Creative Nonfiction in The Ink Well Prompt #139

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Welcome to The Ink Well's weekly creative nonfiction prompt!

In this post, we'll announce the winners from last month's contest and provide the prompt for the coming week.

Before You Write Your Creative Nonfiction Post...

We ask that you read our Creative Nonfiction Tips post to learn about the creative nonfiction genre and review our guidelines.

Important notes:

Creative nonfiction stories are based on your real-life experiences.
We are looking for real short stories! Not advice columns, reports on crime or corruption in your city, observations on nature, recipes, religion, politics, or any other nonfiction content. Just real-life short stories.
Ideal story length is between 750 and 1500 words, but your story must be at least 350 words, at a minimum to be curated.
Please focus on quality content. Read and edit for errors! Use a grammar checker before you post your story.
We expect everyone who posts in The Ink Well to read and comment on at least two other stories for each one published.
Do not post stories featuring physical abuse, graphic violence, erotica or NSFW content.

Last Week's entrants

Thank you to all who participated in last week's prompt : Weak excuse.

Last week's participants

@abrarhussain	@ima99	@oyebolu
@princessbusayo	@fashtioluwa	@rammargarita
@lolodens	@venom2951	@young-tari
@almadepoeta	@favourolayinka	@bisolamih
@goshen	@emreal	@zerah
@abojode	@daeze-winnie	@jennyzee1
@popurri	@glorydee	@zain-ab001
@abdul-qudus	@stone4	@ellizy
@aiuna	@kilvnrex	@nancybriti1
@cyberking25	@marriot5464	@farahikram
@delightedpen	@offia66	@beckyroyal
@lara-bee	@faithwellington	@rukkie
@patienceakpan

Featured

Highlighting @princessbusayo, with the story:

The Snake Game Saga!

I have heard enough of that sofa's history as mom would remind me of how it was older than me and with a warning not to destroy it completely when I'd squeeze myself inside and use my legs to tear away the good part of the foam that still felt useful when other parts had been condemned.

Curator's comment :

princessbusayo takes us back to a moment we might all remember from our childhood, when the needs of adults seemed unreasonable. The author wanted to play a game on her mother's phone. We feel the author's childish urgency. Why can she not finish the game? Why must her mother frustrate her? This is a quite vivid and evocative recollection of the young appetite to play. This desire leads to trouble. The author takes her mother's phone and causes her mother to miss an important business opportunity. The child learns from that to respect the importance of the phone to her mother and a new level of understanding evolves between mother and daughter. The story is well written.

Featured

Highlighting @popurri, with the story:

Play to survive

It was no longer necessary to play as a source of income, but I learned something from this experience: I left my mental limitations aside because I was the one who put my age as an obstacle to doing something that challenged my mental and not physical abilities, because playing was not a race of speed but survival.

Curator's comment :

popurri writes an interesting CNF. During a time of economic crisis in Venezuela she found herself in the need to become a gamer, learning from her son, to get extra resources with which to buy food. It was a hard task that generated stress for her, but she was able to overcome her own expectations of performance in an activity that she thought a person of her age could not perform. Very well written. Interesting prompt perspective appropriate to the specific social reality.

Featured

Highlighting @almadepoeta, with the story:

Fun and games

Behind the trees, among the flowers in the gardens, in the fences of the houses, in the bushes, behind the car stopped for months, there we hid and spent our afternoons. Memories come to my mind of the joyful voices of my friends accompanied by shouts of "I've discovered you! I spotted you! You're behind that tree, I won! Now you count.

Curator's comment :

Almadepoeta writes the most wonderful, nostalgic, lyrical CNF. The piece about childhood fun and games in the days before digital divided friends is marvellously fresh, vivid, vibrant and real. The kids play hide and seek, but one child goes missing. Fear grips the group until they find the boy hiding in a closet. The pacing is perfect and the tension tangible. Nice work!

Featured

Highlighting @nancybriti1, with the story:

They called her Malagente

She was called Malagente, although her real name was Josefa. We children were afraid of her because once, so that they would not go near the garden of her house, she poured picapica on the fences, a plant that produced itching and rosettes on the skin, and many children got an alarming rash, and she only said: I pour in my house, whatever I want. Then, as a result of that and in order not to have problems with that lady, all children were forbidden to go near the house of Malagente.

Curator's comment :

The antagonist in this story is a malevolent neighbor. Children are the protagonists. On their side they have one powerful weapon: Grandma. Nancybriti1, as a child, irritates the wicked neighbor. To her defense leaps Grandma, who glibly fibs to protect the child. The story is dynamic, endearing and emotionally effective.

Featured

Highlighting @happy080, with the story:

Fun and games

Everyone panicked. Student ran like cartoon characters--legs spinning, directionless. I personally knocked over three desks and a classmate named Joy, who had not even stood up yet.

Curator's comment :

happy080 is absolutely hilarious. This CNF had me laughing out loud. She has a fresh voice and a very funny take on life events.

This Week's Prompt 139

Thorn in one's side

Meaning:

Someone or something causing uninterrupted annoyance; in other words, a pest or a pestilence.

We've all encountered people, events, or issues that have caused us stress due to their nuisance factor. Conversely, we might have caused irritation. Whichever the case, there's bound to be a story in it!

Tell us about it! And remember to integrate storytelling elements like characters, scene setting, dialogue and action to bring your story to life!

Have fun and good luck! We look forward to reading your stories.

Rules

You have 6 days to write your story from the date of this prompt post. Be sure to check the deadline countdown.
Write a real-life story with the creative elements of fiction, like characters, dialogue, scene setting and a story conflict.
Post your story in The Ink Well Community.
Please use the tags #creativenonfiction and #inkwellprompt on these posts. Other possible tags: #writing #inkwellprompt #nonfiction
Stories must be written in English. If you've translated the post, it's best to add the original version below the translation. Do not write mixed language paragraphs.
Read and comment on at least two stories in the community. Add a link to your story as a comment on this post.

And be sure to remember to join The Ink Well community!

Prize

A prize of 20 Hive will be awarded to one submission every four weeks.

Procedure

Two or three stories will be featured every week. One of the featured stories will win the grand prize every four weeks.

The winner will be featured in a special announcement post.

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Join here at Hive Onboard.

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@jayna, @felt.buzz, @carn, @itsostylish, @agmoore, @ricardo993, @marcybetancourt, @marriot5464, @marlyncabrera, @stormcharmer, @juniorgomez, @iamraincrystal, @preparedwombat, @gracielaacevedo, @timix648, @samsmith1971, @jackdeathblack, @josemalavem, @generikat, @mineopoly, @hazmat, @treasuree, @kingsleyy, @popurri, @nancybriti1, @marynn, @rinconpoetico7, @nathy33, @iyimoga, @captainman, @kachy2022, @morey-lezama, @evagavilan2, @mrenglish, @funshee, @amiegeoffrey, @balikis95, @rukkie, @raymondpeter, @tomiajax, @stuartcturnbull, @monster-hunter, @sayee, @gertu, @mosin-nagant, @beauty197, @beckyroyal, @perfect20, @estilodereba, @rare-gem, @jjmusa2004, @ricurohemi28, @benwesterham, and @shakavon.

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