Month: March 2020

Return of the WordPress Daily Prompt

Fandango22 Comments

323410D7-DDD3-4DDA-AD37-423EC51FBD4CWordPress is bringing back its Daily Prompt, at least for the month of April. According to this post, starting tomorrow, WordPress will be sharing daily writing prompts over at Discover throughout April.

Why is WordPress resurrecting it’s Daily Prompt? Well, because WordPress says that,

The past few weeks have been tough and painful for many of us. They also showed us that regardless of where we live or how radically our lives have changed because of COVID-19, expressing ourselves and connecting with others can help us navigate difficult times.

So, in case you missed this, I wanted to pass this on to you.

What Do You See? — The Book

Fandango7 Comments

04721413-E2F3-4C8C-80AC-849B593F1DD7“What are you reading?” he asked.

“A book,” she answered.

“Yeah, I can see that,” he said. “What book?”

“It’s ‘If Winter Comes,’ by A. S. M. Hutchinson,” she said.

“Is it good?”

“I like it.”

“What’s it about?”

“It’s about an unhappy marriage, eventual divorce, and an unwed mother who commits suicide.”

“That sounds dreadful.”

“It’s the story of my life.”

“Wait. What are you saying?” he asked. “Are you unhappy in our marriage? Do you want a divorce?”

“It’s a work of fiction,” she said. “I find it relatable.”

He walked over to the bookshelf and pulled out their family Bible. “You want to read something relatable, read this.”

“You’re such a pious, self-righteous tool,” she said. “Now leave me alone and let me get back to my book. It’s very uplifting compared to my real life.”

Written for this week’s What Do You See? prompt from Sadje over at Keep It Alive. Photo credit: Leah Kelly on Pexels. Sorry for the somewhat dark post.

 

FOWC with Fandango — Gamble

Fandango23 Comments

FOWCWelcome to March 31, 2020 and to Fandango’s One-Word Challenge (aka, FOWC). It’s designed to fill the void after WordPress bailed on its daily one-word prompt.

I will be posting each day’s word just after midnight Pacific Time (US).

Today’s word is “gamble.”

Write a post using that word. It can be prose, poetry, fiction, non-fiction. It can be any length. It can be just a picture or a drawing if you want. No holds barred, so to speak.

Once you are done, tag your post with #FOWC and create a pingback to this post if you are on WordPress. Or you can simply include a link to your post in the comments.

The issue with pingbacks not showing up seems to have been resolved, but you might check to confirm that your pingback is there. If not, please manually add your link in the comments.

  1. And be sure to read the posts of other bloggers who respond to this prompt. You will marvel at their creativity.

Share Your World — What’s In a Name?

Fandango7 Comments

Share Your WorldIt’s another Monday and that means it’s time for Melanie’s weekly Share Your World questions. So let’s give it a go.

Pancakes, waffles or French toast as your breakfast favorite?

Actually, none of those three options is my “favorite” breakfast, but if I had to choose one of the three, it would be pancakes.

Do you think a person’s name influences the person they become?

There have been a number of studies about the influence of a person’s name on who they become, but I think it’s all a bunch of mumbo-jumbo. You are who you are, regardless of what your name is. And with a name like Fandango, I should know!

Would things get better or worse if humans focused on what was going well rather than what’s going wrong?

Probably better, but then what would we have to complain about on Twitter?

Is math something that humans created or something we discovered? Is looking at reality mathematically an accurate representation of how things work?

I think math was created to intimidate students and to make them feel stupid. At least that’s my personal experience.

Blogging Insights — Self Doubt

Fandango8 Comments

Blogging insightsFor her latest Blogging Insights prompt, Dr. Tanya asks us only one question. She wants to know about self doubt, an affliction, she says, that affects writers nearly as often as writer’s bock. It’s a fear, doubt, and/or lack of confidence that attacks writers from time to time. The doctor wants to know:

How often are you afflicted by self doubt and what do you do about it?

There have been many aspects of my life when I’ve been filled with and almost paralyzed by self doubt. But when it comes to my blog, I can honestly say that I’ve never been afflicted by self doubt. That may come across as if I’m full of myself, but that’s not the case. I just love to write blog posts. What’s not to love?

I love expressing my opinions and perspectives. I love writing flash fiction pieces. I enjoy the creative challenges. It’s not something I fear and I don’t lack confidence. And I rarely run out of things to write.

