Fifties by the Fire — a fifty-word, prompt-based writing challenge. Feel free to share your response below…or simply read/comment to join in on the fun.
Prompt: To kick off November, use the word “wilderness” in a fifty-word story, poem, or work of CNF. Here are the other guidelines:
Make sure your piece is exactly fifty words. Feel free to use Word Counter or the word processor you use.
Write a title with the genre in the first line. (Example: Voicemail, Fiction)
The title does not factor into the word count.
Good luck and have fun. Happy writing!
Special thanks to John Lightle for providing his photo, “Misty Mountain Hop,” for our writing prompt.
John Lightle is a Texas writer, poet, and photographer who spends many hours sitting on his woodpile contemplating. When away from his frame shop, he schleps his artwork among area art shows. The job takes him across the countryside, occasionally overseas, photographing the quiet resolve found within the golden hours.
When he found himself planted in the heart of the Adirondacks, something came over him. The wilderness took hold of his body and forced him to take it in – the mountains, the trees, the sky.
A gust of wind swept through, whispering an ancient secret: you’re hooooooooome.
I think the wilderness took hold of more than his body... You gave us a powerful first line here, to make us wonder and reel us in. An effective last line, leaving us to imagine all the rest. A perfect model of the genre, my friend.
The landlady shows me to the tiny room where I’m to stay in this urban wilderness of Barcelona. It’s painted entirely in a deep, thunderous red. It has no windows, and seems to be furnished primarily with cats.
“Excuse me,” I venture, “is it too late to cancel?
Thank you, Amie, for reading my stuff and for taking the time to comment. I do like cats, but cats as part of the decor, maybe not so much. I have traveled a lot and have experienced similar surprises on the road. It is all in the name of adventure. Happy day to you.
The motor home was loaded. The couple and their two dogs piled in to head off into parts unknown. Oh, they new their destinations, at least the first two, but what surprises awaited? Texas was familiar, yet they were headed for the desert. They just might love the wilderness ☺️
Kim's back to writing stories, yay!! Arizona is waiting for you. We're in the northern realms, where it was 26 degrees this morning at 7:21 AM, and the mountains are getting dustings of snow.
I am lost in a wilderness of worry today. Gas prices. My weedy garden. Gun control. Memory loss. Election results. Carbohydrates. Mammogram. House taxes. The dreaded computer upgrade. My disappearing savings. The absolute madness of half of our nation’s people and where will it end?
Yeeeoow! Thank you, Matthew. You have such a choice out there of whom to read, I am honored that you chose to give me a try. I hope some of my short bits will give you a laugh to start your day. And I hope some of the longer pieces touch your heart in some good way. Welcome to🍁Leaves.
Comfy pillows are a "must" at times, right? I love-love the phrase you created: "lost in a wilderness of worry"... perfection, Sharron! Well crafted tiny story!
Thank you Jenise, for all your kind comments, and for subscribing! There is so much out there to read, I feel honored that you chose to give me a try. Welcome to 🍁Leaves and we will see each other again on Fifties by the Fire.
Lyle’s boss left for the week to go camping with her husband. Jenny didn’t leave him with any tasks. No reports to file or spreadsheets to make. He panicked, worried a coworker would catch him being “unproductive.” Jenny went to the wilderness, but Lyle was the one who got lost.
Will Derness hitched his backpack off his weary shoulders and faced the setting sun. His feet ached in his boots from hiking since sunrise.
They had pinged his cell phone. Police had found the body. There’s no going back.
He stepped off the cliff’s edge and fell into the wilderness.
~~~
Justin, this is so fun; thank you for hosting us.
Hi, Everyone! My publications is still fairly new, I'm hoping it will grow. I would love for readers to select the link below and make a Comment on my story on my site as well, to give my tiny story some "Substack algorithm love", Lol! Thanks in advance, and if you'd like, you can subscribe for free if you feel led to do so!
Oooo, Jenise! I am beginning to think those old cell phones are not exactly our friends. How dumb do criminals have to be to carry a GPS around in their pockets? Will's desperation is a sign of the times maybe. No where to run, no where to hide. Yikes! Good story.
Oh, wow, what a nice Comment, Sharron, thank you so much.
And, you raise very good points re: criminals and cell phones. The phones might not be our friends at times. I know whenever I talk with someone about a product and my phone is around, that afternoon, or the next day, I get emails or ads about that product. Yikes!
The wilderness feeds my addiction. I choose monsoons under the moonlight, savage beasts in the rainforest and cannibals in the Congo as my drug of choice.
I need a stronger hit. The universe is my dealer now, planets and stars beyond our solar system my new drug.
This is awesome, Brian! Do you ever feel this way about writing? I often find that when I need to get away, I pick up the pen or boot up my laptop. There’s no greater high, in my book.
