Short story published

dailyprompt, Fiction, short story 69 comments

Hi everyone, I’ve been taking a little break as I work on a home improvement project.

I’m honored that Spillwords Press published a short story I wrote several months ago. “Brothers” is the tale of two siblings who pursue two very different paths in rural North Carolina. Hope you have a chance to check it out.

Thanks much to Chief Editor Dagmara and the Spillwords team… very kind and encouraging folks 😎

69 comments

  1. Congratulations on the publication, Darryl! I hope you’re taking before and after (and even during ) photos, so you can maybe share your home improvement project somewhere down the road. 😊

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Kymber! I’m so stoked. The folks at Spillwords are very kind and easy to work with. I’m really flattered they decided to publish my story 😎 Thanks for the kind words 😊

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    1. Thanks, Lynn! I hope you like it!

      Will def document the latest project with pix. The carpet in the living and dining room is over 15 years old and between the kids and the three dogs, it was in wretched shape. It was pilling and after 3 min of vacuuming, we’d hafta empty the container, it was jammed with fiber. We decided to replace it with hardwoods but that color/style (“Elegance Wheat”…oooh 😂) had been discontinued. We finally found a guy in High Point, NC, who had some left.

      It worked out well with Operation Declutter bc in moving furniture to paint the baseboards, etc, we found stuff we last saw during Obama’s first term 😆 and a bunch of junk we no longer needed/wanted. So… happy wife… etc… Sue is quite pleased today and maybe I can get her to try another one of your recipes that I forward to her 😎

      Thanks again, my friend, for the kind comments! 🙏

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    1. Thanks, Amber! I’m glad you liked it. Agree it was a bit gloomy, it was from a No Theme Thursday (given a pic, write a story) where the image was a broken mirror in an abandoned house. It just sorta wrote itself that way.

      Thanks much for reading and the comment… much appreciated 😎

      Like

      Reply

  7. Oh, Darryl, what a story! You are so talented. Your story is engaging, wise, tender, sad and the ending gave me chills.
    Congratulations, on the publication of your story. I know there will be many more to come. 👏👏

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Lisa! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. I was really stoked when I got the email from Spillwords… really nice folks to work with, very kind and supportive.

      Thanks again for reading and the nice comment… much appreciated 😎🙏

      Like

      Reply

    1. Thanks, Violet! I wasn’t sure if it was too long, but submitted it just for the heck of it. When they emailed me they were gonna publish it, I was so stoked! Spillwords are a great bunch of folks and Dagmara in particular.

      Thanks, my friend, for reading and the kind words… Hope spring is on its way to you up there in the untamed wilderness! 😎🙏

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    1. Thanks, Dawn! Always cool to see your content up for people to enjoy. The folks at Spillwords are super nice and helpful. I’m honored they chose my story.

      Thanks again for reading and the nice words… Much appreciated! 😎

      Like

      Reply

    1. Thank you, my friend! You may have already read it…it was on my blog a while back…but perhaps not. I wasn’t sure if it would be accepted because it’s a bit long, but when I got their email, I was so thrilled. 😊

      We are enjoying springtime weather here… The dogwoods are in bloom and warmer days are coming. Thanks also for the info about Weymouth, sounds like a really cool place. 😎

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    1. Thanks, Karen! I’m so glad you liked it. It was from one of those “No Theme Thursday” things where Kevin aka “The Mayor” would provide 8-10 pix and you were supposed to pick one and write a poem or fiction about it. One was this big cracked mirror in a creepy abandoned house and that story sorta wrote itself 😎

      Thanks so much for reading and the encouragement… much appreciated! 😊🙏

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  18. I am having issues posting comments on spillwords, but congratulations to a great story and I left this comment

    “That was a very poignant and sad story but very intriguing. My guess is that it took inspiration from your interest in old houses. People sometimes make very bad decision. Kyle ruined everything. Jealousy is an ugly feeling and the person suffering jealousy has to work on it at the same time as the people around him has to try to mitigate the problem. It is a great story and congratulations for having it published by spillwords.”

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. Thomas, what a wonderful comment. Thank you! The Spillwords site is a bit tricky, you can read and “like” stories and poems (tap the heart icon)… but to leave a comment, you need to create an ID/PW. But thanks again.

      And you’re right 🙂 it was partly due to my interest in abandoned houses. And yes, Kyle did ruin everything with his seething jealousy of his brother. It’s a tale as old as humanity.

      Thanks again for reading and the kind words… much appreciated! 😎

      Like

      Reply

    1. Awww… 🫤 I’m sorry… the inspiration for the story was a picture of the interior of an abandoned, decaying mansion… the story sorta wrote itself after that. I thought about making the ending happier but went with a concept as old as humanity. I’m glad you liked it… I’ll try to make the next one more upbeat 😉

      Thanks much for reading and the thoughtful comment… much appreciated! 😎

      Like

      Reply

    1. Thanks, Jean! I know it was a long read and a sad ending. It was inspired by a picture of the interior of an abandoned, decaying mansion. I couldn’t think of something cheerful to go with it, so I went with a theme we’re all familiar with. I’ll try to make the next one more upbeat 😂

      We’re getting warmer weather here… the dogwoods beginning to bloom! Hope in your corner of OH, you’re also sensing the change.

      Have a great weekend, my friend… thx again for reading and the kind words 😎🙏

      Like

      Reply

  25. I had read this before, Daryl; I remembered the ending not long after I started reading. It was worth reading again though, so I did, and loved it as much as the first time around. Congratulations on having it published by Spillwords, my friend. 🙂 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Laura! Always a pleasure to hear from you 😎 Thanks as always for reading my stuff and your kind words and encouragement. Hope you and Glen have a lovely week with nice springtime weather 😊

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  26. Darryl, this was a great read, my Brother. Really pulled me in.

    And Congratulations on getting published on SpillWords….So happy to see your work out there.

    Well done, Brother. 🙏

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Brother, I’m sorry! Just saw this. 😟 I’ve been off WP more lately than I’d planned.

      Thx much for reading and the encouragement….very much appreciated.

      Hope you have a great weekend, my friend! 😎🙏

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  30. Congratulations Darryl 😀 … A father’s last attempt to stitch his sons back together, a truth buried deeper than any treasure: that what’s of inestimable value is never gold, never land, never legacy, but the fragile, stubborn thread of family.

    By the end, when the house weeps and the past exhales its final secret, the story becomes something more than tragedy. It becomes a reminder that even broken histories carry a kind of grace, that love, however flawed, still tries to find its way home ~ Well done !!!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Awww SS, thanks so much for those kind words and teasing out the hidden truths. I hated to kill off Kyle in prison…the fiendish puppetmaster here, Dr Evil 😂 … but I sorta had to so the truth could be told. I’d like to think he gained redemption through his remorse (“…so he has THAT goin’ for him… which is nice…” ~ Caddyshack) and that grace did triumph in the end. But alas, no Kruggerands and cool starter house for Jack and Mika. Maybe I’ll do a sequel 😎🏄🏻‍♂️

      Thanks again, my awesome surfer sister! 🏄‍♀️🙏😎

      Like

      Reply

Leave a reply to Victoria Cancel reply