{literary blog relay} transformation

i’m running again as a part of christine zilka’s literary blog relay. my last entry is here. christine seems to magically time her relays right when i need a little encouragement with my own writing. super short stories have captured my attention lately. super short is particularly tantalizing since my primary project has proven to be a very, very long journey. the theme for this relay is transformation. we get 250 words and take our first line from the previous chapter. my first line comes from the wonderful stephanie brown. read her chapter 5 here.

Chapter 6: Transformation

And I wanted to cry. But I couldn’t. I feel sorry for her. I do. Not that anyone would believe me. The things the people in this town ask of me in the dark: Keep my wife home. Get the judge on my side. Stop him from beating me. Tell me the right number to play. Set a light for me since I can’t do it at home. I watch their spines straighten and hips loosen as they venture unburdened back into the night.  They don’t look back. I carry what they leave behind in my spine, my breasts, my hair.

I’ll do anything. They say this but don’t mean it. They pay me for my work, sure. A little piece of money. A bolt of fabric. An I-pod. A mess of beans. A few dozen eggs. An emerald ring. A meager price for all that weight. Just this once, I took full price for my work. She calls to scream at me on the phone, confusion and terror pulsing red through the line. I feel a wave of compassion cut with a sharp frisson of pleasure when I see her features settling on my face in the mirror. I wonder what she sees in her own mirror now. Is her reflection covered in a rheumy fog? Or is her countenance sliding from translucent towards transparent?

I’ll do anything. It was a fair price. A bargain, even. I lean in closer to admire my new face. Was it worth it?

Next up for chapter 7 is matthew salesses. his novella the last repatriate is currently being launched (in a very innovative, smart way). i can’t wait to read it!

THE FULL LINE UP, IN ORDER (completed posts in bold)

1. Christine Lee Zilka czilka.wordpress.com
2. Nova Ren Suma novaren.wordpress.com
3. Wah-Ming Chang wmcisnowhere.wordpress.com
4. Nina LaCour ninalacour.com/blog
5. Stephanie Brown scififanatic.livejournal.com
6. Jamey Hatley jameyhatley.wordpress.com
7. Matthew Salesses matthewsalesses.com
8. Krystn Lee blog.kryslee.com
9. Bryan Bliss bryanbliss.blogspot.com

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THE RULES:

• Start with the last line of the previous entry.
• Poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction all up for grabs.
• 250 words (you can fudge if artistic license requires)
• Thematically linked
• Link to the next person on the list, as well as those who posted before you.
• Post something within 4 or 5 days of the most recent piece.
• Posts should start with an explanation, with links to the previous posts as well as the next.