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WP Daily Post Prompts
Daily Post Prompt: ‘As the Plot Unravels’ – a short story
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“I don’t know what to do,” Neville groaned, rubbing his hands roughly over his face. Then he pushed his laptop out of the way and leaned both elbows onto the coffeehouse table, propping his chin in his hands.
“What’s wrong?” Clarence, the waiter bussing the table next to Neville’s, turned to question him
Neville looked up, startled. “Oh … blast … I didn’t realize I had said that out loud. Sorry,” he added looking sheepishly around the room to see if other customers had heard. He was relieved to see that Elixir of Life Coffeehouse was having one of its quieter days.
“No problem,” Clarence answered and walked over to Neville’s table. “Can I get you a refill?”
“Yeah, that would be great,” Neville answered, handing the boy his cup. “It’s been a rough writing day.”
The young man returned in record time with Neville’s refill and stayed to talk a moment. “Do you have what they call writer’s block?”
“No.” Neville shook his head and continued. “No, Clarence. This isn’t writer’s block. In fact, I almost wish I did have that dreaded condition. My problem isn’t that I can’t get the story to move along. This story is moving along at an incredible pace. The problem is that it’s writing itself, and my original plot is unraveling as fast as I can put my fingers to the keys.”
“You mean you’re not in control of your own story?” Clarence looked at Neville as if he had lost his mind — just a little. And that made Neville laugh.
“Don’t worry, my boy,” he said. “I’ve not gone bonkers yet. And … thanks for making me laugh. It helps. But to answer your question, no, I’m not in control of my own story.”
“Well, how does that happen?” Clarence asked, really into this new information he was being exposed to.
“Well it’s not too unusual for a writer to get into a novel and find that one of his characters seems to gravitate in a direction other than what he had originally planned — or that the story seems to be flowing toward an ending that’s different from what he jotted down in his outline. But what’s happening in my story is different.”
“How?”
Neville shook his head and sighed. “I’m not sure how it’s happened, but every character seems to be taking on a brand new identity and making his own decisions. The guy I had pegged as the hero has suddenly become the villain, and the woman he loves is rapidly developing feelings for his best friend — which means he will probably end up killing his best friend — he’s already entertained the idea — and maybe even offing the woman as well.”
“But does it matter who ends up being the villain and the hero — I mean — as long as you have one of each, it’ll come out even, right?”
Neville chuckled. “Well, it’s not quite that easy. My publisher assigned me a contract to do a specific kind of story. One that will be a believable sequel to my last three novels. They were moneymakers, and I’d hate to mess up a record like that. I spent the money I made on them, and now I need more.” He rubbed his face agitatedly again. “Besides that, I’d be breaking my contract if I didn’t give them what I guaranteed.”
“MmMmm, you do have a problem,” Clarence said, so engulfed in the conversation now that he just sat right down at the table beside Neville. They both sat in silence for a moment, and then Clarence asked, “Well, why don’t you just delete all that part that changed and go back to your first chapter and start over on the story you intended to write. That would take care of it wouldn’t it?”
“Well, that’s the other problem. I’ve totally lost track of the story I intended to write … and besides ….” He paused and glanced off to the side, lost in thought for a long moment. Clarence waited, figuring Neville was trying to work out a plan.
Suddenly Neville looked back at Clarence with a smile on his face. He looked serene rather than agitated, and Clarence was a little confused. “You figure something out? How to stop this runaway story?”
“Nope,” Neville said, grinning wider. “I’m not going to stop this story, Clarence.”
“Huh?”
Neville reached over and rested his hand on Clarence’s shoulder. “Clarence, my boy, I’ve made a decision. I’m going to give this story my whole heart and soul and let it lead me wherever it wants to go.”
“But what about your contract and all?”
“Blast the contract,” Neville said, beginning to close up his laptop and slip his notes into his briefcase. “If that publisher can’t see the truth about the value of this story, then he can sue me.”
“But –”
“No more ‘but’s‘ my boy,” Neville answered, rising from his chair, laptop under his arm. “This is the best damn story I’ve ever written in my life, and I’ve just decided I’m free enough to give my creativity its own head and let it take me to my destiny.”
He slapped down his last five dollar bill as a tip for Clarence and headed out the door, whistling.
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Daily Post Prompt: Heal — ‘Healing Is For You!’
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I have much to share about today’s Daily Post prompt: heal. And the best way I know to do that is to share two links. The first is a video reading of Chapter One of my book Healing Is For You! I hope it encourages and lifts all my readers. The second link is to the Amazon page where you can find the book in paperback or digital, in case you’d like your own copy.
Now, have a blessed and healthy day!
You can click on the book to go to the Amazon store and purchase a copy.
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Daily Post Weekly Photo Challenge: Security
Daily Post Prompt: Cusp
THE CROOKED CUSP OF LOVE
I was just on the cusp of deciding
When everything went so awry.
How could they be so hateful to me?
I can’t do a thing now but cry.
I’d dated Sebastian on Mondays,
And Thursdays were his days as well.
