Wednesday, March 14, 2018

Until Release

by Jemi Fraser

Back in September, I posted this on Facebook...

3500 words
7 different pov characters
1st attempt at a short
Genre I don't normally write
What could possibly go wrong...?
#amwriting

The Theme for the newest IWSG anthology had intrigued me.

Theme: Tick Tock. The story revolves around a clock, is time sensitive, or has something about a specific time. 

The prompt for the contest had my brain ticking (pun intended!). I saw a clock counting down, but counting down to what?


The first character to pop into my head was a grieving mother. Then the man who caused the grieving.

This man was being released early from prison, for good behaviour.

Other characters popped in until I ended up with 8 points of view in the story. I'm used to juggling 2 points of view and am comfortable with both male and female viewpoints. But 8? Yeah, I thought I was nuts, too. And, yes, another character clamoured to be added after my FB post above.

Added to the mess, none of the characters came with names, but they did come with evil intentions.

I had so much fun writing the first draft! And the fun increased with each revision round.

First up in the story is Ashley...

It proved impossible to paint nail polish neatly while imagining her fingers wrapped around that throat.  Squeezing until the pulse ceased to beat and the life was gone.
Like her Matt’s life.
Gone.
Four years, three months, and thirteen days gone. Less than five years to pay for the death of her son. Snuffed out at nineteen. Run down like he meant nothing.
It wasn’t enough.
Walker had to pay like her Matt had paid.
Ashley took a deep breath followed by three more. Then picked up the polish with a steady hand.

I hope you'll be picking up a copy of Tick Tock: A Stitch in Crime when it's released! And don't forget to add us to your list on Goodreads! Join us on Facebook too!

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16 comments:

  1. Three points of view has been my biggest stretch. But you did great with eight. They were all very distinct.

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    1. And your 3 were very well done! :)
      Thanks - that's good to hear!

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  2. I loved your story. It was very unique.

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  3. The story worked. You told it well!
    It's always a thrill to try something new and succeed! You did!

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    1. Thanks Yolanda!! It was such fun to try something different - I may be addicted now... :)

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  4. Your story sounds awesome! Congrats!! Love your excerpt. :)

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    1. Thanks Christine! Ashley got the whole story rolling!

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  5. I am beyond excited to get hold of this anthology!! And so excited for you!

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  6. You did an awesome job of writing 8 distinctive POVs. Not only that, but to have them all converge to one point in time. It was brilliant!

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    1. Thanks so much Gwen!!! It was so much fun to write! :)

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  7. Just the thought of multiple POVs gives me a headache. Good on you and congratulations!

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    1. LOL - just a weird advantage of my Tigger brain! :)

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  8. All those perspectives would have been challenging, but it works. It's like a scene in a movie.

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Your comments are most appreciated!