Prose Challenge of the Week #55
Pssstttt...
Prosers. It's back!!!
It went on hiatus and now it's back and better than ever. It's only Prose Challenge of the Week #55.
This week we will be doubling the prize fund and the length of time you have to win it. Yes, that's right, the Challenge of the Week is going to be worth $200 and will run for two weeks.
After these two weeks, we will return with a weekly prompt and a prize fund of $100.
So, let's take a look at how you can get your hands on the prize...
Challenge of the Week #55: Write a story of 200 words or more about a stranger. The most masterfully written piece, as voted and determined by the Prose team, will be crowned winner and receive $200. Quality beats quantity, always, but numbers make things easier for our judges, so share, share, share with friends, family, and connections. #ProseChallenge #getlit #itslit
200 words (or more) for 200 big ones. That's $1 per word. Easy right?
Put your pens to digital paper and get entering the first Prose Challenge of the Week 2017.
Here's to big and bold things.
Until next time, Prosers,
Prose.
See you, my friend
~~~~~
You no longer greet me
As I walk through the door.
You’re not there to make me smile,
To make me laugh
anymore.
Life is quiet without you.
You were far more than a pet.
You were a family member, a friend,
A loving soul I’ll never forget.
It’ll take time to heal,
For the silence to go away.
I still listen for you,
And miss you every day.
You were such a great companion,
Loyal, loving and true.
And my heart will always wear,
The pawprints made by you.
~~~~~
I looked down at the piece of paper in my trembling hands, dropping the pen onto the table. I read it again and again, till droplets of water began forming on it. I tilted my head backwards, trying to force the tears back in, but the tears kept coming relentlessly as they streamed down my cheeks.
A jingling sound jolted me alert. It can’t be. Charlie’s collar bell. I grabbed the leash on the table, my foolish heart hoping, just hoping that my bundle of joy would come back. The front door was wide open, welcoming.
But my crazy, energetic little friend never came in.
I looked down at the leash in my hand, a lost hope, a last memory. I closed my eyes, and all could hear was silence.
Dear Human?
I’ve crossed the Rainbow Bridge.
It’s nice here. But I’ll be waiting for you.
It's been a long day, without you my friend, and I'll tell you all about it when I see you again.
~~~~~
One by one, the days collect. Though, I don't fear death; 'cause it's the day we'll meet again.
See you, my friend.
Happy Holidays
Greetings Prosers,
It’s almost here. The day many of us spend months preparing for, is almost upon us.
Some will say 2016 hasn’t been too kind to us this year. The world has been unsettled in almost every facet of its being. Whilst some of the events that have happened over the course of this year have proven the depravity and evil extents to which some people will go, l believe that these occurrences across the world have also proven the humanity, kindness, and purity some of the human race still encompasses.
The above couldn’t be more true about the community we have built here. We as a team of five, often reflect on the frickin’ amazing community we have on Prose. As a community, you have changed lives for the better, you have helped people in crisis feel like there is something to live for. You have written about the human condition and all of its pains and beauties. You’ve made the ugly hauntingly beautiful and you have made the beautiful more colourful than the colours known to the naked eye. You’ve brought pixels to life, and I think it’s safe to say, you’ve all made lasting impressions on each others’ lives, just like you have ours.
This last year has been an uphill struggle for many, and that includes Prose. Building a business from the ground up is not an easy feat, and we have worked tirelessly to make sure we continue to bring you a place of safety; a sanctuary for you all to express yourselves, free from judgment and welcomed with open arms. We have a long way to go still, but we are certain that we will get there with your support.
We’ve made so much progress as a team, as a community, and as a business in the last 365. There have been huge updates; ones that brought you the bookstore; along with huge achievements - our Letters from Prison initiative has recently been nominated for an award for excellence in rehabilitation.
Our Letters from Prison Program has touched many lives and there are hundreds of pieces to read in our Portal right now. Without the support of you, our community, this program wouldn’t be as successful.
It’s with this in mind that 2017 will bring a fresh wave of change, for the better, for us all. Paul and I (Sammie) will be spending our time setting up a non-profit for the philanthropic work we have begun in prisons. We will be scaling this into the youth offenders sector, and hopefully, the addiction sector too. This business will be separate to Prose, but will share a symbiotic relationship with Prose, and you, our Prosers. We’ve proven with prisoners that words are so powerful, they can change lives for the better, forever. We hope that you will continue to support us with this endeavour, and if any of you would like to help us further, please email me directly (sammie@theprose.com) because we know we’re going to need it.
Not only will we be working hard to change lives with words, but there will be some enhancements coming your way with Portals, and with that being said, if any of you would like to become moderators of our current Portals, please contact me using the same email address above.
Before I sign off for the year, there is one more change coming your way. It’s a brief change, but a needed one, to allow us some breathing room to implement the changes we have planned. From this day forward, there will be no more challenge of the week until further notice. Monday will bring the announcement of the winner for last week’s, but we will not be setting another for the time being.
The team will all be taking a much needed break for the next couple of days to enjoy time with our families and loved ones. Should any of you have any tech issues etc. you can still email us on the usual email address, or message us in app. We will be in touch as soon as we have emerged from the other side of Christmas.
Lastly, we want to thank every single one of you for being here. I, personally, have made life long friends here and know that this is the case for the team too. We truly have stumbled upon a kick-ass group of people, who I couldn’t be prouder to work with every day.
To each of you, thank you so much.
