On account of his hair, they called him Goldilocks. He did like porridge too and sometimes had it for breakfast, sat at his desk, checking his emails. He worked quietly, slotting CDs into the disk drive and humming along to songs by Lady Gaga – his favourite! It took his mind off the wretchedness ofContinue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘Goldilocks’”
Tag Archives: MW Bewick
100-Word Fiction: ‘1981’
That summer, cauliflowers and cabbages landed in our garden, gifts from next door’s vegetable patch. Maybe we played army in the fields. Post-Lennon, pre-Falklands, before the first CDs, just after the Toxteth riots and ahead of Sadat’s assassination. Retro styling meant Shakin’ Stevens and the future was the Commodore 64. There were street parties whileContinue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘1981’”
100 Word Fiction: ‘…because we never learn…’
Every year they are sent out and cheered on… leaves fall to the ground… across the grey pavements strewn… the news bulletins roll and call… civilians giving money to young men and women in combat fatigues… There are dates… 11/11… 9/11… 7/7… 11/11… 11/11… and onwards… to the cenotaphs and the white halls and houses…Continue reading “100 Word Fiction: ‘…because we never learn…’”
100-Word Fiction: ‘For George W Bush’
“Long after I am gone, when the desert sands have buried the broken towns, the blistered ancient holy buildings, the decayed bodies of ages, and all is dust once more, and rivers have diluted every drop of our blood and washed it to oblivion, and the memory of this history is a forgotten series ofContinue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘For George W Bush’”
100-Word Fiction: ‘Leafspotting’
The warden picked up a leaf. It was perfectly orange but it wasn’t the right one. He looked around, across the park to the woods. The landscape was shades of amber and red. He picked up another leaf. No, perhaps not that one either. He walked down the path and picked up another. Not bad,Continue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘Leafspotting’”
100-Word Fiction: ‘New Dress’
Eschewing the flamboyant (critics said “grotesque and overindulgent”) designs of the previous decade, the new couturier at the fashion house picked up his scissors and set to work. He had chosen a heavy material and was mulling over words: sackcloth? Too pious. Workwear? Blandly utilitarian. He sighed and snipped – and snipped until a small,Continue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘New Dress’”
100-Word Fiction: ‘A Family’
Did I even wear spectacles when I began all this? My hair was thicker, definitely: brown, remember? Now it is thinned and grey. It needs to be cropped short. I was slim then too, though I didn’t think so at the time. Out of shape is what I said. I looked at myself; looked atContinue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘A Family’”
100-Word Fiction: ‘A Sense of Light’
I woke from a sleep that was dominated by nightmares; or, at least, I began to wake. I think I did. The images of a sleep’s horror were still a storm in my mind, dark thoughts dissolved in the tears that drenched my closed eyes. There, waiting, eyes closed, almost too painful to look. AlmostContinue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘A Sense of Light’”
100-Word Fiction: ‘Your Arms Around Me’
To have your arms around me again. Your arm around my shoulders, resting there a moment. So many things come to mind. The times we have embraced and all of the reasons. Yes, love. Of course, love. We do love. That arm of support. The arm that draws me near, into your reach, to yourContinue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘Your Arms Around Me’”
100-Word Fiction: ‘How Long I Walked’
Today, as they talked, I again took notes. The records will show I wrote: ‘[I] believe that if the P___ leadership adheres to continuous negotiations, despite the obstacles that are coming up on every side, and if it is serious and determined in its intention to advance towards peace, just as we are serious, thenContinue reading “100-Word Fiction: ‘How Long I Walked’”
MW Bewick 