Poetry this time:
A heart, withered and scorched
Beats failing and weak
Floundering for air it lurches
And bumps
Along this fated journey
This dusty path
To a shore that no longer
Houses the traveler
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Every once in a while I write a OneWord prompt piece and I’m sad that my time is up. So, this morning, I decided to fire up my Write or Die Desktop edition and write for 15 minutes on the prompt I started this morning. So, without further ado, here is 15 minutes of off-the-cuff writing on the word ‘Cave’.
The curtains were drawn, giving the room a cave-like darkness. Mark stood with his back to the window. Mindy could see the outline of his shoulders and head, but the rest of his body was lost in the darkness. She stayed where she was, straining in the dark to see what she knew he held in his hands. He moved and she realized he was smoking. A cloud of smoke was barely discernible in the dark, his breath the only sound.
Mindy didn’t know why he had called her here, but she knew he was dangerous. She took a step forward and heard his intake of breath.
“I’m here, Mark.” She said in his general direction.
“Yes.” He said. “I see that.”
They were both silent a moment more as she thought of her next move. Mindy knew he had the upper hand in this situation, but she needed to find out what he knew about Paul’s death. Taking a deep breath, Mindy crossed the remaining distance between them until she stood just before him. He took a step back and Mindy realized she had surprised him with her sudden movement.
“What do you want?” She half-whispered.
He was silent and she wanted to scream at him. Instead, she reached behind his back and whipped one of the curtains to the side, letting the light in. Mark threw his head away from the light as if he had been shot and growled at her. Mindy stood her ground and it was Mark’s turn to look frightened.
“Close it.” He said, with his face still turned away from the light source.
“No.”
Quickly, he moved toward her and she realized why he had it dark in the room. The entire right side of his face was scarred. Instinctively, she reached to touch his face, concern in her heart.
“Oh my god, Mark. What happened?”
“Like you care!” He growled at her and pulled the curtains violently closed once again.
Mindy’s hand dropped to her side. “Of course I care, Mark.” If he could see her eyes, he would know the hurt she felt and that she truly did care.
“The only reason you came was because of Paul, Mindy. I’m not stupid. You just want to know what happened.”
She was silent.
Mark reached out, grabbing her shoulders in his hands and gave her a tiny shake. “Isn’t that why you’ve come? Not because I called and needed you, not because I wanted you here, but because you wanted information about Paul.”
He released her, moving away from her body. His hands fluttered in the air like dying birds and finally settled in the pockets of his khakis.
Mindy stood motionless for a few moments, looking at his downturned shoulders. She moved towards him, wanting to reach out but not knowing how after all that had passed between them.
She took a step in his direction just as he spoke again.
“Did you ever love me, Mindy?” He was quiet, his voice defeated and sad.
She didn’t have to think about the question at all. She knew the answer.
“Yes, Mark. You know I did.”
He turned around and she could see the desperation on his face. His eyes searched hers, her face and settled on her hands.
“Then why?”
She looked at him, not knowing what to say. How could he ask her that? How could he pretend not to know why she had left him for his brother?
“You know why, Mark.” Anger laced her voice. “Don’t pretend you don’t know. You just didn’t think I knew. But I did. I knew. I knew all of it.”
His brows furrowed as he listened to her words. “What are you talking about, Mindy?” His voice was low and warry.
“The baby, Mark. Are you really going to make me say it all outloud? Your disgusting actions, your complete disregard for our marriage, your disrespect for me?”
He waited a beat, watching her face for signs of false emotion. There were none. She believed what she was saying.
“Mindy. I really have no idea what you’re talking about. I never disregarded our marriage. And you were everything to me. I would never disrespect you. Who told you these things?”
Doubt flashed in her eyes. She studied his face. Finding no fault with his words or his mannerisms, her heart skipped. What if it was all wrong? What if none of it was true?
“Oh my god.” She said, her hand covering her mouth as tears began to fall. “Oh my god.”
Turning, Mindy ran from the room and Mark heard his front door slam.
The curtains were drawn, giving the room a cave-like darkness. Mark stood with his back to the window. Mindy could see the outline of his shoulders and head, but the rest of his body was lost in the darkness. She stayed where she was, straining in the dark to see what she knew he held in his hands. He moved and she realized he was smoking. A cloud of smoke was barely discernible in the dark, his breath the only sound.
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The stress was finally getting to me and the fatigue of not sleeping night after night was just too much. Dropping down onto the soiled couch, I put my arm under my head and allowed my eyelids to close. I fell into an immediate deep sleep.
A sound woke me. I don’t know how long it’d been. My eyes flew open and my body froze, listening intently. They had found me. I rolled silently off the couch and crawled to the edge. I could see the nose of a rifle just peeking around the door frame.
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The land was flat below us as we rounded the curve of the mountain road. Cresting a small rise, there was the valley strewn out in front of our car. This is where we would begin our new life. This place was where all our dreams would come true. As long as we could forget the old ones, that is. They were gone.
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High society was not a thing to be messed around with. The wrong word from the right mouth could tear you down in a heartbeat. Sarah knew what she was doing and dressed with care. Placing the feathers in her hair just so and the pearls on her neck at just the right length, she was ready for the throng.
