Tag: Writing Prompts

Flash Fiction – Colours Behind The Mask

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts42 Comments

Red, orange or pink lips? The choice was hard. Which one?

And then there were the shoes. Purple, brown, gold, light blue, white, or plain old dull grey? No contest! The purple ones always seem the most comfortable to wear and walk in.

And what about the dress? Multicoloured? Or how about the new bright green one with yellow flowers on it? After all, it’s new and still has the price tag attached. It’s about time it got shown off for the first time. There’s plenty of eyes to see it.

As for the nails, the gold nail varnish looks fantastic and smells like pear drops, a favourite sweet that always brings happy memories of Grandma.

It’s time for me to look in the mirror. I can’t help but feel a surge of confidence and excitement as I take in my reflection. How gorgeous I look in all these colours, don’t you think so?

Is that somebody coming into the house and walking up the stairs? Yes! My heart skips a beat. Oh, no! Panic, panic, what shall I do? My mind races, trying to devise a plan, but fear freezes me.

It’s too late. My father, a man whose presence always brought a mix of fear and anticipation, is already in the room. I don’t even have to turn around to find out he’s there, as the stench of alcohol, tobacco, and hints of my schoolteacher, Mrs. Freeman’s perfume, hit my nostrils.

My whole day went black. The only good thing was that I could watch the bruises change various colours as they faded.

Photo by Alexander Grey on Pexels.com

Written for Esther Chilton’s writing prompt – Colours.

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Photo of an arm and hand stretched out over the top of a city building

Flash Fiction – Life And Death In The City

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts28 Comments

From Esther Chilton’s blog: Writing prompt – Cities: One of my favourite cities is Rome. I’ll never forget the way the Colosseum took my breath away as I stood in the middle, the sights and sounds of the years before playing out before me. What cities have you been to? What special memories do they hold? Perhaps a city could be the backdrop for a story or poem.

Life And Death In The City – by Hugh W. Roberts

From the highest building, the city landscape held him in its thrall. His fist clenched, while his other arm stretched out, his eyes roamed from side to side, taking in the buildings, green spaces, transport, and every aspect of the city he adored. But the people? They were a different story.

From the moment he stepped foot in the city, a profound bond was formed. Every street, corner, and building became a part of him, intertwining with his very essence. For three glorious years, he thrived as a quintessential city man, his love for the city growing deeper with each passing day. But when he lost his job, a seismic shift occurred in his world. The concept of change was foreign to him, but the city, his beloved, seemed to be craving it, or so he thought.

As he gazed at the bustling, unfriendly crowds flowing into the city hall below, where he once worked, he realised that the city desperately needed a nucleus of change.

Eighteen minutes later, he found himself with his back turned only a few steps away from the imposing doors of city hall. He stood there, gazing up at the place he had been earlier, his mind a tempest of thoughts, each one questioning why he had even considered such a drastic step as jumping. The struggle within him was not just a storm, but a hurricane, his heart and mind locked in a fierce battle.

People tutted and gave him dirty looks as he blocked their path. The smell of their body odour hit his nostrils, making him feel sick.

‘Always in a rush! Why are these unclean city people always in a rush?’ he asked himself.

“Get out of the f-ing way,” somebody shouted at him as they pushed by him. “Idiot!”

“Idiot? Me?” he bellowed, his voice brimming with a potent blend of defiance and uncertainty. ‘Not me.’ he assured himself. ‘For I’m the one who can spark the change this city so desperately craves. It doesn’t deserve people like you.’

Minutes later, inside city hall, the first change to the city occurred.

“I’VE COME HERE TO SAVE YOU!” he screamed. Moments later, he pushed the trigger he’d held in his clenched hand, something he’d planned meticulously until he’d found himself looking down from the top of that building. As the almighty bang of the bombs went off, a sound reverberated through the halls, symbolising the start of a new era for the city. Without his action, it would never have survived.

Photo by Kaique Rocha on Pexels.com

Written for Esther Chilton’s writing prompt – Cities.

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Flash Fiction – Swimming Lessons

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts41 Comments

From Esther Chilton’s blog: Writing prompt – Water: What does that word conjure up for you? Walking along a canal? Splashing in a swimming pool or paddling in the sea? You could write about your own memories or create a story or poem. Perhaps there’s a water shortage, or the water supply is contaminated.

Swimming Lessons – by Hugh W. Roberts

Water was a source of terror for me. However, when I mustered the courage to join a beginners’ swimming club, it felt like a small victory over my fear.

Phil, the swimming instructor, was exceptional. Despite me being the oldest in the group, imagine how taken aback I was when he asked me out for dinner. It sparked an unexpected love story.

