THE EMPORER'S NEW HAIRCUT - A 50 WORD PHOTOSTORY

Harry doesn’t really believe the hairdresser when he says this is the latest cut. Even when he sees the result, Harry leaves a tip. The laughter in the salon follows him out to the street. A child points at him. It’s good to be ahead of fashion, the hairdresser said.

CAUGHT IN THE NET - a 50 word photostory

He wants to know how she found out. He was so careful. But she accused him straight away. He hadn’t even got into bed. She doesn’t say she saw the grid marks on his naked body. That she recognised the chair he’d got them from. That she’d sat there too.

Dummy - a 50 word photostory

She makes Claude at evening class. At work she boasts that she has a new man. A fencer. He can’t come to drinks, she says, because he’s always sharpening his sword or washing his moustache. She laughs at him. It’s much better than when they used to laugh at her.

(This is one of the fifty word stories I write to accompany my photographs. You can read more here, or write a 50 word story of your own and add it in the comments box. But be warned - they are addictive!)

Dark - a 50 word photostory

Her friend Tanya has a night-light.

When the dark comes, a lit-up ladybird keeps Tanya safe.

Susie’s mum is cross. Susie should grow up and not be scared of everything. And stop telling stories.

Every night Susie lies alone, watching the light disappear. Listens out for footsteps. Says nothing.


This story is exactly fifty words long. It's part of a series of 50 word stories I've been writing to accompany photographs I take. Sometimes the photos and stories are a direct match, other times there's something about the photo that sparks off an idea. I'm not sure why I started doing them, but I know they have helped me to look a little bit harder. To take the kind of frame Anne Lamott talks about in Bird by Bird and apply it to bits of my life that I wouldn't otherwise notice.

You can read more 50 word stories here.

SANCTUARY - A 50 WORD PHOTO STORY

But what do you do in there? Melissa asks.

Think, he replies.

Don’t be ridiculous, she says. You can't think without me to tell you how to.

He doesn’t say he disagrees. Later though, in his shed, he thinks about how she’s wrong. He swears the shed moves slightly. Nodding.


This story is inspired by Shedworking, the book.


More 50 word stories here.

DYING - A 50 WORD PHOTOSTORY

It was on Monday when Joe first saw the colours surrounding people. The red round Mrs Robins was so strong he couldn’t look at her. His friend Caryn was yellow, like sunlight. He ran home. Gasped as he saw the bright beautiful white light coming from where his father waited.



More 50 word photostories here.

CURLING - A 50 WORD PHOTOSTORY

Toast crusts make your hair curl. She tells her daughters this, watching the way they both cram their mouths full, put their fingers up to their heads hopefully. It’s just a way of getting you to behave, she wants to yell. But she cries instead. Tells them they’re good girls.



More 50 word photostories here.

PRICKLY - A 50 WORD PHOTOSTORY

Graham tells her she should be softer. What has she got to lose? But he doesn’t know the last man she loved left her in debt and still hurting. It’s only recently she’s started to trust again. She rubs her arm, feels the goosebumps like small prickles under her skin.


More 50 word photostories here.

HUNTED - A 50 WORD PHOTOSTORY

She told Harry she was an expert rider. Even rode point-to-points. Such fun, she said, tossing back her hair. She thought he’d only be a one-night stand. Not her Mr Right. Mother’s desperate to meet you, he tells her. She’d almost given up on me meeting a proper horsey girl.



More fifty word photostories here.

FILLING THE WELL - A 50 WORD PHOTOSTORY

Who would have thought they would miss water? After the decree about only drinking wine, there were celebrations. Everyone came into work late the next morning. And the next. Until they cursed at Chardonays, moaned over Merlots. I don’t like to tell you what they did to the Pouilly Fuisse.

More 50 word stories here.

Run Rabbit Run - a fifty word photostory

Don’t go to any trouble, he says. He means it. He’s going to tell her it’s not her fault, it’s his. He’s not worth the trouble she goes to. He won’t say it embarrasses him. That one month together isn’t worth celebrating anyway. She should get a life. Without him.

Shhh... a fifty word photostory

Their honeymoon was cut short when a romantic midnight walk goes horribly wrong. People whisper about the insurance settlement, but no-one likes to talk too much. She wears black, rarely leaves her house. Opens the door only at night to a stranger no one likes to talk about. Just whisper.

More fifty word stories here

Cutting the Family Tree - a fifty word photostory

Her family tells her that if she carries on behaving like this she will just be cut off. She laughs, imagining an old-fashioned will and testament being torn up. Until they don’t return her calls. Or answer letters. And what’s worse is she can’t remember who she is any more.

More stories here.

Neighbours for Supper - a 50 word photostory

Linda seems nervous, but I can hear her husband talking loudly even as I slip out to the kitchen. Originally I’d planned to reveal how I knew about my husband and Linda over pudding. But now I’m not sure. I overhear talk about barbecues, daytrips, cards. It sounds nice. Neighbourly.

Decisions - a 50 word photo-story

It's been a while since I've done a snap, but I've missed them. For those new to the blog, these are 50 word stories linked to a photograph. Please leave your own 50 word version in the comments section - or link to your blog - if you want. Writing small is an interesting - if sometimes frustrating! - exercise:



She doesn’t want a complete memory destruction. Just her childhood. Although not the good bits. Or the bits she survived. Which was it all, so could it zap her adult life instead? But not the bits with John. Or without. Actually maybe she could just not remember the future. Although…

Missing

Everybody noticed the flowers had stopped growing but no one mentioned it. Instead, they talked about the way the leaves moved, how beautiful the bark was, the perfect colour of the grass. They started to dress in greens and browns. Subtlety became all, but still no one mentioned the flowers.

In the woods

The priest opened the church when the ball appeared, but some outsiders trekked to the woods to watch as the ball started breathing in time to the prayers. It grew larger with every Amen, sucking up twigs and leaves and flowers. Its goodness was terrifying. It had to be stopped.

night confessional

She talks to the man in the moon for hours. She tells him everything, how she hates the sun, the stars get on her nerves, and the clouds, well, you can imagine. He knows how to listen. Only sometimes will he draw the branches across. He needs his sleep too.

I've been playing...

... recently with the idea of taking a photograph and writing a 50 word story to match. It's a variant of Your Messages. I'll upload some of them here - and if you want to play too, send me your link and I'll put them up.




His mother said witches lived there. We’re lucky, she’d say. A warm home to keep us safe. Nowadays his front door stays shut. He talks to no-one. But on mornings like this, when the mist rises, he imagines those witches sitting by their fires. Wonders just what luck really means.