned trying to fall asleep. They wanted an answer and they deserved an answer. How was I supposed to reveal that I already knew? All this time it wasn’t a choice, and I kept the knowledge hidden because I didn’t want to loose either of them.

Peyton was a perfect choice. She was the most beautiful girl in the school, and somehow, even with her flawless exterior, her interior contained even more to be sought after. I’d had enough study sessions with her to know her peers often underestimated her wisdom. Her jokes could command any crowd, and she was fearless in her execution, knowing exactly when everyone could use a laugh. She was also a very kind and forgiving soul, unless she felt the need to stand up for her neighbor, or herself. That’s why she didn’t’ hesitate when she demanded I choose between her and Hope, and give her my answer after our last class tomorrow.

Hope could go unnoticed in a crowd. There was nothing distinct about her appearance that made people want to take another look. She was smart in some subjects, but struggled in others. Her jokes were quirky, but not everyone appreciated them, so she kept them personally tailored to the people she knew would laugh, mostly me. I’d categorize her as gentle and kind. She took great care with anything she valued, and she placed the most importance on her relationships. Always taking full advantage of the time she was given with them, and always living in the moment. That’s why I figured she never asked if I was interested in something more, because it wouldn’t change her view of me.

If my heart could listen to any reason I would pick Peyton, but I only wanted Hope. I knew the first day she made me smile.  I knew by her eyes, not because they revealed anything about her specifically, but because I found myself lost in them at least once every single day. Her presence had a way of lighting a fire in me that reminded me I was alive. I liked the person I was when I was around her. There was never a choice.

Erin: I had massively ruined everything.

“Ready to go,” Mary’s smile was to my dismay just as breathtaking as ever.

“Yes,” I lied grabbing my gym bag.

Once we were in the car I had to concentrate even harder than normal not to take her hand in mine as she left it on the gears seeming to invite me to do just that. “You seem quiet today,” she finally stopped singing to the radio.

“I’m okay,” I couldn’t stop lying. I couldn’t admit that ride could be the last time we were co-pilots. I couldn’t come to terms with the fact that I would never hear her singing with reckless abandon again. I felt telling the truth meant the last time my running high was boosted by her conversation was behind us. I was afraid I was losing the most precious person in my life, because I was.

“You promised never to lie to me. You promised I was different than Brittney,” she reminded cornering me in my deception.

“She’s pregnant,” I looked between my knees as she pulled to the side of the road. I suddenly felt like I might throw up.

“Who,” I wished I could turn a blind eye to her tears, but her voice showed me my mistake just fine.

“Brittney,” I choked out, suddenly unable to hold back.

There was a long silence, only interrupted by our uneven breathing. “How,” her voice was still higher, but she had gained some composure.

“What do you mean how,” I couldn’t go into detail.

“How far along is she?”

“About three weeks,” I whispered suddenly feeling the worlds judgments on me.

“I gave you time to figure out your living situation and let her down easy. It seems to me that you must have used that time to continue to sleep with her. How is that letting her down easy?” I slowly let my eyes raise to hers. Her face was the saddest sight I had ever seen.

“It’s not like I cheated on you,” I tried to salvage what glimmer of hope I possibly had left.

“Because I refused to be that woman and insisted we wait till you were a single man? I wasn’t giving you a free pass to continue your doomed relationship. I loved you,” the past tense stung. “I wouldn’t have done this to you.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Yeah, me too. Get out, I’m not driving you home,” she unlocked the car and stiffened into driving position. Her hands and arms were cemented to the wheel.

“I still want you, you’re still my future Mary,” I graveled.

“You’re going to be a father start acting like one,” as she looked straight ahead she could be indifferent to my pain.

“I can still be a part of the kid’s life. With you,” I couldn’t remove her from my vision. She was all I knew of love.

“You can’t be a part of mine. I don’t want to hear any more of your bullshit. I gave you too much credit. That sleaze ball that tried to kiss me that night, that’s who you have always been. You told me what I wanted to hear, but if any of that was true you wouldn’t have been able to do that with her,” She tried to reach over and open my door, but I couldn’t be that person. Not to her.

