Children in Need Writing Marathon 2007

The Blog site advertising a Writing Marathon (our second year) on November 17-19th 2007) which raises money for Children in Need while also producing quality stories and an anthology.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Wednesday Night Trial Prompts 19:30

1. What seas, what shores, what rocks
2. The child wonders at the Christmas tree
3. I see the eyes but not thetears
4. In a brown field stood a tree
5. The wind sprang up at four o’clock
6. Children’s voices
7. Then you break it. Why?
8. Take me where the good times are
9. Meet me on the corner
10. Twice daily, at noon and dusk
11. Lean forward, touch the spot
12. Underneath the town clock, a knot of people
13. He went quiet, as if he was ashamed
14. So faint, I wasn’t sure I heard
15. We were talking about the little things
16. The protagonist is not at home just now
17. A man should clear a space for himself
18. Houses as couples, singles, groups
19. They were going to build a bridge here
20. A fox patters slowly, murder on his mind
21. Alleys, stinking of stale piss
22. We stand in line in the rain
23. As if brightness or sweetness could save us
24. Sundays are good days. We should waste them carefully
25. If you are old enough to read this, you understand
26. Now suddenly you can hardly stand
27. How long has it been since you told him?
28. You loved him once, held his heavy shoulders
29. I see this woman on a roof, about to fall
30. A man enters a florist, buys some flowers
31. It’s just a little party, nothing special
32. I kissed her and the tube doors closed
33. There are too many people to thank

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Midnight Early

I'm shattered. Fallen asleep at the wheel twice

Here's midnight in case I miss out



TURKEY

Bye, Bye, Blackbird

Escalators

Not in the top ten

Set inside the four walls

Jimmy Brown

Blessing

I'm afraid you think you need to bow before me

Sad stories of the dearth of kings

Jeffrey Archer, Poet Laureate

Human ash is a fine fertiliser

O child this is your dream

Before the making of the toast and tea

Slag

Softly, in the dusk, a woman is singing to me

Creative Writing Class

Under My Kilt, Another Kilt

Very, very patchy

Boiled Beef and Carrots 



I am the scent of a feather falling from the sky

Jingle Fucking Bells

Drizzled with goose fat

When sheets are damp with cold sweat, no love

The corners of this evening

The boat came in at Liverpool, a Monday, raining.

I would like to be a ticket-collector

Fuck this

Wipe your hand across your mouth, laugh

Let us go then you and I

Trampled by insistent feet

Jingle Fucking Bells

Drizzled with goose fat

When sheets are damp with cold sweat, no love

The corners of this evening

The boat came in at Liverpool, a Monday, raining.

I would like to be a ticket-collector

Fuck this

Wipe your hand across your mouth, laugh

Let us go then you and I

BING!

Trampled by insistent feet

The Lottery

At four, at five, at six o'clock

A dog, a dark street. This is hope

I miss Saturday afternoons

A bird freezes, dies

And Sunday, belly full, asleep on the sofa

Tuesday Prompts 23:00

She is perfectly acceptable. I am afraid of her

But she used to worry sheep

We have dozed and dreamed, watched the fire's glow

Absence Makes the Heart Go Wander

Come near, come near, come near

Some knives are beautiful

A thorn is a thorn is a thorn

Our shutters are shut, our fire is low.

Claudia Sniffer and the Hat of Many Flowers

The other side of the story

Reading Banville

Don't say shirt-lifter.

Smoothed by long-fingered surgeons

With ten minutes to kill and the whole place deserted

Under the blue spotlight

Chin up, duck! There are always people worse off

I killed myself quickly then hid

Getting and spending. We lay waste our powers

You set the olives down beside the feta

People my mother fucked

I know all women, especially those I haven't met

She smiles in corners

Anger management

There will be time, there always is

Chucky-Chucky-Chucky

Prrrrrrtttttt!!!

A woman, her delicate wrist

Her hand twists a paper rose

I have no passport. I am exiled here

Alleyways, winding like tedious argument

My sister had daughters, my brother, sons.

The floor, memory

I need one good line, one that sings

Indeed there will be time

Putting up tinsel, crepe

BEEF

Should I not smile?

