Welcome to my contribution to Friday Fictioneers. Each week, about 100 writers from around the globe respond to a photo prompt with their 100-word stories. You are welcome to play along.
My story this week weighs in at exactly 100 words.
This week’s photo prompt is courtesy of Emily L. Gant.
Copyright Emily L. Gant
Murder in Her Headspace
Shelly plopped into a plastic chair on the roof of her Chicago apartment building and began to write. Online photos of this “greenspace” omitted the dumpsters and blacktop. Instead of feeding urban tranquility, the space provided fantastic inspiration for the thriller she was writing.
As the sun sank, Shelly began to shiver despite the late-summer heat. Her sense of foreboding grew. Time to return to reality. She closed her notebook and entered the stairwell.
The attacker came from behind as Shelly passed the second landing. She didn’t have a chance to scream before a gloved hand clamped over her mouth.
Being MG 
Scary and so well paced.
Thanks so much!
You are welcome.
Marie Gail,
your story matches the feel of the photo very well. I almost feel like she created the attacker from her story, although maybe I’m thinking too much like the Twilight Zone. You did a great job of building the mood.
-David
Thanks, David. I definitely had similar thoughts while crafting this tale.
Oh wow…that is SO cool!
Great stuff, scary and creepy! I also liked the little dig at publicity/estate agent photos, which tend to miss out the nasty stuff lying around the place.
Thanks, Ali!
Dear Marie Gail,
I have to just chime in with David’s comment. It does have a very TZ feel to it. She wrote it and became reality. A chilling thought, isn’t it? I’ll be careful not to write my dark scenes at night. 😉 (You’d be wise to do the same.)
Shalom,
Rochelle
There is always a danger in conjuring that about which we write, isn’t there?
Thank you !
Peace,
Marie Gail
Now you know why I write about idiots. If the characters do become real, the worst that can happen is they’ll bore you to death, a gruesome and painful way to go, but at least it’s non-violent.
Great story, Marie Gail. I loved the way the tension built as darkness came.
I suppose I’ll stick to going out quickly–even if the process is a bit violent and/or gruesome.
Glad you enjoyed this tale. When I came up with the idea of writing about a writer, I mentioned to my wife that the idea seemed rather cliche. She replied that I should find a way to tell the story without following the cliche. I hope that is what happened here.
All my best,
Marie Gail
What a frightening thought, characters coming to life. Good one MG.
Thank you, Sandra. I fear it has been done before, but I hope this was at least fresh enough to be of considerable interest. Either way, it’s good to be back in the FF game.
Cheers!
MG
Frightening tale, full of suspense. Great.
Thank you, Mick. Glad you enjoyed it.
For some reason this picture prompt is inspiring Fictioneers to kill women. It’s kind of like the Donald Trump of picture prompts! Well-done creepy story; I’m not going on the roof!
The Donald Trump of prompts? I feel slightly offended for the prompt here, Perry. Honestly, I would have killed a man instead had I known the need to even the score a bit. 😉
The approaching threat feels very real. When she starts to shiver, I feel cold. Great story.
Thanks so much, Gah! I had some fun with this one.
I don’t think that thriller she’s writing is going to get finished. Her situation will be much less thrilling.
If she survives, it could provide some good inspiration. Then again, the trauma probably won’t be worth it.
There is something especially chilling wondering if she wrote her own murder.
Thanks! 🙂