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Author on Reedsy Prompts since Dec, 2021
“Hand me that Buchner, will you Ren?” Ren didn’t reply. Her dad snapped his fingers at her. “Hmm?” she said dreamily. “Phone down, Ren,” he said sharply, not even having to look at her to know she was once again distracted by her phone. He was trying to teach her real, actual magic over here and she couldn’t stop staring at that tiny screen. “Oh, right, sorry. I was just… i...
I’m a tester. I’m essentially a human lab rat. But for tech, not medicine or skin products. I’ve been told I’m like a blue rat, which is actually a blueish silver in color, because those are a rarer color of rat. And that’s because I’m a kid tester. Twelve is the youngest tester allowed by law and you need parent permission. Most parents would never allow their kids to be testers, fearing what the tech m...
“Did you see that?” Tom was the scaredy cat of our group. “Of course we saw it, Tommy,” Jonah’s response was dripping with eye-roll. He was the sarcastic, outgoing, loudmouth of the group. “It’s fine,” I replied calmly. I’m Mal. The girl of the group. But also, generally, the most level-headed one. We were prepping our lemonade stand, so I went back to stirring the ingredients in the pitc...
Mr. Quigley was old. Quite old, really. So old that little white hairs sprouted from his ears. His neighbor, Fiona, was decidedly not old. This did not bode well for Fiona in Mr. Quigley’s book. But worse still than Fiona being young, active and chipper was the fact that she had an even younger human living with her: her son, Rockwell. Fiona called him Rocky and this was among Mr. Quigley’s least favorite...
Millie sat on the top step outside the main door or Freemont Middle School. One of the few kids whose parents wouldn’t let her have a phone, she just stared ahead, watching the last of the bus riders load onto the final bus in the circle drive. Occasionally picking at her fingernails, checking her watch or looking back at the door way. Millie sighed and slumped a little lower, then quickly corrected herse...
“I can kind of read minds.” I said it with a straight face, knowing Monica still wouldn’t believe me. My very own bestie since first grade, true friend of eight years. I knew she wouldn’t believe this news. But I had to share it with her. I couldn’t not tell my bestie. Monica did a slow blink behind her thick-rimmed glasses and crossed her arms across her waist, hiding the teal stripe of her colo...
It’s the cold that wakes me up. It’s a damp cold, mainly coming from below me. Seeping into my core through the hard surface the left side of my body is curled and pressed against. I open my eyes and push myself up to sit, wrapping myself in a hug to try to warm up a bit. I don’t recognize the cement floor I’m sitting on. Or the room I’m in. I don’t remember falling asleep, for that matter.
James was the most in-demand wedding photographer in town. And, sure, his photos were technically quite good, but that’s not why couples wanted him to be the one to capture their special day. James’ wedding photos, you see, predicted the future. James didn’t know exactly when or how he acquired this special power. Or even if the power was his - maybe the power belonged to his camera. And it was this uncer...
Elsie looked out the window. Perfect conditions: warm but not hot, no rain overnight, sunny but not too bright due to plenty of puffy clouds in the sky. She zipped up her hoodie, slipped on her shoes and grabbed a blanket from the basket near the couch and marched to the back door. It was the perfect day for cloud watching. Elsie couldn’t remember exactly how she’d gotten started with cloud watching. She ...
“Here, read this.” Jeremy shoves the book into my chest with his big, meaty palm. I’d seen him digging in his backpack but had no idea he’d come out with this. I figured it would be an apple or granola bar or something to eat. Jeremy always seemed to be eating. “What is it?” I asked, fumbling to get a grasp on the book as we walked so I could look at the cover. “A book,” Jeremy says with a...
“You know this is the worst restaurant in town, though, right?” The soles of my sneakers slap the sidewalk, a sharp contrast to the heel’s of Dale’s loafers clicking along beside me. “Well, technically, I guess it is.” Dale says, a smirk crossing his face. “Technically?” I ask, rhetorically. Or maybe incredulously. The spring wind has blown my hair into my ...
My Auntie Cara’s memory is not great. With anyone else, that wouldn’t be such a big deal. So what if they get a detail wrong every now and then? The problem with Auntie Cara not having a good memory is that there are actually two problems. One, when she gets something wrong, she really gets it wrong. Like, just last week, a new neighbor moved in down the street from us. They had a pet dog. (They did. I pr...
Eli walked into his bedroom and was only a little surprised to find his mom sitting on the floor in front of his dresser. He often saw his mom there when she was putting away clean clothes. But today, she was taking the clothes out of his dresser, which was the surprising part. “Hi Mom.” “Hi buddy.” Mom didn’t look away from her work, grabbing a shirt, unfolding it and holding it in front ...
I was curled up in Dad’s recliner, rocking, reading Crime Solver Club #28 - not the latest in the series, but the newest one the library had - when Davey came and stood in front of me. Staring. Smiling. Not saying a word. He did this when he wanted something. I snuck glances at him over the top of the book every few seconds. He was like a statue. I could barely see his chest rise as he breathed. And I never looked long e...
“What’s he called again?” Mira asked, her nose still pressed up against the window frame so the least amount of her face might be visible from inside. So her warm breath wouldn’t fog up the glass in the cool morning air. “A scientist,” Nigel whispered back as he adjusted his stance. Mira was just the right height for this adventure, barely rising onto her tiptoes to see through the window. Nigel, however,...
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