Monday, November 19, 2012

A Six-Sentence Mystery

Although our recent "Six-Sentence Mystery Contest" did not receive enough entries to qualify as a contest (hey, it happens!), we were so impressed with the entry from Lila Bolme of Post Falls that we've decided to feature it as a guest post this week. We know you will enjoy it. Thanks, Lila!

Don't miss out on your chance to win our current writing contest, "Winter Reflections," which is open until December 5. If you have some downtime during this festive week, why not write up a favorite holiday memory and send it in? All the details are on our Contests page. 

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our loyal readers from the Writing North Idaho team. We are very thankful for YOU! We'll be back to our regular posting schedule next week. In the meantime, enjoy this "Six-Sentence Mystery" from Lila.
 
The Dreaded Edge
by Lila Bolme, Post Falls, Idaho

She hung, fearfully, her head and most of the top half of her body dangling at an angle over the precipice, arms aching, clinging with every bit of strength she could still manage.
With each faint breath, she was losing the ballast of her lower body weight that kept her anchored but she refused to open her eyes for fear that the brain swelling dizziness to follow would propel her exhausted body over the dreaded edge.
Millimeter by millimeter she felt her support giving way and she thought about her misadventure, regretting the lack of foresight which had catapulted her into such a perilous situation.
She tried to remember if anyone else had been with her, anyone who might be aware of her predicament, but no one came to mind and she lost all hope of rescue, resigning herself to her fate by relaxing her grip and letting gravity have its way.
There was no scream on the way down, just a dull moan when she hit face first and hard but there was really no pain and she faded in and out of consciousness, able to open her eyes once, long enough to make out the blurry image of an empty vodka bottle beside her on the floor by the bed.
She had no one to blame but herself.

3 comments:

Jennifer Rova said...

What a great 6 sentence story. You did wonders with only six sentences, drawing clear pictures for the reader's eye, developing tension, beginning and ending the story. I applaud your efforts and thank you for your efforts. Happy Thanksgiving!

Nancy Owens Barnes said...

Lila, thanks so much for your six-sentence mystery. I'm glad we were able to showcase it on Writing North Idaho for the entire week so others could read it. We look forward to more!

Anonymous said...

I loved the unforeseen ending. A well done short mystery story!