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Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jul, 2020
Submitted to Contest #120
"'Tis better to have loved and lost ..." The words crash like tidal waves against the inside of my skull, over and over. They roil the turbid waters beneath my mind's dark sky. They soak everything and drown rationality. And then as each wave recedes, it drags conscious thought out to a watery grave. My feelings swim against the current, struggling to get to safety, to form something coherent and make their way onto this page before the burst of salty water comes crashing down again. Do you remember the first time you said you loved me?...
Submitted to Contest #98
"Mr. Mackenzie?" The door clicks shut behind me as I step further into the plain, white room. "Mr. Mackenzie, my name is Gwen Iverson."With his back toward me, the man continues staring out the window. As the raindrops pelt the glass and streak their way down, he lets out a grunt of acknowledgement."Did anyone tell you I was coming, Mr. Mackenzie? I'm..." I pause to set my things on the table and slide into one of the wooden seats. "I'd like to interview–""Aye, they told me. I know who ye are, lass, and I know about the book ye plan to write...
Submitted to Contest #91
My heart hammers inside my chest. Sweat drips down my face, clinging to my lashes and stinging my eyes. But I don't dare move. I hope that my hand clamped against my mouth is enough to muffle the sounds of my ragged breaths. From outside this cramped cabinet, I can hear the shuffling of their feet. Their low, primal growling sends a flurry of goosebumps across my skin. Those near-indestructible things whose only goal is to bite and spread their disease used to be human. And somehow that thought makes my heart pound even faster. I swallow h...
Submitted to Contest #75
"Ahem." The green-skinned sprite sticks his head through the doorway. "Ms. Fata?""I asked not to be disturbed this morning." Her quill keeps scrawling notes across the paper, seemingly of its own accord."Ma'am, please?" The assistant's timid voice drifts across the room.Finally, she looks up at the sprite's wide purple eyes and lets out a sigh. "What is it, Makezzy?"He gives her a strained smile. "Lord Tremaine asked to speak with you. Says it's urgent."She raises an eyebrow at the boy. "Lord Tremaine did not want my help in life. Why would ...
Submitted to Contest #68
Golden-orange tendrils of light chase the last bits of darkness from the air. The sky, unsure which color to wear, tries them all on: purple, red, pink, orange, blue. The green forest comes alive with the sounds of birdsong. Sunlight races over the hill and through the trees, making shadows dance across the ground. Lucas sighs. A plume of steam flows from his mouth. He shivers as he presses his palms against the cold stone he's sitting on, but he savors the sensation. "This just might be the most gorgeous sunrise I've ever seen." He turns...
It had been twenty-four years since she’d last seen it, but the place looked exactly the same. Although in recent years, the white paint had started peeling off the wooden siding. Not to mention the shingles that had come loose in the latest storm. And of course, the weeds had nearly consumed both the flowerbed and the gravel driveway. But looking beyond all those ravages of time, Carrie could still see the house as it once was: the home her grandparents had built as newlyweds.She stands now at the corner of the yard, facing the old hou...
Submitted to Contest #65
"I don't know. Can't we go somewhere else?" "Come on, Katie Anne! It'll be fun." Jason leans over and kisses his girlfriend's wrinkled brow. "It'll be spooky, but there's nothing to really be afraid of. My brother and I used to sleep in a different graveyard every Halloween." "Yeah, but why can't we pick a different graveyard? I've been to that one over on Crow Road and it's... I don't know, there's just something off about that place." Jason's whole face lights up. "The spookier, the better!" Finally, his smile dims as he sees the loo...
"Three weeks." Frank peers through the blinds at the neighbor's house. "They moved in three weeks ago, and I still haven't seen anyone come or go from that house." He lets the blinds fall back into place and starts to pace. All the while, he continues to bemoan the situation. "Three freaking weeks. What are they doing over there? Why are they so secretive? No one lives that secretively unless they're up to something." The dust bunnies and spiders that were privy to this monologue didn't bother to point out the irony of the old he...
A week ago, I got out of bed and turned around to see that my body didn't come with me. I thought at first that I was dreaming. It was only when I watched my husband trying to wake my lifeless body that I realized I had died. When I was still alive, I used to imagine what someone would feel when they became a ghost. I used to think that watching your loved ones mourn would be sad; that no longer being part of the physical world would be frightening. But it turns out, that isn't the case. Maybe I'm still in shock, or maybe a physical body ...
Submitted to Contest #63
The leaves have begun to paint the treetops like wildfire. A chill lingers in the air a little bit longer each morning. The days are getting shorter. I need to go. It's time for me to move on. It's not just the changing of the seasons or the scarcity of food, though. I can feel something calling me. Some instinct, some overwhelming urge is pulling me toward a place I've never been. I need to go. As I sit in the bright morning sunshine, I stretch out the vivid blue feathers of my wings, the long forked feathers of my tail. Then, I preen a...
Submitted to Contest #60
Day 1 A bell jingles in the distance and Olivia sits bolt upright. Her heart pounds against her chest. Another bell, closer this time, starts to jingle. She slowly slides out of the sleeping bag, careful not to make a sound. With one hand, she slips her safety glasses on; with the other, she grabs the axe. As she creeps forward, out of the tent, a third bell sounds. It's almost upon her. Her breathing quickens and she takes a few step backwards, until she's hidden behind a large oak tree. Now, she waits. A few moments later, a figure s...
Don't look up. Don't look up. Erin sits on the top shelf, eyes squeezed shut. With her knees clutched against her chest, she hardly dares to breathe. The creature shuffles along the floor below her hiding place, knocking cans and boxes off the shelves as it searches. Erin winces each time another item clatters to the concrete below. It knows she's somewhere nearby. Someone outside screams. With a burst of speed, the green-skinned beast spins around. Then, it hurtles out the door and toward the sound. Erin finally lets out a stifled sob...
Submitted to Contest #58
"Med-bay for Commander. Over.""Go for Commander. Over.""We're hav.... s... sporadic power ou... here. Can you co... Over."The automatic door next to the intercom slides open. Pilot Symanski walks through and returns to her seat. The faintest hint of a smile shows on her face, but the Commander is too distracted to notice."Med-bay, go again. Over." The request goes unanswered. The commander finally presses the button and speaks again, "I'm on my way. Over and out." Commander McDowell pivots away from the intercom to address the flight crew in...
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