ABOUT
THE AUTHOR
I'm thirty nine, recently single again. I have two boys Cli' (pronounced clee) Real name Christopher and Mark. I'm a care in the community nurse and formerly (when I was married) an occupational Therapist working with the mentally ill on a secure unit. I love reading and writing and meeting people. I hate offal, seafood and intolerance. I keep dog, cat, polecats, rats and reptiles. And for seven years ran the second largest reptile sanctuary in Britain. Apart from having my lads, I think that's probably the most worthwhile thing I've ever done. Writing wise, I've been the main fiction writer for Legends magazine for three years.And have two books published 'Lizard's Leap' published by Quillusers, and 'Better the Devil You Know' soon to be released by Bestbooks.Um I drive a knackered old Astra, and ride a two litre trike. I live in the lake district of England, and am happy. :-) [January 2003]
AUTHOR'S OTHER TITLES (84) A Fork In The Road. (Short Stories) A paradox revolving round the lonely Holker Mosses in the dead of night. [2,835 words] [Mystery] A Twist In The Tail (Short Stories) - [963 words] Agony (Short Stories) The First in a series of Agony columns written by the unstoppable Aunt Nasty. (May be deemed offensive) [1,200 words] [Comedy] Agony 2 (Short Stories) Morew from the irrepresible Aunt Nasty (May be deemed offensive). [1,077 words] [Comedy] Angel Stew (Short Stories) The kitchens are in uproar. [826 words] [Comedy] Anne (Short Stories) - [707 words] Apple Of His Eye (Short Stories) Daddy's little girl, Daddy's little sweetheart. (May be deemed offensive). [1,742 words] [Drama] Attractions (Short Stories) People stared at the sisters and called them freaks. [678 words] [Drama] Bandit At Twelve-O-Clock (Short Stories) A sinister note drops through her letter box, but who is it from and what's it all about? [2,144 words] [Drama] Barriers (Short Stories) Everybody's frightened of the prisoner in the cell at the end of the block. [2,913 words] [Thriller] Breakfast In Bed (Short Stories) She loved her husband so much, and a sepcial man deserves a special breakfast. [1,633 words] [Horror] Car Trouble (Short Stories) Boys will be boys. [496 words] [Comedy] Cat's Chorus (Short Stories) - [1,332 words] Cherry Blossom (Short Stories) - [435 words] Cold, Cold Night.. (Short Stories) The night was beautiful but biting, she had to make her final farewells, a cigarette would help. [630 words] [Drama] Creeping Up From Behind. (Short Stories) You can't ever really know what someone else is thinking ... unless they choose to tell you. [925 words] [Drama] Dark Solitude. (Short Stories) A woman alone on the moors when a storm threatens, but this is no ordinanry storm and that is no ordinary lady. [1,434 words] [Drama] Dawn Rising (Short Stories) He looked at his own personal sunrise every morning, yet longed for the warmth of the sun. [1,069 words] [Drama] Deadly Persuit (Short Stories) Nature at its most cruel .. when it's interfered with by man. [1,541 words] [Drama] Deep Blue Eastern Light (Poetry) I've never been to Budapest, but I saw an image on a postcard, it was misty and had a sort of dreamy quality about it. I wondered about the spirit of Budapest. Hope I've done her justicce. [204 words] Different Road (Short Stories) Charlie is running scared. Will he find his way before his precious time runs out? [521 words] Find Me A Place (Poetry) Everybody needs somewhere to run. [193 words] [Drama] Finding Fleur (Short Stories) Katy desperately wants to find Fleur, but does Fleur want to be found? [1,727 words] [Drama] Four Minute Warning (Short Stories) - [476 words] [Comedy] Freedom By Another Name (Short Stories) He's an imposter [557 words] [Drama] Furtive Glances (Short Stories) Always the last to know! [891 words] [Drama] Galaxy (Poetry) Let Venus bear witness and Mars be our guide. [139 words] Hickory, Dickory, Dock (Short Stories) - [991 words] [Drama] Is The Toilet Roll Half Full Or Half Empty (Short Stories) It's hard when you're at bursting point. [423 words] [Comedy] I've Always Wanted To Write... But! (Short Stories) There's always an excuse if you want to find one. [510 words] [Mind] Jasmine And Gardenia Love (Poetry) - [417 words] [Erotic] Jinny (Poetry) - [176 words] Just The Ticket (Short Stories) You pays your money and you takes your chances. [5,177 words] [Drama] Knockers (Short Stories) It's a dirty job, but someone's got to do it. [2,210 words] [Drama] Little Bird (Short Stories) He liked fragile things [1,406 words] [Drama] Lizards Leap (Novels) Four children buy an intricately carved frame from a school fair. A crazy old woman chases them desperately wanting the carving for