Discussion Thread -- February 2016 75-word Writing Challenge

Tim James -- The author creates a vivid portrait of childhood fears.

chrispenycate -- The elegant style of this elaborate poem fits well with its theatrical theme.

thomas sweetman -- This thoughtful creation depicts the bitter truth behind dreams of heroics.

ratsy -- The reader must confront the darkness within all of us in this powerful tale.

Grimward -- The author offers a biting satire on modern economics.

TheDustyZebra -- This haunting story offers an insightful allegory of our flaws and weaknesses.

Culhwch -- The way in which our own guilt can destroy us is strongly conveyed in this tale.

farntfar -- This moody poem invokes memories of the classics of Gothic literature.

Venusian Broon -- The author comes up with an unexpected twist in this dark fantasy.

The Judge -- Through the device of a personified disease, the author creates a new kind of terror.

Mad Alice -- This chilling story of revenge and reversals reminds us that murder will out.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Like many others, I was seduced by the beauty of "Tea and Clover" by Cat's Cradle, which earns my vote.
 
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The description of the challenge read that the theme was The Things You Don't See under the horror genre. So for me, these encompassed those guidelines.

For me, horror means forever challenging what isn't known under trying circumstances until the very last minute. Letting the imagination get away from you until you have all the answers, or at least think you do.

So with that being said, here is my list:
Research Complete by Starbeast
On Track (aka Nothing) by Ihe
Actually a True Story by Inca_UK
The Watcher in the Woods by LittleStar

My favorite story:
Goodnight, God Bless.by Tim James
 
Right mentions and the such like.

'Caught my eye in my peripheral vision' list - Ashleyne. B. Watts, DG Jones, Mr Orange, MemoryTale, Robert Mackay, Phyrebrat (oooh, I see where you got that from!), Ursa Major, willwallace (great minds think alike :D), Ratsy

'I thought I saw something!' list - Cat's Cradle, johnnyjet

'It was there, I swear' and vote to: Cascade. That one really leapt out at me from the first read through, very creepy and a lovely little twist. Now that reminds me, I have to change the water in the pail...
 
Calliopenjo said:
The description of the challenge read that the theme was The Things You Don't See under the horror genre. So for me, these encompassed those guidelines. For me, horror means forever challenging what isn't known under trying circumstances until the very last minute. Letting the imagination get away from you until you have all the answers, or at least think you do.

So with that being said, here is my list:
Research Complete by Starbeast
On Track (aka Nothing) by Ihe
Actually a True Story by Inca_UK
The Watcher in the Woods by LittleStar

My favorite story: Goodnight, God Bless.by Tim James
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Nice to meet you Calliopenjo. Thank you for the mention. This was a difficult challenge for me, however, only two things came to my mind regarding "unseen horror", evil spirits, and aliens. I choose the latter of the two, because I like aliens.

Grimward said:
Thank you SB and Victoria for the reviews, and also to Glen and Cat's for the mentions.:)
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You're welcome Grimward. I always enjoy reviewing in the manner of how I think. But when I read it back, I seem like the Crypt Keeper, from Tales from the Crypt.

farntfar said:
Thank you for the terrific reviews SB and Victoria.
And tons of thanks to Cat's for the listing.
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You're very welcome Farntfar. Lady Silverwolf's reviews are wonderful for me to read too.




"Yo Starbeast."

"Hi Tonto, my palomino, pal o' mine."

"You finish choosing a winner yet?"

"No. This is a really tough month."

"Let me see your list. Hey. You still have everyone on it."

"Yeah....."

"You've been staring at your computer screen for days, and you can't choose one person to vote for?"

"I just need a little more time."

"Voting ends on the 28th."

"I know. I want to reread them all again."

"Man-a-live. You take forever."

"Don't worry. I'll pick somebody soon."

"Have you chosen one yet?"

"No."

"How about now?"

"No."

"How about now?"

"No."

"How about now?"

"No."

"How about now?"

"No."

"How about now?"

"Don't you have something else to do?"

"I want to help you. Here, let me pick a winner. That one."

"This one. Wait a second. You're just picking anyone at random."

"Yep. Now you're done. I'll just tap your keyboard on the voting thread and...." (CRUNCH) "Oops. Heh heh. I've got big feet. Well, I'm outta here."

"HEY!!! Come back here you inbred moose."

(galloping away) "I'm a pure bred palomino!"

"If I get my hands on you, I'll make you into pure BREAD!!!"
 
