week 19 winners

Here are @lellbeth's answers to my judgey questions:

1. What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve been given?

'Write what makes you happy' is something a close friend told me when I was looking for courage to finally post a story. I don't necessarily write happy things - as anyone who's read my writing will know - but I do try to stay true to myself when writing. 

 2. The first and last books you fell in love with? 

The first proper book I read independently was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. I would read it whenever I got the chance, not caring I knew it inside out. I even took it to school with me, though it ended up being confiscated when I read during lessons.

The last book was Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay. It broke my heart in the best way, and even a month or so after initially reading it I still find myself thinking of passages I particularly loved. 

3. What are you listening to right now?

The Fear - Ben Howard. I first saw him at a festival a couple of years ago, and I love that his music has reached so many people now.

4. There's a rubber stamp mark on your hand. What does it say?

'Hand made'

5. Suppose you could travel to any place in time and history. When and where are you going?

Nowhere specific. Any time and place where the water is warm, the sun is shining and I can be happy. 

I’ve changed my mind about the winners for this week countless times, re-reading entries until I knew them all by heart and still not being any closer to picking. I chose winners/mentions solely based on how they made me feel. This prompt image was one I hold close to my heart and so to see such beautiful, funny and talented entries makes me happier than I can say.

I told myself that I was excited to choose a picture that would finally lead to some happy entries. It did, but it also led to some heartbreaking ones - yet I don’t regret picking it, because the writing on display here is phenomenal.

Thank you all so much for sharing your words with me.

Winner ... @ordinary_vamp I barely know what to say about this one. At first it made me smile to think of the child growing and getting older but the cruel punch of realisation that she would never do so stole any happiness I felt. There’s something heartbreaking in knowing ‘once upon a time’s are all the two have left now, only made-up stories of what her life should have been like. I’m in awe of the writing here, and for that reason it has to be my winner.

Second place ... @megan_timms This one hurt. It made me sad but it also made me smile, because their life is so obviously full of love. Death won’t change that for them, even if the life did end too soon. I hope that his wife will always live on in the memory of him and their daughter. I like to think that they had their fairytale years together, regardless of how derailed the ending was. Wonderfully written.

Third place ... @bkhchica How lovely. Circumstances of life may have taken them away from one another, but now they’ve been bought back together I’ve no doubt that love will be rekindled. I can picture them dancing together, holding hands and telling one another what life has been like.

Honourable mention ... @bigblueboat Ouch. Another entry that tore a strip from my heart. There’s something so delicate about the daughter taking over her mother’s role in story-telling, and the sorrow woven into the words here makes me ache. Fantastic.

Honourable mention ... @CrackedFic I wonder how much of the comfort here was for the sake of the old woman, or maybe it was the nurse who believed so ardently in those things just to get her through a job where death is the norm. I wonder too if the old woman will stick to her vow, or whether as death draws closer the desire to believe in something more will cause her to go back on it. I had to give this a HM, purely because I love that it can be interpreted in so many different ways.

Honourable mention ... @femme_mal The image of the man reading a fairytale to his Granddaughter even given the situation he’s in is so touching. We like to think of happily ever afters as trapping people in a stasis of age, but I see no reason why their love couldn’t transcend death. I have no doubt she’ll be waiting for him to join her, and they’ll have that same lifetime of love over and over again. Beautifully written.

@AnnaLund2011 ... Something about the brash tone of this resonates with me. It’s almost an acceptance that love doesn’t have to be perfect to be real, and maybe even that it can’t be both at once. The way they’ve worked for their love makes me think there’s such a tight bond there, one that will last much longer than any ‘insta-love’ would anyway.

@moonlit__girl ... I can picture this so clearly in my mind - the librarian’s assumptions of him due to his age, and the man’s paternal behaviour toward the end. I think the last words will stick with her for some time, and I think they’ll stick with me too.

@sandyquill ... I love that this makes use of the dualistic nature of fairytales. You have the happy ending but you also have the dark danger that lurks within, and it’s intriguing that’s what she’s always fixated on. It makes me wonder whether he’ll be the monster or the prince, or maybe a combination of both. Great originality here.

@SeredipitousMC ... This one made me laugh out loud. I definitely think the father’s opinion will change now! Such an innovative use of the prompt, too.

@QuinnSkylark ... This entry reminded me so much of the trip to Neverland from Peter Pan. There’s something so magical about dreams, especially compared to mundane everyday life. The idea of living your own personal fairytale each night is wonderful.

@MavenPhotos ... Aww. The sheer joy in this was almost tangible, and I can imagine the smiles on both of their faces when they find out they’ll finally have the child they’ve longed for. Lovely.

@Twilightladies1 ... *sniff* so pretty. There’s something so pure about a love that comes from a lifetime of friendship, and it’s portrayed beautifully here. I so hope they get their happily ever after.

@TiramiSue84 ... Sharing something you’ve loved with a child is always special, and to see that they love it too must make it all the better. I can imagine many more days ahead for them, watching all the fairytales from her childhood in animated form and passing that same excitement onto her granddaughter.

@GeekChic12FF ... The idea of second chances is so strong in this entry, and the sad regret is beyond bitter. It almost reminds me of Sleeping Beauty, never really living until she meets the perfect person for her. Not every fairytale has to start when you’re young or even when you’re middle-aged, and this captured the prompt wonderfully.

@MazzyStarla ... This was so sad, and yet the ending was so happy. There’s such comfort in the idea that those we loved will always be watching over us. I loved the clever use of the prompt, too.

@MiamiTrue ... This makes me think that we don’t ever outgrow fairlytales, but maybe that we see the reality of them which takes away the magic. Everything about this rang so true. Writing should be relatable, and this definitely is.

@hummingbirdff ... I’m so intrigued by this! Why is she going into the forest if she knows he’s there? Is she enticing him into a trap, or just for herself? Making people desperate to know more is a skill, and it’s present all throughout this entry.

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Congratulations @ordinary_vamp!

Thank you to @lellabeth for judging, and to everyone who participated.

See you all next week.