Mirelle breathes in the #crisp air and calls for her errant #cat. Maggie finally pads through the snow. She drops a #bumblebee-sized thing on the step and cleans her #whiskers. The thing #glimmers and feebly flaps its wings. Great, another fairy to patch up.
#vssdaily #flexvss #bravewrite #vssnature #vss365
I plan to do a new weekly twitter prompt this year, #vsshauntedhouse. I thought I’d try it out as an ongoing story, so I’ll pin it up here and we’ll see where it goes. I may write in between prompts as well, using the weekly 280 characters as a jumping-off point.
A Hyssop Falls Haunting (Placeholder Title)
“Let me be the first to #welcome you to Hyssop Falls, Mrs.–?”
“Lucy is fine. Lucy Bishop. And I lived here when I was a little girl. Do you have the paperwork?”
“Surely you’d like to see the house before you–”
“I already know everything I need to know.”
“How is it you always #pop by or #call when I happen to be feeling #amorous? Such an odd #talent.” “Isn’t that a bit #hyperbolic?” “Let’s not argue. I’ve got a #sextet of #tropical oils and a delightful #cludgeolut waiting.”
#vssdaily #flexvss #vss365 #vssmagic #converstory #vssnature #vssnonsense
“Now watch as I transform this chicken into a #phoenix! #Taadaa!”
“Ew, what is that?”
“A #tadpole. Again.”
“Can you turn it back?”
“I can turn it into a frog. Eventually. Pass the fishbowl.”
#vssmagic #converstory #vssnature
“#Pass the toast, please. Whole #wheat.” “A day of #jaw-dropping boredom working those infernal machines stretches to #infinity before us. Don’t be a #hero. Have a pastry.” “So many adjectives and #nouns at the crack of #dawn. I need coffee.”
#flexvss #vssnature #bravewrite #whistpr #vss365 #vssdaily #converstory #vssmagic
“Why the bad #mood?”
“It’s those infernal machines again. They’re stuck on the #delete #cycle and zapping everyone who enters the #parlor. I’m just #grateful no one I like has stopped by.”
“Did the fellow with the newspaper subscription #renewal–?”
“Zapped.”
#converstory #whistpr #vssmurder #vssmagic #flexvss #bravewrite #vss365
Comedy is probably the genre I most dread when I do microfiction/flash fiction challenges. Being funny on purpose is *hard*. I usually aim for “mildly amusing” and hope for the best. For the second time in a row, I drew comedy. I had almost forgotten about the NYC Midnight microfiction challenge in the craziness of holiday preparations, and I had quite the emotional rollercoaster when I got the email saying I’d made it to the next round…and that comedy was my genre. When I’m trying to be funny, I really can’t tell if it’s working unless I have facial expressions for immediate feedback. Anyway, my prompts for the second round of 250-word Microfiction were: Comedy/burning a finger/effort. Funny story! I had actually submitted my entry before suddenly realizing I hadn’t included the word “effort.” Fortunately, I had submitted early for once and the contest allows you to resubmit as many times as you need up until the deadline.
Once Burned, Twice…Burned
“Ow! What the hell? Something burned me!”
Meg held up a blistered finger and Seth passed her a cold pack. “What do you mean, burned? Like the sap irritated your skin?”
“No, like a goddamn fire! Look, it’s still smoking!”
Seth peered into the hole in the tree where Meg had been collecting fungus samples for their study. “That’s not possible.”
“Stick your hand in, then.”
Seth reached toward the tree and hesitated.
Meg laughed.
“Are you screwing with me again? Grow up. I was just playing along when you gave me your niece’s slime and told me it was a new species. It’s not like I believed you.”
“You were trying to extract DNA for sequencing!”
“I was playing along!” he shouted. “Let’s just get a sample and get out of here.” He reached in and shrieked. “Something burned me!”
Meg leaned in to look. “Really? But that’s—I made the whole thing up! I burned my finger baking cookies last night and I thought this would be funny.”
Seth stared. “What if it’s some kind of exothermic reaction involving the fungus we’re studying? This could be really big. I’m going back to grab some more sample jars. We should check the rest of the trees in this area.”
Meg smiled at another successful effort as she reached in carefully to retrieve the butane curling iron she’d planted there earlier. Her hand brushed against something hot. What the—
Seth stood behind a tree, chuckling softly to himself.
“You’d better #hurry or you’ll be late for work.”
“I called in sick. That #crude construction wasn’t nearly #squirrel-proof. They’re #cerebral animals. #Sneaky. Ate all the birdseed again. In my backyard #sanctuary! The #glitter just makes the trap pretty.”
“Oh boy.”
#flexvss #vss365 #vssnature #bravewrite #vssdaily #vssmagic #vsschristmas
“What is this awful sound? I thought you said a string #quartet was playing tonight.”
“I never said string. Triangle, tuba, kazoo, accordion. 1-2-3-4. Quartet.”
“What did I do to deserve this #torment?”
“I’m dating the kazoo player. Isn’t he dreamy?”
#whistpr #vssdaily
“Please stop this #torment,” #Jasper begged his captors. “I shouldn’t have wrapped my gum in a page from the holy #book. Just tell me the punishment in #store!” “All right, to the #gallows then.” “Wait! I want the torment back!” #vssdaily #bravewrite #flexvss #vss365 #vssmagic
Words words words 