Monday 27 February 2012

The Hunger by A J Humpage - February Femmes Fatales

February Femmes Fatales readers have been treated to AJ Humpage's unique fiction throughout this and last year's showcase. The feedback you have given in response to her work just proves how impressive we all think she is, and how desperate we are to see her novels on the shelves of our actual as well as virtual bookshops.

But fiction isn't the end. I have had the pleasure of regularly reading AJ's poetry for several years now and it is as astonishing and disturbing as the stories that fall from her fingers.

The Hunger will draw you in, and expose the truth. I hope you're ready...

THE HUNGER

Fetid breath, she makes
Her noxious broth, like trailing threads
Raspy fingers on your flesh
A spider’s touch
Dissolute stench
Melting fast beneath the sun.

Cold expression, she spills
Her sunken eyes, like shrivelled fruit
Deathly glare to lure your gaze
A stony wince
Mouth agape
Smiling beneath a tarnished glaze.

Meaty souvenirs, she gives
Her plump grey carcass, like swollen clouds
Food for thought on your lips
A gamey hint
Unsweetened gristle
Filling bellies with her meat.

Putrid ground, she soils
Her leftovers, like a crown of bones
Her last moments, in your mind
A weary voice
Lost forever
Dissolving the memory of Buchenwald.

______________________________


Bio: A J Humpage has short stories and poetry published in anthologies like 6 Sentences, Pill Hill Press, Static Movement and many e-zines, and has completed her second novel.

She offers writing advice at http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.com.

Her work can be found at http://ajhumpage.blogspot.com and you can find her on Twitter: AJHumpage

7 comments:

  1. Oh wow, AJ, that's a real stunner. No matter how many times I've read through this, there's always so much more to discover. It's horrific and grisly and all the more disturbing because you tear back a single layer about a hideous truth of eight long years in just four stanzas.

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  2. Oh dark, horrific and gruesome yet written beautifully!

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  3. Very dark and even more disturbing after I Googled Buchenwald and saw the black and white images from the camp.

    Excellently written, AJ. Thanks for sharing it for FFF.

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  4. dark deep and disturbing. How many demons are you writing out, AJ? I know I am writing out demons at times ... this is particularly dark, almost obsidian in its theme. Wonderful.

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  5. I started off thinking that you had real bravado to title your poem after such a fantastic film - but then you turned all my expectations on their head - and came up with something so very affecting. Excellent.

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  6. Comment below added on behalf of Lou Treleaven:

    There is so much fantastic imagery and density in this poem. Beautiful in its hideousness, if you know what I mean!

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  7. Loved this one, AJ. You put every single word in its place, and it came out disturbingly good.

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Lily Childs is a writer of horror, esoteric, mystery and chilling fiction.

If you see her dancing outside in a thunder storm - don't try to bring her in. She's safe.