Words For Wednesday

La Fin et Le Tigre

February 23, 2022 By C. Lee McKenzie

So this is the last week of February and the last week I’ll be posting the WORDS FOR WEDNESDAY. This has been fun, and I hope some of you have enjoyed the stories-reading them or writing them. These are my last two lists for the month of love. Have at it.

In case you’re new, here’s what Elephant’s Child writes to explain the meme: “Essentially the aim is to encourage us to write. Each week we are given a choice of prompts: which can be words, phrases, music, or an image. What we do with those prompts is up to us: a short story, prose, a song, or a poem… We can use some or all of the prompts, and mixing and matching are encouraged.”

enchanted	champagne
lavish	caviar
scurrying	candlelight
bouquet	heartshaped
smash	flee
anyway	excitement

Image credit Ian-Robinson on Wunderstock (license)

It seems that not only is February my birthday month, but 2022 is my year as well. Yes, I am a Tiger…Whoopty do! I thought that was just wonderful, but when I looked into the characteristics of people born in this year, I discovered there may be some drawbacks. While we all love to hear how great we are if we’re Aquarians or Capricorns-Tigers or Pigs, we should heed what our other, perhaps more objective, characteristics are. Since I’m into creating tables this month, I thought I’d list my positive and negative personality features, so if we ever meet, you’ll know how to deal with me.

The Great Tiger	The Not So Great Tiger
competitive	impetuous
independent	irritable
confident	overindulgent
brave	given to depression

Quote of the Week: “The good news is that she is one of the nicest people in the universe. The bad news is, that’s because she always does exactly what she pleases. An Aquarius female is rebellious, headstrong, and contrary. She can be selfishly independent and exasperating, especially when she is running through the house screaming, “freedom!”
― Hazel Dixon-Cooper, Born on a Rotten Day

Another Wordy Wednesday

February 16, 2022 By C. Lee McKenzie

This month I wanted to do something a little different, so I offered to come up with Words For Wednesday, and I’ve enjoyed the new visitors and their creative stories. I hope my regulars will find this a fun departure. Some have already jumped in and written some short, shorts using the prompts. They’ve all been fun to read. So here we go again.

Here’s what Elephant’s Child writes to explain the meme: “Essentially the aim is to encourage us to write. Each week we are given a choice of prompts: which can be words, phrases, music, or an image. What we do with those prompts is up to us: a short story, prose, a song, or a poem… We can use some or all of the prompts, and mixing and matching is encouraged.” Ready. Set. Go!

Sweetheart	Married
Succotash	Lately
Semi-stable	Diet
Solace	Denied
Singularly	Squash
Solution	Urban

Shattered by C. Lee McKenzie — AMAZON . B&N . SMASHWORDS . EVERNIGHT TEEN

I’ve been watching the Olympics, and as usual, am in awe of what athletes from around the world have achieved. When I came up with the idea for Shattered, it was during a winter Olympic season, and I started with a question. What if you’d trained most of your life for a chance to compete for the Gold, and then something happened that denied you your one opportunity?

There are so many ways this story could have played out, but I chose to write about a girl who must not only deal with a plan-altering event but also with a life-altering one. Fortunately for my heroine, she turned out to be one tough and resilient woman.

EXCERPT: Libby’s mom delivers the tragic news.

Mom swiped at both cheeks, then between tight lips, whispered, “Libby, you can’t ski in the games.”

I knew hearts didn’t stop beating until you died, yet I was certain mine had just stuttered to a halt. I couldn’t breathe. My lungs refused to expand. My throat went dry. I’d planned most of my life for this one year. I’d worked out, built my strength, gone to ski camps, kept at it until I’d made it through the selection process—until I’d almost made the US Olympic slalom team. I had my passport. I’d packed my bags weeks ago. Now, my mother was telling me I couldn’t do what I’d lived for all these years?

EXCERPT: Libby’s first lesson on an adaptive ski.

