Damien awoke with a start to discover another person in his bedroom. At first he thought he was dreaming as the other person, though considerably older and dressed in an outlandish pink suit, looked alarmingly like…well… like Damien. “Hello,” said Damien, who in spite of this clear intrusion of his personal space, was never one…
Tag: fiction
Life Style
With a mug of supposedly ‘artisan’ coffee (at least according to the packaging from which he had extracted the pod) in one hand and his brand new, state of the art, smartphone in the other, Ronald opened up the supermarket app and attempted to complete his weekly grocery shop from the comfort of his cream…
Keyboard Warrior
The tea was hot, milky and very sweet, just the way Byron liked it. He took a sip as he stared at the screen. The match was not five minutes over and already the furore had begun on the forums. Red4eva2001 had posted the first inflammatory comments about the game, citing the poor refereeing decisions…
It’s The Taking Part That Counts
Mike wiped the sweat from his brow, and looked at his crestfallen team-mates who were gathered round him for his half-time talk. It was not going well, they were being out-thought, outplayed and simply outclassed by their opponents. As team captain, it was his job to re-motivate the boys, lift their spirits and get them…
The Teapot
The old china teapot was not the most glamourous of vessels, the design had long since faded and the spout was chipped in such a way that transferring the scolding liquid into a mug was often something of a lottery. Nonetheless, Bruce was convinced that the tea, which survived the perilous journey from pot to…
Lessons From Dystopian Fiction
Today I read a book A novel set in space It depicted the bleak end Of the human race It was set in future times Many years from now It predicted our doom And it detailed how We wiped our planet out Through wars and pollution How we failed to change our ways How we…
Morning Is Broken
Gordon took a sip of his lukewarm tea, his fifth cup of the morning, both in terms of volume of tea and indeed receptacles. The previous, now empty, mugs sat on the pine coffee table (bought second-hand from a charity shop and by far the nicest piece of furniture he owned) in front of him,…
A Shred Of Hope
Brian had been on ‘shredding’ duties for over a week. It had just been him, the machine in a tiny room on the seventh floor, away from the comforts of his desk, the camaraderie of his colleagues and, more pertinently, a long way from the coffee machine.
The Dilemma
Jeff emptied the contents of his right trouser pocket onto the cheap, faux-pine, laminate and chipboard, coffee table. Spread out before him were a battered imitation-leather wallet, one he’d had since his late teens, and a handful of coins. There was a barely discernible logo on the front of the wallet, representing a brand that…
Dinner Time
Janice cut the chicken into strips and tossed them into the frying pan, along with the onions and peppers she had prepared earlier. Adding a little sauce, she stir- fried her composition for a few minutes, singing along to compilation of late-eighties pop acts that were the mainstay of her decade-old MP3 player. The kitchen…
The Game
Crispin looked at the board despairingly. There was nothing he could do. He had played into Franklin’s hands, and it was now just a matter of a few moves before inevitable defeat. He could cede the game now, but that was not Crispin’s way. If his late father had taught him anything, it was…
Sick Day
The resentful growl of the slow moving traffic indicated that the city had grudgingly woken up to Monday with the same collective reluctance shared by its morning commuters. Eli could hear the revving motors and the occasional plaintive horn from his bedroom as he made the phone call that would spare him from joining the…
A Bibliophile Bemoans Being Busy
I often claim I like to read When I have time to kill A novel is the ideal thing If I have hours to fill I like all kinds of fiction Few genres make me frown I’m really not too fussy I’ll even read Dan Brown
Brian’s Week
For day 13 of Writing 101 the idea was to tell a story through a series of vignettes. I’m not sure if I’ve managed this or not (being a little uncertain about what constitutes a vignette), but nonetheless I present the following story:
The Letter
Day 12 of Writing 101 was to attempt to write a post of a specific length. One suggestion was a 50-word story and I’ve never done one of those before so I thought I’d give it a go. See below for the astounding results… The Letter The paper glided confidently off her printer juxtaposing her…
Keith’s Attic
I’ve fallen behind on Writing 101, but fortunately they give you the weekend off so I can catch up by posting Thursday’s assignment today and doing Friday’s assignment tomorrow. Thursday’s task was to write a post inspired by a picture. We were given a choice of four and I chose the one below. As I…
The Limerick Code
I feel a mild disclaimer is required for this particular piece of fiction. I hope it’s clear that I’m parodying a particular genre and everything below was written with tongue firmly in cheek. Nonetheless I can’t ignore the fact that this particular genre is quite popular commercially so I reserve the right to adopt ‘Professor…
To The Manor, Forlorn
“We’re definitely lost,” Sally groaned as the path yielded yet more seemingly identical trees, “Let’s just go back.” “We’re not lost,” argued Matt irritably, “if we keep following this path, we’ll definitely get to the Manor”
In Convenience
The vulgar chime of the shop door announced her arrival. Darren didn’t know her name. He knew that she worked in a nearby office. He knew also that she always bought a chicken and sweetcorn sandwich and a Diet Coke for lunch. And he knew she had a nice smile. He was certain about that.
The Deadline
Rufus could barely keep his eyes open, but unhealthy levels of caffeine and sugar were just about preventing him from falling asleep at his desk. He took another gulp of his coffee. It was cold. Did he have time to make another? He looked at the screen. He felt like he had been staring at…
The Pre-Audition
Chantelle knew she had what it took to be a pop star. It was, as she explained to the young producer, indeed as she’d explained to anyone who would listen to her, a lifelong dream. Whether at nineteen years of age it was yet possible for Chantelle to have a ‘lifelong dream’ was perhaps a…
Alice Accepts Her Fate
“You’ve got to live life to the full,” Pete declared, through mouthfuls of chicken and leek pie, “you could get hit by a bus tomorrow and kablam! Then it’s all over before you even realise what’s happened!” Alice knew her brother meant well, though he could have chosen a better example to support his argument. The…
All Hail King Bromfell
Bromfell saw the village in the distance. It was a welcome sight. He had ridden for many hours and both he and his beloved horse, Alcris, were tired. He patted the stallion’s neck. “Not far now old friend,” he said, “soon we shall find respite.” The smell of freshly harvested hops served as an extra…
Making Merry
“Ok Bazza, it’s your round!” Barry looked at the three-quarters-full pint of warmish lager in front of him. “I don’t really want another drink to be honest,” he replied. “But it’s your round!” Toby remonstrated, aghast at his friend’s poor comprehension of pub etiquette. Barry took a sip of his tepid pilsner, and felt the…
James Proclaims! 