Storytelling
#109 – IkeaWardrobe
Jason stared at the screw. He was certain it didn’t belong.
There weren’t any other screws like it – not down by his feet, not tacked down the middle,… just this one, lone screw jutting out of the wood. It wasn’t even straight. Which joker put this thing together?
He wanted to twist the thing out. Thumb the hole flat. Perhaps add in a bit of filler.
“I deserve that, right?”
Another clod of earth cracked against the wood. He could smell the cigarette smoke from the men, 6 feet above.
“Right?”
“Shut up, snitch.”
Another clod slammed down.
(c) Tim Austin 2025. Photo by Steve Johnson on Unsplash
Today’s word was suggested by Tom Jamieson. Want to suggest a word? Pop it in the comments below!
#108 – Government
The leather benches stank of ancient sweat and stale skin, their cracked green seats bloating beneath the filthy water.
Rats swam through the sewer-foamed chamber, their whiskers twitching as a fresh carcass floated into the room. Ravens perched high in the rafters, cawing and chattering across the dark isle.
The birds would squabble and more would come. They would fill the room as evening fell, fretting and fighting for scraps.
But the rats knew that their jeers were pointless now.
Another body bumped into the room, its once-fine dress now bloodied and ruined.
The river provided for all.
(c) Tim Austin 2025. Photo by Raghav Srikanth on Unsplash
Suggest YOUR word in the comments below!
#107 – Shiver
Dew was already running down the glass as the waiter plucked it from his tray and settled it to the table. Emmie smiled up at him. So did her boyfriend.
Tom plucked five dollars from his wallet and handed it to the young man with a nod.
“Thanks man,” Tom chirped.
“What’s the mercury say?” Ellie asked.
“78,” the waiter replied.
Emmie touched the glass, a flicker trembling through her as Tom’s gaze met hers.
“Enjoy!”
The waiter hovered a moment more before moving on.
Tom was no longer smiling.
Emmie’s heart thundered.
Her cheek still stung beneath the makeup.
(c) Tim Austin 2024. Photo by Rohan Gupta on Unsplash
Suggest YOUR Word,… and I’ll write the first image it brings. Pop your word in the comments below!
#106 – Temple
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Della thrust her palms into the stone around her waist, torch-light gleaming from the floor, two feet beneath her face. Her khaki trousers tore the ancient plaster away and she crashed down onto tiles that hadn’t felt tread or breath in a thousand years.
In a moment she was standing, the torch held forward, gazing out into the gloom: oblivious to the blood flowing across her cheek.
“Monotehp’s folly,” she breathed, watching as the light struck out into the gloom. “I did it.”
She smiled at the discovery. Hers alone.
Torchlight shone. Treasures gleamed.
Eyes watched her from the dark.
(c) Tim Austin 2024 Photo by julien OLLIVIER on Unsplash
Suggest You Own Word in the Comments Below! 🙂
#102 – Dusk
Four propellers cut through the air – interminable and unending as the aircraft chased the setting sun.
Birds flew close to the white beast as it whistled above the cliff. It had done so countless times. Lights blinked and cameras focused, mapping and fixing its target: the endless dusk, high above the world.
No human eyes watched. No hands guided the craft. Silently the lone sentinel flew on, solar panels reflecting the endless sun.
Below, a city drifted by – skeletal: blackened long ago. Carrion for the winds.
The drone requested information.
No reply came.
No reply ever came.
(c) Tim Austin 2016. Image by Josh Rose via Unsplash.
Thanks to author Carin Marais for today’s word! You can read her work at https://maraiscarin.wordpress.com/ – pop by and say hello 🙂
Have a look around at a few other stories and share them far and wide. If you’ve a one word title, tweet it to me @timaustin2k or write it the comments of this post. Who’s next?
Learn more about Tim and his work at https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tim-Austin/e/B00JI0LM7I/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1
#96 – Inform
Paragraph
The rain consumed the air – dense and cold, and soaking to the skin. Jacob’s sweater was already heavy with water,… but it was not the reason he was shivering.
He couldn’t be sure. There was no way to be sure. But it didn’t matter if it was true or not: it was information and information was what they wanted.
