About the challenge: Each Tuesday I will provide a photo prompt. Your mission, if you choose to accept the challenge, is to tell a story in 280 characters or less. When you write your tale, be sure to let me know in the comments with a link to your tale.
A final note: if you need help tracking the number of characters in your story, there is a nifty online tool that will count for you at charactercountonline.com.
I will do a roundup each Tuesday, along with providing a new prompt. And if for some reason I missed your entry in the Roundup, as I have occasionally done, please let me know. I want to be sure to include your tale.
Finally, have fun!
And REMEMBER…you have 280 characters (spaces and punctuation included), to tell your tale…and a week to do it. I can’t wait to see what you create this week.
Starting us off…
The Tea Garden
We sipped tea here, from porcelain cups with pink roses, and ate cranberry scones, letting the crumbs drop for squirrels who darted in when we weren’t looking. I come everyday at 2:47 pm hoping to see her. Just yesterday she walked straight through me. It’s why I’ll never leave.
~kat
279 Characters
From Amritha at Igniting Hope:
The Amethyst
She was sitting alone, sipping her espresso pensively. Her deep blue eyes personified the tranquil mood of the Café. As she left with a curt smile and a tip, a cute chirpy couple took their seats. Greeting them again with a cheerful smile, I cleaned the table. A new tale unfolds.
(280 characters)
From Deepa at Sync With Deep:
Oasis in a Desert
The thought of schooling a gang of preschoolers was overwhelming.
My first lesson was about Relationships.
‘This is you, your family tree,’ I explained the curious little eyes.
And now, ‘you must draw a family tree.’
A curious five-year-old drew a beautiful garden instead.
(230 charcters)
From Michael at Morpethroad:
The Secret Garden
She said to follow her.
It would be something I’d always remember.
She reached out to hold my hand as we pushed through the last bushes.
There was the garden, the seat she’d spoken of under the tree.
It was here she took me into the wonderful world of her love and affection.
(272 characters)
From Lorraine at Lorraine’s Frilly Freudian Slip:
Secret Garden, Secret Friend
Table set for two; she always sat alone.
Yet, she engaged in animated conversations; nodding, smiling, frowning, laughing.
Reaching across the table as if to hold a hand.
Who decides your childhood invisible friend dies went you hit the ripe old age of 10?
250 characters
From Radhika at Radhika’s Reflection:
The Perfect Setting!
The drifting wind carries a sweet floral fragrance, alluring me to step into the most beautiful garden. The bird chirps, echoes of the rustling leaves, the riot of blooms, a table set for two, is just perfect for my date.
Trring…….darn the alarm, jolted back to the mundane morn!
Letter count: 280
From Fandango at This, That, and the Other:
Painful Memories
“Are you sure, Ma’am?” the gardener asked.
“Yes, I’m sure,” she answered.
“You know, Ma’am,” he said, “once done it can’t be undone.”
“I’m aware of that,” she responded.
“May I ask why you want to remove all of those bushes?”
“It’s too painful of a reminder,” she said, tearing up.
(276 characters)
From Reena at ReInventions:
She
“She has not come here for the last two nights.”
“How can you say that?”
‘The lawn is covered with petals if she comes. The flowers can’t resist falling to meet her……”
“Jack” barked the police inspector, “I need a witness, not a lover or poet.”
“It was a New Moon yesterday….”
“Gawwdd”
From Peter at Peter’s Pondering:
The Secret Garden
They sat looking at each other across the dusty table, saying nothing. The dried remains of their meal had been pecked over by crows and nibbled by squirrels and field mice. It was no longer identifiable. Nor were the hazy outlines of the lovers, shimmering forlornly in the dusk!
(280 characters)
From The Dark Netizen:
Tea Party
I looked at my daughter playing tea party.
She looked so adorable. I put my arm around my husband’s. We had done well. Our little darling had arranged the table, poured the ‘tea’ and offered the cup to her imaginary friend.
Our smiles vanished when the ‘friend’ picked up the cup.
Character Count: 280
From Willow at WillowDot21:
The Secret Garden
It had all been so hard and scary. Yet today Jess felt calm everything in the garden was beautiful.She always thought of this corner as her secret place. They’d made such a fuss about her sitting out here, she’d won though. Alone now she was tired all pain gone she slipped away.
(280 Characters)
From Piyali at Piyali’s Blogs:
Diminishing Hopes
He gently squeezed her thin wrinkly hand from across the table.Her gaze wandered away from his face to some insignificant object in the distance.A lump formed in his throat as he saw her feverishly rummaging through her diminishing memory.Dementia made him a stranger to his wife.
280 Characters
From Hayley at The Story Files:
Tea
In the time it had taken to break off the engagement the teapot had go cold. I wasn’t bothered, never be a fan of tea. I picked up a wedge of Victoria sponge cake and ate. Strangely, my mind was clear, it had been the right decision for us both.
From Deb at Twenty Four:
When he had visualized it, it had been perfect. A little hidden garden where they could dream, but now he had built it, there seemed to be something missing.
He picking up his paint set, the flowers needed to be pink not blue, he decided.
Perfect, the giant smiled, pleased.
(273 characters)
From Kirst at Kirst Writes:
Second Chances
An old maid, the local gossips whispered. Never got over her first love.
I saw her as I walked to school. She would sit on that white chair, drinking tea, alone at the end of her garden.
Until the day I saw her bring out a second chair, a sparkle in her eyes. And on her left hand.
(279 characters)
From Schwetha at Face the Music:
My puppy had just learnt to jump over our fence. Every afternoon since, he would be prancing around while I sat by the garden relaxing. One day he jumped over and did not come back for a while. All the jumping had finally paid off-he returned with a play mate from the other side.
Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge this week! We have quite an inspiring round up of amazing tweets. Bravo!
This week, another photo from my collection of random snapshots around town. I love the night. I think I was taking out the trash when I snapped this one. I always have my phone on me for such occasions. It was a full moon night. Most people had long settled in and there I was roaming the streets with a bag of rubbish. It’s amazing what you can discover, while carrying out the most mundane of tasks, if you’re paying attention. This week, tell me a bed time story. Or a scary campfire tale. What things go bump in the night in your corner of the world? Maybe…just maybe, it is the stuff of dreams…or even nightmares! Happy tweeting! See you at next week’s roundup. 😊
Twittering Tale #97 – 14 August 2018 – Things That Go Bump in the Night
Celia couldn’t sleep. As she stepped into the night, an eerie hush hummed in the coolness.
Suddenly, a cat growled nearby, startling her, it’s back arched as it recoiled, hissing.
Then, in horror she noticed her hands, covered in fur.
“Damn full moon!” she howled. “Sorry, kitty.”
~kat
280 Characters
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