The veil is lifting and your ghost waits there. Reach across with a gift and listen with care. Perhaps the breeze carries a voice or a song. The spirits crossing over shine bright and strong. Please welcome these guests. Wait. Do not leave. The celebration's just beginning on All Hallows' Eve.
October. The most magical month of the year. Here in the northern hemisphere summer is leaving and winter is coming. The cold wind takes the dead leaves and the candy industry rules the world. Horror movies splatter screens everywhere. Creepy, tacky, and macabre decorations spread over yards. People bemoan even thinking about costumes or they …
I've been distracted. This month I've written very little. The first distraction has been home improvement projects. It feels tedious to go into the details. At least the house improved. The second distraction has been insecurity and indecisiveness. That's tedious too. The important point now is I've made a decision! Again! I usually have to …
My friend, Ami McKay, has written a lovely and compelling memoir. And like it says on the cover, it tells the story of cancer, love, and fate. Since I know Ami, I'm sure I read her narrative with a different eye than someone who has not gone along with her to copy bathroom graffiti (from …
I just had a birthday, so I'm in a reflective mood. Certain calendar days will do that, right? You know what I don't really need? More unfinished stories. Finish the thing! Doesn't Neil Gaiman talk about that? You can't get far with a bunch of unfinished pieces, no matter how shiny they are. Therefore, it …
Welcome to the magic season! What wonders are you hoping for as we hurtle through these last months of the year? Because this is my birthday month, it's a time when I like to contemplate more where I'm going and where I've been. Also, I must work on my Halloween costume! This year's costume should …
Sometimes I'm not sure if I'm kidding myself or keeping hope alive. Or do they amount to the same thing? Oh well. For what it's worth, I'm writing. This piece comes from a combination of prompts. I think one was about a one-sided dialogue. You hear what one character says but not the other. And …
Continue reading Story-a-Day September heads into the final stretch!
Last night I worked on a story for Story-a-Day. When the story began, I was sure a particular character was dead. As I came to the ending though, I brought her back to life. It wasn't because I loved her so much I couldn't let her go. Instead, I couldn't put her best friend through …
Story-a-Day September continues! I've missed two days so far. I tried to torture myself by staying up too late to write something, anything, but then I remembered that suffering isn't required and anything I wrote while half-asleep wouldn't be worth the effort. Perspective. Right? For about half of the days, I worked on previous stories, …
I finished my third story for Story-a-Day. I'm feeling that familiar mix of joy--I did it!--and dread--It's probably terrible. Being terrible isn't the end of the world though, is it? Why do we feel compelled to do something that we don't even have confidence in? It really makes no sense. It's actually a privilege to …
Marta Bacon 