Three years later, not only were Phil and I married, but we were also very happy.

On the first occasion I brought him home, he seemed astounded that I’d never mentioned the indoor pool. “My husband had it built, mainly for the grandchildren,” I said.

Of course, the indoor pool terrified me, and I was scared that one of the grandchildren would drown in it.

“Well, now I can give you private lessons,” was his response. And how could I have refused an offer like that from somebody as handsome as Phil?

But water still terrified me. Even with Phil’s muscular arms around my body, all I did was panic when I was in the water.

Then, one day, Phil said he had a surprise for me—something that would go a little way to stopping me from fearing water. And he wasn’t wrong. I couldn’t stop laughing when I saw the huge, inflatable pink flamingo floating in the pool. It symbolised our journey, a reminder of how far I had come. It was a testament to Phil’s love and support and the final push I needed to conquer my fear of water for good.

Unfortunately, while putting the inflatable away one day, I caught it and watched in horror as it deflated. 

“Don’t worry, grandma, I’ll find another online,” my eldest grandson told me. 

I ensured Phil was out when my grandson bought it over, inflated it, and told me he’d switched it on. Switched it on? He was the joker in the family! I always laughed at his jokes. 

Phil had no idea about the replacement, but I had yet to realise it was slightly different.  

One evening, after one too many glasses of champagne, Phil persuaded me to join him in the pool. Sitting on the inflatable helped calm my nerves, and it wasn’t until I felt the head of the flamingo that I realised not all of it was inflatable. But what fun we had. We laughed so much until I slipped off, and the inflatable drifted away. I panicked, especially as I watched Phil swim away to the otherside of the pool, get out, stand, and watch me drown. 

Now, my fear of water has gone. But inflatable flamingos? That’s another story. They still make me jump every time I see one, a lingering reminder of the fear I once had and the love that never was that helped me almost overcome it.

Phil’s time could have been longer. It was only a matter of weeks before my grandson watched the CCTV footage taken through the eyes of the inflatable flamingo. There’s no point being the wealthiest widower in prison.

Written for Esther Chilton’s writing prompt – Water.

Photo by Toni Cuenca on Pexels.com

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Flash Fiction – Life On The Edge Of Dreams

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts23 Comments

From Esther Chilton’s blog: Writing prompt – Dreams: Do you have a dream you yearn to fulfil? Maybe yours has come true. Or perhaps you’ve had strange, funny, or recurring dreams. But not everyone remembers their dreams, so you could write something fictional and give your characters all sorts of interesting dreams.

Life On The Edge Of Dreams – by Hugh W. Roberts

Daydreaming was a serene escape, a cherished pastime. I would recline on my favourite piece of freshly mowed lawn, taking in the grassy odours while gazing up at the clouds as they playfully chased each other across the sky, their movements a soothing sight.

“It’s time to come in,” my mother’s voice would echo, breaking the silence of my obliviousness. “You’ll catch your death of cold laying on the damp, cool grass, dear.”

But I would bide my time, waiting for the familiar sounds of my father stowing away the lawnmower and other tools in the shed to fade. Only then would I rise, dust myself of grass cuttings, and return to the house, a place steeped in dreams and comforting familiarity. 

Entering the kitchen, I observed my parents, their faces a canvas of shared memories, dreams, and contentment. As they savoured tea and custard creams, I’d drift into daydreams of the past that I found difficult to articulate. Yet, in those dreams, I could hear their unspoken thoughts about me and the spot on the lawn where they had lovingly scattered my ashes, a place my father had vowed to preserve forever.

Life on the edge of dreams is the perfect resting spot.

Written for Esther Chilton’s writing prompt – Dreams.

A close-up photo of blades of grass with a heavy dew on them
Photo credit: Hugh W. Roberts

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No More Heroes #flashfiction

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts25 Comments

April 8, 2021, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that “rethinks the hero.” Define the hero, comparing or contrasting to the classic definition. Break the mold. What happens to the hero in the cave? Is it epic or everyday? Is there resistance or acceptance? Go where the prompt leads!

No More Heroes – by Hugh W. Roberts

As she ascended the scaffold, an image of her husband stood before her. His cloak, scruffy beard and stocky build still made him the hero she deeply loved.

Kneeling before him, she looked up.

Praising him, she told those around her that he was a gentle and sovereign lord.

Bowing her head, she waited for his forgiveness.

As the executioner struck Anne Boleyn’s head off with a single swing of his sword, Henry made his way to the woman he would marry a few days later. She’d become his hero, but not until she delivered him a male heir.

