Here are our April tales to look forward to. The 2 ideas that came top of each poll, and a Sebtomato pick. Thank you Helpers for excellent ideas!
He only went to the church to donate some of his daughters old toys. Now he needs to try and escape the mothering woman at the playgroup - Waynee
A sequel to Tatas, Valerie tries to escape her fate as the girl with the biggest boobs at Ngatea's special school. - E...
2023-03-28 12:59:00 +0000 UTC
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2023-03-27 16:00:00 +0000 UTC
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Blowing Rock, North Carolina
This is not supposed to be how it all went down.
We had a plan, Jenny and me. We were ready to go. Because even though I grew up in Bowling Green, even though I’ve been surrounded by the Crazy Idea all my life, I know it’s toxic. I know it’s twisted.
Jenny knows it too.
Knew it?
We were ready to go.
“Sweet girl!” Jenny says, waking me up with a voice so sugary that my teeth hurt. “Sweet Bree!”
I shak...
2023-03-26 15:30:55 +0000 UTC
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Blowing Rock, North Carolina
Jacob knocks on his neighbor’s door. He’s had a disturbed night, thinking about what he can say, what he can do. But his mind – prickly as it is from lack of sleep - is made up. Jacob is a man on a mission.
A woman his own age answers the door. Brown-haired, green-eyed Samantha.
“Hey, Jacob,” she says. Smiles. Reaches with fingers to fuss with her hair, she looks a little as though she might have had a long night of her own. ...
2023-03-19 16:35:28 +0000 UTC
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2023-03-16 12:00:03 +0000 UTC
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It's voting time! 2 polls for the April tales, with the ideas arranged into a pair of delectable selection boxes. Thank you special helpers for 11 excellent ideas! 🥇
Please vote for your favorite idea in each poll 😊 - you can vote for as many ideas as you like - top vote of each category gets written - and the 3rd one? Hey, there's a story in that list that's getting done whatever happens, so says the tomato!
2023-03-15 11:01:00 +0000 UTC
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Jessica is furious.
And in spite of everything, Jessica focuses on calm thoughts. On cool, green grass. Clear blue skies. Because she gets the feeling that if she lets herself embrace a full toddler tantrum, she’ll forget about the missing ‘2’ in her birthday balloons. She’ll forget all about typos.
She sits on the living room carpet, and her parents sit on the ground beside her.
She looks at her mother. “No one’s coming?”
Mom nods to confirm.
“Yo...
2023-02-28 00:08:43 +0000 UTC
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Jessie is a chunky monkey. Mommy says so.
How delicious it is, taking her time to wake up, sitting in her mother’s lap, morning sun casting an optimistic glow over her bedroom.
“Chunky monkey,” says Mommy gently. Jessie’s mother sniffs at her daughter’s hair, inhaling deeply. “Mmm,” she says, “don’t you smell good.”
Probably. Most likely. Jessie has to focus right now, the handles of the sippy cup held fast between her chubby fingers, drinking her milk. S...
2023-02-26 17:29:03 +0000 UTC
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Here are the poll results for March. Thank you helpers for excellent ideas!
Cassie doesn't want to be her best friend's Mommy, but in Blowing Rock she'll either change diapers or wear them - Elfie
When a young man tries to warn the single woman next door what is about to happen to her he might just end up her little sister. - Dean
A Blowing Rock man refuses to regress his feminist wife. Perhaps he...
2023-02-26 15:17:44 +0000 UTC
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‘Mom’.
Jessica stands by her mother’s bed and whispers.
‘Mom’.
She doesn’t want to raise her voice – inside voice, please – but this is an emergency.
What kind of emergency?
A time-travel one. A reverse Uno card one. Jessica snorts, and it’s half a laugh, the rest a gag. She may just need to barf.
Mom opens her eyes. “What is it, honey? What time is it?”
Jessica looks to the LCD display on Mom’s nightstand. Red numbers t...
2023-02-25 22:59:02 +0000 UTC
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Spokane, Washington
When Jessica wakes up, the first thought in her head is relaxed. She has learned, at the ripe old age of 21, to start her days right.
What is she grateful for? Three things, every morning. She stretches her arms and legs, keeps her eyes closed.
Today, she is grateful for a warm bed because it’s February and the forecasted high ...
2023-02-23 21:00:15 +0000 UTC
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2023-02-19 12:57:40 +0000 UTC
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2023-02-19 00:20:20 +0000 UTC
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It's voting time! 3 polls for the March tales, with our 12 'Blowing Rock' ideas arranged into categories. (The categories are based around how I would bring each idea to life).
Please vote for your favorite idea in each poll 😊 - one vote per poll this month, ...
2023-02-18 12:50:51 +0000 UTC
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Memories Nightclub
Charterhouse Street, London
The two young women sit in the green room of the club. There’s a rhythmic pulse of dance music coming from down the corridor. It’s like getting ready to go on stage, thinks Robin, sitting on a vanity stool and looking at her face in the mirror.
“What does it taste like?” Kira asks.
Robin swirls the cocktail glass and takes a sip. The beverage manages to be syrupy and sparkling at the same time. Sh...
2023-02-15 17:53:26 +0000 UTC
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Brighton, England
1998
I look down at the costume lying on my bed.
“It’s just for the afternoon,” says Mum. “Just a couple of hours, really. Charlie will be over the moon.” She pats my shoulder and says gently, “Best big brother ever.” As if I care about that. She knows full well how I feel about Charlie.
I shake my head at the fuzzy bluish-purple outfit. I might as well be dressed as a baby. “I’ve changed my mind.”
