prologue 2.0
Tuesday January 24th 2006, 1:16 pm
Filed under: fiction

Death has a way of taking over a small town, where everyone knows everyone else, even when they don’t. Preachers come out and talk about God and the Devil and about how sometimes things just happen and they don’t know why. Men throw fists at the sky and sit alone in the dark behind four wheel drives to think and drink and try to understand. Women dish food in church halls because they want to be with others and because gossiping isn’t really a sin if it’s done over the daily bread, amen.

The year we moved to Toler Mountain two children went missing.

The first was gone for months. The county and a helicopter came out to look for him. No one bothered about the second……they didn’t know….he was hardly gone at all.

Children from all over told ghost stories about one. About how a horse wouldn’t pass the pine grove where they found him; about a mysterious young playmate who sang Tom Dooley and the blues. No one said a word about the other. Or maybe they just didn’t say a word around me.

The first body was a mess. Everyone who saw it said so. A gassy bag of use-to-be boy with a towel wrapped around it’s head. The other looked just like he always did. People who had never seen him, and now never would, came to the funeral and talked about how beautiful he was.

I said he looked pure dead to me and what’s beautiful about that? No one told me I was too young to know. Or that it was a mean thing to say. But they wouldn’t, would they? Because we were the ones who found him. And we were the ones that knew who done it.


26 Comments so far
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Holy crap! I totally thought this was a true story and was about to ask you to confirm it. Then I saw the “filed under: fiction” bit and was stopped from making an ass of myself.

In other news, thanks for the “fabulous!” you so kindly awarded to my new look. I am really quite pleased with it, even if I can’t take all the credit.

I really like your writing style - I’ll be by often!

Comment by Melissa 01.24.06 @ 7:23 pm

Good god you write so well.

I just spent an hour going through your archives and in all honesty?

Some of the best writing I’ve found on a blog.

Comment by Lucy 01.25.06 @ 10:32 am

wow! that’s some great writing!! I’m with Melissa - I’m glad I realized it was fiction before I commented. :)

Comment by Dawn (webmiztris) 01.26.06 @ 3:09 am

Beautiful story, I was completely mesmerized! And I thought it was real too ;-)

Thanks for visiting my blog, I’ll be back!

Comment by LisaBinDaCity 01.27.06 @ 11:48 am

Thank you for stopping by my site. I must say that yours is addicting and very well may cause me to lose my job because I’ll sit all day mesmerized by your writing.

Comment by Kat 01.27.06 @ 2:20 pm

This is fantastic! I will have to crawl your archives now.
Wait, why does it sound dirty when I say that?

And thanks for your comment over at my place. :)

Comment by Bucky Four-Eyes 01.27.06 @ 3:56 pm

Your writing style is amazing. And, there is definitely a market for this. I’m eager to read through the rest of your blog. Your writing style is delicate, precise, haunting and refreshing.

Comment by Stephen Earley Jordan, II 01.28.06 @ 3:36 pm

You have the basis for an interesting novel. I presume it is set in your home state of West Virginia. Good luck with it.

Comment by stretch 02.16.06 @ 7:58 pm

Have you published this? I’d like to read more!

Comment by Faith Bicknell-Brown 02.25.06 @ 10:28 pm

Buffy, this is beautiful writing an absolutely great prologue. It has it all, tension, mystery, a haunting sense of mood. Best of all it makes the reader want to keep going. I want more!!!!

Comment by Amra 02.27.06 @ 9:27 pm

Judging from the prologue, this is a book I’d read. More?

Comment by jes 04.10.06 @ 1:27 am

Hi!I’m Dan, I live in Poland (a small country in Europe) and I’d like to tell that your writing is exciting!

Comment by Dan 05.05.06 @ 3:18 pm

I REALLY ENJOYED YOUR WRITINGS. KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK

Comment by Dreama 05.10.06 @ 3:17 pm

Beautiful.

Comment by shosh 05.12.06 @ 6:30 pm

I’d buy it and read it in a night.

wish I could write like that…but i wouldn’t even try…

Comment by Janice 05.12.06 @ 10:54 pm

Oh, I am hoping there is more where this comes from- when will we have the whole story?

Comment by Stephanie 06.03.06 @ 3:23 am

I like this a lot and can’t wait to read more! Great writing — reminds me a bit of Harper Lee.

Comment by QueenBitch 10.17.06 @ 8:08 am

I liked it. It told me what the story is about. I will be reading further, good job.

Comment by Mrs. Brain Bombs 10.28.06 @ 2:09 am

[…] This is it. Seriously Tofflee Webmiztris Where the Bees Are Wry Writer ERP SOFTWARE once upon a time. in a land far away. Tuesday November 07th 2006, 7:42 am Filed under:blogging […]

Pingback by once upon a time. in a land far away. - plain simple english 11.07.06 @ 7:57 am

Read this and the sample chapters. Totally reminds me Scout in TKAM. You must hear that a lot. Love your voice. I’m sure you can get this published if you aren’t in the process already. Good luck. Don’t know how I missed all this when I read your blog on other occasions.

Comment by m 04.09.07 @ 11:35 am

Just wanted to say thanks for coming by my blog and then I find out that we are kindred spirits!! Well, you are better than me, but it’s all part of the dream called writing.
We should chat. I will blog roll you. Take care and keep up the good work.

Comment by tish 05.10.07 @ 3:19 pm

Hi! I really enjoyed your blog. I was hoping you would check mine out and we can do a link exchange!

http://sexandtheuppereastside.blogspot.com/

Keep Blogging and best of luck!
Carrie

Comment by carrie 05.10.07 @ 3:22 pm

[…] It had happened before. […]

Pingback by Buffy Holt’s Fiction » Blog Archive » a town on the tug 06.21.07 @ 4:48 pm

Wow! You are some discovery. I love your style, it has such impact - truly hypnotic writing. Great success to you, you deserve it!

Comment by WalksFarWoman 08.07.07 @ 6:33 pm

Buffy, after our writers’ group organizational meeting today, I had to find your blog. I must tell you, your prologue and sample chapters are fantastic! I love your voice and fresh descriptions. The story has me hooked already. You MUST get this published! Wow. All I can say is - wow!

Comment by Kristen 10.10.07 @ 4:00 am

Interesting… can’t wait to read more. Are you on Nanowrimo? (http://www.nanowrimo.org/)

Comment by jamielynnlynn 10.25.07 @ 4:07 am



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