Ceremony and blood

Tags

blood, ceremonies, ceremony, D.I.Y., DIY, fiction, K Patrick Moody, Kim P Moody, non-fiction, St Stephen, stanley knife, tools, writer

So, the new DIY season is upon us. How many dedicated males have performed the time-honoured ceremony of breaking out the tool box, and blessing each tool in turn, as if it was an old friend?

The Task of St Stephen is traditionally the first job to be tackled in this new season, and I for one was among those whose Stanley knife would not be sheathed without first drawing blood. An auspicious sign.

My planned project to replace the shower unit and re-tile around the bath is underway and progressing well. The shower is in and working, the tiles are next.
… and there is still another week’s holiday to spend, ‘doing it’!

Happy New Year, everyone … and remember, stay safe out there!

Another Scratching

Tags

Feardom, fiction, K Patrick Moody, Kim P Moody, Lily Childs, publish, the long wait, writer, writing magazine

I’ve added a new tab to the site to accommodate some more short, very short or flash fiction entries to competitions. They won’t appear here until after the competition has finished and been judged, and then only if there are no conditions preventing publication elsewhere.

So, The long wait was submitted to the Friday Prediction, flash fiction competition on Lily Childs’ Feardom blog. Unfortunately it didn’t win, but it did receive favourable comments. Go read it on the More Scratchings … tab (or even Lily’s blog).

The long wait

Tags

Feardom, fiction, flash fiction, K Patrick Moody, Kim P Moody, Lily Childs, publish, writer

This week I’ve posted early! Not for Christmas, but for Lily Childs’ Feardom blog. My 99 words of flash fiction were posted in plenty of time, so nip on over and have a read.

I’ll add the piece, The Long Wait, here after the competition has closed and been judged on Friday.

UPDATE:

The long wait

He was last seen walking along the tow path, just after the heavy snow. It was spring when they found him.

The melt water running off the hills stirred the canal, and the chain attaching him to the concrete block pulled though his decomposing flesh. His heavy top coat was holding the rest of him together when they found him draped, like a rag doll, over the weir .

Lucky for me the eels and fish had picked away at his neck wounds, the police said it was suicide. Shame he missed out on the Christmas party.

Better late – a bit of flash fiction

Tags

Feardom, fiction, illustration, K Patrick Moody, Kim P Moody, Lily Childs, murder, poison, publish, strychnine, Talkback, ThrillersKillersChillers, writer

Lily Childs ( lilychildsfeardom.blogspot.com ) runs a weekly flash fiction competition – up to 100 words, and must include the three words she specifies. Well I spent all week slaving over my entry then, damn it all, missed the deadline. So that you don’t miss out on my (not quite) entry I’ll post it here instead.

Visit Lily’s blog to read the other, rather good, entries.

The given words were: effervescent, outsider, invitation (or invite).

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“Nerdy chemistry student, eh?. Soon fix that!” The concoction, given to him by the blonde girl, was easy to mix. He downed it, a bitter, effervescent liquid, like a seltzer after a heavy night; tonight he was the outsider with an invitation.

He was in the shower when the spasms started. Face and jaw muscles first, then legs. His toes curled under his feet, and soon his arms were rigid. He couldn’t breath, his back arched and his lips curled into a wide rictal grin. And the pain… Damn! Strychnine! Bitch!

He was no longer the nerdy chemistry student.

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