“You don’t understand,” I pulled her arm off, but she immediately slapped it into my stomach to shake my touch.

“Oh, believe me when I say I understand that you are an expecting father and I wasted my life waiting for you. Congratulations on the exciting news, go celebrate with your fiancée.”

In honor of The Bachelor Monday this seemed fitting. What would your story be?

Writing Prompt: Day 8

Posted on by
4

8.jpg

Day 8 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Your character is shrunk to the size of a gummy bear… Now what?

Erin: “How do we get in there,” Lilly pointed nearly all the way to the ceiling. That is how huge the fridge had gotten. She had to point her arm as high as she could to have her finger in the direction of the top.

“Are you insane,” I screamed.

“We were shrunk in our coats. That has to be a sign,” she argued. “Now, stop being a party pooper and help me get in there,” she jumped trying to reach the bottom of the door, to no avail.

“You are being an idiot. That thing is bigger than a skyscraper right now. The door is one trillion times heavier than you,” I sat down to prove my point.

“Trillion, that’s dramatic,” she continued jumping starting to pant.

“Is it,” I grabbed a crumb from the floor and it was heavy. “Look at this,” I showed her what was about the size of a beach ball with our current height.

“Wow,” she seemed genuinely surprised for some odd reason. I wasn’t sure how she could be surprised by anything anymore.

A thundering came from the hallway. “Mom,” I groaned sure of our impending death.

“Mom,” Lilly cheered until she saw the threat our gigantic creator had become. When she opened the fridge the ground shook.

“Oops,” our mother exclaimed as a fast food ketchup packet dropped to the floor nearly crushing my sister, who seemed to not understand that was a bad place to be.

“This is our chance,” Lilly grabbed my hand and before I knew it I was dragged onto the packed and holding on for dear life. We whipped up into the air like an amusement park ride and were shot off when our mom placed us down. After our mom grabbed her apple we were left in complete darkness and I rubbed my hurting side. “Yes,” Lily turned on her phone light and shined it around.

“What the flipping hell Lil,” I screamed and she completely ignored me.

“Yay, yes, yes, yes,” she sprinted toward the huge pan of jello from her birthday party. She grabbed onto the cling film and grabbed fistfuls, slowly making her way up.

“What are you doing,” I grumbled leaning against a block of cheese.

“Utilizing a moment while I have it,” she swayed a little getting over the ledge, and eventually stood on the side.

“You’re going to kill yourself,” I sassed.

“You’re already dead,” she flashed the light at me and then took out a pocket knife. She cut a hole in the film and I almost believed her statement as she yelled, “Cowabunga.” That was of course until I saw the phone lodge into the jello with her body. They were both trapped by the jello crack they had created. The light slowly faded to darkness. I let her come to the conclusion on her own. “That was a lifelong dream, but I must say was quite anticlimactic,” I listened to her stupidity in the dark.

“You think,” I added. “That phone may have been able to call mom. You just lost our only chance of us making it out of this nightmare alive. We are going to freeze to death in her,” my teeth chattered.

Shannon: I decided to spend the rest of my lunch in search of a good book. Once I found it, I had enough time to spare to get a good start on it before my next class. “Is this seat taken,” I questioned the girl sitting alone at a table in the back of the library. I’d often seen her alone and never had the courage to ask if she was in need of company until today.

She didn’t respond immediately, and looked a little nervous. “Um, it’s not taken…but a…I don’t know if you might not want too,” she whisper very quietly.

“No I want to” I ensured her. “I’m weird, I like reading with company and I don’t have lot of friends who spend much time here. Thanks for putting up with me,” I joked. “My name is April by the way.”

There was a slight delay, but the corners of her mouth lifted into a kind smile. “That’s not weird,” she shook her head, “And my name is Amber,” she added before looking back to her book. I tried to read the title in case I had ever heard of it, but it looked like it was written in another language that I wasn’t familiar with.

