Life
The Matriarch's Table
Viv, Layla and Hugo are the first to arrive. Frieda, the family matriarch, is already seated at the western side of the large rosewood dining table. Behind her the Lions Gate Bridge separates Burrard Inlet and English Bay. Container ships pass near the horizon beneath the blue-grey blanket of clouds. Ten places laid out with fine bone china, the rosewood table adorned with silver candelabras, silver serving platters, and large silver serving spoons of varying sizes. The grandeur of elaborate high society parties hangs in the air. The servants and guests are long gone. Each room, drenched in the secrets of a bygone era, now collecting cobwebs and dust. Tonight, this one room hums with a throng of life not seen for decades as this final gathering of the motley successors feeds life into the old bones of the structure.
By Meredith Ferrari3 months ago in Writers
Good Men Are Hard To Find, So Relax And Let Them Find You
Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter — What if? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers prompts — The Exercise — Have a place in your writer's notebook where you play around with titles, making a list of your favorites. Or read through a story looking for a title to emerge from the story itself - a phrase, an image, etc. The Objective To sharpen your instincts for a good title and to understand how titles can lead you to stories.
By Denise E Lindquist3 months ago in Writers
Why I Stopped Trying to be Productive at 6AM
I used to pressure myself, nonstop, to wake up at 6 AM because every "successful" person online said that's what grown adults do. According to the adults online, if you weren't up before sunrise, writing in your journal, and drinking a green smoothie, your life was basically a failure waiting to happen. I believed what the adults online said. I became miserable, not understanding why waking up early didn't transform me into a hyper glowing version of myself.
By Jasmine Platson3 months ago in Writers
This Was My Best Fucking Piece (And It Still Lost)
There’s a particular kind of heartbreak that only writers know— the moment you hit “submit,” whisper a shaky prayer to the literary gods, and then, days or weeks later, open an email that starts with the word “Unfortunately.”
By Alexander Mind3 months ago in Writers
Life Between Two world. AI-Generated.
Three years ago, I left Kenya — a peaceful, warm place that shaped my childhood — and moved to Somalia, a land full of contradictions. Beauty and hardship. Strength and struggle. Hope and fear. Two worlds, both real. Two worlds I now live between.
By Khadija Ali3 months ago in Writers
Two Native American Elders Visiting
Anne Bernays and Pamela Painter — What if? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers prompts — The Exercise — Begin a story from random elements such as two characters, a place, two objects, an adjective, and an abstract word. If you are not in a class, give this list to someone and have them provide you with the words so you will be surprised by them. If you are in a class have the class make up a random list. Then everyone must use these elements in the first two pages of a story. The Objective - To exercise your imagination, to prove to yourself that all you need is a trigger to get you started writing. And if you care about the story you start, the finish will take care of itself.
By Denise E Lindquist3 months ago in Writers
Elf 256
Trying to be Santa for my kids sucked. I don’t mean the part about sneaking around at night or assembling toys quietly so the dog wouldn’t bark. I mean the comparison. The gifts from their grandparents were always bigger, louder, shinier — the sort of presents that practically glowed under the tree. Every Christmas morning I’d watch my kids tear into those boxes with eyes wide enough to swallow the whole world.
By Mark Stigers 3 months ago in Writers
Imran Khan: The Man Who Refused to Bow
The story opens with a 70-year-old man sitting behind the walls of a prison. His name is Imran Khan. His “crime,” in the eyes of his opponents, is that he gave the youth of Pakistan a voice and a sense of purpose. Many had already written his political obituary, but those who knew him understood he was not someone who gave up easily. He was offered two choices: apologise and walk free, or stay behind bars. He chose to stand firm against the people he believed had looted his country.
By Salman Writes3 months ago in Writers
Poetry: My Second Love
With as much poetry as I have published on Vocal lately, one might think that I am poet first and a fiction writer second. I have received many compliments on my poetry, even on some of my older poetry that I have posted to show how far I have come (for an example, see my poem “The Museum of Freedom”). Some people have even suggested that I publish a book of poetry (here’s looking at you, Paul and Donna), and I am seriously considering it.
By Stephanie Hoogstad3 months ago in Writers
