Lena Corazon

Flights of Fancy

Writers’ Platform-Building Challenge #2: “Imago Shattered”

I’m happy to present my entry for the second #writecampaign challenge. This is the prompt:

Write a blog post in 200 words or less, excluding the title. It can be in any format, whether flash fiction, non-fiction, humorous blog musings, poem, etc. The blog post should:

– include the word “imago in the title

 -include the following 4 random words: “miasma,” “lacuna,” “oscitate,” “synchronicity”

If you want to give yourself an added challenge (optional and included in the word count), make reference to a mirror in your post.

For those who want an even greater challenge (optional), make your post 200 words EXACTLY!

There’s no mention of a mirror in my entry, though it is exactly 200 words, and meets all the other requirements. As always, I’m curious to know what you all think. If you’re so inclined, vote for my piece here. I’m #87. Be sure to read through all of the other excellent entries as well!

-oOo-

“Imago, Shattered”

The cicada buzzed and writhed, barely-there wings oscillating with fury. Stuck fast to a corkboard, speared by Tessa’s sharp pin, it struggled in vain. She had stabbed it savagely, wishing all the while that it was Robert Elliot.

Though Robert sat mere feet away, a lacuna oscitated between them, mocking the intimacy they once shared. Theirs had been a linking of souls that transcended fortune, and rank. Robert was a penniless tutor, she the daughter of the nobleman who employed him — an unlikely connection, filled with synchronicity. While their love blossomed, such impediments seemed minor annoyances, no harder to penetrate than a miasma of smoke.

She loathed him, yet her heart was bruised and aching, a betrayal of her true feelings. She couldn’t, wouldn’t lose him.

One hand splayed over the slight swell of her stomach, Tessa lurched to her feet, the crashing of specimen jars drawing Robert’s attention at last. Wreathed with sunlight, misery in his eyes, she saw him for what he was: a fragile man, neither villain nor saint.

She charged towards him, bridging that insurmountable distance in a dozen steps. Just before their mouths crashed together, she thought she saw tears glinting on his cheeks.

43 Comments

  1. Lena – This is beautifully written! Love the flow of your sentences, the intricacy of language woven, your use of the challenge words in such a romantic piece. ~ Nadja

    • Thanks for such lovely feedback, Nadja. I didn’t expect it, but I rather fell in love with these characters in the course of writing the piece. I may expand it later on down the line, because there’s an earlier part of their story that I would love to share. 😀

  2. This was lovely. Not what I expected when I started reading, a nice surprise 🙂

    • Oh good, I’m glad the surprise was a nice one. 😀 I really wanted Tessa to have what she wanted (unlike poor Leila in my last challenge entry, who was just so devastated and unable to act), and I really liked the idea of that ‘yawning chasm’ between them being surmountable after all.

  3. It’s so romantic! The ending was not quite what I expected, but still good.

    • Thanks, Sonia. I was in the mood for a little romance after my last Campaign challenge entry, which was a bit mopey and broken-hearted. Glad to see that the ending was still good, even though it was unexpected. 😀

  4. This is very beautiful and lyrical! Great job!
    Mine is #3.

  5. The internal conflict is awesome, like a fire and water dynamic being pushed together in a small space.

  6. I really enjoyed this. How romantic! I was kind of expecting a sorrowful ending so it was almost a nice twist for me how it ended. Well done.

    • I admit, I toyed with another sorrowful ending, but as I worked with this piece, all sorts of complexities in Robert and Tessa’s relationships emerged, and I realized that there was hope for them after all.

      Thanks for stopping by, Rebecca. 😀

  7. My daughter Tessa denies knowing any Robert lol. Nicely done. Mine is #29

  8. Lena, this was very nice. You could feel the passion between them! ; )

    • Thanks so much, Sheri. I wasn’t expecting this entry to be anything more than a short drabble, but Robert and Tessa apparently have a larger story that they want to have told, so they’ve been added to my writing queue. 😛

  9. Fantastic entry. I loved the tension. Good luck.

  10. A lovely scene and not what I was expecting given your introduction.

  11. What a heartwarming twist! I fully expected something bad to happen, but I was pleasantly surprised when it ended happily. 🙂

  12. Wow, that was really good! I enjoyed the unexpectedness of the ending and her realization that the relationship turned out to be more challenging than she’d first thought it would be. Nicely done!

    • Aww, thank you, Crystal. I’ve got a whole history in mind for them — the unexpected (and secret) courtship, the fracturing of the relationship. I think my favorite thing about this piece is that she’s the one who decides to take the bull by the horns and chase after her happiness, and in taking that chance, she finds out that he wants her just as badly. It makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. 😀

  13. Great entry! Loved the characters.

  14. Aww! What a powerful passage. Moving and genuine. It stirred me inside.

    Great job, Lena! 🙂

  15. Great tension! I love what you did with those challenge words.

  16. Hey, this is a great setup for a novel! It’s well-written too. Glad I stopped by. I’m #142 on the campaign.

  17. Lena,
    I love how much of a story you put into such a short piece. This was a wonderful read.

    • Thanks, Michael. When I’m in the midst of writing, I’m always convinced that I won’t be able to fit anything into a 200 word limit… and yet every time I find myself pleasantly surprised. 😀

  18. “Wreathed with sunlight, misery in his eyes, she saw him for what he was: a fragile man, neither villain nor saint.”

    Loved it. 🙂

  19. Aw! It gave me a little shiver at the end. Guess I’m a romantic! Fabulous entry!

  20. Oh, beautifully written. Nice use of the words. Wonderful imagery and emotion. Good job! 🙂

  21. This is very beautiful writing. The words blend right into the flow. And I like the happy ending.

  22. I would have to agree it was not what I expected when I started reading. A lovely little romantic scene Lena. Well done.

  23. I could feel the desire and pain from Tessa. What a wonderful job you’ve done!

    #189

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