Balance
Today is Day Two of the A-to-Z Blogging Challenge. Click on the letter picture to the right for more information about this blog hop. Like last year, I’m writing 100-word flash fiction stories/poems/scenes for this year’s challenge. Today’s is:
BALANCE
Jo took deep breaths, trying to still her pounding heart, and focused on the other side, just as she was taught. One foot in front of the other. Feel the beam underneath. Hold your arms steady. And keep your eyes looking straight ahead.
After four solid steps she allowed herself to smile, and faltered. She pulled herself over, only just managing to stay upright.
Eighteen… nineteen… twenty. The last step was onto solid ground.
Jo looked back across the chasm to her place of captivity, and the long thin branch she had crossed to escape; then ran for her life.
Come back tomorrow for C…
Ooh I wonder where she was escaping from? Great story 🙂
Thanks, Laura. The trouble with these flash pieces is there are so many potential stories to tell, more than there is time to tell them! 🙂
Oh wow, you manage to pack a lot in this excerpt. Totally intrigued! (and Hi Colin :))
Elodie! Hi!! Thanks for stopping by, and for your lovely comment. A girl using her gymnastics skills to escape her captors? Oh yes, there’s a big story behind that, I’m sure. 🙂
Nicely done! I love this challenge. 🙂
Thanks, Margo! It’s a lot of work, but such a lot of fun too. 🙂
So, not a gymnast! I really liked being surprised by that little story.
I’m about as un-gymnast as they come. But that’s one of the things I like about doing these little vignettes–they give me the opportunity to put myself in the head of someone so unlike myself, but without having to commit to a whole novel. 🙂
Great story. You had me thinking it was a girl on a balancing beam in a competition, but the last line upped the stakes.
Thanks, Patricia! 🙂
I read your comments all the time on Janet Reid’s blog. Just wanted to stop by and say, “HI!”
Well “Hi!” Lilly! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
I enjoyed this. The twist ending was surprising for a story so short, good work!
Thank you, Noah. 🙂
It will be an interesting month here.
As I See It Daily
It certainly will… 🙂 As far as this blog’s concerned, I am trying to mix up the tone of the stories. The next couple are a bit darker, so stay tuned… 🙂
“The chasm” and “the long thin branch” are the phrases that make your short story more fascinating.
I know how interested you are in words, so I’m glad those caught your attention. When you only have 100 words to write your story, each phrase becomes important, so I try to think carefully about each one. Thanks, Romi! 🙂
I guess all that training finally paid off. 🙂
As a non-gymnast, I’m convinced it’s a super power. 🙂