Dark Humour – Page 16

Next part of the Reedsy backlog: ‘Ten Fingers, Two Hands’!

29th May 2020Leave a comment

Continuing the wave of uploads, working my way through the Reedsy backlog! As there’s one contest a week, I’ve got quite a few kicking around. This story was written for the Dear Diary contest. I chose the prompt, “In the form of diary/ journal entries, write about someone who’s up late at night because they’re having trouble sleeping.” The title of my short story is Ten Fingers, Two Hands, and you can read it here on WordPress or over on my Reedsy profile! (As always!)

Wednesday 13^th April, 2:33 a.m. — Dear Diary, I have lied to you.
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Well, that’s that for now! I hope you like the story — I’ve had this idea kicking around in my mind for some time now, and it was nice to get it out of the system, so to speak!

‘Donum Ex Deo’: My celestial tale for Reedsy!

21st Apr 2020Leave a comment

*Looks into your eyes, flushes guiltily then glances away* Yeah, I know, I’ve neglected this blog as of late. But, hey, we’re living during a global pandemic. I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s struggling a bit to maintain previous standards. On that note, I hope you’re all well and that you’re looking after yourselves! Seriously, stay safe, everyone.

Anyway, I’ve got a huge backlog of stories to upload, and a huge backlog of artwork to upload to my sister blog. This story was written for the Reedsy contest Bad Hair Day; I chose the prompt, “Write a story about a character who’s too polite to tell someone they don’t like a gift given to them.” The title of my short story is Donum Ex Deo, and you can read it here on WordPress or over on my Reedsy profile.

“Well, what do you think?”

“Uh…”

“You do like it, don’t you?”

“Well…”

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Sorry for being so behind on everything, I hope you’ll excuse me, considering current circumstances. Take care, guys! I hope to have more of my stories up over the next few days.

Read ‘Grandma’s Garden’: My flowery entry for this week’s Reedsy!

7th Mar 20206th Mar 2020Leave a comment

This week’s Reedsy theme was a nice one — The Ordinary. As put on the Reedsy site — The very last line of the NBC sitcom The Office is spoken by former receptionist Pam Beasley. She says: “There’s a lot of beauty in ordinary things. Isn’t that kind of the point?”

I chose the prompt, “Write a short story about someone tending to their garden.” Such a simple prompt, isn’t it? So lovely. I thought I’d give it my proper “Josh Insole” spin, though! My story is called Grandma’s Garden, and you can read it here on WordPress, or over on my Reedsy profile!

Grandma was always tending to her garden. Eleanor watched her as she went about her duties, a smile stretched across her kind and wrinkled face, a pretty little melody being softly hummed (and occasionally whistled), a wide-brim straw hat pushed snugly on her head.

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I loved writing this! I came up with the ending first, then worked my way backwards from there. Also, as was the case with my most recent stories, I made the art for Grandma’s Garden myself. If you’d like to see more of my art, why not check out my art blog? https://artinsoulstudio.wordpress.com/

Read my dark comedy, ‘A Long, Narrow Box’: The entry for this week’s Reedsy!

25th Jan 202027th Feb 2020Leave a comment

So, how are you doing? Had a good week? Fantastic. I’ve had a semi-stressful week, trying to balance my creative hobbies (this blog and my WIP) along with regular life. I’m hoping to rectify that in the near future! I really want to get a first draft of my novel done soon(ish), so I’m going to have to buckle down and get on with it… This might mean that Bite-Sized Horror may not make its return for a short while, but I’ll still keep churning out my short stories!

This week’s Reedsy theme was ‘resolutions’. I chose the prompt, “Write a story about someone in the self-help aisle of a bookstore. What book do they pick up?” I wrote a dark little comedy called A Long, Narrow Box. As is always the case, you can read it here on WordPress or over on my Reedsy profile.

Marvin needed help, and this seemed to be the place to get it. He looked at the laminated label on the bookshelf. SELF-HELP SECTION. He nodded to himself. Yup, this was the right place all right. He held his hands behind his back – neatly, as Mother had taught him – and surveyed the books on offer.

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I had a lot of fun writing this, chuckling to myself maniacally as the words bled from my fingertips. I hope it’s an enjoyable read!

Yule Be Sorry: A Very Bite-Sized Xmas #25

25th Dec 201925th Dec 20198 Comments

A cheer rose up: “Santa’s gone from this world!”

But zombie Saint Nick had some final few words:

“I’LL GET YOU NEXT YEAR, YOU ALL ARE MY QUARRY!

I AM THE RED MAN, AND YOU’LL ALL BE SORRY!”

This is the final part of a larger story for Christmas. All parts are in the form of a stanza of a poem.

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Yule Be Sorry: A Very Bite-Sized Xmas #24

24th Dec 201925th Dec 20193 Comments

But the tide it did turn,

And the man and deer burned.

It was all quickly over

Thanks to makeshift flamethrowers.

This is part twenty-four of a larger story for Christmas. All parts are in the form of a stanza of a poem. Check back tomorrow for the final part!

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Yule Be Sorry: A Very Bite-Sized Xmas #23

23rd Dec 201924th Dec 20195 Comments

The man and deer charged with a murderous yell,

But the young stood their ground: “You can go back to Hell!”

There was a clashing of arms, and much blood was spilled,

And before the tide turned, the deer ate his fill.

This is part twenty-three of a larger story for Christmas. All parts are in the form of a stanza of a poem. Check back tomorrow for part twenty-four!

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Yule Be Sorry: A Very Bite-Sized Xmas #22

22nd Dec 201923rd Dec 20193 Comments

The children spied The Red Man in sight,

And with their slingshots, shot him out of flight.

The sleigh and reindeer crashed to a halt,

All the beasts dead, except for Rudolph.

This is part twenty-two of a larger story for Christmas. All parts are in the form of a stanza of a poem. Check back tomorrow for part twenty-three!

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Yule Be Sorry: A Very Bite-Sized Xmas #21

21st Dec 201922nd Dec 20193 Comments

As word quickly spread of how Santa changed,

The last few kids themselves they arranged.

The youngsters now armed, had banded together

To take down Saint Nick, for now and forever.

This is part twenty-one of a larger story for Christmas. All parts are in the form of a stanza of a poem. Check back tomorrow for part twenty-two!

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Yule Be Sorry: A Very Bite-Sized Xmas #20

20th Dec 201921st Dec 20193 Comments

Parents went scrambling to wayward tots’ beds

Only to find their errant kids dead.

A few were left safe, p’rhaps one in a million,

The reason was glaring; they were the good children.

This is part twenty of a larger story for Christmas. All parts are in the form of a stanza of a poem. Check back tomorrow for part twenty-one!

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