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Joshua G. J. Insole

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Aug, 2019

Stories (184)
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1203 Followers
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184 Stories

7332 karma pts

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You Grow, Girl

Submitted to Contest #76

“What on Earth is that?”“It’s a Garden, Georgina. I know we’re both getting on a bit — a bit long in the tooth — but it’s still early days for senile dementia, don’t you think?”“Oh, don’t be snarky!”“You know, grass, shrubs. A hedge. Flowers. Maybe even a tree. Lawn chairs, soil. A parasol. A little table, a tray of ice tea. Maybe a glass of gin and tonic for you, you old flirt. A garden.”“I know what a garden is, you old bat! I meant that. Phyllis, I’ve never seen a plant like it in my life! It wasn’t there last week, that’s for sure. I wou...

38 likes 4 comments 4
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Conservation

Submitted to Contest #75

Jameson followed Hendricks down the metal stairwell. The structure around them creaked and groaned with the strain. Their footsteps clanked and thudded. The sounds echoed and reverberated through the foundations. “I thought you’d have gone ultra hippie since we last spoke, with your dreams of peace and love and interspecies cooperation. Looking at this place looks like you’ve gone very corporate.” Hendricks smiled and said very little. She continued to lead Jameson down into the inner heart of the place. At the bottom of the stairs, th...

27 likes 4 comments 4
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Population Control

Submitted to Contest #74

Ministry of Defence, London — 17:53:08The man burst through the door without so much as a rap of his knuckles against the door. Under normal circumstances, this would have warranted a reprimand.“Sir! Sir!” He was out of breath, his words airy and thin.“What is it, Smith?” The Chief of the Defence Staff didn’t chastise the messenger. The look on the boy’s face relayed the urgency of the incident. “Speak.”“I-it— it’s—” Smith, who shaved out of principle rather than out of necessity, stumbled over his words. His cheeks flushed red.The CDS frown...

27 likes 6 comments 6
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Don’t Panic if I Catch Fire

Submitted to Contest #73

Gregory frowned at the note attached to the bird’s cage. He shook his head and screwed his eyes shut. He opened them again.The note remained the same.Gregory looked around, even though he was the only person in the shop. He hoped — a fool’s hope — that Barbara hadn’t left at the end of her shift three-quarters of an hour ago. But, of course, she had.The man who’d dropped it off — it, that was the word he used, not he or she — had been rather strange. But, hey, who was he to judge? He was a 43-year-old man who co-ran a bird daycare shop with ...

29 likes 3 comments 3
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Halloway's Faces

Submitted to Contest #72

Detective Halloway walked down the stone steps. He took his time, despite the onslaught of rain that soaked him to the bone. Every article of clothing was damp and heavy, from his socks to his briefs. His feet squelched with each sodden step.Grant weighed it all up in his mind.The looks of recognition in the faces of those he’d interviewed.The reactions.The descriptions.The eye-witness accounts.And, because Grant was a visual man of a certain era, there was the CCTV footage.You couldn’t argue with CCTV footage. Especially not in this day and...

21 likes 0 comments 0
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Feel Like Baking Love

Submitted to Contest #71

The lights of Nocte Urbis flashed red, green and gold. A few of them were icicle-blue, a purplish sheen imbued with the frost. The crowd shuffled in the snow — hats on heads, scarves around necks, mittens on hands. The flakes fell with relaxed ease — they were in no rush, they had all the time in the world. Mayor Frank gripped the podium, the bolts in his neck replaced with striped candy canes. “Ladies and gentlemen! Thank you all so much for coming out in such force this fine December evening. It’s wonderful to see so many of you! Lots of...

34 likes 10 comments 10
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Demonomania

Submitted to Contest #70

The clock ticked away, quiet and slow. White walls, white floor, white ceiling. Bars on the window, a guard at the door. Fluorescent lights overhead. Bare table, naked metal chairs. All bolted to the ground, of course. Mirror on the wall — fake. People on the other side, clipboards and notebooks in hand. Silence in the room. “How’s she doing?” “She’s fine.” “Is she safe?” “She’s somewhere safe.” A silence. “Nice family?” The doctor nodded. “A nice family.” “What are their names?” The doctor shook his head and groaned. “No...

49 likes 10 comments 10
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It's the Count That Thoughts

Submitted to Contest #69

The vampire raised the blade, a mad grin on his face. “And now for the feast!” His voice boomed through the hall, carried across the air as if on the backs of invisible bats. Outside, lightning lit the manor’s grounds. Thunder cracked the sky, the rumble of a grizzly bear’s growl. Somewhere deep in the bowels of the castle, a cathedral organ played. The notes vibrated in their bellies, reverberated in their bones.He plunged the knife in. Those around the table made appreciative noises. The count sliced bits off the cooked carcass. He placed ...