Of restless nights, and beds that smell of pussy

A day for slow fever

People my mother fucked

I know all women, especially those I haven't met

She smiles in corners

Anger management

There will be time, there always is

Chucky-Chucky-Chucky

Prrrrrrtttttt!!!

A woman, her delicate wrist

Her hand twists a paper rose

I have no passport. I am exiled here

Alleyways, winding like tedious argument

My sister had daughters, my brother, sons.

The floor, memory

I need one good line, one that sings

Indeed there will be time

Putting up tinsel, crepe

BEEF

Should I not smile?

Of restless nights, and beds that smell of pussy

A day for slow fever

Tuesday Prompts 22:30

It's a football match for orphans. The referee's a bastard

Well, the smart money's on Harlow and the moon is in the street

Will you walk a little faster?

BRASS

I was so filled with longing

Climbing the style with the girls

Yesterday, can I have it back?

Collateral damage from holy water

Sabbath.

I first learned to swim in my father's study

I almost love them; they are my children.

Tell Us The Truth, John

Hundreds of women were looking

Cold marble

I AM communicating with you

Her lightness drew me, after so many heavy, dark days with you

I would prefer to die with drama

Gathering

We look for communion

When I am asked, I say I'm a quiet lad, I pick no fights.

Do not go gentle

Few go happily, radiating joy

How wellingtons become heavy in mud

Reasonably contrary

Still a lot to do

I prefer Eliot

Duffy answers back

It is only murder

Lilacs

Arrange the scene yourself

BUCKET

I am so far behind. I glimpse his heels

When the evening is spread out against the sky

She twists her wedding finger as she talks

If you shou die some sunny afternoon

We have lingered too long, we will hear them calling

Christmas Bollox

Stainless Steel

More time than a man needs to sin twice

The Sink

Do not go gentle

Few go happily, radiating joy

How wellingtons become heavy in mud

Reasonably contrary

Still a lot to do

I prefer Eliot

Duffy answers back

It is only murder

Lilacs

Arrange the scene yourself

BUCKET

I am so far behind. I glimpse his heels

When the evening is spread out against the sky

She twists her wedding finger as she talks

If you shou die some sunny afternoon

We have lingered too long, we will hear them calling

Christmas Bollox

Stainless Steel

More time than a man needs to sin twice

The Sink

The bad joke gene

Tuesday Prompts 22:00

I loved my father most as he walked home from work

Squinting against the late-afternoon sun as it cut through the birch trees

Shit!

Zulus boxed in their glass cases

Had hung in darkness and smoke

It was in those days when I wandered about hungry.

I felt like a quartered chicken

Love of art, not others

My astrologer told me Saturn has been flopped over me like a giant cosmic fried egg

I suspect that there were deaths

Mitch Midgely's last walk

For he's a jolly good driver

Here, one can see Oliver Reed's testicles impaled

Blackberry Way, Singing

I am a man now

Jill-in-the-Box

All men kill the thing they love; women suck out the life.

Don't always be a thought ahead

Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner

I caught a tremendous fish

The end of the Sopranos

This is the wind, this is the rain

And what about us?

Google Jones Puppy Cheese

Your body is your country

What is this life, if full of care?

Ding Fucking Dong

Who Made You? God made me.

Stone cries to stone

Eternally downhill

At the other end of the string, a child.

Pampering the workers

Not far from the railroad tracks

Did you pack your bag?

Let us go then, you and I

Letters from mad lovers

Run him down

The prostitute and the miner

I have sent you an ear

In our present state of knowledge

Tuesday Prompts 20:56

A brave and rare man, Hungarian
UNDERDOG
Knuckling Down
Memories of Zippy and Bungle
Mildred Bonk
Sleeping in the car, one sock on
Travel is a contrary thing.
The funeral empties every farmstead, every farm
What we were like then. What we will be like
A Month in the Wilderness
Various problems with the penis
We don't know why Brownlee left, only that he is gone
My mother bought a piglet, my father bought a pig.
The doctor has warmed the speculum in her latex-gloved hand.
A Silver Dish
Cream Crackers
Screaming, laughing staggering
Hurricane!
You confront yourself
It starts in the pub, in a smokey back room
Eating in a public place has been banned
Two different kinds of shit
They only want praise
Make the sacrifice
I have been told by the best people
Where were you on the night?
Oswald Missed!
Whatever they want
Ever since the accident I've walked this way
Hey Peter!
To kill, a cross, some nails, an audience
Bullshit baffles brains
They are shaving people's heads at Heathrow
The man who invented asbestos
Live secure in your warm houses
Pandora's other box
This is you at the speed of light
I see flames
The smell of steaks in passageways

