Discussion Thread -- May 2016 75-word Writing Challenge

The Eternal Optimist, @Venusian Broon – Faced with a seemingly never-ending string of calamity, the subject of this story remains optimistic in the face of extreme adversity. Inspirational or simply foolish?

A Thousand Moments of Self-Loathing Clarity, @Heijan Xavier – Fleeing from unknown forces, the subject of this story discovers that their rescuer is no better than those they ran from.

The Arrival, @Duttster – An inter-planetary courier delivers a mysterious package early, much to the dismay of its recipient. Why the timing should be so critical is left worryingly unclear.

A Greater Cause, @Cascade – Exploring the meaning of true dedication to one’s cause, this story details the thoughts of a revolutionary preparing to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Tomorrow will be another day, @Old_Man_Steve2016 – A couple from different worlds must deal with a very long goodnight.

THINGS NOT TO THINK ABOUT, @Jo Zebedee – Trapped and surrounded by enemies on all sides, a youngster waits anxiously for their mother to return home and tries to focus on the day when they will free themselves from fear.

Internal memo, @chrispenycate – With the mysterious ‘Tom’ refusing to respond, the writers of this lyrical entreaty implore him to finally visit.

Companions for Life and Death, @Remedy – A moving chronicle of two companions, trapped together, and the vicarious freedom granted to one by the tantalising promise of the other’s resurrection.

Marooned, @willwallace – An astronaut, trapped on an unforgiving world, refuses to give up in the face of adversity.

Offspring, @Droflet – A parent makes plans for the imminent arrival of their son and hopes, through them, for redemption.

Spacehog Day, @Ihe – The crew of intrepid explorers are trapped in a never-ending loop, cursed to relive the same timeline until the end.

Yesterday, @DG Jones – A doomed prisoner relives their previous escapades in the face of impending death.

Not Tomorrow, @LittleStar – A grieving lover waits to see their sweetheart again in this heart-rending tale of love, loss and procrastination.

The Tale of Saynt and Dargon, @Perpetual Man – Using the classic device of a misinterpreted prophecy, this story sets two oddly-familiar rivals against one another.

An Other, @Wruter – An unseen entity bids fairwell to the progeny it has helped to nurture over the millennia. What fate awaits them without their guardian ‘angel’…?

Tomorrow is…, @StilLearning – Two of the greatest scientific minds puzzle over the nature of the unknowable while, unbeknownst to them, uncertain dangers lie ahead...
 
Tomorrow’s Yesterday Outside a Dark Tavern, @Mr Orange – Two pub-goers discuss the nature of the past, the future and cold steel in the belly. Opportunistic.

The Next Time I Open My Eyes, @sinister42 – An interstellar explorer prepares themself for the long voyage ahead and the risk that they may not wake up in this sci-fi story that teaches us that tomorrow can mean different things to different people.
 
Remedy- Drawing, counting, weeping. Participating, spectating, lamenting. Always waiting. Never acting. Tomorrow only brings good tidings to those who go out to meet the messenger today, even if he's a pile of rocks in the Arizona desert.
 
Willwallace- Trial and error, trial and error, error, error. Is frustration better than boredom? For some stubborn folks it is. How long before he appreciates boredom, the routine of failure and the blending into one of all the yesterdays, todays and tomorrows?
 
Droflet- We all hope the same for our children. It's a crap shoot though. They live through us, nor for us or from us. The training needed to start 24 years in the past, not 24 hours in the future.
 
Ihe- Life doesn't have a control-z button, especially for time travellers. How can relief come once you've made that eternal mistake that you can never undo or unlive? Is there any solace in knowing you've thoroughly learned your lesson. Is eternal damnation fair even for the most evil of us?
 
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Three Days, @ratsy – The survivors of a vicious airbourne attack regroup, rebuild and plan their revenge against their unknown oppressors.

Time At The Bar, @Robert Mackay – This existential tale of time and taverns explores a world where the concepts of time themselves become characters, replete with all the flaws and vices you’d expect.

Office Politics at Time Travel Inc., @mosaix – Knowledge is power and knowledge of the future is more powerful still in this story of incompetence and political intrigue in a time-travelling corporation.

The Lament of Janus, @Phyrebrat – A thoughtful treatise on the nature of tomorrow and the tyranny of reckless hope told through the eyes of one who sees both the future and the past in perfect clarity.

How the Creatures of the Muffincake Kingdom Suppose Their World Will End, @Johnny Appleseed – A surreal tale of a confectionary world and their legends of the coming apocalypse. Featuring my favourite word of the challenges so far: ‘balloonicorns’.
 
I'm sure I had posted more comments than I had, I'd certainly have them written... so if I have posted these already (I've been through the thread four times and can't see them - talk about paranoia)

Cascade – Knowing one’s place in the greater scheme of things may well be more important than trying to be something other than what you are. Accepting that fate may give everyone something that living a lie would never have achieved.

Old_Man_Steve2016 – Timescales. What is little more than a day to some can be a life time to others, dependent on race, planetary orbit even perception. At the heart there may still be something pure, the willingness to wait, the continue, to love.

Jo – Fear of the unknown, of every little sound, of being alone, of what is to come is as natural as breathing, and what can break the fear, nothing as strong as a mother’s love. Is it little more than a foolish hope, is doom certain no matter what? In the moments that mother is there it does not matter.

Chris – Sigh. Who could deny a summons, especially one that is important, if someone is needed so badly? I’m pretty sure I could if it was the set up for a final line like this. Groan inducing, smirk erasing, and bear baiting this might well be a cry to pun war.

Remedy – A lifetime of captivity told in a manner that enraptures and captivates the reader. A lifetime together when one companion goes it leaves the other alone… but there is always tomorrow for fresh beginnings, for one or both?

willwallace – Optimism in the face of adversity. Never giving up despite failure after failure is one of the greatest strengths that a hero can possess. And as long as he believes there is the chance that one day things will go right it is worth trying for every tomorrow that follows.

Drof – A demon that wishes more for his half-blood offspring, prepared to fight the odds to raise someone that is more than his parent, not prepared to even consider failure. But can someone truly overcome their nature?

Ihe – A massive idea in so few words. Every possible iteration of a multiversal being all forged into a singular entity, becoming a self-incarcerating trap from which there is no escape, living through the same events again and again…

DG Jones – Yesterday all my troubles seemed so far away… when one has nothing but memories to cling to, it does not matter whether they are good or bad as long as the one remembering loves them. They cannot be taken away, they can warm and offer succor from even the most terminal of destinies.

LittleStar – Is there something that we do not wish to hear when we are forever told that something will happen tomorrow? Promises are always held at bay for that mythical day to come, but perhaps tomorrow is too close, soon is more believable and honest.

Perp – Well blathering on about dropping stories and lines, presenting us with a story anyway. Sigh, he is probably wondering more about whether he should chop his face fuzz of or not. He may well do it, we just don’t know…
 
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