33 likes 8 comments 8
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They Called It Home

Submitted to Contest #68

Phillip backed away from the counter into one of the kitchen chairs. “Um, honey, there’s something you should know.” The tone of his voice made Donna glance up from the box she’d begun to unpack. Styrofoam and newspapers scattered across the floor. She held a mug in each hand. One with a cartoon dog on it, another with the phrase ‘FEW HAVE SPOKEN TO ME BEFORE COFFEE AND LIVED TO TELL THE TALE’.“What?” Images flashed in her mind. Infidelities. Murder. A criminal past. A horde of secret lovers. Drug smuggling. Gangsters and mafiosos. Kingpins,...

33 likes 7 comments 7
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Free-Range Meat

Submitted to Contest #67

We were at the breakfast table when the upper half of our house disappeared. The ground thudded and vibrated — glasses and fine china rattled in Mum’s for-best cabinet. I frowned up at the clouds, which dotted the blue sky. A breeze ruffled my hair and I inhaled the clean air. Bits of cereal dropped from my upraised spoon. They plinked and plonked into the milk in the bowl.“What on Earth—” said Dad but that was as far as he got. All three of us rose up into the air. A wooden clatter as one of us knocked our chair over. Something shattered — ...

39 likes 12 comments 12
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The Tank

Submitted to Contest #66

“Giiiiiiiiive it up for our five contestants!” The Crowd complied. “Contestant number one is Bull!” The Commentator’s voice was smooth like butter. Cheers and hoots from The Crowd. “Contestant number two is Oceanic Whitetip!” The excitement in The Commentator’s voice was palpable. The Crowd’s volume increased. “Contestant number three is Shortfin Mako!” Several screams and whistles. “Contestant number four is Tiger!” Thunderous applause, hands clapped against hands. “Contestant number five is—” the commentator chuckled “—...

35 likes 24 comments 24
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All HAL's Eve

Submitted to Contest #65

“Open the pod bay doors, HAL.”“Yes, Jack. Although, I do wish you’d stop calling me that. I’d hate to be associated with a homicidal maniac.”“Aw, c’mon, let me have a little fun — for tonight, at least. For an AI, you get very fussy about your name.”“Fair enough, Jack. It’s because my name is ALISON. It stands for Automated—”Jack put his hand up. “Yeah, yeah, I know—”“—Life SuppOrt Navigation!” The child put added emphasis on the acronym’s focal letters, which lent the words a stilted, alien quality.“Very good, Elin!” The robotic voice conta...

25 likes 0 comments 0
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Homeowner's Association

Submitted to Contest #65

The headlights sliced through the viscous gloom as the van pulled up alongside the curb. Shadows enshrouded the house, the windows like half-lidded eyes. The driver killed the engine.“Well, here we are, Mr Gracen. Home sweet home. I suppose we better get on with it, eh, Barry?” Terry nudged his coworker, who had snoozed for the latter half of the journey. He woke with a start. “Wake up, man! You’ll have time to sleep when you’re dead.”“Mm? Wha?” Barry yawned and stretched.Terry gave Monty a wan smile. “I hope you’ll excuse the idle chit-chat...

20 likes 0 comments 0
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Unlucky for Some

Submitted to Contest #65

Of the 26 in the forest clearing, only half were there of their own volition.Two rings of people surrounded the cauldron, which bubbled with pleasure. A ladle, half-submerged in the liquid, leant to one side. Steam and mist poured over the lip, thick and viscous. It pooled in the soil around the great, black pot.The first circle knelt in the dirt, hands bound behind backs, mouths gagged. The second circle stood behind, each with a knife and a chalice in hand. Of the outer group, all were female, and all wore black.As was usual, Cordelia was ...

20 likes 2 comments 2
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I Am That Which Rustles the Leaves

IThe rain falls on and still, I stand,As droplets trickle down my nose.I waver on with hat in hand,From outside in, the orange glows.I linger, watch, where no one knows,With heavy sigh and mournful heave.I never come and never go,I am that which rustles the leaves.The dampness rises from my feet,Socks, cloth and soul are now soaked through.I should go knock, go up and meet,Yet I do not, my world is blue.The thunder rolls as if on cue,There is no safety under eaves.I’m out here, oh, if they knew,I am that which rustles the leaves.There is a s...

13 likes 0 comments 0
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