For me it's become like solving a complex puzzle, putting all of the right pieces together after dumping them out on the table. I get lost in it! This month's theme for the contest I entered is Worldbuilders, and it felt more like an escape than other stories I've written.
The birds whistled. Trees wept. A coyote can be heard screaming in the distance. The dog stayed near. The stump was hidden. I didn’t see the bear. My breathing was heavy. The pain radiated down my leg. Light echoed through the trees in the wilderness. It was the search party.
“Wilderness,” they sneered. What a horrible place to choose to spend time. “Full of bugs,” they said, shuddering at the thought.
“Freedom,” Christa said, sighing with contentment as she prepared to set up camp beside her favorite waterfall. Far from the insanity of her family’s obsession with Wall Street. “Home.”
I turned on the faucet. Nothing came out. I never saw Phoenix again.
There were shortages of everything: Electricity. Internet. Eggs. Sanity. Really, though, it was all about power. I worked for the world’s most powerful company. We controlled everything.
Our goal? Take down the nation. Starting with the grid.
Creepy. In a good way. Not fiction, not reality. Not yet. There is certainly already a shortage of sanity, isn't there? Now... which powerful company would that be I wonder? Hmmm... Want to hazard a guess? ( BTW I didn't understand never seeing Phoenix again. I am missing something.)
Ancient Secret - fiction
Royce left the city.
When he found himself planted in the heart of the Adirondacks, something came over him. The wilderness took hold of his body and forced him to take it in – the mountains, the trees, the sky.
A gust of wind swept through, whispering an ancient secret: you’re hooooooooome.
I think the wilderness took hold of more than his body... You gave us a powerful first line here, to make us wonder and reel us in. An effective last line, leaving us to imagine all the rest. A perfect model of the genre, my friend.
It did, I just couldn’t figure out how to write it in only fifty words! 🤣
Thank you so much, Sharron. I always appreciate your kind words and encouragement! I’m happy you enjoyed my take on the prompt.
Yasss!!!! Love this, Justin.
I'm so glad we moved to the mountains in 2011, as they're my happy place. Good on Royce, he's now in his happy place!
Thanks, Jenise! I love the mountains, too.
We both thought of home with this prompt. Nice job, Justin.
Thank you, Dascha! I love seeing where everyone takes these prompts. We were definitely thinking along the same lines!
A Room With No View - fiction
The landlady shows me to the tiny room where I’m to stay in this urban wilderness of Barcelona. It’s painted entirely in a deep, thunderous red. It has no windows, and seems to be furnished primarily with cats.
“Excuse me,” I venture, “is it too late to cancel?
Haha! I’m sitting in a waiting room and this made me laugh out loud. Thanks for that. (Carry on, everyone, nothing to see over here... 😅)
“Furnished primarily with cats” --probably the best 4-word description ever.
Thank you, Amie, for reading my stuff and for taking the time to comment. I do like cats, but cats as part of the decor, maybe not so much. I have traveled a lot and have experienced similar surprises on the road. It is all in the name of adventure. Happy day to you.
Bon Voyage
The motor home was loaded. The couple and their two dogs piled in to head off into parts unknown. Oh, they new their destinations, at least the first two, but what surprises awaited? Texas was familiar, yet they were headed for the desert. They just might love the wilderness ☺️
Beautiful, Kim. I bet you are counting down the days until your next chapter begins!
Kim's back to writing stories, yay!! Arizona is waiting for you. We're in the northern realms, where it was 26 degrees this morning at 7:21 AM, and the mountains are getting dustings of snow.
I can guess where this story came from, Kim! You'll have to keep us informed of your journeys. ❣️
Fatigue - fiction
I am lost in a wilderness of worry today. Gas prices. My weedy garden. Gun control. Memory loss. Election results. Carbohydrates. Mammogram. House taxes. The dreaded computer upgrade. My disappearing savings. The absolute madness of half of our nation’s people and where will it end?
I’m going back to bed.
Going back to bed is the most reasonable option. I’m 100 percent with you.
I like how you figured in some of the things that are happening in real life. You've gained a subscriber!
Yeeeoow! Thank you, Matthew. You have such a choice out there of whom to read, I am honored that you chose to give me a try. I hope some of my short bits will give you a laugh to start your day. And I hope some of the longer pieces touch your heart in some good way. Welcome to🍁Leaves.
Comfy pillows are a "must" at times, right? I love-love the phrase you created: "lost in a wilderness of worry"... perfection, Sharron! Well crafted tiny story!
Thank you Jenise, for all your kind comments, and for subscribing! There is so much out there to read, I feel honored that you chose to give me a try. Welcome to 🍁Leaves and we will see each other again on Fifties by the Fire.
