I’ve begun my NaNoWriMo journey for 2013. There’s a widget in the sidebar tracking my progress — or lack of progress, as the case may be — because I am a glutton for punishment.
What’s the sekrit? Well, it’s that I’m attempting to write a romantic mystery comedy, and I’ll be publishing it (assuming I finish and it isn’t too bad) under a pen name: Lois Meredith. Like it?
Here’s a bit — and please remember that NaNo is all about just knocking stuff out without worrying about the quality. This is a rough draft.
~*~
She was so disappointed in herself, she could have cried. Oh, well, it’s not his fault I’m a goofball. Maybe he’s really a nice enough guy, once you get to know him, instead of expecting him to be somebody he’s not. Maybe.
By the time she pulled into the turnaround, she felt more herself.
The cousin – Waddy, for heaven’s sake – opened the passenger door and unfolded himself. When she got out, he had his head cocked, listening.
“Are those chickens I hear?”
“We keep a dozen, for the eggs.”
She opened the back door for Mr. Worthington, and a streak of black-white-and-brown launched itself onto the cobbles.
“Feisty!” Del Worthington nearly went head-first onto the drive, trying to catch his dog.
Chirp-chirp! faded around the corner of the garage, and the chickens exploded into panic. The crazy dog had run off with Del’s cell phone!
She and Waddy were neck-and-neck after the dog and found the little hound chasing one chicken after another, chirp-chirping all over the yard. That’s the dog? What kind of bark is that?
Waddy grabbed her arm, but she shook him off. No damn dog was going to worry her chickens, she didn’t care whose damn dog it was! She clutched at the dog, but his sleek body slipped through her hands. With a volley of chirps, he turned on her and fastened his teeth on her ankle.
“Ow! Owowowowow!” She had the sense to not jerk away or shake her leg. Punctured would be bad, but torn would be worse.
Waddy sat down next to her leg and the attached canine. Del stopped when he saw the tableau and said, in the hard, quiet voice Mayer had used for intense dramatic scenes,
“Look what you’ve done.”
“Excuse me,” she said, “but I’m not the one biting him. And it hurts!”
“He’s had his shots.”
Shots. I’ll give you shots.
“Ow,” she said.
Waddy was murmurring to the hound. “It’s okay, Feisty. You’re okay. Let the lady go. She didn’t mean to scare you. Let go, boy. Leave it. Leave it, Feisty. Leave it.”
The dog’s tail quivered. He released her in what Parma thought was a highly uncertain manner. She didn’t move until the dog was safely nestled in Waddy’s big arms and out of reach.
“If you don’t mind,” she said, “I’ll let the two of you tend to the luggage. I’d better see to this dog bite.”
“You frightened him,” Del said, coldly.
“He frightened my chickens,” she said, with equal ice. “Plus, he bit me.”
“He was frightened.”
“He’s a chicken chaser.”
“You don’t know anything about him.”
“I know he bites.”
~*~
Well, it’s fun to write, anyway. 🙂
A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: Set aside ten minutes and write on the topic of camera buttons. Why camera buttons? Why not camera buttons?
MA
Jo
November 3, 2013 at 8:35amI’ve nominated you for some awards. 😀 http://africolonialstories.wordpress.com/2013/11/03/lots-of-awards/
Marian Allen
November 3, 2013 at 1:38pmThanks, Jo! You are such a dear! HUGS
jane
November 3, 2013 at 9:40amNice critter scene. I, too, think it’s funny.
Do you recall the MAD Magazine cartoon about the “Chicken Killer”?
It went something like this:
Farm boy sniveling, his dad all serious: “Sorry, Tommy. He’s a chicken-killer.” A faithful canine watches this transaction with grave attention. Several panels follow, each approximately the same: “Sorry, Tommy. He’s a CHICKEN KILLER.”
The last panel shows the dad and the dog, the boy nowhere to be seen. Dad pats the dog’s head: “Sorry, Tommy. He was a chicken killer.”
THE END.
Marian Allen
November 3, 2013 at 1:44pmHeh! Loved MAD Magazine!
KatFrench
November 4, 2013 at 10:50amFun scene. 🙂 And that cover! I want to go find that dog and take him home with me.
Even if he is a Chicken Killer.
Marian Allen
November 4, 2013 at 10:57amJust a chicken CHASER, actually. And you no can haz the dog: he belongs to our next-door grandson. lol I used him because he works cheap.
Chris Verstraete
November 4, 2013 at 2:05pmThe book cover pic is super cute!
Marian Allen
November 4, 2013 at 3:52pmThanks, Chris! I’m so glad people are enjoying the cover! 🙂
Chris Verstraete
November 4, 2013 at 2:06pmcorrected twitter
Whirly Dog Supplies
November 20, 2013 at 10:13amLove this… so funny. What a great read. Here at Whirly Dog Supplies it was funny to see you say Del almost went “head first” into the drive. Hopefully the dog didn’t get away. d
Marian Allen
November 20, 2013 at 1:45pmNo, the dog’s teeth were pretty firmly fastened to Parma’s leg. lol
Claude
December 17, 2013 at 10:22amI read it all to the last letter… well, yeah, a dog is a dog and chickens are fun to chase around. Just for the thrill of it.
Marian Allen
December 17, 2013 at 3:33pmHi, Claude! I’m sure chickens are fun to chase, if you have four legs. They can change direction much too quickly for a big two-legger to keep up with. The chickens don’t like it much, either. 😉
Olivia Simmons
January 14, 2014 at 2:00pmThis was a great read! Thank you so much, I’d like to read this to my dog and my grandchildren sometime.Especially when they visit our farm.Really fun, the silliness and all.May you have more stories to tell, Bless you.
Marian Allen
January 14, 2014 at 9:40pmThanks, Olivia! May all your dogs be easy to walk. 🙂