Hatrack River Writers Workshop   
my profile login | search | faq | forum home

  next oldest topic   next newest topic
» Hatrack River Writers Workshop » Forums » Fragments and Feedback for Short Works » 28 years - 1000 words - complete

   
Author Topic: 28 years - 1000 words - complete
Alye
Member
Member # 5017

 - posted      Profile for Alye   Email Alye         Edit/Delete Post 
This was written for the 1000 word flash fiction challenge, but I missed the deadline since I have been without power.

Anyway, I wanted to see what you guys thought, so I'm posting the first 13. I may need to edit it some, but limited laptop power right now so it’s going to have to wait for a fine polish.

Triggers were:
Firm Contract
Sinking Deeper
Ancient Sunrise

You could use one or all triggers. I chose to use them all.

link to trigger post http://www.hatrack.com/forums/writers/forum/Forum7/HTML/000008.html

Let me know if you want to read the whole thing.

---------------------------------------------------

I lived there for 37 years, well off and on anyway. My parents bought the house a few years after it had been built. I was 3 then, so I guess it’s fitting that the house and I are over-the-hill in the same year.

After my parents had died, they left me the house. It had always been my home even when I had my own place. They had kept good care of it. There was only so much that my dad could do.

In his latter years his congestive heart failure prevented him from doing much of anything strapped to an oxygen tank. And my mom, well, my mom couldn’t do anything without getting frustrated out of her mind when it didn’t go just right. OCD ran in the family and she had to stick to her ‘routines’.

“Well, the foundation is sinking, and it’s getting deeper.

[This message has been edited by Alye (edited December 17, 2007).]


Posts: 126 | Registered: Feb 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
MasterTrek
Member
Member # 7272

 - posted      Profile for MasterTrek   Email MasterTrek         Edit/Delete Post 
I like it. But you're right, it needs some polish. I'd be happy to read the rest of it. Send it on over!
Posts: 19 | Registered: Nov 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
Alye
Member
Member # 5017

 - posted      Profile for Alye   Email Alye         Edit/Delete Post 
Sent =)
Posts: 126 | Registered: Feb 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
annepin
Member
Member # 5952

 - posted      Profile for annepin   Email annepin         Edit/Delete Post 
Sorry you missed the deadline!

I wasn't grabbed by this opening (though incidentally, my house is sinking too!). There were some tense confusions as well, and a missed comma here or there. The likeness between both him and the house reaching middle age didn't work for me, since houses have a much longer life span than a human.


Posts: 2185 | Registered: Aug 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
CrazyDude
New Member
Member # 6811

 - posted      Profile for CrazyDude   Email CrazyDude         Edit/Delete Post 
There are only two things that bothered me about this. One of them is the use of the word "well". It seems to pop up quite a lot and the use of it this many times was distracting to me. Might just be my own preference though.

The other thing is that there isn't much of a hook here. So a guy lives in a house and its starting to settle. How is this going to spark our interest? However, I like the style in which it is written enough to read on. It's very fluid and reads so that you can pick up on the character's personality.

Looks good. Needs a few more touches.

-CrazyDude

[This message has been edited by CrazyDude (edited December 18, 2007).]


Posts: 5 | Registered: Oct 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
   

   Close Topic   Feature Topic   Move Topic   Delete Topic next oldest topic   next newest topic
 - Printer-friendly view of this topic
Hop To:


Contact Us | Hatrack River Home Page

Copyright © 2008 Hatrack River Enterprises Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.


Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classic™ 6.7.2