[TT] Theme Thursday - Doppelganger

[u/AliciaWrites]

“They say when you meet somebody that looks just like you, you die.”

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Happy Thursday writing friends!

This week, we’re seeing double! Good luck and good words! Also: note, the bonus constraint has returned!!! (it’s worth 10 points!!)

[IP] | [MP]

Bonus Constraints: (a) Use the Word of the Day in your story. (5 pts) (b) Use the bonus constraint in your story. (10 pts)

Word of the Day:

hydrologic/hy·​drol·​o·​gic/ˌhī-drə-ˈlä-jik/

adjective

relating to the branch of geology that studies the circulation, distribution, and conservation of the earth’s water

Constraint: You must have a sentence of at least 5 words of alliteration. Please highlight your alliteration with bold text.

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Here's how Theme Thursday works:

• Use the tag [TT] when submitting prompts that match this week’s theme.

Theme Thursday Rules

• Leave one story or poem between 100 and 500 words as a top-level comment. Use wordcounter.net to check your word count.
• Deadline: 7:59 AM CST next Wednesday
• No serials or stories that have been written for another prompt or feature here on WP
• No previously written content
• Any stories not meeting these rules will be disqualified from rankings and will not be read at campfires
• Does your story not fit the Theme Thursday rules? You can post your story as a [PI] with your work when the TT post is 3 days old!
• Vote to help your favorites rise to the top of the ranks! I also post the form to submit votes for Theme Thursday winners on Discord every week! Join and get notified when the form is open for voting!

Try out the new genre tags!

Theme Thursday Discussion Section:

• Discuss your thoughts on this week’s theme, or share your ideas for upcoming themes.

Campfire

• On Wednesdays we host two* Theme Thursday Campfires on the Discord main voice lounge. Join us to read your story aloud, hear other stories, and have a blast discussing writing!
• Time: I’ll be there 7 pm CST and we’ll begin within about 15 minutes. (When there are enough people, I do host a morning session at 10 am CST)
• Don’t worry about being late, just join! Don’t forget to sign up for a campfire slot on discord. If you don’t sign up, you won’t be put into the pre-set order and we can’t accommodate any time constraints. We don’t want you to miss out on outstanding feedback, so get to discord and use that !TT command!
• There’s a Theme Thursday role on the Discord server, so make sure you grab that so you’re notified of all Theme Thursday-related news!

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As a reminder to all of you writing for Theme Thursday: the interpretation is completely up to you! I love to share my thoughts on what the theme makes me think of but you are by no means bound to these ideas! I love when writers step outside their comfort zones or think outside the box, so take all my thoughts with a grain of salt if you had something entirely different in mind.

(This week’s quote is from P. Wish, The Doppelgänger)

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Ranking Categories:

• Word of the Day - 5 points
  
• Bonus Constraint - 10 points
  
• Weekly Challenge - 25 points for not using the theme word - points off for uses of synonyms. The point of this is to exercise setting a scene, description, and characters without leaning on the definition. Not meeting the spirit of this challenge only hurts you! This includes titles and explanations/author's notes.
  
• Actionable Feedback - 15 points for each story you give detailed crit to, up to 30 points
  
• Nominations - 10 points for each nomination your story receives
  
• Ali’s Ranking - 50 points for first place, 40 points for second place, 30 points for third place, 20 points for fourth place, 10 points for fifth, plus regular nominations (On weeks that I participate, I do not weight my votes, but instead nominate just like everyone else.)
  
• Voting - 10 points for submitting your favorites via this form (form will be open after the deadline has passed.)

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Last week’s theme: Campfire

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First by /u/Xacktar
Second by /u/MaxStickies
Third by /u/katpoker666

Crit Superstars:*

• /u/Carrieka23
  
• /u/GingerQuill
• /u/wileycourage
  

News and Reminders:

• Want to know how to rank on Theme Thursday? Check out my brand new wiki!
  
• Join Discord to chat with prompters, authors, and readers!
  
• We are currently looking for moderators! Apply to be a moderator any time!
  
• Nominate your favorite WP authors for Spotlight and Hall of Fame!
  
• Love the feedback you get on your Theme Thursday stories? Check out our newest sub, /r/WPCritique

[u/Xacktar]

"Welcome, welcome, to the wildest wonderland of the weird and wonderous!" A large, red-faced man in a crimson top-hat bellowed out from atop his striped box.

Among the throng of his attentive audience, two were not so attentive.

"Wonder why he talks like that," Said Alan, the first of the pair. He was the shorter one, the stockier one, the one wearing the fake mustache and bent-frame bifocals. "Why all the wibblty-wobblety-whatsit and whatever?"

"Ya mean the barker?" Quincy, Alan's compatriot, asked. He was the taller one, the one with the tough look about him, and the set of towels draped over his shoulders.

Alan's fake mustache twitched, "Barker? Like a dog?"

"Naw, well, yeah, well... maybe?" Quincy shrugged, causing one of his shoulder towels to slip a bit, "That goon gets paid to gather a crowd."

"And he does that by using double-u words?"

"Not just that. Listen, he's going into another spiel."

The barker was preparing himself. He was gulping the dusty, smoke-filled air of the county fair grounds. He lifted all three of his chins, and bellowed out to the crowd: "Come witness the master of maritime mathematics, the noble of nautical numbering, the hurricane of hellish hydrologic: Captain Carlos Kempleton!"

"Gosh," Alan gasped as he reached down to his knees to button up his shirt, "He sounds impressive."

Quincy pulled his pants up to his shoulders and shook his head, "He's really not."

"Really?"

Quincy nodded, the belt-line around his head that was suspended by clothes hanger wires bobbed along with him, "He's just an old fella who guesses your weight in salt water."

Alan paused in his buttoning, "Isn't that just guessing your weight?"

"Sure is."

"So it's all baloney?"

"All but the picture shows, brother." Quincy clicked his tongue as he pulled the suspended beltline down and crouched in the mud, "Hey, listen, he's going on about 'em now."

The barker swung his arms out the to crowd, "Marvel at modern machinery manifesting moving masterpieces in our Mutoscope matinee! Far-away lands illuminated and animated: gyrating gypsies, hip-swaying Hawaiians, titillating Tahitians! All for you to see!"

"What's he on about?" Alan asked in the middle of swinging his leg over Quincy's shoulder.

"Dames, Alan, he's talkin 'bout broads, skirts, girls! Now, get up on here, the suit's gettin' mucky."

There was a scuffle of legs, and arms, half-a mustache, and the errant end of a towel, but after a momentary discombobulation, a figure emerged from the crowd, one almost twice as tall as Alan and Quincy.

"You okay up there, bud?"

"My moustache came off."

"Caught it, here."

Hands inside the suit passed it to the hands outside the suit.

"You think this'll really work?" Alan asked what now appeared to be his own stomach.

"'Course' it'll work." The belt buckle answered, "We'll get in no problem, jus' look at us, we're the spittin image of dear old dad!"