Writing project: index

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This is a post to list the words I’ve used for this project. It will be updated monthly.

2018

2019

2020

2021

  • Risk – January 2021
  • Red – February 2021
  • Circle – March 2021
© bardofupton 2019

Writing project, February 2021

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This month’s word is red, meaning “any of various colors resembling the color of blood; the primary color at one extreme end of the visible spectrum, an effect of light with a wavelength between 610 and 780 nanometers”.

CW: blood

It’s late again, sorry.

————–

Red’s always been my favourite colour. Not pink, not orange, not (please) violet. But there’s too much red here.

It won’t be red always, of course; it’ll dry soon enough to a dull brown. But right now it’s a beautiful bright red, splashed and pooled everywhere.

I didn’t mean to do it, really. I just wanted to scare him. But we argued, and then somehow I had a knife, and, well, here we are, with splashes of blood everywhere. It’s quite pretty, if you don’t think too hard about what it is.

But now I do need to think about it, I need to clean it up, clear it away. Hide everything, somehow, cover my tracks.

Or… I could not. I could leave everything alone, sit here and wait until someone comes looking, for me or for him. Just watch the vibrant red fade to brown, and take whatever consequences come with it.

I’m tired. I didn’t want him gone, not really, but it’s happened, so I should deal with it. I just… don’t want to. There’s a corner that’s clean enough, a chair that’s unbroken. I’ll sit there, and I’ll wait, and I’ll take whatever comes.

He always said I should accept the consequences of my actions. Well, now I am. I actually think he’d be proud.

© bardofupton 2021

Reading project, week ending 14 Feb 2021

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What have I read this week?

The Joy of Leaving Your Shit All Over the Place: The Art of Being Messy by Jennifer McCartney

This is a nonfiction humour book about being messy. The humour didn’t quite work for me, so I didn’t really like it.

Ursula K. Le Guin: The Last Interview and Other Conversations edited by David Streitfield

This is a collection of interviews with Ursula K. Le Guin. I found this really interesting; I’m a fan of Le Guin’s work, so I liked finding out more about her and how she wrote.

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Reading project, week ending 7 Feb 2021

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What have I read this week?

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

This is a fantasy novel about Linus Baker, a man who is a caseworker looking after magical children. I really liked this. The characters are wonderful and varied, and the story was sweet and charming. I liked seeing Linus change throughout the story and the ending was lovely. I would definitely read more by this author.

The Dog & the Sailor by Pete Jordi Wood

This is a fairytale about a young man named Ruan who goes to sea to find his fortune. I really liked this; it’s not a fairytale I’d come across before, and I absolutely loved the ending. I’d definitely read more by this author.

The Wind’s Twelve Quarters by Ursula Le Guin

This is a collection of science fiction short stories. I enjoyed these; they were nearly all new to me and it was good to see the development of the author’s writing.

The Gentleman’s Guide to Getting Lucky by Mackenzi Lee

This is a novella about a young man named Monty who is trying to sleep with his boyfriend for the first time. I really liked it; it was sweet and funny, and I really like the characters. I’d definitely read more in this series.

The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction by Ursula K. Le Guin

This is a short essay about writing. I’m still not sure I entirely understand what she’s getting at here, but it was interesting.

© bardofupton 2021

Writing project, January 2021

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This month’s word is risk, meaning “exposure to the chance of injury or loss; a hazard or dangerous chance”, “to expose to the chance of injury or loss; hazard” or “to venture upon; take or run the chance of”.

————–

I knew it was dangerous, but I did it anyway.

That pretty much sums up my philosophy of life. If I want to do something, risk alone won’t put me off. After all, what’s life without a little danger to spice things up?

Of course, I’ve been lucky. Never had any serious injuries, never been in serious danger. But I naturally put that down to my own skill, rather than luck, and so I kept pushing things, going farther and farther away from the safe, sensible things I kept being encouraged to do.

And that is how I ended up here, dangling headfirst over a hole in the ground so deep the light from my head torch fails to illuminate the bottom.

It’ll be fine, I assure myself. I’ve been in worse predicaments. Not that I can think of any at the moment. But I’ll be fine. I’m always fine, right? Right?

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Reading project, week ending 24 Jan 2021

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What have I read this week?

Knight’s Ransom by Jeff Wheeler

This is a fantasy novel about a young man called Ransom who is taken as a boy to be a hostage. It is the first in The First Argentines Series. I really enjoyed this; it was an easy and fun read. I liked the characters, particularly Ransom and Claire, although I would have liked to learn more about Claire. I liked the medieval world it is set in, and the plot was interesting. I am definitely looking forward to reading the next one, and finding out what happens next.

Note: this is a review of an ARC. No money was received for this review.

© bardofupton 2021