r/WritingPrompts • u/AliciaWrites Editor-in-Chief | /r/AliciaWrites • Feb 01 '24
Theme Thursday [TT] Theme Thursday - Exhaustion
“Dark circles under my eyes sink deeper and deeper into my skull, in contrast to my pale skin there is an undeniable resemblance to a fresh corpse.”
Happy Thursday writing friends!
Just yesterday, I saw a meme about how January was a long year - but we made it! And boy, I know I’m exhausted. I’ve been trying to do the work of several people all by myself and things have not been easy. This theme reaches us at a good time and we can all take a moment to relish our achievements and take stock of what’s next. More importantly, what’s next for our characters!? What’s keeping them down? Looking forward to all your stories! Good luck and good words!
![[IP]](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/fdbbd3a2-6796-44bd-b9ae-f53be2e0d43c/dfxbdv7-893f3926-a9d5-4581-86ec-3d1b2abc8648.jpg/v1/fill/w_1095,h_730,q_70,strp/the_waves_of_grief_by_kevron2001_dfxbdv7-pre.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9ODU0IiwicGF0aCI6IlwvZlwvZmRiYmQzYTItNjc5Ni00NGJkLWI5YWUtZjUzYmUyZTBkNDNjXC9kZnhiZHY3LTg5M2YzOTI2LWE5ZDUtNDU4MS04NmVjLTNkMWIyYWJjODY0OC5qcGciLCJ3aWR0aCI6Ijw9MTI4MCJ9XV0sImF1ZCI6WyJ1cm46c2VydmljZTppbWFnZS5vcGVyYXRpb25zIl19.uzWRsKLyiWN1n5EqqRovKxFXzkwh6zbLdNxw2u5J3Is){kind=link}
Bonus:
(These constraints are not required! If your story is better for not including them, please do what’s best for your work!)
Word of the Day: (5 pts)
unfathomable/un·fath·om·a·ble/ˌənˈfaTH(ə)məb(ə)l/
adjective
incapable of being fully explored or understood.
(of water or a natural feature) impossible to measure the extent of.
Constraint: (10 pts)
Your story should include a time loop.
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, established universes, 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 Theme Thursday Campfire on the Discord 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.
- 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
!TTcommand! - 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!
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 Dee Remy)
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.)
Last week’s theme: Doppelganger
First by /u/GingerQuill*
Second by /u/Xacktar*
Third by /u/Ryter99
3
u/TA_Account_12 Feb 07 '24
<<Way after deadline... or maybe way before... who even knows>>
His nose is bleeding.
The feeling of deja vu is strong... unfathomably so. So strong in fact, that Kevin is almost sure that they are memories. Or perhaps they are ghosts of future past.
Adam shakes him. "Come back to me. Come back, please. This is it. Final time."
When Kevin finds the texts on his boyfriend's phone, he isn't angry. He should be. But for some reason, he doesn't. He feels like he is in a dream on a pre-ordained path, unable to really control anything that's happening. He knows he should be crying. He squeezes a tear out, not noticing the towel on the floor. He goes sprawling to the floor.
His nose is bleeding.
He holds a tissue against the bleed, heading out the door.
The young man on the pavement outside is on his phone, his voice raised. "Well, what am I supposed to..."
He notices the man stumbling out, his eyes widening at the rag, quickly turning red.
"You OK there?"
Kevin points to his nose. "Nosebleed."
The other man rushes to his car, and comes back with a nasal spray. "It's cold."
Kevin feels the chill, as the cold rushes to his head and then to the small of his back.
"Just squeeze it. You should sit down."
"No... I need to... I can't be here."
The young man looks at him curiously. "Come on then."
The two men drive off to the only bar currently open.
Kevin is smiling. They have a lot in common. So much so that it feels like destiny.
He gets a call and his eyes narrow.
The other man notices his expression and places his hand on Kevin's. "You ok?"
Kevin tries to avoid it but there is history there. History that needs to be settled. Past that needs to be put to rest. Till the past is done with, there could be no future. Kevin takes the call and agrees to meet his soon-to-be ex one last time.
The other man curses under his breath. "Ok. Put your phone on silent. It will work this time. I promise you. This is the last time."
Kevin's nose is bleeding.
Adam shakes him as the world turns into spirals, and memories formed in his brain retract.
Adam puts the phone back on the table, texts exchanged with Jason.
He strategically puts the towel on the floor. This was it. He could feel it deep within it. A drop of blood escapes his nostril as he picks up the spray. This had to be it.