#ThursThreads - Week 32 - Winners

Week 32 of #ThursThreads had some great tales and many new folks joined us! Thanks to all who entered this week. I'm honored to see all of you and read your stories. And it was great to have some new "faces" join us along with our returning regulars. Great thanks also goes to judge David A Ludwig for reading all the tales.

Entries:

• Robin Abess | @Angelique_Rider
• Theresa Breaux | @theresabreaux
• Sheilagh Lee | @SweetSheil
• Cameron Lawton | @CameronLawton
• Elaine Hillson | @tollykit
• Jeffrey Hollar | @Klingorengi
• Olivia Grambo | @KelseyPotter13
• Charles W Jones | @ChuckWesJ
• Lisa McCourt Hollar | @jezri1
• Goran Zidar | @gzidar
• Mark Ethridge | @LurchMunster
• Martha Bechtel
• @LupusAnthropos
• Cara Michaels | @caramichaels
• Nellie Batz | @solimond
• Jason McKinney | @jason_mckinney

Winners Announcement:

Honorable Mentions

Theresa Breaux | @theresabreaux

  David says: Great opening hook! Feeds right into the tension and mystery of the piece! The vague circumstances, likely very closely tied to said ‘overdose in a motel bathroom’, and enigmatic voice are great. I would definitely read the rest of this story to learn more about both the narrator and the mysterious benefactor. I especially want to know more about the sorts of favors a being capable of giving this sort of second chance would be interested in.

The last 4 words are perfect for summing up the piece and giving the reader direction after they leave it. Great imagery, great voice and a really compelling scenario are all so excellently presented; you definitely earned your honorable mention. You build and maintain a consistent atmosphere with this piece, with a lot of clouds and shadows, then leave us with hope at the end—and that is beautiful.

Charles W Jones | @ChuckWesJ

  David says: Wow… I don’t have a lot to say to this one, you really nailed my concept of love and that is a lot of points right there. I also kind of dig self-sacrifice for reasons I don’t feel like analyzing, so his insistence on a life of strife and suffering in order to be with “Her” is incredibly beautiful to me. Lines like “the cost of it is far too much” and “in that short time, I have everything I need for eternity” are exactly what I love about this one. Great capture of the character, the woman granting his incarnation, and the deep feelings around an entire life to be lived. I guess I did find something to say!
This one gets one of the coveted honorable mentions in very large part because it spoke to me so personally. I don’t know if it has the same effect on others who read it, but for me this is a story about someone who has his priorities so perfectly in order even angels are taken by surprise. That’s powerful.

Nellie Batz | @solimond

David says: Ooo! A contract killing witch and her supernatural cat familiar, or something like that. I love the sense of mysticism and weight to the old woman contrasted with the nonchalant relaxation of the sunbathing cat, which in proper feline fashion was ready to leap straight from pleasure to attack. Quick, simple, but very much in my genre and well executed. The cat is like a metaphor for the whole story, so appropriately you create a very clear image of the creature. I like it. In fact, I love it. This is definitely an honorable mention, because I have never seen a better ‘old woman and her cat’ scene than this. It’s got all the great things about a real old woman and her cat, plus the mysticism that takes it from endearingly accurate to awesome.
 

Week 32 Winner

Cameron Lawton | @CameronLawton

  David says: Great voice in your characters, I’m already smiling by the time the first speaker responds to the beleaguered administrator. Then his vindictive assignation of the problem client to Hebrew slave gave me very morbid joy. I’m left wanting more, it sounds like an amazing program/company/whatever-it-is with so many rich story possibilities I’m actually salivating a little. Perfect ending, in that the one client’s story is now fixed but there’s always more to come. It does make me curious whether the administrator is normally more accommodating and the one client just pushed him too far, or if he generally screws the patrons—and how much power he has to get away with that sort of behavior.

Picking an actual winner was extremely difficult after I narrowed the field to my top four. Ultimately what I feel gives this story an edge over the others is the infinite variety of additional stories that can be spun out from the seeds laid in this one—all without sacrificing anything in terms of completeness or self-containment of this particular story. You’ve got what I consider a writer’s gold-mine with your History Holidays company. I think the runners-up had stronger imagery, but there’s something here that I just want to keep coming back to, want to pick up and play with myself. I’d almost call this one proof-of-concept.

Your choice.

“Oo! Yeah! A pirate! A female pirate and that cute one with the headband falls in love with me, that one, all Black Pearl stuff, yeah.”

The administrator sighed and asked, “Is that really the story you wish?” His stylus was poised over the boxes on the screen. “Are you sure this time?”

“No! No – a Viking shield maiden! That's it! A Valkyrie. I wanna be a Valkyrie!”

Another deep sigh and the administrator repeated, “Is that really the story you wish? We have been through most periods of the human race's history. I must remind you that when you go, you are there. You cannot come back until the end of the holiday. If you become ill or are killed, it will neutralise your time in that sphere.”

“No! That Jane Heyer gal – Mr Dorchester's mad wife. That stuff!”

“Your time is running out, Miss. Would you decide please?”

“Pirate!”

The Administrator smiled and pressed the squares marked Egypt, Hebrew slave.

Enjoy, he thought, enjoy building your pyramid. The next client swam into view on the screen.

“History Holidays – how can I help you?”

Congratulations Cameron, Theresa, Chuck, and Nellie! Claim your badges and display them with pride. You certainly earned it! :)

Pass on the great news on Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the stories here and I hope to see you all back next week for #ThursThreads. :)