Mack stood behind me and pushed me across to where instructors were giving new skiers lessons on Franklin Hill.

The upside was that I wasn’t staring down a steep slope. The downside was that I wasn’t staring down a steep slope. I’d stopped skiing on Franklin Hill when I was eight.

“We start here, Libby, but I have a feeling we’re going to be moving on real quick all the way to Stover’s Mountain. You’ve got the skills, so I know you’re going to be one fast learner on this new equipment.”
I wished I felt as confident as he did.

Mack held onto the back of the ski and shoved off, skiing behind me. Panic fluttered inside my chest when I started down the gentle white hill. I’d done this before, but on two skis when I’d been a kid. My dad used to stand me between his knees and zig-zag all the way to the bottom. Now here I was back starting at stage one with someone showing me how to ski. I had to learn a whole new way of doing this. I was a beginner again.

Quote of the Week: “A writer gets to live yet another life every time he or she creates a new story.”
― Pawan Mishra

A Salute To The Short Story & Words for Wednesday!

February 9, 2022 By C. Lee McKenzie

What is my favorite short story?

While it was a hard choice, The Lottery won with A Rose For Emily a very close second. I suppose they both fall in “the best” short story category for me because they both employ one of my favorite strategies-a dawning sense of horror. Instead of clubbing you over the head with brutality, Shirley Jackson leads you like a lamb to the slaughter.

She sets the scene in the village with a description of a sunny June day-flowers, children, and their families gathering in the town square. There’s an anticipation of what’s to come, a celebration-a tradition the people inherited from so long again that the “box”- a central piece of the ceremony-was terribly shabby. The townsfolk couldn’t be folksier: Bobby Martin, Harry Jones, and Dickie Delacroix, Mr. Summers, “a round-faced, jovial man…” They all have a chance to win, and that’s what electrifies the entire village.

In about three thousand words, the fundamental irony and the subtle use of symbol create a story that you’ll never forget.

If you like short stories, you’ll find The Lottery a gripping one. If you’re thinking about writing them, then take a look at this help-filled book by Shannon Lawerence.

There’s never been a better time to get into short stories!
$3.99 for e-book | $13.99 for paperback
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords

Blurb: Whether you’re looking to add short stories to your repertoire as a solo pursuit or in addition to novel writing, The Business of Short Stories covers every aspect from writing to marketing. Learn the dynamics of short story writing, where to focus your editing efforts, how and where to submit, how to handle acceptances and rejections, what to do with reprints, and how to market yourself and your stories online and in person. The information in The Business of Short Stories has been distilled from over a decade of short story publishing experience so you don’t have to learn the hard way. You’ll find information on submission formatting, cover letters, querying a collection, sending proposals to writing events, how to create a website, SEO, social media, and so much more. This is an invaluable resource for short story writers.

Shannon Lawrence has made a career of short stories, with over a decade of experience and more than fifty short stories published in magazines and anthologies. In addition, she’s released three horror short story collections with a mix of new and previously published stories. Her true-crime podcast Mysteries, Monsters, & Mayhem is going into its third season.

My Website and Social Media

Website . Facebook . Twitter . Instagram . Book Bub . Goodreads . Amazon . Podcast Website

Here’s Words For Wednesday, Week Two!

I’m providing the prompts for this long-lived meme for February’s WORDS FOR WEDNESDAY. All the prompts will have something to do with LOVE, so I hope this will get and keep you into the spirit of St. Valentine’s month and that you’ll leave your story in a comment. If you don’t want to play, enjoy what others leave. It’s fun no matter how you play.

Choose either column one or column two, or if you’re really into this, write something using the words from both columns. Ready. Set. Write!

Gift	Yesterday
Surprise	Lovely
Stubborn	Sprinkled
Laughter	February
Generous	Husband
Flowers	Marriage

Quote of the Week: “Write a short story every week. It’s not possible to write 52 bad short stories in a row.” Ray Bradbury