April 2010
21 posts
2 tags
Divergent - Chapter 3
Previously
Pete was at his usual spot the next morning, waiting for Andy and their morning chat before another long day at school. They only shared tech class and lunch; Pete’s morning walk with Andy always gave him a positive start to the day. Today was especially positive for Pete.
“Andy! Hey!”
“Why so happy? It’s not like it’s Friday or your...
2 tags
Buzz - chapter 3
Stanley waited for the familiar lurch of the truck moving but didn’t feel it. All he did feel was his roommate shaking, almost as fast as he was. He risked a tentative peek out the window and saw the park with its expanse of green grass, trees, all the rocks he’d marked as his own. What he didn’t see was an angry circle of dragonflies. He sniffed and smelled something sweet and...
3 tags
We're Not In Kansas Anymore - Chapter 3
I was not expecting the knock on my door, but I can’t say I was surprised, either. I scuffed from the kitchen where my tea was brewing to the front door, and I spied with my little eye a nice yet official-looking lady in a monochrome suit. A suited woman at your door in a long strand of faux-pearls during broad daylight is never a good sign.
I did not want to open the door. I was in my housecoat...
4 tags
WXYZ - Chapter 3
Previously
The meeting with his solicitor had not gone well. He simply wouldn’t listen to reason. Wesley had explained patiently that there was nothing in the deed stating that he had to be dead before availing himself of a mausoleum’s accommodation. The air-headed lawyer had waffled on about the spirit of the law and zoning regulations. Wesley had the distinct impression that he was...
2 tags
Wrapup for Round 4, Week 2
Things began to flesh out in the current set of stories from Too Many Cooks. If you haven’t read any of them this round, now is the time to start!
After leaving Raiquen at the bar, Fernando finds that he doesn’t know where he is. More importantly, he doesn’t know when he is. The intervention of a young woman saves him from certain arrest in my chapter of “Lost Cities of...
2 tags
Lost Cities of Argentina - Chapter 3
Previously
The worn springs gave out a pained groan as Fernando rolled over and reached out to touch Sofia’s hair as he did each morning. Bright late morning sunlight streamed in through a window next to the bed causing him to blink repeatedly as he continued to grasp for his familiar morning ritual. But there was no cascade of raven locks to untangle with his fingers, only an unused...
2 tags
Divergent - Chapter 2
Previously…
“What’s it feel like?”
A small cloud of pollen settled on the heather behind the boys, like a contrail marking their path through the field. Andy turned to Pete and squinted in the late afternoon sun. “You know when you take off your sweater, in winter like? How the hair on your arms stands up and you can feel even the tiniest breeze? Like that. It...
3 tags
Buzz - Chapter 2
Previously
Stanley was not known for his skills as an entomologist but even he realised that something was amiss. Groups of dragonflies weren’t that unusual for this time of year. What was unusual was the sheer number of them and the way they were forming a large, perfect circle. If he had been able to perform calculations Stanley would’ve described the circle as being twenty times as...
4 tags
WXYZ - Chapter 2
Wesley walked to the cemetery in the morning sunshine, donned his gloves and began pulling the weeds and overgrown grass from around his parents’ headstones. Why the groundskeeper didn’t use a trimmer was beyond him. It was just plain disrespectful. So he put his little rubber kneepad down and went to work.
There were a few empty beer bottles scattered around. Teens and their cemetery drinking had...
2 tags
We’re Not in Kansas Anymore - Chapter 2
Previously
I woke this morning without a wrinkle in the sheets, knowing that the day was starting as it should and I smiled. My feet missed the slippers by the side of the bed and my toes were tickled by the coolness of the floor. They really should stay put, but slippers have a sly side at times. I was in no rush this morning so I just pulled on my husband’s old navy blue cardigan. As I...
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2 tags
Wrapup for Round 4, Week 1
After weeks of silence, TMC returned with a bang last week. With five fresh chapters to five new stories and two brand-new writers, it was a big week. If you didn’t have a chance to read all the stories yet, be sure to take a look.
I led off the new round with the start of a story of Argentina, perception, reality, and maybe an alternate dimension or two just for the heck of it with...
2 tags
Lost Cities of Argentina - Chapter 2
Previously…
Sofia.
Fernando breathed deeply of the cold, foggy air, hoping to clear his mind. His first urge was to panic and run the streets, calling for Sofia. She was his anchor. She would make sense of this crazy night.
He flipped open his cell phone, but there was no reception. That was not unusual, as service here was often affected by the weather. No need for hysterical...
4 tags
Divergent - Chapter 1
“So, are you going to tell me why you needed to see me, or are we just going to throw this ball to each other for another hour?”
Pete held onto the rugby ball while he asked the question and looked at his friend with concern. Andy had asked to meet him round the back of the church. Said he had something he needed to talk about. It wasn’t like Andy to want to talk about stuff so Pete knew it...
3 tags
Buzz - Chapter 1
The buzzing was driving her crazy. It had been days now. Once again, she walked around her small bungalow looking for the source. She turned the fluorescent lights on and off again. She checked that the appliances were still unplugged. Flipped the TV and radio on and off, the lamps, unplugged the cell phone charger. The buzzing continued.
Stanley was concerned. He may be a Chihuahua, but he knew...
2 tags
WXYZ - Chapter 1
Slamming the receiver back into the cradle, Wesley Xavier Yardley let out a loud huffing breath, smoothed his imperceptibly wrinkled sweater vest, and headed to kitchen to brew himself a cup of soothing tea. “What do they mean I need a death certificate in order to get a building permit for a mausoleum?” He thought a phone call could clear up the silliness of the rejection letter he...
2 tags
We're Not in Kansas Anymore - Chapter 1
I do not recall when I first noticed the changes. All I know is one day, I realized that every time I walked into the kitchen, the refrigerator started running. It did not matter if it was morning, afternoon, or evening. If I entered the kitchen, the humming sound kicked in, almost as if to acknowledge my presence.
There were the bathroom lights, too. This was subtler,...
2 tags
Lost Cities of Argentina - Chapter 1
“Lost like ruins?”
The question hung between them while Raiquen finished his cigarette, squinting through the thick, yellow smoke. Fernando knew better than to rush his friend when he was in a professorial mood lest it drag even longer; he sat patiently.
Raiquen tugged his goatee, another of his practiced mannerisms, and stubbed out his cigarette.
“Not like ruins. Not lost...
Round 4
We received some very good submissions and worked hard to pare them down to two for our open slots this round. You’ll be seeing their chapters next week; I hope you enjoy their writing as much as we did.
The order for the round is…
Me CoyoteSqrl
Jann Mathcat345*
Valary NolagrrlNYC*
Cary MonkeyFrog
Paul PaulosTheGreek
Come back on Monday for chapter 1.
Something new for round 4
A quick reminder that tomorrow (whenever…5pm, midnight, we’re flexible) is the deadline for submissions.
toomanycooks:
Real-life commitments are still keeping a couple of our regulars out of the running for this round and we’ve decided to try something different: we’re opening TMC up for submissions.
If you’d like to join us for some round-robin writing fun, write and submit a...
Something new for round 4
A quick reminder to get your submissions in by Tuesday.
toomanycooks:
Real-life commitments are still keeping a couple of our regulars out of the running for this round and we’ve decided to try something different: we’re opening TMC up for submissions.
If you’d like to join us for some round-robin writing fun, write and submit a first chapter of a story by Tuesday, April 6. We’re going to...