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“So you had a good time. He paid for everything. You like him. What’s the problem?”
“Well, I….. I don’t wanna tell you. You’ll think me an ass.”
“I already think you’re an ass, Theresa.”
“True.” She thought for a moment. “Ok. He’s a salesman.”
“Oh.”
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To learn more about OneWord, visit OneWord.com
http://oneword.com/members/eileenmaki/
“We have to shut the systems down, NOW!” Harvey screamed as he ran towards the front of the assembly line.
“What? Why?” The foreman questioned him, not wanting to stop production if it wasn’t necessary.
“Tom’s coat is stuck in the belt!”
Just then, a blood chilling scream was heard from the back of the warehouse.
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To learn more about OneWord, visit OneWord.com
http://oneword.com/members/eileenmaki/
This is the fifth posting in a series of 5 related topics. If you missed the first four, search for ‘Writing Idea‘ on my blog and you should find them there.
I subscribe to the Writer’s Digest newsletter and get emails from time to time about writing ideas. I got such an email with ‘5 Ways to Come Up With Great Story Ideas’. So, I have decided to post each of the prompts and my response.
If you want to sign up for the Writer’s Digest email newsletter, just visit their website HERE to register.
So, here goes the fifth one:
The Prompt:
Sometimes the best cure for writer’s block is to let someone else start your story for you. You can search the web and find a number of sites that offer them, or check out our database of creative writing prompts that gets updated every Tuesday. And who knows: The idea you get from a writing prompt may be just the inspiration you need to spark your creativity and write a short story or novel that sells.
My Response:
I love writing prompts. Many of you, Readers, have been reading my ‘OneWord’ posts for a while now. OneWord is a quick and easy prompt that gets my writing flowing as well as being absolutely free. Those are my favorite kinds. 🙂
Here are some of the writing prompt sources that I like to use:
Writer’s Digest Creative Writing Prompts
And there are many more out there. There are also books and software that can help you get started as well. So no excuses! Get to writing, everyone. 🙂
So what do you think? Share your favorite resources in the comment section below.
Happy Writing!
And don’t forget to subscribe to Writer’s Digest Magazine or the FREE email newsletter!
This is the fourth posting in a series of 5 related topics. If you missed the first three, search for ‘Writing Idea‘ on my blog and you should find them there.
I subscribe to the Writer’s Digest newsletter and get emails from time to time about writing ideas. I got such an email with ‘5 Ways to Come Up With Great Story Ideas’. So, I have decided to post each of the prompts and my response.
If you want to sign up for the Writer’s Digest email newsletter, just visit their website HERE to register.
So, here goes the fourth one:
The Prompt:
Just because you’re stuck in a bit of a funk when it comes to ideas doesn’t mean that other people are. Take your notepad or laptop out of the house, sit down somewhere and observe the scenery around you-and listen to any and every conversation within earshot. You can do this at a park, restaurant, coffee shop or, my personal favorite, a bar (people who have a few drinks in them tend to share the best stories). Remember, jot down all the stories you hear but be sure to give them a twist to make them your own.
My Response:
As a writer, I love to people watch. The way people talk to one another, position their bodies, act and react to speech, it’s all fascinating. And I use what I see in what I write all the time. It goes against my grain to eavesdrop on someone else’s conversation, but sometimes you just can’t help overhear what’s being said.
My husband and I were at a restaurant a few months ago and there were two ladies in the booth next to ours. They were loudly discussing giving their elderly mother a bath and the … um … negative aspects of such a task. Now, mind you, I was trying to eat. So I did not appreciate overhearing their conversation. However, sometimes you overhear something that is though provoking or interesting.
I was recently in a coffee shop and there were two ladies sitting at the table behind mine. They were talking about the daughter of one of the ladies who apparently had been getting into trouble at school and just recently had got into trouble with the law. The girls mother was furious and she was telling her friend what she planned to do about it. Her plan included some rather harsh punishments (at least, I thought so) such as making her stay in her room when she wasn’t in school, only allowing her to come out for food and using the bathroom. Taking away all her privileges, no phone, no computer, no nothing. Although I would definitely be firm if either of my boys ever got into trouble like that, I think the mother was carrying it a bit too far. The mother said herself that the girl was a good kid and she didn’t understand why she was acting this way.
I would write about the teenage daughter and her mother. I would talk about how the harsh punishments pushed the girl further away from her mother. I would write about the things the girl was going through and that she had a big secret she didn’t feel like she could tell her mother and so she was acting out her frustration and confusion in acts of defiance. Perhaps the girl gets worse before she gets better and gets arrested, probation, community service, a fine, the whole bit. Of course, in the end, the girl does tell her mother her secret and there is tearful making up and everyone lives happily ever after. When there’s children involved, I usually like the happy ending. 🙂
So what do you think? Share your favorite writing ideas or your ideas for this prompt in the comment section below.
Happy Writing!
And don’t forget to subscribe to Writer’s Digest Magazine or the FREE email newsletter!
Eileen Maki 