Whew! Remembered just in the nick of time that the end of the week was fast approaching.
In my defense, I’ve been off work for a couple of days and have completely lost track of what day it is. The only thing I was absolutely certain of was that I had homework due by 11:50pm this evening (done!).
I had lots of plans for what I would do (or not do) in my time away from work. Reading my ToDo list did not turn out to be one of those things – LOL! Instead, I puttered around on a jigsaw puzzle; sat out in the backyard and enjoyed the beautiful weather; read a book; and took myself out to lunch. Eventually, I did buckle down and do my homework, which I’m pretty sure means I deserve a treat.
I have one more day off left, although a small part of that will be eaten up by a webinar for work that I just couldn’t get away from. After that, however, it’s nothing but good times. I see pancakes, a good book, and plenty of “doing nothing” in my future.
At some point, I also see a bit of writing mixed in there. After all, uninterrupted writing time was one of the reasons I scheduled this time-off to begin with. Should I manage to find both the time and the inclination, I’ll be giving today’s writing prompt and/or random words a try.
Care to join me?
For those of you working away on a story (whether a first draft or a polished version on its way to publication), if you’re not feeling random, we’d love to hear a bit – whether it’s a scene, a paragraph, or even a phrase that you are especially pleased with and would like to share.
If you don’t have a story in progress, or just want to work on something new, I hope today’s random words and writing prompt will catch your creative fancy.
Ready?
Note: Having listened to what feels like thousands of political debates in recent months, it felt like this “what if” was especially appropriate.
What if: “Your character decides to run for office?
Feel free to interpret the “What if” any way you choose (or ignore it completely) and include any (or all) of the following random words:
crush discontent naive pure
furious hive glimmer communication
arson gutsy clever forgiven
defector blacklist numskull featherweight
I look forward to seeing your stories in the comments. If you’re not feeling in the writing mood today, or don’t have time, feel free to post suggestions you might have for future “what-if” prompts. Ideas are always welcome.
Happy writing to all!
Eight Ladies Writing 
It sounds like you’ve had a great week, Elizabeth! I wish I could say the same: I seem to have caught this horrible virus that’s going around (not, I trust, Covid-19), and it’s been a long and boring week at home full of coughing. But today I found energy for the sprints, although this one is not my finest hour. 🙂
The Campaign
“You numskull,” a furious Thessaly Axworthy hissed, staring through the curtain to the crush of discontented fans and freaks on the auditorium floor. “She isn’t coming. I told you. I explicitly said, Ariane Grande’s flight was grounded, and she couldn’t make it to the fundraiser. You were supposed to cancel. What the hell were you thinking?”
“I was thinking it was a gutsy maneuver that would throw a spotlight on our candidate, and when Ariane showed up, all would be forgiven.” Enoch Fugger was unrepentant, not a glimmer of remorse in his dark and clever eyes.
“You thought wrong,” Thessaly said. Amateurs! These naïve featherweights who didn’t understand the basics of communication, who thought they could do what they wanted, say what they wanted, and there wouldn’t be any repercussions. Now both the candidate and Ariane would look bad.
Purely for academic purposes, she decided to test him.
“So, Enoch,” she said. “How do we somehow salvage this situation? How do we get this hive of disappointment out of the building without having them all defect to the opposition. Ideas?”
“Let’s smoke ‘em out,” Enoch said. “Arson.”
“Great idea,” Thessaly said. “You’re fired.”
“Politics is great!” Enoch said. “I always wanted to be on a blacklist. Now I can cross that off my bucket list.”
I predict a long and disreputable career in politics for Enoch. He’s really got that “facts don’t matter” part down pat 🙂
Sorry to hear you are not feeling well. I hope you made it through your conference successfully before illness stuck. Glad you found the energy to play along with the sprints. I suggest a long day of relaxing, drinking plenty of fluids, possibly reading a good book, and definitely taking care of your self.