and yes, I know I’ve used it before, but when the lyrics are so appropriate …
Nevertheless, I’m well aware that at
the Prediction it’s a beverage vigorously stirred with a liberality of horror –
something which doesn’t come as easily to me to write as it evidently does to
many of you. This week we’ve had several varieties: David’s haunting, Patricia’s
chilling, Jim’s gruesome and John with a double dose of insidious
and stomach churning which earns him this week’s number 1 spot.
Words
for next week: blaspheme fizz ugly
Entries
by midnight Thursday 16th July , words and winners posted Friday 17th
Usual rules: 100 words maximum (excluding
title) of flash fiction or poetry using all of the three words above in the
genres of horror, fantasy, science fiction or noir. Serialised fiction is, as
always, welcome. All variants and uses of the words and stems are fine. Feel
free to post links to your stories on Twitter or Facebook or whichever.
You justly earned the top spot last week, John. Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteMagnificent job, John. I had a feeling you were headed straight for greatness last week.
ReplyDeletedefinitely a brilliant piece, John!
DeleteTHE GLORY OF IT: II
ReplyDeleteI’m standing naked before the full-length mirror in my basement. A very impressive fellow, if I say so myself, stares back.
Some would blasphemously argue that I’m ugly; that the swollen, discolored scars and welts crisscrossing my body are grotesque - becoming only to a circus freak.
Dolts and dullards! Those myopic dimwits will never revel in the glorious gratification of pain – self-inflicted or otherwise!
A fizzing hiss sounded from behind – no doubt caused by the gash in her throat. Smiling, I turned to my naked guest, securely tied to a sturdy X-frame.
“Pain is pleasure, Sweetheart. Ready for more?”
Errm ... the ease with which I read this, several times, while wincing, a credit to the smoothness of your writing, Jim.
DeleteI'm trying to count all the conditios this guy has. I join the rest of my myopic dimwits who fail to recognize his glory and instead laud the writer who created such a character. Nicely done, Jim.
Deletethat's horribly graphic, Jim!
DeleteThis is the stuff of which nightmares are definitely made. Not sure I want to delve deeper into your mind, Jim! Seriously though, what a macabre and thoroughly suitable piece for this forum.
DeleteOn A Cold and Frosty Morning
ReplyDeleteThree craws were sitting on a wa’, blood dripping doon frae their beaks.
The meadow that bounded the forest glistened a blanket of frost.
“Yon wiz wan blasphemous auld bastard,” said the first.
“Aye,” said the second. “Ugly an’ a’”
“His eyebaws fairly fizzed when we pecked them oot,” said the third.
The first rustled his feathers. “Teach him tae erect a Kirk on the Green Man’s manor.”
“I shat on his cross,” laughed the second.
‘Caw, caw, caw,’ they went in unison.
And flew north with grisly tributes for their liege.
Very Irving Welsh, this, David. Wonderfully so.
DeleteYou describe crows well. I'm not surprised they talk this way. I'm quite impreesed with the fizzing eyeballs when they're pecked out.
DeleteThe other day, I was walking in a preserve by my house and saw a crow baby near the path that had left the nest too soon. It had a downy body and a too big head and beak. It had a raspy call and overall was very scary. I hightailed it out of there before mom showed up.
I never trusted crows, David. Anything that makes a sound like they do cannot be trusted. How well you describe these vicious critters!
Deletewe have crows seeking an existence alongside herring gulls here on the island, I've seen the crows get the food before the gulls sometimes. Crafty clever birds. Superb piece of writing.
DeleteThis was quite wonderful and almost poetic in its creation. I adore birds of the Corvidae Family. They are such intelligent and intuitive creatures and this is a magnificent testimony to their intellect.
DeleteOh, the evil that lurks in the minds of craws! Quite the creative piece, David.
ReplyDeleteA Matter Of Taste
ReplyDeleteA consummate spread that included scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream, not to mention the lemon-iced buns. It looked scrumptious. Aromatic Earl Grey steeped in a bone china teapot and lightly-fizzed Oringina was available for those who fancied their beverage a little more citrusy, while still appropriate for the refined gathering.
Then she arrived with her sanctimonious notions and personal preferences of what constituted the traditional English afternoon tea. It got ugly very quickly.
"No cucumber sandwiches?"
Low. Threatening.
"Blasphemy!"
Not all of us made it out alive.
But I bet she survived. Very sweet then sour, Patricia.
DeleteWhat a great first paragraph, Patricia. So descriptive and delicious. But Who would want to put cucumbers on a sandwich? Waste of good bread if you ask me.
DeleteAh but cucumber sandwiches are a part of our heritage, John. To decry them would be...blasphemy.
