Every year, C.M. Simpson gathers up the
short stories, flash fiction and poetry she’s written, published, or prepared
for publishing, and puts them into a single volume. This year, there are two
volumes. The second volume consists of all the work produced, prepared for
publication or published in 2013.
As C.M. explains at the beginning of each
volume “poems and short stories form the
playground I use to explore ways of putting words on paper to create different
effects” and each volume contains a variety of styles and subjects,
accompanied by what it was that inspired her at the time. Sometimes, the
inspiration from an element underlying a movie or novel concept, or voiced by a
movie character.
Written on October 27, 2013, for the October 20 entry
for 365 Days of Flash Fiction, this
piece was inspired by the idea of hunting a more difficult kind of prey.
Run, rabbit, run, I think, raising the
rifle and taking aim. My prey does an odd little bounce, stops and skits three
steps sideways, but this time I’m ready. I guess no-one ever told him an
evasive pattern should be unpredictable. I’m ready to nail him as he starts to
run forward, but a heavy weight slams between my shoulders, smashing my face into
the rifle-butt. The shot goes wild, but I don’t really care. I’m too busy
trying to roll, bring the damn gun up to take down whatever, whoever, has just
tried to push my face in the dirt. Only problem is, they’ve got a boot in the
middle of my back and the muzzle of something unpleasant against the back of my
head. Guess now’s not a good time. I smell cinnamon and apples. I don’t need to
hear them say it. “Your hunting days are done.”
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