June 1, 2010
Prompt: This was going to be harder than I thought.
This was going to be harder than I thought. Thinking up clever prompts that would spur people to write something ingenious enough to live up to the cleverness of the all important prompt. A daunting responsibility. Most times it works. People send me stuff that is funny and sad, heartwarming and heartbreaking. Some of it is true; some is made up. Most is a blend of truth and fiction that, like the right mix of spices in a stew, makes sense of all the ingredients But, alas, sometimes a prompt just lies there like wilted lettuce and refuses to inspire. So it was with this week’s prompt. Next week will be better.
--Sarah Barnett, RBWG member
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The man was tattered, beaten down, barely a human. He leaned against the bricks and coughed. I offered him a white linen hankie. He cried, thanked me, blew his nose and carefully folded the hankie with the clean side outward. He placed it at his feet and waited. This moment was harder than I thought; this hired work. He watched me. That is the last thing he saw as I ordered the troops to fire.
--Mary Pauer, RBWG member
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