Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Campaign Challenge #2 -- The Imago

So here goes for the 2nd Campaign Challenge Rachael Harrie gave us at Rach Writes. The challenge was to write a blog post in 200 words or less, excluding the title, that includes the word "imago" in the title and in the body of the post includes the following 4 random words: "miasma," "lacuna," "oscitate," "synchronicity". For an added challenge make reference to a mirror in the post. For an even greater challenge, make the post 200 words exactly. All criteria are met (after much gnashing of teeth and pulling of hair.)

The Imago  (Picture courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net)


                                                     The Imago

Arms folded, Nyla stares through the beveled glass door into the galería. Somehow, the glass is both mirror and window. Superimposed on the polished floors of the sunlit galeria beyond, her reflection stares back, as if bemused. 
When Nyla was younger, in the miasma of grief that pervaded her home, she sometimes caught mental glimpses of who she might become away from her family’s confused dynamics. These glimpses led her on, in hopes of escaping the pain that oscitated inside her, as one family member after another went down dubious roads to disaster. Now, through some synchronicity, her decision to teach English in Spain has allowed her to catch up the person she hoped to be. 
Or has it? When Nyla raises a hand to brush a wisp of hair back from her face, her reflection remains motionless, arms folded. How can that be? 
Uneasily, Nyla forces a smile—a smile that isn’t returned. Is the woman in the glass not a reflection after all? Is the beveled glass in the door some lacuna opening into another dimension? Nyla’s thoughts whirl and scatter, reaching for an explanation.
The imago beckons, then reaches a hand through the glass, and Nyla screams.


This is linky entry # 128.



35 comments:

  1. Wow, what a good scene. It definitely makes me think and wonder what's going on. Great writing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, Elizabeth! That's awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh my gosh I loved it! Wonderful job!! I'm a new follower by the way :) Nice to meet you!

    (I'm entry #112)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Oh this is great. I love the tension you build with the 'reflection'. Great way to use the mirror from the prompt.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Such a beautifully written piece! Well done!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Great piece of writing - made me want to read more.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Scary and intriguing! I want to keep reading :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Loved the way you introduced your character and ended it with an unexpectedly chilling conclusion. Not an easy feat. And those words! You used them expertly.

    Great job, Elizabeth! :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow, very interesting, is she a twin or another dimension of herself? You have me wanting more! ; )

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wonderful piece of writing. I loved how you used some of the words, especially "the pain that oscitated inside her". Very good. Such difficult words, sigh.
    (I am #133)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Oooh and you are a fellow Californian, I've just noticed :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. I love your entry! What an interesting idea--if our reflections turned out to be independent.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Very creepy! What is it about mirrors that can be so unsettling?
    Mine is #3.

    ReplyDelete
  14. wow, good scene and pretty creepy, too.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Great use of the words, and you built the suspense so well. I want to know more!

    ReplyDelete
  16. I like the sort of emotional intensity in this piece. I'm over from the campaign (#142).

    ReplyDelete
  17. I wasn't expecting that ending at all, I got carried away with all the details. I'm 153 BTW

    ReplyDelete
  18. Great build-up leading to an unexpected twist at the end! Love how easily you incorporated all the required words into this story.

    I'm # 157

    ReplyDelete
  19. I want an explination too! Nicely done. Mine is #29

    ReplyDelete
  20. Thanks everyone. While we are in Spain, we don't get to the wifi cafes as often as we'd like, so I'm not able to respond so often. But I certainly appreciate your nice comments, and I'm reading as many of the stories as possible. It's just amazing (and fun) to see how different all the stories are!

    ReplyDelete
  21. I was impressed by the theme of your story and the way you compressed it into 200 words. Surely worth working up into something longer, to develop the creepiness and the tension? And with the Imago Challenge behind you, you can forget about those arcane 'challenge' words. Does anyone ever use them in their fiction/poetry/general conversation?

    Thanks too for your comment on my Imago.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Great Job, Elizabeth. Pretty impressive.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Love this. It reads as a scene from a longer piece. I'm left with questions and want more :)

    ReplyDelete
  24. Back again in a wifi cafe. Thanks Raelyn, Rachna, and Doctor FTSE. These challenges are great for getting the creativity in action.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Wow, very creepy and intense. Makes me want to read more...the only trouble with these challenges is that I feel like I'm reading a hundred book openings without being able to read on! Great entry--I'm off to like it :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. Excellent use of the challenge words. And the story is great too.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Cheryl, I agree, these challenges make you feel you've started all these stories and never know the end! :-)

    Ali, Christy, and Randy, thanks for the kind support. Oddly, I was trying NOT to write a scary story, and then the ending just popped up—and it was the right word count. :-)

    Ali, thanks for following me, and Cheryl, thanks for the "like".

    ReplyDelete
  28. Very nice work. You have a great voice.

    ReplyDelete
  29. What a great entry! I loved it. So creative and such a perfect use of the words :) Now off to follow your blog...

    ReplyDelete
  30. Ron and Jessica, thanks for the kind comments!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Riveting and a little unnerving. You did a great job!

    #189

    ReplyDelete
  32. Very well done. Sorry I'm so late commenting. The kids kept me busy more than usual. This snippet reads like a piece of a longer story. If ever you write it, let me know. I want to read it.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Thanks, Cat. I don't normally write Sci Fi or horror, so I don't if this will develop into anything or not. I see it as a beginning, too, and not a complete story.

    ReplyDelete

I love to read your comments and will respond to them. However, any comments left by "Anonymous" will be automatically deleted.