Friday, July 11, 2008

(A Very Late) Writing Prompt #3

So I apologize for not getting a writing prompt up before this. I've had quite a few people email and ask what it was and I had no idea because I haven't had time to think about it. I've been writing an article for a local publication that was supposed to be some easy cash and has turned into a month-long nightmare that still isn't over. Hopefully it will be soon. However, I have turned in a rough draft for that so I finally have some time to post on our blog. I've been mulling over some ideas for the writing prompt, but it seemed to be consensus last month that things would work better if we were working on continuous stories rather than bits of ones here and there. That way we can get a feeling for each other's writing styles and be in a better place to give helpful critiques.

With that in mind, I am going to keep it simple...the assignment this month is to take something you've written for the blog and keep writing! You can flesh it out with more background, even writing about the events leading up to your last post, or you can continue with your story. Granted, there haven't been a ton of people posting, but that's OK...if you haven't posted anything yet, take something you've written in the past (preferrably something you already have saved somewhere in your computer) and put up 2 posts simultaneously--first the original writing, and then the stuff you've added this month. Does that make sense? Then we still get an idea of how each other's writing is progressing.

So I know the summertime is busiest for most of us (including the 3 of you who either just had babies or are expecting one soon) but please do what you can to keep our blog alive! Let's say word count should vaguely fall somewhere between 500-1,000 words.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Sorry for the delay :(

Okay, so I am new at this blogging thing and very new at sharing my writing but I am so excited to get feedback and learn from everybody, thanks for letting me be a part of this, sorry I didn't post last month, I will try to be better! And here it is . . . (hopefully it isn't too painful for you guys! :) I hope I wasn't too vague with the ending, I tried to stay to the word limit and thought it would be fun to let people decide on their own what they think happened. Let me know what you think.)

It was a witchy house: the low-slung roof; that quiet grey paint; those squinting, shuttered windows; and the empty porch rocker that rocked, rocked, rocked day and night. All these years I had been terrified of it. Never did I imagine that I would be standing in the entrance, preparing myself for its magnificence. I compose myself as completely as I can and push my foot forward with the adrenaline that is now flushing through my system. What is happening? I need to get to him. The house seemed to double in size. Tears began to blur my vision.

I turned into the kitchen; beautiful white marble everywhere was coated with layers of dust making it seem like granite, my fingers made prints on the counter tops, letting the stone shine through and bringing a thread of light into the house. He wasn’t there. The kitchen ended at the dining room where the table was set for 12 but the crystal glasses had webs in them instead of wine. Old candles that once had been lit lie broken on the lace tablecloth. How could something so remarkable be so endlessly frightening? I passed the elevators hoping I was headed in the right direction. I saw a hall. It went on forever, but in which direction, I wasn’t sure.

I felt as though I were walking on the ceiling, the pressure building in my head as the walls tightened and swiveled. Winding through the darkness, I used my hands as guides, not feeling any doors, not knowing where I would end and what I would find when I got there, I only hoped it would be him and it wouldn’t be too late. It was difficult to breathe now as I found the door and realized it was. I begged them without success. There was nothing else I, as a weak human, could do. I joined them, not understanding but giving myself to their power anyway so I could be with him. It was my only option. Things have never been the same since.