Proceed At Your Own Risk Warning: Before you read "He Made It", I need to let you know it's a bit of "cozy horror" rated PG-13. It suggests something unpleasant that might occur during an apocalypse. Some readers might feel queasy and others might recoil in disgust. Others have applauded me for the twist at the end with a hearty "Wow, I didn't expect that." Your mileage may vary, so if you feel any hesitation, feel free to skip this story.
Eddie and Sylvia survived the apocalypse in their bunker. Six months later, Eddie was in bad shape. His stomach clenched and growled with hunger. He needed more than rations. He knew what he had to do.
“Eddie, where’s the dog?”
He turned the filet on the grill. “I don’t know.”
© Copyright 2019—Present, Jenise Cook, All Rights Reserved Worldwide.
First Published: The Friday Fix on Medium.com (RIP), on 2019 July 26
Image Credit: Anatoly777 on Pixabay.com
The Story Behind this Story
Yes, I can write of romantic love in the morning, and in the evening draft an ugly scene to kill off a really bad criminal, and enjoy composing both scenes.
Well, I was a latch-key kid growing up, and I had the television all to myself. I watched all sorts of monster movies, crime stories, and Alfred Hitchcock mysteries.
Twist and Shout (in Pain)
I wrote this little story to practice the “twist” at the end that practitioners and readers of the 50-word micro flash style expect.
Believe me, nailing that twist is not as easy as you’d think. It can be painful for us writers. We work at it, writing, revising, and revising again and again until it all comes together. When a 50-word story seems to achieve that twisty goal, the reader’s “ah ha!” makes it all worth while.
I’m grateful to the members of Scribophile, an online writers community, who critiqued this story.
Your Turn
If you’ve ever experienced an “ah ha!” moment, please let me know in the Comments.
Note: When you write a comment, I’ll respond. To view my response, make sure you get notified via email by selecting the checkbox for “Notify me via e-mail if anyone answers my comment.”
Thank you for reading. Come along on my adventures.
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