I'm with Tonto. Get a move on Starbeast, or you know what will happen next....

Sigfrid has given me a stealth vote (they all count!), which was a nice surprise this morning. Thank you good buddy.
 
There were so many terrific and horrific ideas here this month.
What a nasty lot we are.

So special mentions to Droflet, Parson, Crystal Haven, The Judge and Mad alice for some incredibly atmospheric entries.

But then a difficut choice for the vote between
Ashleyne
Cat's Cradle
and Alex.

Alex. It was the last word that sent shivers down my spine after the otherwise very sensible middle.
Cat's. I must be odd. I wasn't filled with horror by your story but with sympathy.
So Ashleyne, the mistress of the macabre gets the vote. Wonderful stuff.
 
Great stories everyone, I'm glad to see horror genre did repulse everyone away from the challenges, I certainly would have felt bad if we didn't get passed the required 42;)

When I thought of the theme and genre I had something very specific in mind for the winner, I wanted to be creeped out, something along the lines of one of those nursery rhymes, 'I saw a man who wasn't there...' etc, or old camp fire stories about ghosts haunting campers. Hazelrah's entry probably came closest to this for me, but i was glad to see a bunch that fitted the bill.

My (fairly long) short list, as always consists of the ones I think stood out for one reason or another (not necessarily pure creepiness):-

Cascade
Clockworkbot
Mr O.
DG
crystal haven
Jo
Hazelrah
Phyrebrat
Memory tale
Ratsy
VB
TDZ

But having said all of that it my winner didn't creep me out, but quite the opposite. I thought the tenderness and heart in this story trumped the creepiness I had set out to find (I'm sure there's a moral in there somewhere).

CC gets my vote for this one. Great little tale. Well done :)
 
After spending four weeks preparing for today, and the arrival of the moving van that will take my wife and I to a new life in a large city ( preparing' included hiring a dumpster to clean out the barn and basement, packing more boxes than I thought one home could even contain, and touching up paint, placing woodword, etc), we are in the midst of a 40+ centimeter snow storm. I've been two hours shoveling our large drive so the moving truck can get into the property. I have two seconds to spend on the internet, and my day was instantly improved greatly by checking out this thread. Thanks so much, everyone, for the lift in spirits! Now, back out to the blizzard. :) CC
 
thanks for the mentions @J5V, @Droflet, @Venusian Broon and @LittleStar

a lot of good stories this month. i was looking for one that sent shivers down my back. my vote ended up going to one that did just that.

my shortlist and *vote*

What Dreams May Come -- Shyrka
Tea and Clover -- Cat's Cradle
Il Compagno Ombroso -- johnnyjet
They Come At Night -- Robert Mackay
Small things -- Jo Zebedee
In the silence -- crystal haven
Do Not Call Upon The Shadow Grimm -- HazelRah
* __________________*
Goodnight, God Bless. -- Tim James
The Real Me -- ratsy
Elephants Never Forget -- TheDustyZebra
Psycho Patho Gene -- The Judge
Everything Comes Out In The Wash -- Mad Alice
 
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It's taken me ages to decide which to vote for but I think I've decided:

Shortlist:
Honorable Mentions:
In the end, my vote went to Because I Love You, by @Cascade , because I did not see that coming!
 
Parson said:
I was thinking I was going to go without even a mention, but Fartfar save the day! THANK YOU!
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farntfar said:
FarNtfar! :)

It's my pleasure Parson. I enjoyed the tension in it.
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my computer screen is lucky i had put down my tea when i read this. funniest corruption of a username, possibly ever...

Edit: I quoted the messages for posterity, in case Parson decided to edit his post. :whistle:
 
Droflet said:
Contenders, contenders, so many *&^%$# contenders. Sigh.
Honorable mentions: Ihe, J5V, Mr O, Inca, Serge, Pam, Bob snr, Crystal, Mosiax, Will, Alex, Grim, Dusty, Cul, VB, and of course, as usual, her honor. These and all others are winners in my book.
There was one story that hit me between the eyes and overshadowed all other worthy stories. Yeah, she's creep and she's kookie, and I still have concerns for her. Ashlene gets the gold for a truly bone chilling and memorable tale. (Sorry, Ash, my vote almost guarantees you won't win. Yeah, it's the Droflet curse.)
Well done everyone. Oh, and the newbies. Wow, just wow.
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Thanks for the honourable mention Droflet.
 
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