herself. What is the mystery surrounding the strange frame? [5,753 words] [Adventure] Long Walk Back To Jurassica (Poetry) Evolution and progress or three million steps backwards? [323 words] [Drama] Lookingthrough The Window (Short Stories) - [401 words] Madness Becomes You (Short Stories) She used to be someone, now she's several people, or maybe she's nobody at all, it makes no difference. [394 words] [Drama] Making My Way Back To You. (Short Stories) She'd told them a thousand times to keep the front door closed, now tragedy had struck. [1,926 words] [Drama] Memberwhen (Poetry) Memberwhen that mystical word of long ago memories. [189 words] [Drama] Mortar Doesn't Breathe. (Short Stories) The house was inanimate, dead ... because her child was gone. [1,114 words] [Drama] Mourning Glory (Short Stories) One of my favourite pieces. Please note *This is not a children's story* It's the tale of a little girl trying to be a child. [1,786 words] [Drama] Mumbles From The Madhouse (Novels) It was her first day on the secure unit and somehow she had to see it through. [2,215 words] [Drama] My Friend The Tiger And Me (Poetry) I wrote this for my little boy when he was having trouble at school. [942 words] [Animal] Naughty Bunny Goes To Ibiza (Short Stories) - [552 words] One-Man Race (Short Stories) He had only his nerves to rely on. One slip and the race would be lost. [664 words] [Drama] Out Of Print (Short Stories) A man, a boy, a love of reading and echoes of the past. [2,007 words] [Drama] Outrun The River (Poetry) The snow was melting fast and he owed it to himself and his seld of dogs to make it to safety. [145 words] [Action] Pact Of Joy. (Short Stories) Don't we all just want to be happy? [2,497 words] [Drama] Play With Me Please. (Short Stories) - [322 words] Return Of The Hellcat (Erotica May Be Offensive) (Short Stories) Please do not read this one if easily offended. Or even not so easily offended. Continuing sexploits of Dark Solitude. [3,390 words] [Erotic] Room For One More (Short Stories) The dream was haunting and wouldn't leave Mike alone. [1,728 words] [Drama] Rush Hour (Short Stories) - [419 words] Sally (Short Stories) - [2,268 words] Sinister Music (Novels) She had no psychic ability, so why had fate chosen her to foretell of the spate of brutal murders? [6,114 words] [Drama] So This Is My Life Then (Short Stories) - [517 words] [Comedy] Space Walk (Short Stories) May Cause offense. [1,290 words] [Drama] Spirit Dancer (Poetry) - [514 words] Sweet Child Of Mine (Short Stories) The old lady had been brutally mugged, her son was sucjh a good boy, but would his thoughts now turn to revenge? [1,843 words] [Drama] Tangled Web (Short Stories) Treat `em mean and keep `em keen. [596 words] [Drama] The Band Played On (Short Stories) - [1,486 words] [Drama] The Big Picture (Short Stories) The little girl was a great artist, but her subject matter was giving cause for concern. [776 words] [Drama] The Comet. (Short Stories) Remember! [796 words] [Drama] The Dinosaur (Short Stories) - [1,523 words] The Half Empty Glass. (Short Stories) They had no idea of the horror they were walking into. [3,030 words] [Drama] The Hhmmm Efect (Poetry) - [783 words] The Iceberg (Short Stories) She had to break the hold they had on him... release him from his parents grip. [410 words] [Drama] The Joker (Short Stories) - [2,032 words] The Lovers (Poetry) - [124 words] The Mark Of Jack (Short Stories) The start of something maybe. [1,044 words] [Drama] The Old Enemy (Short Stories) I just hope I've got the names right. [253 words] [Drama] The Rosary (Short Stories) May cause offense. [422 words] The Spark (Short Stories) - [557 words] The Thirteenth Station (Short Stories) - [8,024 words] [Horror] The Village Green. (Short Stories) - [559 words] [Drama] Three Mile Gap (Poetry) So close and yet... [285 words] [Drama] Tomorrow Lies Beside Us (Poetry) - [239 words] [Drama] Tusk (Short Stories) - [1,012 words] [Drama] Under The Whether (Short Stories) - [1,626 words] Watching And Waiting (Short Stories) - [1,253 words] [Drama] White Icing (Short Stories) - [1,385 words] Worlds Biggest Loser (Short Stories) - [114 words] You Are My Sunshine (Short Stories) - [1,285 words]
Empty House Sue (Sooz) Simpson
Walking through the door she realised that it was quiet, too quiet. The usual comforting smell of the house was missing. Retentive smells of clean laundry, the slight aroma of delicate air fresheners, left over wafts of morning showers, and cooked breakfasts, and furniture polish. Just the general smell that was unique to this house had left. It was as though the soul had flown and only the building remained. It was empty. Everybody had gone now.