I started reading my book too and really enjoyed the first chapter, but as I continued the words seemed to be getting larger. Then the table started growing too. I was shrinking into the chair and I felt like a little kid. And when I shrunk even smaller I started panicking, afraid I was disappearing, but finally I stopped. I was now standing in the middle of the chair. I figured I couldn’t be any bigger than the size of a bug.

“Oh my gosh,” I’m so sorry, Amber’s booming voice apologized as her shadow towered over me. “Here, I can fix you,” she put her hand in front of me and the wind from her movement knocked me over. This was bad. I regained my footing and was just barely able to hoist myself into her palm.

“Slowly,” I warned and I crawled to the middle digging my nails into her skin to get a safe grip.

She discretely raised me to face level with her back to the rest of the library. “What did you say,” she whispered.

“I said move slowly. It’s a big fall from up here. How did you do this,” I shouted, freaking out.

“I was reading spells,” she admitted ashamed. “I’m sorry I didn’t think they would work. I didn’t think I had the magic to pull them off, and I told you not to sit next to me.”

“Are you a witch,” I asked without fear. I was mostly just intrigued. This was pretty spectacular and she seemed harmless enough.

“We don’t prefer that term. We like to call ourselves magicians.”

“Well congratulations, you’re one hell of a good magician. Can you change me back before I get busted for skipping class?”

“I’ll try,” she stated, unsure. “And you won’t tell anyone will you?”

“I promise I won’t. I don’t think anyone would believe me anyway,” I shrugged.

“Ok,” she placed her hand on the table and I hopped off, happy to be on solid ground. “Get to the end of the table, so you don’t cause a scene when you grow. I don’t think anyone has noticed yet.”

I guess we were decently hidden, but even if we were in plain sight I wondered if our peers would have been observant enough to notice. Everything on the table looked like the biggest oddly colored trees I’d ever seen in my life. I ran to the end of the table and scooted myself so my legs were dangling over the edge. I glanced up at the wall of books in front of me. I always wanted to venture to the world’s largest library someday, but this took my dream to another level. It was beautiful.

I heard Amber whispering behind me some nonsense language. After a while of nothing happening I turned back looking for a progress update. “I don’t want you to panic, but it’s not working. I’ll keep trying, but you may be stuck like that for a bit until I can get help,” she winced ready to be scolded.

I felt my heartbeat pick up. I wanted to freak out, or at least get mad, but as I looked around at the vastness of the room I started to realize this could be fun. I turned around and walked over to leap on top of the page in her book. The words covered the ground the size of a gym floor. I brushed the page with my fingers, and smiled. “That’s ok, but you’ve got to protect me,” I demanded pointing up at her.

“Of course,” she nodded just before the bell rang. “Come on,” she plucked me up by the back of my shirt and placed me in the hood of her sweatshirt, so I could hide behind her hair. This was going to be one crazy ride.

Participate in today’s challenge and look at the world from a different perspective.

Writing Prompt: Day 7

Posted on by
5

7.jpg

Day 7 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Incorporate these words- Rodent, Ethical, Birthmark

Erin: “I’m going to kill it,” Griffin said diving into the knife drawer far too calmly.

“What? No, let’s just set him free,” I pleaded slamming the drawer shut. It was too late his hand was already in and all I managed to do was slam his wrist.

“Are you looking to be next,” his irises flashed red then settled back into their natural purple.

“I’m sorry,” I spoke softly as not to set him off. He flashed his pointed teeth and breezed past me.

“He would die a slow painful death on his own,” his face hardened. “This is the right thing to do.”

“Griffin, giving him to someone who could care for him would be the most ethical. That is the right thing to do. Please spare him,” his lips draped back over to cover his teeth. “You love me, don’t you?”

