Vacation Week

Sorry for the lack of posts this week. I've been on vacation and it's been quite difficult to find internet access on the go. Be prepared for more stories in the following weeks though.

Chipped—Spoken Sunday

I cheated again and used count text-to-speech. It's not paced at the same tempo as Angle of Incident, so you can actually understand now what is being said. Just head on over to Audioboo to listen to my new story, Chipped. Don't forget to leave a comment for me! It's the only way I can grow as a writer.

Chipped—Fiction Friday

I wrote this a little earlier in the week for the blog Write Anything's Fiction Friday Challenge. Some editing may have been done (punctuation, capitalization, and taking out some words I had written hastily without bothering to use the backspace key), but I'd say it's still in first draft form though. There's still no style to it. Maybe I'll come back to it some day.

That Theoretical Motorboat

(Here's a little thing that I wrote up quickly for today's writing prompt over at Creative Copy Challenge. I was feeling a little pensive in case you can't notice. The words in bold were the words of the day.)


Our lives are not merely cartoons. We make mistakes and must live with the consequences. Those mistakes however don't have to be unfortunate. How else would the alabaster colossi have been built in ancient Greece? Or even today to fluctuate a tiny hiding electron? The jeans we now wear are blue only because indigo somehow strengthens the cloth. And how did we find that out? No, we think not of this when we each drive our own theoretical motorboat over the Sea of Knowledge, feeling only the wind in our hair. We had ought to scold ourselves for this. Accidents are wonderful potentially. What is disgusting to some is delicious to others. What about us? Are we just some accident our creating entity has made? I choose to think not. Rather would I choose to believe we are his best creation, found only through serendipity.

A More Organic Future (And Maybe Not So Green)

Our brains have somehow been trained to think of the future to be this bright, cold, metallic place. What comes to my mind is flying cars, lots of glass, and robots without personalities. But that might not be the only future in store for us. Today, I want to challenge that idea. I want to offer up a different setting for the days beyond tomorrow. What if instead of becoming more metallic and cold, it gets warmer and more organic?

A Grandmother's Seduction

(Here's a little thing that I wrote up quickly for today's writing prompt over at Creative Copy Challenge. The words in bold were the words of the day.)


The tempting looks from this sultry girl are telling me I am of her persuasion. Yay, though her charms appear convincing and appealing and her face so young and attractive, I will not let this siren way me. She can never surmount the seduction of her alluring grandmother.


(I was feeling a little quirky and goofy for this piece. Spring is in the air. Also, I began thinking of the song "Stacy's Mom" only after I'd finish writing it. Hope you enjoyed!)

Spoken Sunday — Angle of Incident (On Speed)

Ok, so, I sort of cheated for this one, that is if you count text-to-speech as cheating. The funniest part is that I had to shorten it down to about five minutes (from nearly nine). It might be easiest to read while listening. But go for it if you will. It should be fun.

I really hope you all enjoy. Just follow this link over to Audioboo.

Fiction Friday — Angle of Incident

I wrote this a little earlier in the week for the blog Write Anything's Fiction Friday Challenge. Some editing may have been done (punctuation, capitalization, and taking out some words I had written hastily without bothering to use the backspace key), but I'd say it's still in first draft form though. I do plan to go back and rewrite this one. It was fun to write.

Life's Steadfast Synchronicity

(Here's a little thing that I wrote up quickly for yesterday's writing prompt over at Creative Copy Challenge. I can't believe I almost forgot to post this. The words in bold were the words of the day.)


Life, it can really be a silly thing. I find that mine is often intertwined with drama andhappenstance. No, I don’t want to say it’s meaningless. Just the raw nature of life itself is harsh. Is it fate? Are we really destined for this? No, and that is just one of the many flaws. There is a steadfast synchronicity between destiny and our will. We can will for some of the worst things in life, but be destined for the greatest, but likewise, we can will for the best things in life, but be destined for the worst. I prefer the middle ground and meeting somewhere in the middle. Lately I have been floating down destiny’s river, but soon I think it will be time to come ashore and walk on dry land for a while. I’ll call it the Exodus With My Will.

The Little Lord's Godfather

(Here's a little thing that I wrote up quickly for today's writing prompt over at Creative Copy Challenge. The words in bold were the words of the day.)

Nightfall had arrived, and the young lord‘s godfather looked out the window. He could barely stand it. The world was a changing place, not fit for his adopted son.

At first he and the young lord had been like strangers after the boy’s parents died, but then they came to know one another much better. The death of the boy’s parents established the foundation of their relationship, for the boy’s father, the prince, was the godfather’s brother. With the death of the prince, he had heard, would come the end of the kingdom. This bothered the godfather.

But somehow he just knew that they would make it work. He continued to look out the window onto his family’s land. His job now was to teach the boy all that he needed to know to rule the throne from the Sand Dunes of Kalamar to the Beaches of Vascadi. It wouldn’t be an easy task. The godfather had never himself gone through the training. How would he ever be able to teach so much to someone else in such little time?

But he didn’t want to think about this now. No, he wanted to sleep tonight, so he let his thoughts disappear as he admired the luminescent ring around the moon. It radiated clearly this cold, crisp night. He let out some vapor with his breath, closed the window, and went to bed. The morning would be the start of a long process.

A Little April Fool's Revelation

So, today is April Fool's Day. What a wonderful day! We get to fool anybody and everybody if we so choose. And isn't it quite a coincidence that I began this blog on that day? Why, yes it is! I'm going to let you in on a little part of a secret. I'm really not Matthew John Marlieu.

Welcome to the Maelstrom

Yes, and I say welcome to my new site! I don't know exactly how you would have found your way here. Perhaps you stumbled upon me in the comments of some blog post or something. It's all good. I'm just glad that you're here.