She moved quietly through the hall. Her artwork still hung on the walls, the tall telephone table with its barley twist legs stood as it always had vase of fresh flowers sitting neatly upon it. One of the roses had wept its petals onto the polished wood.
On moving into the lounge, sunshine blazed a spotlight into the middle of the carpet. There should have been a prima donna pirouetting, taking centre-stage advantage of the ray of focused light. Gazing at the sunlight, she watched a few dust nodes flittering, doing their own version of the nutcracker, using up the space of the absent ballerina. The room was warmed by the sun, as bright and cheery as it had ever been, yet the eyes of the china figurines looked through her as though she didn’t exist, as though she had never existed. The plump well-stuffed settee almost seemed to be daring her to leave a bottom indentation in its neatness. The room bore the pictures that she had painstakingly created, ornaments that she had collected, things that she had worked for, but it was empty of her, empty of her character, all gone now.
A noise startled her, she looked for somewhere to hide. Her sneaking peep into the house had meant to be just that, a quick in and out again without being caught. She hadn’t wanted to be seen in this place where she no longer belonged.
It was so completely familiar. Karen had come in from school and dropped her bag as usual in the hall. She didn’t need to see the thing to know that it was there. She had heard it being dropped so many times before, followed by her chiding voice asking Karen to pick it up and put it away properly. Looking at the great scheme of things now, how important had that been? What could she have said instead to make better use of those wasted sentences? I love you? You can do whatever you put your mind to doing and don’t ever let anybody tell you differentl?. So much she should have said.
The door was flung open and Karen flounced in, took a flying leap, and flung herself onto the Settee. Something else she would have nagged about. It didn’t matter. It wasn’t real anymore. Karen wasn’t real. Only a memory.
Steve two years younger came tearing in fast on her heels. They scuffled over prime position on the Sofa. A flick of the remote control and they sat like a pair of disgruntled bookends one at either end each kicking out at the other occasionally, just to keep the mini war active while they watched the children’s early evening programs.
Stevie,s hair was too long, it flopped into his eyes. He was her baby. How she wished she’d held him more, ruffled his hair, shown him more affection, but at fourteen he had almost died of shame every time she tried to touch him. Still just sometimes when there had been no one else around he had leaned into her as they had watched television, proving that he still had a need of her. Just memories now. The house was empty. They were nothing more than ghosts of the past.
Sarah looked lovingly at her quarrelling children and moved silently out of the room. Then she left as she had entered by walking through the closed front door. Moving towards her new reality.
READER'S REVIEWS (4) DISCLAIMER: STORYMANIA DOES NOT PROVIDE AND IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR REVIEWS. ALL REVIEWS ARE PROVIDED BY NON-ASSOCIATED VISITORS, REGARDLESS OF THE WAY THEY CALL THEMSELVES.
"Difficult to review this one without giving the game away. I'll just say it'a a clever plot, and when you get to the ending you have to rethink all your earlier impressions. I like that kind of story. It's also highly atmospheric - the sense of sadness at having to leave is very well communicated. Can't really say any more. Enjoyed it a great deal." -- David Gardiner, London, England.
"Thank-you, this one is okay, but not one that I particularly like. It's osmething I'd love to be able to do though 'afterwards' to visit and see whose stepped into my shoes and what's changed. " -- Sooz, Dalton, England, Cumbria.
"Archmage Darksphere’s Review: Cool story! It really left a strong impression in my mind. The elaborations are really good, that you can just picture every scene in your mind as you read it. Wow. " -- Cam Davis.
"Thank-you Archmage. Glad I managed to impress you. And thanks to Cam too. " -- Sooz, Dalton-in-Furness, England, Cumbria.
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