Watcher Doings 19

/ Liz H-H / 14 Comments
juicy tangerine wedges

Join us for a weekly blog party in Six Sentence Stories, hosted by Denise and attended by some mighty fine, fun folk. Prompt word=PEN. Read, write and come back for more on SIX SENTENCE STORIES.   (Link goes active Wed night).

“The easiest thing,” said Ferah, sighing, “would be for the group of us, once everyone has arrived, to transform into our most powerful forms, whatever we individually sense what that right form is for the situation we have before us: an enraged, power-hungry Montay, my older brother who apparently wants to kill me and take over the fae world, starting with the gnomes.

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FlashNano Day 29: “Write a story that takes place on the edge.”

/ Liz H-H / 12 Comments
Photo of the author, bundled and ready to take on the snow.

An Almost-True Winter’s Tale

I should’ve known better. This was just history repeating itself. After dark, but just before sunrise. Heavy snows three days in a row. Had to get up that early to be on time for my morning gig, so I rolled out of bed and headed outside.

Tall snow boots, puffy jacket, Andes hat to cover the ears, leather choppers lined with woolen undergloves. Garage door opener in one pocket, phone in another, and a lightweight snow shovel slung over my shoulder; I thought I was fully prepared. The goal was to clear the driveway before the plows got through, hoping to make clearing the street-side end easier, once the plows came through and dumped the street’s payload on the end third of my drive.

And then they’d come along once more, just to neaten the streets and undo all my hard work.

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FlashNano Day 26: “Write a story that includes a celebrity.”

/ Liz H-H / 13 Comments

You know the routine, and I’m so sad this is the last year Nancy Stohlman is hosting it! So here’s a holiday story to help you digest the holiday weekend (A little corny, but I know nothing about celebrity life, so…)

Janie was an up-and-coming starlet, a nice girl, but a little naïve. Her latest movie had just come out, and though she had a small part, the critics mostly liked her, said she was one to watch. She had a certain je ne sais quoi (noted by an early fan, and grabbed up from her socials and integrated into her marketing and promotions sites). And it did fit. But she had plans of her own for growing a solid, positive public image.

Being polite, never losing her temper or trashing others, remembering where she came from, avoiding situations that might lead to accusations of excess—all of these things came naturally to her. But celebrity can breed jealousy, can breed contempt, and even she was unable to avoid the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.

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Watcher Doings 18

/ Liz H-H / 13 Comments
juicy tangerine wedges

Join us for a weekly blog party in Six Sentence Stories, hosted by Denise and attended by some mighty fine, fun folk. Prompt word=TAG. Read, write and come back for more on SIX SENTENCE STORIES.   (Link goes active Wed night).

The plan was simple, too simple for Rockmouse’s taste; who has a naming day at 173 years, even though shapechangers are reputed to be the more long-lived of the fae?

“As long as Jimann doesn’t show up—we hear that Montay put him in charge of the Council of Peacekeepers since he left to track you down—we should have this covered,” said Ferah, and leaning back in her chair, shook out her shoulders with something that sounded very much like bird of prey wings opening for the sky.

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FlashNano Day 21: “We are longing…”

/ Liz H-H / 1 Comment
purple violets on a black background

A contemplative piece, part true, part fantasy, from the place where dreams slumber? Day 21 of a flash a day in the month of November. Inspiring prompts generously offered by Nancy Stohlman.

We Are Longing

The city street is deserted, trolleys on the next block down stopped, their electric hum silent in this liminal moment just before sunrise. A cat strolls liquid over cobblestones and around the edges of the shop doors, slipping away after having surveyed the trash cans and finding nothing to its liking. We sit on our black railed balcony on the third floor and drink in the desires of those who have not yet shaken the dreams from their blankets.

We are early risers and we are longing.

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