FALL WRITING FRENZY 2022 -GHASTLY GHOST TOWN

 Bwahahaha! Fall is upon us as is the #FallWritingFrenzy 2022. Thanks to our "ghostesses (hostesses) with the mostest,"  Lydia Lukidis, Kaitlyn Sanchez, and Alyssa Reynoso-Morris for another fun contest will boo-tiful prizes. 

The contest directions indicate 200 or less words for board book through young adult age kiddos. We chose one image from a group of images to inspire our stories. See image prompts and contest rules here.

My story is 133 words, based on this image below, which reminds me of my Phoenix AZ days. Yeehaw, I rustled up some memories! BTW, I named my character Jerome as a nod to the cool, artsy mining town Jerome AZ which is said to be haunted. My husband  and I visited. Check out Jerome!

Enjoy reading all the stories and commenting on them here. (You'll have to scroll a bit to see the grid.) 

  

Halloween- Credit: Brian Wangenheim for Unsplash Prompt #2

GHASTLY GHOST TOWN

By Kathy Halsey  

 
No one around now
in this here ghastly ghost town.
No hoots. No hollers.
 
I’m Jerome. Thrown out
with the kitchen sink, I think—
or maybe the tub . . .
 
My bones rattle, rust.
No cavalry rescued me.
I’m dust in the wind.
 
Shake me awake.
Revive my faint memories
in this no-man’s land.
 
Don’t leave me alone.
This bag of bones wants to roam
a lonesome prairie.
 
Wanna scare up trouble?
I’m lookin’ for a cowpoke
buddy just like you.
 
Throw on your costume,
We’ll rassle up night riders
sparking spooky fun.
 
Make memories live
beyond this ghostly town
once the sun goes down.
 
Grab your horse and mine.
My giddy up’s back. Let’s ride  
the wide-open range.
 
We’ll rattle some bones
with hoots and hollers, far from

this ghastly ghost town.

The Road to Fall - #FallWritingFrenzy 2020 by Kathy Halsey

 

Ready for some fall fun? Fall is my favorite season and writing's my "jam" so participating in the second year of the #FallWritingFrenzy is right down my alley or...my road to fall.

The goal for this contest hosted by Lydia Lukidis and Kaitlyn Sanchez is to create connections in the kidlit community and challenge oneself to grow by writing something new. Plus we win prizes, critiques by industry professionals. YAY. Thanks to Lydia, Kaitlyn, judges, and those donating critiques. Good luck to all who enter, too. You can find other entries here.

The rules instruct participants to write to a visual prompt (see mine above), 200 or less words,  and audience age PreK  on up. The piece can be a poem, mood piece, happy, scary, beautiful, grotesque, whatever suits the season and the chosen visual prompt. 

                                                                                    WC:123

The Road to Fall

by Kathy Halsey

The road to fall runs wild

with pops of pumpkin orange. 

It lead to murky mists 

  settling in the hollows.

What's there? 

The road to fall hints of hidden haunts 

with dappled leaves shadow-dancing,

hovering overhead.

  What lies beyond?

The road to fall rolls down shrouded paths

where the chitter-chatter of chipmunks

 is swallowed by 

sudden stillness.

What looms large?

The road to fall—

floats

somewhere between real 

and make-believe.

Step-by-step we creep closer

What's behind brambles and bushes?

The road to fall reveals steep stone steps

up-up until a cold metal gate stops us,

prevents our climb

inside a squire's castle.

The road to fall...

It's on our minds—

murky mists,

hidden haunts

between real and make-believe.

What wildness might we unlock? 

 

 

  

 

 

 

Super Squirrels to the Rescue

Eleven lords a'leaping, readers!  It's that time again, time for mistletoe and holly, and Susanna Hill's 2018 Holiday Writing Contest. This year writers are to craft a holiday story for children 12 and under about a holiday hero. Our hero's act of heroism can be on a grand scale or a small one, BUT it can only be 250 word or less. So cuddle up with a cup of cocoa and a chuckle or two. I hope my story leaps into your funny bone today as it features the most unknown of super heroes...THE FLYING SQUIRREL!

Super Squirrels to the Rescue!!!!

by Kathy Halsey

             Hurricane-strength winds, ice thick as windowpanes, a real Snow-ageddon pummeled Santa’s reindeer. The pack shivered – not with anticipation but with fear of flying.

            Nothing interested them – not reindeer games, not even SUPER LICHEN, a treat that stoked their bellies for liftoff.

  

            Grounded reindeer. Ho-ho-NO.  Santa paced, pulled his beard, and peered. What to his wondering eyes did appear— flying squirrels in flight gear!

            “Never fear, Holly and Berry here. Able to leap 150 feet in a single bound, fly under the radar, and pierce the dark with x-ray eyes.” 

            Visions of flying reindeer did NOT dance in Santa’s head. “Come quick. The herd’s sick.”

            “Eleven Lords a’leaping, Berry. Grounded reindeer? Oh dear and no levitation? What a strange situation!”

            Super Squirrels vowed to get them upright. Comet and Cupid and all the rest perched on tree branches to learn from the best. 

            Reindeer spread antlers, sensed the wind. Puffed fur like squirrels, headed airborne again. They pawed, pranced, and rose to the roof. 

            BAM! BOOM! CRASH!  A soupy fog caused a great crash. Holly and Berry to the rescue once more fitted them with night vision goggles so they could explore.

            Gliding by moonlight, super squirrels at the lead, over trees the herd sped with Santa and sled. In the nick of time, to the four corners of Earth they spread Christmas cheer.

            Now reindeer all snuggle, safe in their beds while visions of super squirrels fly in their heads. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good flight!

And We're Off to the Races: 50 Precious Words Contest by Kathy Halsey

Say, what? Yes, another contest...it's time for author Vivian Kirkfield's 50 Precious Words modeled off Bennet Cerf's challenge to Dr. Seuss to create a story using only 50 unique words. This was the origin of GREEN EGGS AND HAM. I recycled an old picture book manuscript and shaved it down to 47 words, no easy feat, believe me. 

Let's have a bit of word association before we begin, shall we? There's "feat" and "feet," but in my story we have  a race to the finish with "hoof" versus "paw." Yes, it's Blaze Cheetah versus Giraffe. (Did you know that a giraffe's hooves are as big as dinner plates? Did you know they can cruise at 35 mph? Did you know that we PB writers learn many odd facts?) Onward to our race!

Kalahari Elementary Track Meet

by Kathy Halsey

Blaze's fast,

Always best.

Giraffe laces up,

Cannot rest.

They'r-r-r-e OFF!

'Round the track.

Blaze zooms ahead,

Giraffe bounces back.

Giraffe tangles up.

Legs run amok!

Neck and neck,

Hoof to paw.

Near the half mark,

Shock'n awe.

Photo finish.

Who will win?

It's...GIRAFFE!

Mile-wide grin.