DeleteCucumber sandwiches are always, without exception swerved at Royal garden parties. (I like cucumber with Cheddar and Marmite)
DeleteI'm with John about cucumber sandwiches. I'm sure the Earl of Sandwich is turning over in his grave! That said, I would have loved to have seen this fight. Very entertaining, Patricia.
Deletelovely characterisation and what an interesting side discussion came out of it!
DeleteChange of focus [385]
ReplyDeleteIn the intensity of investigating Dodger’s demise, Pettinger had forgotten Philly Stepcart’s interest in “cultural journeys”. He swallowed his habitual blasphemous reference to the testicles of the Almighty, but in no way muted his growled, ‘Aleks is out of bounds’.
‘But –‘
‘But nothing, Stepcart!’ Sally’s interjection both ugly and unnecessary.
And ineffective.
With a swiftness Pettinger could only admire, Stepcart rose from her chair, shed her just-demonstrated invincibility, smiled, leant forward and kissed him full on the lips, murmuring, ‘Thank you, John. See you later.’
In the silence of her departure, Pettinger heard the fizzing of a cartoon fuse.
Love that cartoon fuse. Yes, it's probabily best not to mention God's testicals. But now that it's out, I bet they're pretty impressive.
Deleteoh yes, carefully crafted to bring us to that last line. Very nicely done.
DeleteThat sneaky Stepcart!I love her boldness. Very nice, Sandra.
DeleteOh my...what impulsive behaviour is oftentimes inspired within the female of the species by the ever-fascinating Pettinger.
DeletePillow talk [Threshold 308]
ReplyDeleteNot believing, nor having been brought up to do so, I was never one to blaspheme at the moment of orgasm. (And ‘moment’ sold it short – our bodies thrummed, sweat fizzed between our sweat-stuck limbs until the room fell silent; dark enough for Raven to near-disappear.
Risking an ugly change of mood – but if he would not be honest now, then when? – I murmured, ‘What’s going on?’ and felt his smile.
‘You mean, Who is she?’
‘Yes.’
I tightened my grip against his rolling away.
‘She claims … she claims to be my twin.’
‘Separated at birth?’
‘Not impossible.’
‘No?’
What is one supposed to say after an intense orgasm if blaspheme is not considered? 'Oh, that was pleasant, thank you very much?' No, blaspheme is more appropriate, I feel. A very enjoyable episode, Sandra. I loved how she felt Raven's smile.
Deleteyes, that line about the smile is very telling and is icing on the cake of another fine instalment. Served with hot chocolate, of course.
DeleteI, too, must compliment you, Sandra, on the phrase 'felt her smile.' What a marvelous turn of words surrounded by an entertaining tale!
DeleteAnd thus our protagonist adds yet one more mysterious string to her perplexing bow. Will we ever know her full story? Only time will tell, but what a fascinating ride will take in order to find out.
DeleteThe Secret Armadillo Soldier (SAS) Diaries - entry 114
ReplyDelete‘Let’s get shiftin’, Trub,’ said Nigel, ‘round em up and get that contraption moving.’
The instruction passed swiftly among the ‘Dillos who pulled the contraption away down the track, where Mossy waited for them.
‘Bin empty fer ages but that honey-badger stink is damn strong; probably why they ‘ave such ugly tempers,’ she muttered.
A multitude of gasps and blasphemous grumbles filled the fetid air as everyone gathered in the stinky den.
Tosca settled in a corner ‘Don’t smell that bad to me,’ he chuckled with his usual fizzy exuberance.
The gerbil stirred and scrabbled, trying vainly to sit up.
As always, Terrie, such vivid and colorful writing. Your entries never fail to please!
Deletethere's a lovely mixture here of hard work, getting the contraption down the track, and slagging off badgers for the sake of it and then last line leaps out at you, the poor gerbil trying vainly to sit up... such images!
DeleteSO, so satisfying a tale, and that final line an entire vivid scene in itself.
Delete[smiling to note we were all here within three minutes of each other - Zoom without the images!!]
DeleteLove how Tosca don't find the stink so bad...and the fact of his "fizzy exuberance." What an innovative and apt use of the prompt word. As entertaining as ever, Terrie. This serialization is part of The Prediction's weekly diet.
DeleteYou would think a honey badger would smell better, but I guess not. Very entertainig. You combine humor, drama and action well.
