Prediction Winner

Lily's first Friday Prediction of 2011 came with a difference - with a guest judge to choose the winner.

2010's final Prediction winner Asuqi had the huge task of judging the challenge - and I think she's realised quite how hard it is! So well done Asuqi - you did a great job!

I'm going to shut up now - and hand over to our beautifully articulate, Swedish wordsmith, Asuqi...

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Wow! I´ve been equally nervous/terrified and excited all week! This is a tough job, I tell you, and the responsibility weighs heavy on my shoulders -- such a variety of stories and such fine writing! I've tried to go about the summary ´Lily-style´ and in choosing the winner and the runner-up, I used my gut feeling. I hope you're all okay with this! Here we go:

• Michael hit it off with a tale of hatred and revenge that in the end turned to comedy -- sorry Phoebe, but that was so amusing!
  
• Anthony treated us to classic horror with his story about supernatural abduction. Killer last sentence, Anthony, I haz chills!
  
• Mimi brought us a raw story about the danger of suppressed emotions. Hatred and humour in unholy combination -- henpecked, indeed ;)
  
• William jumped in with a clever comment to what the ambitions of modern people in western society might be worth in the afterlife.
  
• Then came Chris' creepy tale of the insanity that lingers underneath. Another classic horror-piece. People, if something feels 'off', just run away from it!
  
• Antonia came bringing a vengeful housewife. A smooth tale about the perfect revenge. Maybe this lady's a match for Mimi's guy?
  
• Aidan wrote a ghost-story with mythical qualities, poetic language and great imagery.
  
• David brought us two pieces. The first one's about a lesson learned the hard way. The second one's a brutal tale about truth. I like the bizarre element here.
  
• AJ treated us to delicious terror in her piece about betrayal. Great dynamics in this one.
  
• Susan wrote a story about managing multiple worlds. A lovely description of what it can feel like when one's pulled back to the real world.
  
• Lily brought mythical creatures locked together in sad and twisted passion. Superb imagery.
  
• Scratchypen wrote a strong monster scene. Yes, how effective indeed? Silver bullets, anyone?
  
• Pixie finished off with a stark picture of abuse. Or is it? Maybe it´s a story about someone deeply disturbed, imprisoned by his/her own mind…

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This week's winner is last minute contestant Pixie. The voice in this piece captured me, such a strange and captivating perspective giving the story a profoundly creepy atmosphere. I also love the tree house setting -- perfect! Congratulations Pixie!

Two runner-ups (sorry, but there could have been four ya' know! ): Aidan F for his Kelb-el-Khela. This is a very rich story, lots of content in few words. Poetic language and wonderful imagery won my heart, and AJ Humpage with her well-balanced, illusive Driftwood.

Great writing, everyone! I don´t feel right judging your wonderful work, but I can at least say I´ve read everything many times (knows a lot by heart now, in fact) and lots of thinking effort has gone into this!

Thanks Lily for having such faith in me -- I´m truly honoured! And thanks everyone for participating this week and letting me be your judge! I wouldn't say it's been fun exactly (too damn difficult to choose!), but it's been very interesting and a great learning experience =)

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Thank you so much Asuqi - I know we all appreciate your hard work.

Congratulations Pixie, and well done Aidan and AJ.

Be on your toes, I may pick a guest judge slot again in a few months time!

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Skull-Shaped Lover

Skull-Shaped Lover
by Lily Childs


There is more
than bright colours
in her wardrobe.
There’s the head
of a dead man too.
He peeks through flouncy blouses,
winking in pink,
smirking at blue.
She found him by the roadside,
detached, quite
non-chalant.
Grinning at passers-by,
spitting at them with lies
about how he got there -
laughing at their replies.
He prefers the dark, he says;
likes to laze in her
cotton and silk.
His milky eyes suck in
tints and hints of greens
and reds.
He licks the hanging fabrics,
bites off trailing threads.
And when she’s home
from the office,
kicked off her shoes,
fed, bathed and nude
he calls to her, sweetly
“Miss Suzie”
until her hands finger the door,
when she joins him
behind her dresses.
She strokes the tresses
of his cold, dead head,
kisses his mouth and then
tenderly, 

takes him to bed.

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Their Dark Masters - On Sale Now

I am dead excited to announce that the long-awaited Their Dark Masters is now on sale through Amazon. (Amazon US for the moment, UK in a few days time.)

This "extreme vampire horror" anthology includes two of my stories 'The Infanta Triptych' and 'Walls of Flesh' as well as work by some of the most respected horror authors of the moment - Lee Hughes, Erin Cole, Barry J. Northern, Carrie Clevenger, Marissa Farrar, Gregory Miller, Paul Anderson, Rebecca L. Brown, Erik Boman, Tyree Campbell, Henry Brasater, Brian K. Ladd - and Mark Anthony Crittenden, the editor and designer of the beautiful cover.

Huge thanks to Mark for his passion and talent in editing TDM.

Excerpt from The Infanta Triptych:

"...Flickers of breath tremored through the near-corpses. Scarapat bent towards them, gagging at the collection of odours. Each one had been discarded after a single bite. He stood up and clicked his fingers. Dull light spread into the room as the heavy factory door opened allowing four men to enter.

“Dispose of them. Quickly,” the caretaker said.

After further guidance from Scarapat, the tallest of the four turned to his team and spoke in a low voice. The group split up to circle the bodies, grabbing limbs to separate one individual from another, ignoring the drug-addled screams.

‘Sshhh,’ the foreman said, dropping bones to the floor. Slowly, one man after another ceased his labour. Sandalwood-scented smoke swirled in and out of the gaps between muscle and victim. The Lady hung there, drifting; teasing at the men’s skin, breathing in their fear. Her laughter burst through their ears as breaking glass. She screamed.