Empty To-Do List, Fiction
Lyle’s boss left for the week to go camping with her husband. Jenny didn’t leave him with any tasks. No reports to file or spreadsheets to make. He panicked, worried a coworker would catch him being “unproductive.” Jenny went to the wilderness, but Lyle was the one who got lost.
Nice one, Geoffrey! I loved your take on this.
Thanks! These are fun to write.
Nice! I had thought of someone being lost in a wilderness of their own making (though didn't go with that). I like the way you handled this.
It's Over, Fiction
(Crime Fiction)
Will Derness hitched his backpack off his weary shoulders and faced the setting sun. His feet ached in his boots from hiking since sunrise.
They had pinged his cell phone. Police had found the body. There’s no going back.
He stepped off the cliff’s edge and fell into the wilderness.
~~~
Justin, this is so fun; thank you for hosting us.
Hi, Everyone! My publications is still fairly new, I'm hoping it will grow. I would love for readers to select the link below and make a Comment on my story on my site as well, to give my tiny story some "Substack algorithm love", Lol! Thanks in advance, and if you'd like, you can subscribe for free if you feel led to do so!
https://jenisecook.substack.com/p/its-over
You’re so very welcome, Jenise. It makes me happy to see others “show up” to the fire to write some micro fiction. So ... thank you!
I really enjoyed your story. 😀
Oooo, Jenise! I am beginning to think those old cell phones are not exactly our friends. How dumb do criminals have to be to carry a GPS around in their pockets? Will's desperation is a sign of the times maybe. No where to run, no where to hide. Yikes! Good story.
Oh, wow, what a nice Comment, Sharron, thank you so much.
And, you raise very good points re: criminals and cell phones. The phones might not be our friends at times. I know whenever I talk with someone about a product and my phone is around, that afternoon, or the next day, I get emails or ads about that product. Yikes!
Adrenaline Junkie, Fiction
The wilderness feeds my addiction. I choose monsoons under the moonlight, savage beasts in the rainforest and cannibals in the Congo as my drug of choice.
I need a stronger hit. The universe is my dealer now, planets and stars beyond our solar system my new drug.
What a high.
This is awesome, Brian! Do you ever feel this way about writing? I often find that when I need to get away, I pick up the pen or boot up my laptop. There’s no greater high, in my book.
For me it's become like solving a complex puzzle, putting all of the right pieces together after dumping them out on the table. I get lost in it! This month's theme for the contest I entered is Worldbuilders, and it felt more like an escape than other stories I've written.
Yes, that too for me! It’s so easy to get lost writing stories. Good luck with this month’s submission!
Great narrative and I love the ending! Send us photos of your inter-planetary journeys!
Thanks Jenise! I wish I could 🚀🚀🚀
Yeeeesssss!
Helpless, Fiction
The birds whistled. Trees wept. A coyote can be heard screaming in the distance. The dog stayed near. The stump was hidden. I didn’t see the bear. My breathing was heavy. The pain radiated down my leg. Light echoed through the trees in the wilderness. It was the search party.
I can’t help but wonder how long the narrator was lost. Nice job, Matthew! Thanks for sharing!
Wilderness (fiction)
“Wilderness,” they sneered. What a horrible place to choose to spend time. “Full of bugs,” they said, shuddering at the thought.
“Freedom,” Christa said, sighing with contentment as she prepared to set up camp beside her favorite waterfall. Far from the insanity of her family’s obsession with Wall Street. “Home.”
Beautiful, Dascha! I’m on Team Christa without a doubt.
Me too!
Good for Christa! I'm glad she's home and in a saner environment.
Me too!
Analog Wilderness - Fiction? Reality? You Decide.
I turned on the faucet. Nothing came out. I never saw Phoenix again.
There were shortages of everything: Electricity. Internet. Eggs. Sanity. Really, though, it was all about power. I worked for the world’s most powerful company. We controlled everything.
Our goal? Take down the nation. Starting with the grid.
Creepy. In a good way. Not fiction, not reality. Not yet. There is certainly already a shortage of sanity, isn't there? Now... which powerful company would that be I wonder? Hmmm... Want to hazard a guess? ( BTW I didn't understand never seeing Phoenix again. I am missing something.)
It’s scary when the lines between dystopia and reality become blurred. Nicely done, Amie!
Love the photo! Ok, I’ll get to thinking on this one!
Same! John is an incredible photographer.
💕 that his work is featured in this 50-word space. Although volumes could be written about each images.
Couldn’t agree more on both accounts!
Misty Mountain Hop is a Zeppelin song, but you knew that.
And what a fine song it is! The photographer I’ve been collaborating with is a big Zeppelin fan. 😄
Wilderness terrain, splinters my brain.
Wilderness dilemma: living, but insane. 😉
Haha, hey Jim! When I saw your name pop up here it made me smile.
You’ve accurately summarized my life in ten words. 🤣 Miss teaching with ya man. Hope all is well with you on the other side of the hill.