Tuesday Prompts 20:00

A wooden turtle

I am crushed into a corner

Morning coffee with the Misses Tavistock & Green

When the leaves fall upwards to the trees

Pimp My Mac

Women stripped to the waist

A very small bone, broken

I think of how I lay here as a lad

Judge Me Not Too Harshly

It is impossible to see anything

Rain, rain and more rain.

Whatever it is you are struggling to remember

Mothercare

Big as fists, dull as old eyes

I am going to write bits of conversation as I remember them

Let us go then, you and I

About to sit down with my half-pint of Guinness

Angels on Earth

Zephyr Zodiacs, Ford Consuls, Leather Bench Seats

Woman Found Hurt

Which must absolutely be kept from that angel

Bloodless coup, a real letdown

Commons Sketch

Everything looked normal.

The moving finger writes

Great crowds are fleeing from a major disaster

I have never visited him in his quarters

Oh Allen, come and hold my hand.

Order Fulfillment Form

Consider, please this dish of ratatouille

You I could not save

Try to understand this. I'll say it simply

Drunkards whose throats will be cut soon

We will not invade, but we will build on your borders

Two people do what?

The gorilla in the corner

FORK

The time of fools is coming, then dying

Our theatrical DNA

An exploding football

Daddy, I made this for you …

Tuesday Prompts 19:37

Sorry they are late. Forgot


Prompts at 19:30


Pink rubber gloves, dishwater
And the last sound, your father arriving home late, late
And were we innocent then?
He had my heart. I have his in a jar.
Intelligence and Women: A Short Book
With the man in the wind and the west moon
A Round of Applause for Your Stepmother
By this axe
Not everybody's childhood sucks
Bloody Sunday
I sold him a toothless, beakless, canary: sucker!
The accident and other topics
The troubled midnight
You do NOT touch my things
Grasshopper
Long, thick, creamy fingers
TEA
Tiger!
Their hooftprints splashes of light
Trucks have been unloading something all afternoon
Trouble in Cow Country
Despite everything, morning comes
From the hill I saw a snaking terrace
We brushed the dirt off, held it to the light
Every morning she comes on deck early.
Spot On
Why the Welsh are revolting
Hunger
In the aeroplane, over the sea
Call me when you're sober
Clockhouse, Counthouse
Cowslip, Marsh Mangold, a boot
The unread mail, the patients.
I don't want it to be this way
An itch
Journeys
At last his guilt became apparent
Her lower lip is beginning to quiver
So, apart from a couple of hitches, Plan A was working out fine.
Hair to Dye For

Tuesday Prompts 19:00

Jennifer Eccles and Her Sisters
Mummy and Daddy, in various disguises
You must be happy
Suddenly, after the quarrel, a moment of tenderness
Zoo
CHECK
The sorrow will pass but not the conviction
That Friday Feeling
My daddy was a jockey and he taught me how to ride
The clouds cast moving shadows on the land
The northern sky rose high and black
Danger, Existentialists operate in this area
If God forgot to have a man be dead
My dad just left it by the shed
The bustle of waitresses and the chink of silver on china
You wake up taller, the day presses you down
As the door closes, as the dark envelopes
David Time's view of himself began at the station platform, his polished boots.
Families, and How to Survive Them
They call me Mr Pitiful
When you see millions of the mouthless dead
How can I get a sense of country?
My mother is sleeping
For some reason, there is a camel in the dining-room
Friends Reunited
Tea With Dan Dare
Mary had a little car, it caused her jubilation
Moods of the Sea
When I looked at my parents I never thought of tragedy
My gums bleed
Light, dark, dry, damp
Lead me with your cold, sure hand
Armadillo, Armadillo, Mrs Jones
Wanda you could lose some weight
Grey and Nearly GREY
You'll need your passport
Even Better Than the Real Thing
Sadness, that's normal, it goes with the territory.
Everything looks too beautiful for me
The darkness dissolves

