X-rays
An eerie hoard
scattered and layered,
resembling torn paper
floating in earth:
untarnished gold
sunk in sod
packed into time
imbedded like pain
What makes a treasure?
Fluttering in the dark
contours of earth,
shapes overlap on
the film’s black field
The soil sectioned
and sliced to preserve
not riches
but position:
each secret
of gold and garnet
constellated
to the others
Their stance a story
As set by Ferret, winner of the challenge on “Sport”:
For the next contest: Write a short fiction piece, 1,000 words or less, that includes:
• should not take place between sea level and 200 feet.
• the word “secret”
Entries can be essay, memoir, fiction and poetry, rhymed or unrhymed.
Stories due here by 10 p.m GMT on Tuesday, June 15. (Three weeks from today.)
OK, that was very difficult. But an explanation of why I keep coming back to these sites: the always interesting and well-written stories they contain.
O Zangado came in with a tasty little story of intrigue and betrayal. In which the sport is not only sky-diving but also the parading of masculinity before a desirable Miss succinctly described as she of the long hair and longer legs. Both sports signal a defeat for the protagonist, while the Miss takes an unexpected turn for the worse, morphing into a modern day Lucrezia Borgia. What dark and ironic depths lay in the lair of the loping one!
OK. I have to do some tasks today, like heavy DVD watching before they are due back to the video shop, and someone has requested a delay in the deadline. So I’m extending the creative writing challenge by 24 hours. Thought you had missed it? Nope. Not yet.
Like Sherlock Holmes, Robin Hood is one of those enduring heroes driven by a sense of justice and a dedication to righting injustice in our world, a world that seems to work with an occult sense of balance. However the universe works, it’s not the one we would have chosen—at least in terms of fairness—a condition that has led to endless questioning about good and evil. Likewise, Robin Hood keeps swinging on to the stage.
Unlike Holmes, Robin Hood’s actions are not mediated by complex thought and deduction. His philosophy is simply stated and enforced. He steals from the rich and gives to the poor. Given that the rich seem to be having a grand old time recently stealing from the middle class if not the poor, it’s not surprising that the green-clad archer is appearing at your local theater.
Here is a short poem based on one of the artifacts of the Staffordshire Hoard.
Folded Cross
To fold a cross into a pocket,
the soft gold arms doubled inward
re-forming its branches into
the pliable and wayward.
Along these paths of gold,
creatures intertwine,
course out from round garnet
to round garnet. Their fluid
motion caught mid tangle.
Who has done this?
Creased one mystery into another.
Artisan? Merchant? Thief?
Bending the cross’ four directions,
thin mirrors of the planet,
into the center—
some weeks ago, I’ve put the online novel I wrote for the MyT competition into a blog. I’ve put it in last entry first so you can just scroll down if you want to read it, starting from the top. However at the end of entry 9 you have to click onto “previous entries” to continue to the end. The story is loooooooong; 15,000 words long. So I don’t expect anyone to read it. Unless, of course, that someone is in the hospital or the Department of Motor Vehicles and has a LOT of time on his or her hands. Here is the link. Some day, I hope, to put the photos in: groovy old record album covers from the 50s and 60s.
Cheers!
Inspired by Cyanide P. Bunny’s brilliant post on “Sport”:
For the next contest: Write a short fiction piece, 700 words or less, that includes:
• a reference to some sport or sports
• the word “stain”
Entries can be essay. memoir, fiction and poultry, rhymed or unrhymed.
In order to broaden the endeavor, this challenge will include photo stories. If you would prefer to address this challenge by submitting your story in photographs, you may do so. Here are the rules for the photo stories:
• Stories must include a minimum of 5 photos and a maximum of 10
• The photos should suggest a narrative thread
* A reference to some sport or sports
• And somewhere in the photos, a stain.
Stories due here by 10pm GMT on Sunday, May 23. (Two weeks from today.) THERE WILL BE A PRIZE!
I thought some of you who were part of the online novel event at The Site that Must Not Be Named or those of you working in computer technology might find this article interesting. But I warn you: it was written for a scholarly conference so it’s written in academic style. Not charming but interesting, I hope.
Back safe and sound in “dangerous” California, where the iris and roses are making a tumultuous display in my backyard, I’m looking back at my brief stay in verdant England.
High on the list of pleasures—along with meeting Pseu and Isobel—was my visit to the Birmingham museum where I was able to see the Staffordshire hoard, up close and personal. Continue reading “A treasure to hoard”
Boadicea's Chariot 
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