I’m not saying that I’m a blogger extraordinaire or that my posts are any better than those of other bloggers. I’m just saying that when I compose a post, I don’t doubt my ability to write something that I’m proud of and that I hope others will enjoy reading.

That said, I do doubt myself when it comes to my proofreading skills, as I’m sure way too many typos, misspellings, or grammatical errors have found their way into my published posts than I would like.

Fandango’s Flash Fiction Challenge #59

Fandango9 Comments

FFFCWelcome to “Fandango’s Flash Fiction Challenge.” Each week I will be posting a photo I grab off the internet and challenge bloggers to write a flash fiction piece or poem inspired by the photo. There are no style or word limits.

The image below is from JessicaGale at Morguefile.com.247B4FBB-2694-4BD5-AFB5-6C01A9B4E06DFor the visually challenged writer, the photo shows an empty roll of toilet paper with the words “Plan B?” hand printed on it in black ink.

If this week’s image inspires you and you wish to participate, please write your post, use the tag #FFFC, and link back to this post. I hope it will generate some great posts.

Thanks to all of you who have participated in these challenges. Your posts have been very creative. Please take a few minutes to read the other responses to this photo challenge.

Please create a pingback to this post or manually add your link in the comments.

FOWC with Fandango — Tickle

Fandango15 Comments

FOWCWelcome to March 30, 2020 and to Fandango’s One-Word Challenge (aka, FOWC). It’s designed to fill the void after WordPress bailed on its daily one-word prompt.

I will be posting each day’s word just after midnight Pacific Time (US).

Today’s word is “tickle.”

Write a post using that word. It can be prose, poetry, fiction, non-fiction. It can be any length. It can be just a picture or a drawing if you want. No holds barred, so to speak.

Once you are done, tag your post with #FOWC and create a pingback to this post if you are on WordPress. Or you can simply include a link to your post in the comments.

The issue with pingbacks not showing up seems to have been resolved, but you might check to confirm that your pingback is there. If not, please manually add your link in the comments.

  1. And be sure to read the posts of other bloggers who respond to this prompt. You will marvel at their creativity.

Sunday Writing Prompt — Dear Diary

Fandango34 Comments

E1562735-14CB-434A-94A1-6CEB5A80D02CMarch 29, 2021

Dear Diary,

It’s been almost 15 months since the coronavirus plague ravaged the planet, killing more than seven billion souls, or 90% of humanity. Everyone I knew last year at this time — everyone most of us knew — succumbed to the virus. It’s been several months now since I last saw another human being, and she was almost dead. The animals have pretty much taken over the planet, running around, foraging, even feasting on the remains of human bodies. They must be immune. I must be immune, since I’m still alive.

I remember when this whole thing started and people treated it like it was the flu. Politicians and leaders were downplaying the virus, saying that it was the media that was blowing it out of proportion, telling us that the government had it under control and that it would miraculously disappear.

The religious nuts called it God’s curse on humanity’s sinful ways. But they’re all gone now too. God didn’t save the pious and now God is dead. Humanity is all but dead.

And soon I’ll be dead, too. I can’t go out anymore without risking being attacked by the coyotes, wild dogs, and wolves. There is little to no food left, no electricity, no heat. I’m not sure what good my immunity is doing if I starve or freeze to death or am devoured by hungry wild animals.

Well, Dear Diary, this may Very well be my last entry. Despite the danger, I’m going to venture out of the sanctuary of my home to replenish my supply of food and goods. If I’m successful, I’ll write again tonight. If not, well, at this point, does it really matter?

Written for the Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Sunday Writing Prompt. The challenge is to write a diary/journal entry.

Inexplicable

Fandango16 Comments

The video above reflects the number of coronavirus cases in the U.S. as of March 22nd: 30,367. Today, one week later, the number of cases stands at 131,403, with 2,329 deaths.

And yet Trump’s poll numbers go up, his job approval rate goes up. In the presidential race polls, Trump has moved from what was a seven-point deficit in February to a near tie with Biden today.

And 15% of Bernie Sanders supporters have indicated that, if Bernie doesn’t get the Democratic nomination, they will vote for Trump in November. Are you fucking kidding me?

How stupid can people be? It’s inexplicable.