Tuesday Prompts 18:00

Remember to email to say if you are "in" for each session


PROMPTS

Yanks
I had just poured a glass of wine
They build the world of love from sex, after-the-fact
Let me never be a father
Jesus Smith, Traffic Warden
Red Wine
11p
Too tired to step aside
Does the twat in Spandex still bang that fucking drum?
What could be hurting so much?
When she rises in the morning
Has anyone seen my sky?
Today is the tomorrow we worried about yesterday
Lose it before you use it.
Nancy With The Laughing Face
A broken flower-stem, a broken vase
Lucy lives behind this house
SALT
"I'm here to see the owner."
Irish carpentry, American kindness
They sat in what Mrs Coldfield called her office.
Inside the restaurant had been shuttered-gloomy.
I daresay death was no more than a gentle subduing
I caught an amazing fish
Beowulf, but then again
I love you. That's the main thing.
I've been wondering about drowning
You make a noise like a dog dreaming.
Life Streaming
In the middle of the night, if we got up
Then I gave myself a fright
King Fred
Like a dwarf on stilts
TOAST
Please note the last sentence of this letter regarding unauthorised connections
Mother, may I?
This was the end of a man who also died
They're sending in their regional inspector
Your house is too warm
Honey, I saw your note and understand you're a little upset.

Tuesday Practice Session in 38 Minutes

Hope you're ready!

Are You in For Tonight?

Session tonight CINNERS and I've only heard from about half the crowd

Please email me and let me know if you are in.



Alex

First Practice Session

The first formal practice session is tonight (Tuesday) at 1800 hours
where you have a choice of joining on the 60 minute or 90 minute schedule

Prompts will be posted here, at Boot Camp and by email.




alex

CIN Forums Set Up

A set of forums, chat, admin, prompts, stories etc


have been set up at Boot Camp

http://bootcampkeegan.yuku.com/


Non Boot-Campers will need to take out free GLOBAL Membership of Yuku
and post in the public area of BC so I can activate their temporary membership


Alex

Children-in-Need 2007

I'm resurrecting last year's blog-site (save the planet!)

Here is the list of participants for 2007

17 people, 16 active. I'd like 30, really

01 Alex K, Berkshire, England
02 Claire, Cumbria, England
03 TomC, Yorkshire
04 Joel, Finland
05 Dan, England
06 Caroline, England
07 Britbird, Brighton, England
08 The Secretary!
09 Colin, England
10 Missy, England
11 Ants, Leeds, England
12 Ralph New Zealand/London
13 Dave Prescott, Herefordshire, England
14 Chrissie, Spain
15 Cedric, Romania & London
16 Jonathan Pinnock, UK
17 Nancy, Bristol UK


The "open" hours have been extended for those who can't get Friday off and the flash prompts will be posted

from

1800 THURSDAY

to

1200 SATURDAY

Obviously, nobody is going to attempt to do the 42 hours without a break

Prompts will appear in 3 places for extra safety

1 Participants IN-BOX
2 Here
3 Boot Camp http://bootcampkeegan.yuku.com/


Prompts will appear on the hour AND the 1.5 hours, this to allow those participants wanting to work a 90-minute schedule to do so (how's about that for contorted English?)


As per usual, IF a participant responds to say he/she is "in" for that session/prompt-set they are allowed an extra five mintes to post their story.

Stories should be posted to Lexie (secretary) and to me (AK) again, as insurance. I will not look at my story emails but it's useful to have a cover in case (for example) Lexie's machine blows up.


All participants will score the stories "blind" (not every participant critting every story!) until an obvious consensus opinion has been formed. Stories will be assigned to a number of categories with the important two being "Clear Finalists" and "Marginal Finalists"... There will also be a category where "split-vote" stories will be argued over.

When the CIN sessions have finished and every story has at least 4 marks, and the split-vote stories have been adjudicated, Eclectica Magazine will look at the finalists and 7Q magazine ditto.

There will be a print anthology from 7Q


Alex