DeleteThe Joys of Mediumship 13
ReplyDeleteHeartbreak this week, the massacre at Srebenica 25 years ago, 8000 boys and men killed in several days of nonstop slaughter. It’s ugly, even now. The Politicians and their Victims book is becoming more emotional than I thought it would be. No fizz here like the music/pop books. The Victims section could cause anyone to resort to blasphemy, the loss of life is beyond comprehension. How many did die in Tiananmen Square? BTW, Jane Seymour came to tell me of her death. I doubt anyone else knows. It’s one of the many responsibilities I’ve taken on. Henry approved the book…
Nice to know the book is moving along...and provides a truth that needs to be told, Antonia. You have probably indicated before and memory unfortunately escapes me, but Lady Jane is not the only Queen of King Hal to have paid you a visit, right? Please extend my apologies to the Royal Personage if the nickname I used is not to his regal liking...and maybe remind him that one of my ancestors WAS his Master of the Stool?
DeleteI enjoy reading these, Antonia. You do well to incorporate the prompt words in a non fiction account.
Deletemy liege lord visited to ask for his story to be told. We produced I Diced With God (if ever there was a suitable title...) much much later he came back to ask if I would like to talk to all of his queens without his interruption or editing. I said thanks, let's get going. And so, the truth behind Anne Boleyn's seduction, the sadness of Katherine of Aragon's lonely life here in England, Jane's horrendous 'birth' agony, Anne of Cleves with the truth that the marriage was consummated... Kathryn Howard kept him happy with sex talk and Katherine Parr was grateful to be just a nurse although he was hard work... so the book is sent off and the next thing I know is, Henry's arrived at the publisher's office to say 'I want a chance to respond to all that tittle-tattle - even if it is true...' he didn't get the chance... we both delighted in the confirmation for The Darker Side of Henry VIII...
DeleteChocolate Factory
ReplyDeleteWilly Wonka never patented his Fizzy Lifting Drink and, as it turned out, Slugworth wasn’t the loyal employee he made out to be. Blaspheme, in the eyes of Willy Wonka, especially when Slugworth began driving a red Lamborghini around town, openly bashing the quirky chocolatier.
One night, as Slugworth slept off a raunchy night on the town, the Oompa Loompas showed up and it got ugly in a hurry.
As always, they began to sing.
Oompa Loompa twaddle dee doop, Slugworth now is hamburger soup.
this is surreal and nasty and very funny. Thanks, John, I needed that today!
DeleteThere's a wealth of horror in "Slugworth slept off a raunchy night on the town" - makes my skin crawl to think of it.
DeleteThank you, John. I will now have that song stuck in my head for several days. This is such an entertaining offering and one that I'm sure only you could come up with. As much as I admire Johnny Depp's characterizations, I really don't think Gene Wilder will ever be topped as the quintessential Willy Wonka.
DeleteStop The Week; I Want To Get Off (106)
ReplyDeleteIf ever there was reason to blaspheme, it was Saturday morning when I arrived to find FOUR sofas crammed in the shop, really crammed. One is on top of another. One is a huge corner unit. All are in the way. They look ugly squashed in like that but the corner unit sold within half an hour to a customer fizzing with excitement to get it!! (She hasn’t collected it yet…) What this means is I have done n o t h i n g in the shop all week…. Can’t get to anything! And there’s two more to come…
I can feel the claustrophobic pressure in this - bit of a nightmare?
DeletePerfect visual in words of those stacked sofas, Antonia. Has the excited customer arrived yet to collect the prized corner unit?
DeleteTime to have a sofa sale. It's good to hear of overcrowding compared to the non-activity of a few weeks ago.
Deleteexcited customer isn't coming until 10.30 tomorrow... it's been a long empty week of nothing getting done. Sob sob
DeleteThe Mad Italian 165)
ReplyDeleteThere will be no blasphemy from me this day, just a quiet acknowledgement that I enjoy my weekly visits and sharing my random thoughts on the politics of your time. I thank you all for reading them. It creates a small fizzy feeling and it’s good to know this old spirit can still find enjoyment in the material world. As far as your world is concerned, everything seems ugly at the moment, there is no lightness, no enthusiasm, nothing but dire warnings. Which will come true as long as people continue to be selfish and indulge themselves.
Ugly, no lightness, no enthusiasm... sadly, Antonia, this is true. This is one reason why our group must keep writing. We give each other a degree of pleasure during this dire time.
DeleteOur Mad Italian is somewhat pensive and even a little on the pessimistic side this week. It is, however, gratifying to know that he acknowledges how much we enjoy his weekly visit and infinite wisdom. I would also echo Jim's sentiment that we really must keep writing as a group. This is a wonderful sanctuary and escape in what can appear to be a bleak existence at times.
DeleteI too find it pleasant to be acknowledged by the Italian. The random thoughts on the politics of our time... very cool.
DeleteWith inspiration sadly lacking this week, I will probably have no additional Kursaal or Cripplegate episodes. So...my stand-alone stands alone. I will, of course, be back with comments before the deadline.
ReplyDeleteGreat line, about stand-alones.
Delete