Window
[Challenge: can you write a 250-word story without using the letter "e"?] This story contains one, for fun.
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It's Thursday night and today, work was tiring. Driving was tiring. Now is tiring.
Ruth's body hurts from wiping floors, commanding kids, stacking chairs and trying not to think of that man (who only wants a trophy woman, or a car, or a TV show, or anything but Ruth). Hurts from hiding in a bathroom again; crying, picturing hands on hands, mouth on mouth, stomach against stomach… company, warmth, touch, talk... but no.
Night will bring a glass of malt whisky, itchy Dorito crumbs, and cold pillows. 2am holds four options: work and mail (an inbox bulging with notifications); food and drink (soup, salad, whisky, junk); Instagram and Spotify (photos, words, music to cry to), or... nothing. A void; a Mobius strip of thoughts on what is not.
Ruth sits watching hour on hour drain away, moonlit clock hands clicking till dawn paints a dull horizon; crimson sun and albino moon both mocking: who can't find company in this swarming, clamouring world? How ludicrous, to want for talk.
Tortuous thoughts of Thursday, Friday, Saturday… March, April, May…
No man. Or woman. To talk to. To touch. To hold.
It's autumn. Ruth's skin is wrinkling. Ruth's hair sprouting gray. Ruth's back is curving forwards, folding, softly caving into tomorrow. Ruth sips and swallows. Thinks, film or book? Cushion or pillow? Pills or alcohol? Window or cliff? It's probably not important.
'OK,' says Ruth. 'It's just Thursday. Thursday's always a bad day. It'll all turn out OK tomorrow. Friday's good.'
Probably.
Maybe.
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Author's Note
Story challenge: can you write a 250-word story without using the letter "e"?
https://twitter.com/VanessaGebbie/status/846796206261055493 #storygym
This story contains one single "e", just because I felt like it.
(Blogged: http://www.tmupchurch.com/2017/03/29/250-word-challenge-storygym/ )
Other stories by T. M. Upchurch
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Nicely done.
"Ruth's back is curving forwards, folding, softly caving into tomorrow."
The way we age ... Nicely said.
Well done!
I like it - very clever *
this lack of main non-consonant is not noticable
It's quite uplifting for me. Despite the darkness. Enjoyed *
"A void; a Mobius strip of thoughts on what is not."
A good piece. I like it.
"It's autumn. Ruth's skin is wrinkling. Ruth's hair sprouting gray. Ruth's back is curving forwards, folding, softly caving into tomorrow. Ruth sips and swallows. Thinks, film or book? Cushion or pillow? Pills or alcohol? Window or cliff? It's probably not important."
***
Clever
"dawn paints a dull horizon; crimson sun and albino moon"
Fun constraint.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Void
Does the Oulipo proud
Thank you!
Ok, I'm cheered by the quality art, but OH, MY!:"a Mobius strip of thoughts on what is not." Fine piece.
Really depressing, but well done. not Perec, but not bad. *
Thanks! It's not how I'd write if I had access to all the personal pronouns, articles, etc, but I enjoyed writing it. The hardest bit wasn't vocabulary, but flow. I found it really hard to keep a normal cadence, to not sound very contrived. It's not a piece I'd submit but it felt like a useful exercise in discipline/awareness and it was fun.
"No man. Or woman. To talk to. To touch. To hold."
Certainly held my attention--and got me to the end. Nice job.
Don't know how I missed this one! Great fun.