***

Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch. Click here to join in.

Copyright © 2021 hughsviewsandnews.com – All rights reserved.

A Night To Remember #flashfiction

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts44 Comments

April 1 2021, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about a swift passage. You can take inspiration from any source. Who is going where and why. What makes it swift? Go where the prompt leads!

A Night To Remember – by Hugh W. Roberts

Like they’d been told when booking their tickets, this would be a swift journey. But for some, the swiftness would become a little longer.

The bright light came from nowhere. It was only the reflection of moonlight that brought it to the attention of some of the passengers.

Its swift passage from its home would only bring death and destruction.

Like a giant sculpture in the middle of the ocean, the iceberg towered above everything. Thirty-nine-year-old *Mr Hugh Roscoe Rood joined just over fifteen hundred others on their swift passage from the Titanic to the next world.

Bon voyage.

***

*Mr Hugh Roscoe Rood was an actual passenger abroad the Titanic.

The RMS Titanic sank in the early morning hours of 15 April 1912 in the North Atlantic Ocean, four days into her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. 

Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch. Click here to join in.

Copyright © 2021 hughsviewsandnews.com – All rights reserved.

The Potato Thief #flashfiction

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts51 Comments

March 4, 2021, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that includes sweet potatoes. It can be part of a recipe, meal, or used as a nickname. Where do sweet potatoes take you? The grocery store? The garden? Mars? Go where the prompt leads!

The Potato Thief – by Hugh W. Roberts

He should never have stolen my home-grown, sweet potatoes.

He may have been an enthusiastic, good-looking man, but just because I gave him some, he had no right coming back in the dead of night to help himself to me and more potatoes.

Furious, I ended up hitting him over the head with the shovel and burying his body under the sweet potato patch. Boy, did it make them taste even sweeter; until the day forensics arrived and dug up the patch.

Still, at least I get to make sweet potato mash for all the boys here in prison.

***

Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch. Click here to join in.

Copyright © 2021 hughsviewsandnews.com – All rights reserved.

New Home #flashfiction

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts31 Comments

February 25 2021, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story using the word frozen. It can be descriptive, character focused, action driven. Go out onto the ice and find a frozen story. Go where the prompt leads!

New Home – by Hugh W. Roberts

The frozen wastes of space were no place anymore for the light pink sphere.

It had travelled for thousands of years, but the icy blue planet ahead looked the only hope it had of survival.

The glowing rays of a young star rising in the east sent the alien into a potential thaw and deep sleep on this new world.

Millions of years later, it awoke to find new owners’ of the planet had built a city on top of where it had rested.

“Welcome to Wuhan’, it recorded, as it began the fightback to reclaim its new home.

***

Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch. Click here to join in.

Copyright © 2021 hughsviewsandnews.com – All rights reserved.

Look Before You Leap #flashfiction

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts52 Comments

February 4, 2021, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story that features a substitution. How might a character or situation be impacted by a stand-in? Bonus points for fairy tale elements. Go where the prompt leads.

Look Before You Leap – by Hugh W. Roberts

For hundreds of years, all had been well in the Kingdom of Princess Glitter Reins. Until the morning of her 42nd birthday.

“Do-be-do-do-do,” she sang while looking in the bathroom mirror.

“I’m so happy, happy, happy, and gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous,” she told her reflection. “Nothing can go wrong today,” she purred while grabbing a can of deodorant and spaying under both arms.

“Ohhhhh, that feels peculiar, but smells familiar.”

Turning the can around, the princess’s reflection looked horrified as the words ‘Hair lacquer’ met her eyes. Who the heck had substituted her deodorant for a can of hair lacquer?

***

Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch. Click here to join in.

Copyright © 2021 hughsviewsandnews.com – All rights reserved.

Mirror Of Hope #flashfiction

Published on by Hugh W. Roberts46 Comments

January 14, 2020, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about dressing up. It can be a child or another character. Be playful or go where the prompt leads!

Mirror Of Hope – by Hugh W. Roberts

Despite the bruises, Andrew admired himself in the mirror. A princess looked back at him.

“Don’t forget your shoes.”

The red high heeled shoes, although too big, complemented his mother’s burgundy dress he had on.

“You’re pretty,” remarked the princess.

The faint noise of his father’s car’s unexpected arrival caused panic in Andrew and the princess.

“Hide behind me,” yelled the princess, “before he beats you again.”

Crouching behind the mirror, he tried making himself invisible.

As the smell of alcohol and the unbuckling of his father’s belt reached him, tears made their escape down the young boy’s face.

Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch. Click here to join in.

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