The story of the week for October 3 to 7 is…
Audition by Magda Knight
The imagination in this story is exciting, and the fact that it’s self-referential about the word count adds a little bit more fun.
MAGDA KNIGHT: Audition
They say rejection hurts; I applied to the Imperial Bardic College knowing full well it can kill. An interview was offered and I took it, broke in more ways than one.
“Tell me a story.” The bard tapped the knife on the table. “Fifty words. Begin.”
My mind went blank.
Magda Knight writes speculative fiction for adults, young adults and changelings. Her work has been published in a number of anthologies (and, rather delightfully, in the British comic 2000AD). Some judges were kind enough to short/longlist her work for a number of awards including the Mslexia Children’s Book Awards in 2012 and the Commonword Diversity Writing for Children Prize in 2016. She is also the founder of Mookychick.co.uk, an alternative lifestyle site that’s been going since 2005. When she grows up she would like to be a sword or a bear.
JEREMY NELSON: Clockwork
“Here’s the hairspring, son: the watch’s clockwork heart. It controls how fast the watch runs, and how long it can go before it stops.”
In the trenches it’s my father’s words that keep me going. Every night I wind the watch, and every morning I wake to face the thunder.
Jeremy Nelson spent most his life in the urban tropics of Hong Kong before life grafted him into the conifer trees of the Pacific Northwest. He received his MFA in fiction from Vermont College of Fine Arts.
KARISSA COLLIS: Silent Speaking
I greet him with a wave; he responds with a nod.
He never speaks a word, though I understand what he is saying. I don’t have to speak for him to know what I’m telling him.
Together, we have a silent conversation.
Before he turns to leave, he signs goodbye.
Karissa Collis is a student at Orion High School. She lives with two other sisters and a handful of animals.
BOB THURBER: The Breathtaking Stink of This World
I asked my father what he’d miss most and he talked about the odors of men, and the fragrances of women, about the distinct aromas places held for the time you were in them — crowded rooms, vacant houses, city streets after a thunder shower, country roads during a heavy snow.
Over the years Bob Thurber’s work has received a long list of awards and prizes. His most recent book is a collection of brief stories titled “Nothing But Trouble.” His first novel, “Paperboy: A Dysfunctional Novel,” was recently rereleased. Visit BobThurber.net.
CANDACE KUBINEC: The Facade
It was the ghost of a smile you tried to hide behind a calloused hand. That was the first crack in your prickly facade: a secret sense of humor you tried valiantly to keep in check.
When that grand guffaw was set free, I knew you had a tenderness inside.
Candace Kubinec says: Go ahead, laugh out loud. You’ll feel better.
MARCUS BENJAMIN RAY BRADLEY: For Sybil Catherine
“Dada?”
“Yes, honey? Do you know that I love you more than anyone ever will? One day you’ll get married but… I’ve known you since the second you were born. That will be some guy you just met, in the grand scheme of things.”
“Dada,” said my 10-month-old in agreement.
Marcus Benjamin Ray Bradley grew up in Perryville and now lives in Versailles, KY, with his wife and daughters. Other work can be found in the pages of Chiron Review and Five 2 One magazine as well as online at the Kentucky Arts Council and here at Fifty Word Stories websites.
STORY OF THE MONTH: September 2016
The Story of the Month is chosen from the Story of the Week winners announced from the past month.
The finalists for September were:
Tatouage by Darren Lester
Intent by Perry McDaid
Moving On by Mark Farley
Surrender by Gwendolyn Jacob
The winner of the September 2016 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…
Moving On
I don’t think we’ve ever had someone win back-to-back Story of the Month honours, but Mark has stepped up his game big time with these entries. Can’t wait to see what comes next!
VIV BURGESS: A Sense of Homer
For ten years Penelope weaves her tapestry daily, unpicking it nightly, while Odysseus, tossed by tide and fortune, struggles to reach home.
Landing, he slaughters her besieging suitors.
She’s furious. “Where have you been?”
Bristling, he retorts, “Haven’t you finished that darned tapestry yet?”
It’s like he’s never been away.
Viv Burgess is finding the brain cell is flagging a bit these days. She obviously needs more tea and cake.
GUY PRESTON: First Thing in the Morning
After her diagnosis, Grandma would wake at six and scuttle to the newsagents. She’d struggle back up the hill, spread the local Guardian across the table, and scour the obituaries before breakfast.
“That’s why I get the paper,” she’d explain with a wink. “To make sure I’m not in it.”
Guy has not been in the paper yet. This is his fourteenth 50-word story.