“You’...
2023-02-12 17:01:33 +0000 UTC
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Quick question, helpers - where are our March tales happening? - 48 hour poll!
🗺🗾📌🍁
2023-02-09 17:13:20 +0000 UTC
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Carlisle, Massachusetts
Jack runs in to the hallway.
“Wait for me,” his mother calls, laughing as she follows her adult son to the front door.
Jack stands impatiently, waits for the okay to open the door. Because he doesn’t open the door by himself. He doesn’t speak to visitors without his mother.
Jack’s a very good boy.
His mother gives him an approving nod. “Go on then, sweetie. Let’s see who it is.”
They already know. The visit h...
2023-01-31 23:56:45 +0000 UTC
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The game is frustrating. The game is a waste of time. As far as Jack is concerned, he might as well be trying to play Scrabble with toddlers.
They’re no good with their colours. They’re even worse with shapes. The one thing the students do engage with is the animal sounds – but most of the time they’re not correctly identifying the animals, instead merely echoing Jack’s prompts.
“Does the cow say woof? Does the pig say woof?” He holds up the worksheet invitingly, tap...
2023-01-31 04:25:18 +0000 UTC
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Here are the poll winners for our February. Looks like a fun, cake-filled month ahead!
After a lost bet a young man has to dress up for his younger brothers birthday party - Dean
Jessica is furious when her cake reads that she's turning 2 instead of 22, but the 'mistakes' don't end there - Anonymous1812
Robin wonders why a baby's smash cake has been ordered for their 21st birthday - Sebtom...
2023-01-29 21:37:23 +0000 UTC
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Is this a classroom? Seriously? As far as Jack is concerned, Mr. Briggs is teaching preschool.
“Welcome, Jack!” The teacher beams at him. He turns his smile to Seren. “Thanks so much.”
Seren squeezes Jack’s hand and then she’s gone, and Jack is left in a room decorated in primary colors, with blankets, mats, and other things that confirm there will be diaper changes.
Jack looks around the room with a sense of foreboding that only increases when he takes in the si...
2023-01-29 17:37:23 +0000 UTC
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The new outfit isn’t the weirdest part, even though it provokes two questions; where did it come from, and more importantly, who dressed him?
The gold-colored polo shirt and dark blue shorts are surprising, but they’re not the Jack’s biggest surprise.
It’s not even when realizes that he can’t remember a single moment of the orientation video. Nothing.
Jack stands in front of the blank TV screen and looks down at his crotch. Seren is back in the room, and surely, wi...
2023-01-26 19:38:55 +0000 UTC
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Ngatea School, New Zealand
The mug has the school’s name on the outside.
Inside, it’s green tea with mint. Not something Jack would usually drink, and he doubts that the choice of beverage is making much difference to the school principal’s health; Mrs Wilson is a distinctly plump woman in her fifties.
Jack imagines her eating a Snickers and drinking her green tea, deluding herself into believing that one counteracts the other.
Don’t b...
2023-01-23 21:20:23 +0000 UTC
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It's voting time! 2 polls this month, with our 11 'birthday' ideas arranged into male and female categories.
Please vote for your favorite idea in each poll 😊 - one vote for poll this month, let's see what we get!
2023-01-22 14:00:05 +0000 UTC
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The knock at the door is a surprise.
Rather, the timing is the surprise.
Richard goes to the door, fully aware that the app on his phone says that his Dasher has picked up the order at Casa de Queso, that his late-night dinner is still four minutes away. But there’s also a glimmer of hope in his mind, the barest possibility that the app is wrong, and his California burrito will be waiting on the doorstep.
He’s just back from a business trip, ordered his dinne...
2023-01-21 17:53:11 +0000 UTC
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It's voting time! 2 polls this month, with our 11 'birthday' ideas arranged into male and female categories.
Please vote for your favorite idea in each poll 😊 - one vote for poll this month, let's see what we get!
2023-01-21 16:28:23 +0000 UTC
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She thinks I’ve forgotten. She’s wrong.
“Look at those beautiful blue eyes. Look at my perfect ray of sunshine.”
Sandra picks me out the crib, holds me up and gazes at my round face. Fact is, she’s much happier as a mother than she ever was as a wife.
I could wipe that damn smile off her face, of course. I could say what’s on my mind: bloody murder, sweet revenge. I don’t know how she turned me into a baby, but I know it hasn’t affected my memories.
San...
2023-01-15 17:04:42 +0000 UTC
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Thank you Rick, Dean, Anonymous1812 for these excellent themes! Okay, patrons, vote for your favorite theme (you can vote multiple times). Winner takes all 😊
2023-01-13 19:24:19 +0000 UTC
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It’s a different story when Madison wakes up. A different song.
It’s the same family, but they’re not focused on the puppy anymore. Now, they’re all about their morning routine. There’s a whole thing about teeth brushing, a big deal about getting dressed.
Madison blinks at the TV screen. She could listen to the new song; she could watch all the colors. She’s comfortable, wrapped up in a blue blanket. But the truth is, Cocomelon strikes her as more than a little lame.
2022-12-31 02:01:06 +0000 UTC
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Here are the poll winners for our January 2023 tales 🥇🥈🥉 - Thank you Dean, Rick, and Anonymous1812 for providing excellent ideas to choose from!
- A young man fresh from college has to watch a very interesting orientation video before starting at Ngatea Special School - Dean
- A man is horrified by his ex's plan to turn him into her baby, until he watches her special video. - Rick
2022-12-28 20:51:31 +0000 UTC
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