A breath of steam floated over his shoulder as the man by the wall turned to speak.
“You have served your country well, comrade.”
Without another word he was alone with the new bag.
Inside was the doll his daughter always wanted.
(c) Tim Austin 2016. Image by Reza Shayestehpour via Unsplash.
Keep those one word titles coming in! I need more 🙂 Just pop your suggestion in the comments or tweet it to @timaustin2k with the hashtag #OWOS.
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Learn more about Tim and his work at https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tim-Austin/e/B00JI0LM7I/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1
#95- Please
She was looking at me.
I couldn’t place the look. It was sadness and,… desperation. Her green eyes seemed lost.
I stepped closer without realising, my instinct taking over. I didn’t breathe again until I felt her hand on my chest. She was trembling.
“Please.”
She drew back and opened the phone booth door, stepping inside and turning, her hands pressing white against the glass. I didn’t understand. Not until I saw the photograph crushed in her palm.
The picture showed a booth identical to this, steamed from within – a wet hand print on the glass.
She lifted her skirt.
(c) Tim Austin 2016. Image by Joe deSousa via Unsplash.
Another decidedly NSFW story today. No, I don’t know where the image came from. But if you want to throw me another title that piques an erotic image in your head, go ahead: pop the word in the comments section or tweet it to me @timaustin2k using the hashtag #OWOS.
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#92 – Enslavement
“Hey man, do I need to be wearing these?!”
Michael rose his arms to display thin plastic strips digging into his wrists.
“Pipe down, Jones. You got a time out and you take it – or do you want to go back to your cell?”
Michael Jones blew in frustration, dropping his hands to his lap and thudding the back of his head to the wall. Through the thick glass of the door he watched as orange-clad men fed metal strips into presses, their heads bent low.
The lines were long: the penance unending.
“No Sir,” Michael sighed. “I do not.”
(c) Tim Austin. Image by Miguel A Ramirez via Unsplash.
Not being political, not being political, not being political,………
My generous thanks to long-time follower and supporter of the OWOS project Sarah Doughty of Heartstring Eulogies. Check out her poetry here – I can’t recommend it highly enough.
If you enjoyed this or any other OWOS stories, be sure to like and share!
#90 – Corner
The tyres weren’t going to take it. James could already feel the grip yielding against the tarmac. He could see them in his mind – the rubber twisting and giving way.
“Don’t be afraid to brake.”
He whispered the phrase over and over, patting the break line as he stared down the opening straight. The first turn was taunting him: daring him. Take it right and the race was his.
James gripped the wheel as the crowd hushed. The timer on the board reset.
He patted the plywood of the soapbox racer and his Dad got ready to push,….
(c) Tim Austin 2016. Image by Pascal Richier via Unsplash.
Well I hope you all had a lovely Halloween!
Today’s story title was donated by the wonderful K.M. Joshi – graphic designer and musician. You can find him and follow him (you stalkers, you!) over on Twitter @AuthorKMJoshi. Suggest your own one word title by popping a comment below or tweeting me @timaustin2k and the next story could be yours!
Oh, and don’t forget to hit that “follow” button, below and to the right, for daily stories!
Tomorrow: “Intense”!
#89 – Euphoria
Blinding green light pulsed through heavy black air, fixing faces like photographs – caught in their euphoria. Jermain Wallace watched arms and mouths melt together in sexual abandon – tiny slivers of lust matched to music.
The bass trembled in his chest and rode through the floor: the pill dissolved on his tongue. The faces rippled to blackness and he rose his hands high to worship.
The empty Ibiza desert echoed around him as he opened his eyes.
His shirt was blood-stained. The blood was not his.
Jermain didn’t care.
The bass was all he needed. The bass was God.
(c) Tim Austin 2016. Image by Melissa Askew via Unsplash.
An interesting image to form a story from this – quite wonderful that I didn’t know precisely where it was going to end up!
Great thanks to supernatural romance author extraordinaire Rebecca Pollard for donating the word. You can find her on twitter @authorRebeccaP. Say I sent you 🙂
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Suggest your own words by tweeting me @timaustin2k or popping a note in the comments of this post. See you tomorrow for “Corner”!
One Word, One Story 