To my colleagues - my friends - you’re all badasses. It’s a privilege to work with you, laugh with you, and actually, disagree with you (sometimes).
From the entire Prose team, we wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Until 2017, Prosers,
Eat. Drink. Be Merry.
Prose.
Suicide (DID)
You say I'm evil.
You say I'm a monster.
You blame me.
My name is Justine. My name is Emily.
The whole world blames me.
You blame me for the times Emily disappears.
For the times Emily cries because of me.
For the times she hurts herself.
But I did nothing. Nothing at all.
You called me a mere disease, a pest.
You said I was nothing.
You said I deserved to die.
All the times you called me Emily. All the times you threatened me. All the times you made me cry.
I endured it all. I did nothing back.
But you. Emily loved you, you monster .
You tried to kill me.
So I did what you fear most. Your deepest fear. I killed her.
Your dear Emily.
And she's never coming back.
Lullaby
Put me to sleep
And sing me a song.
The song you used to sing
Many years before.
Before they mocked you
Razed your efforts down to naught,
Sing me that song
From many years before.
La la la la la~~
Music to my ears.
Sing me that song
Reminisce about the years.
And if okay, tell me that it's fine.
Your years, your tears, your joy,
They've always been mine.
Continue, and move on without me,
Until the end of your time.
The years we spent together?
I never regretted that kind of life.
Prose Challenge of the Week #54
Good morning, Prosers,
It’s week fifty-four of the Prose Challenge of the Week! Last week saw you all writing about manipulation. We had shed-loads of superb entries to read, so thank you everyone.
Before we find out which one of you takes the $100 prize and the runner-up prize of 1000 coins, let’s take a look at this week’s prompt:
Prose Challenge of the Week #54: Modernize the nativity story. Make it edgy and poignant. The winner will be chosen based on a number of criteria, this includes: fire, form, and creative edge. Number of reads, bookmarks, and shares will also be taken into consideration. The winner will receive $100 and will be placed first on our Spotlight page and have their piece sent out via newsletter, exclusively. When sharing to social media, please use the hashtag #ProseChallenge #getlit #itslit
Get writing now
Back to the winner of week fifty-three. We have read all of your entries and thoroughly enjoyed every single one. There can only be one winner and one runner up, however, and after much deliberation the runner up, and the recipient of 1000 coins is, @RubyPond with their piece “Suckered.” Congratulations! Now for the champion of the challenge, our winner this week is, @Confusheyusss with their piece “The Victim.” Congratulations to you, we will be in touch shortly to arrange transfer of your winnings!
That’s all for this week, here’s to a week filled with all things Prose!
Until next time, Prosers,
Prose.
Saturday Prison Break
Good morning, Prosers,
This feature focuses on the wonderful words coming from our Letters from Prison contributors. Some of you may not be aware of this initiative yet, but by the end of this post you will be!
Each and every Wednesday, Sammie and Paul visit prison and teach creative writing to the residents there. We then bring their words to Prose and post them in the Letters from Prison Portal where members of the Prose community comment on them, providing much needed support and feedback which we then take back into prison and share with the residents.
This program has provided the inmates with a much needed release whilst improving their spelling, grammar, self-confidence, and has had a profound effect on their mental health, too.
This new weekly feature is to celebrate some of the cracking words that escape the bars and make their way onto Prose.
I watch from afar
I watch it spread
I watch it breathe
It’s catching, just like a cold
~@IVVial
From: Injustice Disease
Fear like a still frog
Terror of the enemy in sight
Never to be here
~@TwistedSpiral
From: Ignited
Now the world
For all to see
Has been shared on YouTube
For fucking free
~@Squeakypeewee01
From: YouTube Boob
If you like what you read here, we encourage you to check out the Portal, get commenting and supporting this amazing program.
Until next Saturday, Prosers,
Prose.
Fuck the Zombies, Get me a Dentist Appointment
Alright, I didnt really look after my teeth pre-Zombie Apocalypse but I swear to dead and gone Christ on high, I will bite the limbs off the first smart arse Zombie that gets in my way.
Options are in no sane order, Samurai Sword. Face Shield. Motorbike. Large fast vehicle. Pain Killers. A non Zombie fucked Dentist. A Luger, for no good reason. One of those Garden Netted Trampolines that blow the fuck away on Youtube and waste everyones precious nonZombie Time. A tattoo that say 'Brush Teeth before and after Zombie Apocalypse'. A telescope. Astronomical. Move to an Observatory. Set fire to Observatory as a distraction from Tooth Ache. Find Combine Harvester to plow full speed sheding Zombie Meat and Metal parts. All vehicles must be destroyed. Tested to Destruction. An old steam Tractor thats just fast enough to Keep slow Zombies on the carrot donkey tread mill. Suicidal levels of agony. from all teeth. Allow Zombies to eat you just to escape. Hand feed them yer gums and teeth. Crush Jaw in school workshop vice whilst listening to Inner City Pish jungle channel.
Head straight for department of roads, take Snow Plow Grit Truck. Fill with Dentists and mulch zombie streets with unavailable Dentist Chum.
Train 78 008 Border Collies to Round up the Zombies and shepherd them all the fuck into one City refuse Incinerator. Skateboard into nearest nuclear facility and go for a swim. Buy toothpaste.
Receptionist is not answrring the phone. I dont give a shit if shes half eaten, eyeballs blazing and scowling for patient gum meat.
I rehearse the line ' I have toothache. Understand. Ill be right over, rubberneck '.
No answer.