Then Trevor had Wednesdays and Fridays,
And Raymond thought weekends were swell.
We’d gone along happily – I thought,
Until they demanded I choose.
Well, you can imagine my chagrin
At having them give me such news.
I told them I’d have to have some time
To make a decision so hard.
But every time I thought I’d made one,
I couldn’t quite settle my heart.
It’s been only six months – this process;
Each day I did several hours spend.
Now I’m just on the cusp of decision,
But they’ve run off and married my friends!
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Daily Post Prompt: Purple – The Royal Color
Christ’s blood seeped from the puncture wounds the thorns produced around his head. His blood ran freely from the scourging that tore apart his back and torso. It gushed from his side slashed open by the soldier’s spear. His bright red blood mingled with death’s morbid, black shroud that afternoon on Calvary’s infamous hill.
But during the somber three days following that seemingly fatal failure, that precious red blood inundated the black of death — mixed with it and overcame its fearful depths — and thus created the regal color of victory. And purple reigns forever, the color of royalty upon the throne of the universe. Salvation is complete.
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Those of you who visit both this site and my ‘Hangin’ Out With God’ site, will notice that today I’ve chosen to post the same response to the prompt on both. I hope you don’t mind.
To participate in the prompt visit Daily Post.
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Daily Post Prompt: Meaningless
MEANINGLESS WORDS
Meaningless words are so absurd.
The most absurd I’ve ever heard.
Now, I don’t mean to be a nerd;
And insult I have not inferred.
But, really, when I’m quite unstirred
By words whose meanings are deferred,
My reading seems like riding herd
On crazy cattle who’ve been spurred.
All sanity and sense are slurred
By meaningless words that are absurd.
You can take part in today’s prompt by visiting Daily Post
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Daily Post Prompt: Ordinary
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It may look ordinary, but wait a minute: New life is never really ordinary, is it?
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Daily Post Prompt: Minimal, you say?
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Minimal, you say.
Is that like – just enough?
Does that mean there’s no need to go
Beyond the basic stuff?
Minimal, you say.
Do barely what’s required?
Exactly what I saw in print
The day that I was hired?
I see thing differently.
To me the minimalists
Are shirkers, slackers, slothful souls.
Who live just to exist.
To live a life worthwhile
Requires a finer sense.
One must in all endeavors strive
To offer excellence.
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*If we make a habit of doing only the minimal that is required of us, we end up living a minimal life.*
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Daily Post Prompt: Label Cinquain
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Labels:
We all wear them.
Some of them we give ourselves,
The rest come from the judgment of
Others.
I’ve learned,
As I’ve matured,
To focus on the good
And just ignore derogatory
Labels.
Life’s short,
And can be sweet,
But only if we learn
To quite ignore all labels that
Oppress.
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Daily Post Prompt: Murmuration
Daily Post Prompt: Abstract Art According to Hillbillies
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Two Hillbillies in an Art Museum:
“What is it?”
“It’s an abstract.”
“A what?”
“An abstract. You know – that’s where somebody who thinks he’s an artist takes a canvas and slops a bunch of paint onto it in weird patterns. Then somebody else who thinks he’s an art expert comes along and says it represents that artist’s feelin’s when he was rejected by his lover or it represents man’s inhumanity to man, or somethin’ like that.
“Where’d you learn that?”
“We got Internet up on our mountain now. I been readin’ about all kinds a stuff. I come to this one place on there with all these god-awful weird pictures, so I stopped to find out what they was all about.”
“And it told all about these here abstracts?”
“Right. And purty dern boring stuff if you ask me.”
“Hmmmm. Ain’t there any abstracts that say somethin’ positive?”
“Oh, yeah, there’s a few that are supposed to represent man’s great intelligence or his overpowerin’ love for the world or that kind of thing. But, according to this here report I read, the real value of an abstract is supposed to be that each separate person who sees it will give it his own — a — interpretation I think they called it — based on his own personality and life experiences.”
“Hmmmmmmm. So what do you think this one represents?”
“I have to go to the outhouse, and I’d better get there quick.”
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Daily Post Prompt: Vivid
Buttermilk
I just want to say that I LOVE Farm Fresh Buttermilk. It’s the only brand that I enjoy, but some days I suddenly find myself desiring a glass of its rich, cold goodness. Yesterday was one of those days, so I indulged myself.
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Daily Post Prompt: I Have a Lovely Rhythm in My Bones
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I have a lovely rhythm in my bones.
It’s sort of soft and groovy, and beguiling.
I’m in the mood for waltzing over stones,
And even if I fell, I’d come up smiling.
It’s now becoming kind of quick and quirky –
This rhythm – as it runs throughout my soul.
My feet are tapping now – a little jerky;
And there’s no stopping me; I’m on a roll.
I got up feeling tired and kind of lazy,
But then I thought about the guy I love.
That’s all it took to jump-start this great rhythm;
It’s put me in top form and in the groove.
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The Happy Wordcrafter 