“Lay me out a Jacob’s Ladder”

...

(c) Lily Childs

The Infanta Triptych sings the tale of Napoleon Scarapat, protector of an ancient painting that houses his own dark masters. They have waited so long, and now they want to go home, but not without a little taste of Art-World elite on the way. They'd like to invite you along for a sip and a bite - I do hope you will enjoy the ride.

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Lily's Friday Prediction

It's the first challenge of 2011 - and we have a guest judge in Asuqi - who won the final Prediction of 2010 - and will decide the winner this time round. Congratulations to you Asuqi, and also to Chris Allinotte as runner-up.

In the meantime, everything else is unchanged except the deadline is 7pm not 9pm next Thursday, so please write and comment as usual - for we love it! This week's three words are:

• Revolve
• Savage
• Ladder

Rules

The rules are: 100 words max flash fiction or poetry using all of the words above. Please add your entries in the Comments box below. You have all week until 7pm (not 9pm) UK time on Thursday 13 January to enter.

Winner will be announced next Thursday or Friday. If you can, please tweet about your entry, using the #fridayflash hashtag, and blog if you feel like it.

What will this year bring...?

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Prediction Winner

Such a variety of style this week yet a consistently high quality of writing. I'll summarise in just a moment but a reminder that as a one-off, whoever wins - and I won't know for sure until I reach the end of this post - will judge the next competition and choose next week's winner.

• William Davoll's The Day Sadie Left is riddled with sadness, as the object of the narrator's love forces him to take his own life.
  
• Fury at her man's chronic lateness has Mimimanderly dispensing of his services, with relish  in Killing Time.
  
• The Devil waits for no man, we are warned as he speaks to us direct in David Barber's Abaddon. Then with the latest episode of The Two Blokes, a mis-hearing of 'clock' starts a whole new conversation that ends up with nuts.
  
• Lies, love and unsaid threats stir throughout Time and Memory by Antonia Woodville.
  
• Sci-fi merges with mythical, magic lands in Aidan F's vivid Smelling Salts.
  
• Michael Solender puts his foot in his mouth and ends up without a date in Theater at Eight.
  
• A raging tempest hinders Mischa's passage to deliver the royal booty in Chris Allinotte's The Courier.
  
• I give out my final instructions in Giving It Away, followed by a dedication to the mythological Ladies of Judgement that are, The Furies - in Of Justice.
  
• A human ticking-clock, waiting to explode takes everyone with him in AJ Humpage's The Same Air.
  
• Susan May James double-deals, firstly with a newly-wed's vicious revenge in Off Keel. The lure of discovery is the pull that traps Clive - before his partner does - in Last Dive.
  
• Asuqi's spiralling dancer whirls into a frenzy, her meds discarded - then wolfed down in one go.
  
• Morbid greed abounds at Bill Owens' dangerous table, shackled and bound.
  
• Pixie J. King's thief defends himself against the victim of his own crime in Stolen.

Tough, tough, tough. But the winner of 2010's final Prediction, and judge of 2011's first - is Asuqi with her mad-eyed dancer. Congratulations Asuqi!! I wasn't sure whether Here to play was your arriving comment or your title - but it suits. I'll be in touch about next week's judging. ;)

Choosing a runner-up was an equal challenge but Chris Allinote's tempestuous journey The Courier roiled me around and slapped me down. Well done Chris.

And THANK YOU to everyone who entered Lily's Friday Prediction during 2010. You are an extraordinarily talented group of writers and it has been my pleasure to invite you in. A very happy, healthy and successful 2011 to you all.

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Rest In Peace

I'm very touched that my poem 'Rest In Peace' has won Writing and Writers' News Magazine's monthly One Word Challenge on their online forum Talkback for December 2010. The theme was 'Peace'. I had several ideas for the challenge and particularly toyed with words about worthy Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo - but the poem wouldn't write itself. I guess, for once, I felt too emotional about it.

So I returned to the darkness, took a suck of a Grimm lozenge and spat out a character, Benjamin Spinks - who may well take on a life of his own if I don't rein him in.

Rest In Peace

Benjamin Spinks is the prick
to my finger,
his spindle - the weaver
of darkness and spite.
He lingers at noon
with a love declaration.
The door to my boudoir
is locked and shut tight.

At night when he croons
with a howl through the mist
I cry
“Leave me in peace!”
He laughs in my face, his voice
creeping tendrils from
outside the gate.
I am trapped by his cruelty.
A victim of hate.

I’ve no turret, no secret,
no fine golden thread.
I’ll be dead before morning,
his chains round my wrists.
He answered my prayer.
Five long days he’s been gone.
Not a drop of cold water,
no food’s touched my lips.

I whisper my last breath,
watch skin leave my bones.
Benjamin Spinks
has left me alone.

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Lily's Friday Prediction

Today's Prediction comes to you live from the sick bed of Lily Childs (now the back's OK I have a smattering of flu to contend with. How dull.)

Firstly, congratulations to last week's winners and runner-up - William Davoll for Winter Bleak and Michael Solender for The Intended. Well done both.

All change - well, a little bit

Secondly, there's a little change to this last Prediction of 2010. Whoever wins the challenge will get to judge the following week's Prediction - the first of 2011. Hope you'll be up for that? Just a one-off for the moment but let's see how we get on.

So here are this week's words:

• Keel
• Fury
• Clock

Rules

The rules are: 100 words max flash fiction or poetry using all of the words above. Please add your entries in the Comments box below. You have all week until 9pm UK time on Thursday 06 January to enter.

Winner will be announced next Thursday or Friday. If you can, please tweet about your entry, using the #fridayflash hashtag, and blog if you feel like it.

And as one year closes and another begins I raise a virtual glass to wish you all a happy, healthy, literary and prosperous 2011. Cheers!

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