written and posted by members of Lancashire Dead Good Poets' Society

Monday 1 August 2011

15:31:00 Posted by Shaun , , , , , 3 comments

Everything was the same. On the freshly cleared space of the desk an old reporter's notepad grimaced. Behind the paper, a recently assembled collection of books was gathering dust and, as always, a pot of tea brewed gently on the light.

If years of quietly shuffling pencils onto pages had taught him anything, it was that he could write. This one simple thing- the ability to transfer thoughts- was his bread and butter. Faced with a cold sheet of paper, he could shovel snow. He could mark out a path in this imaginary driveway, shape it like a word and believe- and I mean really believe- the new reality. His world on paper stretched out across the globe and yet, in his many days, he had never truly been beyond Dover.

Yes, everything was the same. Nothing changed and nothing would, that was his way. Nothing could ever replace him and this proved especially true of his computer, a present, which had been boxed in the corner now for three years. The computer had been bothering him for a while. He had thought about selling it- maybe cashing in whilst it was still worth some money. The world around him was changing ever so fast and that was the cruel irony of his condition. Honestly, back then he should have opened it up. Learnt how to work the thing. How to at least switch it on. The tightly sealed tape serves as a reminder now. His creativity all tightly packed up in a box he can't understand and to look at him, you wouldn't think he'd ever written a thing.

From the hallway, he heard the key turn in the lock. His quick-to-start cat startled him as it bound toward the door and the shaky teacup shattered on the floor. He had written nothing today. Nothing at all...


This week's theme is 'Shivers'. I can't think of anything worse than losing the ability to write- it terrifies me. Interestingly, this post came from my own bout of 'Writer's Block'- in case you were wondering about the slightly late post.

Shaun.

3 comments:

Lindsay said...

Late but great :)

Ashley Lister said...

As Lindsay says: late but great.

It's a testament to how much a part of my life this blog has already become, that I spent most of the day missing this fresh post :-)

Damp incendiary device said...

Interesting perspective on shivers. I was enjoying the scene- I want to read more! :)