“I’m doing this because I love you, he is not some rodent Rochel. He could be the end of our civilization,” he walked up until he was face to face with me. I allowed my eyes to look from his twisted birthmark to the one on our son. The blade of Griffin’s knife brushed my finger. He didn’t even notice as a drop of my blood dropped to the floor. He didn’t notice much of anything anymore. “I protect our land Rochel, you promised to do the same.”

“I did, and nowhere in our teachings was his impact prophesized to be detrimental. He could be the savior of land,” I sprinted past his shoulder while he was still under the impression I would never cross him. I snatched our yet to be categorized creature and bolted for the door by the time he caught on and began to follow me.

Shannon: “It’s not ethical to keep him here like this,” I heard the voices faintly from behind the closed door as I regained consciousness. I was too disoriented to panic as I racked my brain trying to figure out how I ended up in this dark room with only one dim purple light to reveal its features. Was I alone?

After I heaved my torso up quietly, and placed my bare feet on the cold floor, I paused again to listen and look around. My short-term memory was blank, and the last thing I could remember was watching a movie in biology the day before and seeing an image of a hideous rodent of some kind flash across the screen.

“You’re awake,” an old man’s voice wavered from somewhere in front of me. I searched around, but he was hiding in the darkness and my frantic head movements to find him were making me dizzy. “How are you feeling,” the voice questioned as it got closer.

“Where am I?” I rubbed my temple to soothe it.

“Answer my questions first and then I’ll answer yours,” he explained calmly.

“I feel like I was hit by a truck, and my mind feels hazy,” I gave in. “Now where am I?”

The man stepped forward in a lab coat clicking on a blinding light over his forehead not giving me enough time to make out any of his facial features. I had to close my burning eyes. The room was obviously dark for a reason.

“Sorry, but you will eventually have to get used to the light again. I find most patients prefer one painful exposure over many consecutive gradual healings. I believe it’s the mind’s anticipation that truly tortures the rest of the body,” he explained as if he was sharing a fun fact.

“Does that mean I’m in a hospital?” I asked as soon as the daggers in my eyes start to retreat just enough for me to think clearly again.

“Something like that,” the man was vague as I felt his palm on my forehead. “You’re fever is gone. I’d say you’re just in recovery, but let me take a peak at your arm just to make sure,” he rolled up my sleeve as I blinked through the burning pain of the light.

Red discolorations on my skin traced every vein in my arm like birthmarks. “What’s wrong with me,” I feared the worst.

“You’re transforming.”

When I started writing that (I’m Erin FYI) I had not pictured the story I would write at all. My original idea involved a mouse and fast food restaurant. Not sure where that came from? It’s fun surprising yourself, give it a shot.

Writing Prompt: Day 6

Posted on by
3

6.jpg

Day 6 of 365 Days of Writing Prompts: Choose one letter from the alphabet and write a short story only using major words that start with that letter. (Small, 3 letter and under, filler words can start with other letters)

Shannon: “Perhaps,” Penelope pondered as she passed the pudding, “People pick partners poorly.”

“Please,” Paula puffed, placing the plate on her pants. “Popular practice of prenuptials prove you preposterous. Provide proof.”

“Proudly,” she plopped on the patio pillow. “Past my previewing of potential princes perceived by you, percentages prove partners prefer to be parted.”

“Pitiful Penelope, you push pain to my pupils,” she pouted. “Parting is not peaceful but positive. For passion precedes all peril. My pouting pranks perception, but I am profoundly pleased with my past. Pursuing my potential prince is priceless.”

“Pursing him poorly,” I peeped, purposefully.

“Patience prevails. Prepare to be pleasantly puzzled.”

Erin: Carl couldn’t contemplate Cathryn’s confidence. Cathryn could command a crowd. Carl couldn’t command a child. Consequently, captivating Carl came easy for Cath. Carl’s conviction in ceaselessly cherishing her charm could crush a captains control of a crew. Cathryn was contagious. Cathryn changed Carl.

This is a great way to realize you are in desperate need of a bigger, better vocabulary. Share your attempt in the comments or wherever we (AKA @pelkysisters) are found!