relationships

A Little Dance

The following submission is by Writers in the Grove member Gretchen Keefer for the prompt Show Relationship.

While he collected the spices, she got out the meat. He reached for the chopping board and knife as she pulled vegetables from the refrigerator. “Do you want red and green peppers?” she asked.

”Let’s do both,” he answered.

She started heating the skillet and slipped behind him to reach for the plates. He ducked under her arm to pick up the celery, rinsed and draining by the sink. Planting a brief kiss on his neck as she passed, she stirred the meat sizzling in the pan. He reached over her to add the chopped vegetables. Arms around her waist he nuzzled her ear until she squealed. Giggling, she turned to face him. After a lengthy kiss she said, “Time for the wine. I’ll get the glasses.”

It was their regular Saturday night dinner dance.

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Prompt: Mortal Enemies

Remember a mortal enemy in your life, how did you deal with this person. Did you use humor? What did he or she teach you? Are you grateful? Are you saying thank you, or thanks a lot, fellow?

This week, write about such an encounter, and consider the lessons learned in the process.

November 13 Prompt – Family

The following prompt is from one of our Writers in the Grove members for our NaNoWriMo prompt-a-day project for November 2016.

The prompt today is family.

What does family mean to your character? Is family a core part of your story? Who represents family to your characters?

Check out our list of prompts for even more inspiration.

Prompt: Answers to Questions Unasked

The prompt today was based upon the concept that we often have questions we wished we’d asked parents, grandparents, and other people in our life about how they lived, but never got the chance to ask – and what you would answer if you were asked those questions by the younger generation today.

The prompt was inspired by the poem, “My Heart Leaps Up When I Behold,” by William Wordsworth, and the line:

The Child is the father of the Man…

November 5 Prompt – Friends

The following prompt is from one of our Writers in the Grove members for our NaNoWriMo prompt-a-day project for November 2016.

The prompt today is friends.

Does your character(s) have friends? Who are they? What is the relationship like? Or possibly write about what it means for your character to be a friend.

Check out our list of prompts for even more inspiration.

Gotta Dance

The following is by Writers in the Grove member Gretchen Keefer, inspired from Prompt-a-Month: Dance.

“You there, Kevin! Stop adding those curlicues and follow the plan!”

Kevin, embarrassed, quickly found his place in the formation and continued practicing with the other dancers. He stumbled a few times, which added to his embarrassment, but gamely continued with practice until the choreographer called a break. Shoulders slumped on his lanky frame, Kevin ambled to the corner where he had stashed his pack with his water bottle.

“Don’t be discouraged,” Angie, an older, more experienced dancer, said to him, handing him a towel. “Barrett is hard on everyone. He gets great results, but we all work like the devil getting there.” She looked Kevin over. ‘You have good moves and a classic dancer’s body. You’ll do all right.”

Kevin smiled his thanks for the encouragement, pushing a lock of his dark hair off his forehead. “It just seems to me that the moves are too simple. Any second year student could do them. I wanted to add some pizzazz.”

“If you want to stay in this game, remember rule number one: always do what the choreographer says. He sees the routine from a different perspective, from the audience’s view. HE’s the artist; you are just his tool.”

“Thanks. Say, do you want to get something to eat?”

“Sorry,” Angie held up her own lunch. “I really have to be careful with food. I’m not as lucky as you youngsters. Ask Lindsay there”. She nodded towards a petite blonde.

Kevin moved towards the younger girl. “Hi, I’m Kevin the bumble-footed. Would you like to get some lunch? I hear there is a deli around the corner with great salads.”

Laughing the girl replied, “I’m Lindsay the famished. I’d love to have yet another salad. Maybe there is something there without lettuce.”

After covering the requisite information about backgrounds, the two young people continued their conversation with dance topics. “I love ball room dancing,” Lindsay said. “I was on a ball room dance team in college. We won some competitions. It was a lot of fun.”

“Congratulations. That must look great on your resume. I prefer jazz dancing, and physical, creative tap.” (more…)

Prompt: Love is a Temporary Madness

The prompt this week came from Louis de Bernières’ Corelli’s Mandolin:

Love is a temporary madness.
It erupts like an earthquake and then subsides.
And when it subsides you have to make a decision.
You have to work out whether your roots have become so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part.
Because this is what love is.
Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion.
That is just being “in love” which any of us can convince ourselves we are. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident.
Your mother and I had it, we had roots that grew towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossom had fallen from our branches we found that we were one tree and not two.

The Humanity of Flowers

The following is by Writers in the Grove member, William Stafford, and was inspired by the prompt, Coming Over the Rise I Saw.

That humans could be as compatible as flowers. Flowers do nt seem to care what kind is planted next to them or about their color or fragrance, if any. Some need space of their own but still do not attack their neighbors.

Oh that we could share our space in the world as gracefully.