Friday 7 October 2011

Friday Flash - Chasing The Storm

Tempesta dashed across the meadow. She stabbed the wet grass with long metal stakes as she ran, forming a network of upturned glass jars on iron poles. She ducked between the rusty trees of her makeshift forest with practised ease. Fat raindrops exploded in her black hair.

"I'll kill him, I'll actually kill him this time," she muttered.

She glared at the dark outline of the house among the trees. Tempesta swore she saw Tonitru silhouetted against an upstairs window. She hoped her younger brother saw her venomous look. Even if he escaped her wrath, he wouldn’t escape that of Father.

A rumble of thunder rolled around the swollen purple sky. The ground vibrated beneath her feet, spurring on a fresh burst of speed. Tempesta put the trees and the house behind her, racing out across open grass. Lightning lit the undersides of the bruised thunderheads.

"No no no! Not yet! I'm not ready!" Tempesta shouted at the sky.

She rammed the final stake home as jagged claws of lightning tore open the clouds. Tempesta threw herself away from the metal pole as the electricity struck. The glass glowed green as the lightning snaked between the iron stakes. The jars hissed and spat as the raw energy made contact. Tempesta allowed herself a smile; the lightning coiled in the glass urns, humming a low note from the Song of Storms. The thunder coughed and spluttered overhead, the clouds rippling and breaking apart.

Tempesta sat back on the grass to watch the growing patches of blue sky. She thought of the broken storm casket, lying at Tonitru's feet. His penitent and fearful face swam before her eyes. She thumped the grass with a tired fist. The storm averted, Tonitru may have escaped their Father’s wrath, but Tempesta vowed that she would never allow her little brother to play in her room again.

Tuesday 4 October 2011

NaNoWriMo 2011

It's coming up to that time of year when the blogosphere threatens to implode under the weight of NaNoWriMo posts. Are you doing it? Are you giving it a miss? Do you think it's the worst thing to happen to fiction since Stephanie Meyer?

I did my first NaNoWriMo in 2008 and wrote the first draft of my Fowlis Westerby novel (now awaiting yet more edits). I dropped out in 2009 after being made redundant a week into November, and found that job hunting became more important than a novel about aristocratic zombies. Last year, I managed to complete the first draft of a superhero noir tale set in my Vertigo City universe.

However, I am not doing NaNoWriMo this year. I think it's a wonderful way to get people writing, and the camaraderie is certainly a good boost to get that novel finished. Sadly I've got too much on my plate right now. I'm just starting a PhD in Film Studies, I will have hopefully begun the sequel to my pulp Western, The Guns of Retribution, I'm hoping to have a job by then, and I've got lots of blogging to do for my paranormal interests. Quite simply, I just don't think I'll have the time to fit in an extra 1167 words every day.

That said, I wish everyone who decides to take part all the very best of luck, and I shall be cheering you on from the sidelines!

Monday 3 October 2011

Photo Prompt 53

New prompt available!

If you want to use the prompt, all I ask is that you include a link to this entry and a credit to me for the photograph, and that you post a link to your story in the comments box below so I can see what you've come up with! If you don't comment on this entry, then I can't comment on your story.

The 53rd prompt is Headless.

Garrison Room

All photo prompts are my own photography - you can find more of it on Flickr. You can also buy my prints from Deviantart. 20% of all proceeds go to charity - the other 80% go towards my PhD fees!