By Cheryl Rushing

My good friend Jane Kennedy Sutton just sent me the following e-mail:

I will be signing copies of The Ride at Barnes and Noble, 5377 Tamiami Trail North in Naples on Saturday, March 14, 2009, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Familiar, friendly faces are much appreciated so if you have the opportunity, please drop by. It would be helpful and also very much appreciated if you would pass the word along to friends, family and anyone you happen to pass on the street!
 
Thanks.
 
Jane Kennedy Sutton
Author of The Ride
http://janesutton.com/
http://janekennedysutton.blogspot.com/

The Ride is a fantastic book.  I can tell you that because not only was I one of the people who critiqued it, but I enjoyed every minute of it AND I own an autographed copy.

If you like contemporary women’s fiction with a twist, you will love The Ride.  Please go out, buy the book and get Jane to sign it for you.  She’s an incredible writer!

My second (and final) article on Project PayDay went live yesterday at I’ve Tried That.  Here it is:  Can You Make Money With Project PayDay?

My regular monthly writers meeting with Florida Writers Association, scheduled for this Saturday, has been rescheduled for next Saturday.

We’re also starting up writing challenges again!  This month’s theme?  WEDDING DAY.

Something tells me I already have something written on this…

The following is my entry in the WritersWeekly Winter 2009 24-hour Short Story Contest:

“If any of you can show just cause why they should not be married, speak now; or else for ever hold your peace.”

A cough at the door of the chapel door made them all turn.  The pastor shot his wife a concerned look.

Suddenly the dark foyer was filled with pale pink light.  A dazzling woman emerged, looking like a cross between a jewelry box ballerina and Glinda the Good Witch.

The pastor cleared his throat.  ”I thought I told you not to come back here.” he addressed the apparition.

The witch moved closer, filling the room with the same pale pink glow.  She came within an arm’s length of the bride and groom and stopped,smiling at them.

“Who are you?”  the bride asked.

“I am the Marriage Fairy, my dear.  I am here to save you.”

“To save me?”  the bride looked confused.

The pastor shoved roughly between the couple and shook his finger at the fairy.  ”I told you not to come back here!”

“What is the meaning of this?” the groom demanded.  He side-stepped the pastor and took his shaken bride by the arm.

“I don’t understand what’s going on,”  the bride whimpered.

“I am here to save you, my dear.  You are making a terrible mistake,” the fairy started to come closer, then pointed her star-shaped pink wand at the pastor and the groom.  Pink sparks shot from the end, and both men were pushed backward a few feet.  When they tried to recover, they were rooted in place.

The pastor’s wife began to twitter and flutter a handkerchief in front of her face.  ”Oh dear, oh dear!”

“I’m not making a mistake,” the bride said, lifting her chin.  ”I’m marrying the man of my dreams.”

“Oh, my sweet deluded girl,” the fairy giggled.  ”You’re no different from any other bride.”

“I think you should leave,” the groom said.  He was rewarded with a shower of pink sparks, and a span of pink duct tape appeared over his mouth.

“Dear child, you must listen to me.  You cannot marry this man.  The consequences would be dire!”

“How dare you say such a thing about the man I love!”

“Let me show you,” the fairy said.  She stepped closer to the bride and held out her hands.  ”Do you want to see?”

The bride thought for a moment and nodded.  The fairy placed her hands on the bride’s cheeks, and told her to close her eyes.

When she did, she found a movie inside her eyelids.  There she was with her husband on their honeymoon.  There he was carrying her over the threshold of an impressive house in an exclusive gated community.  Then they were having candlelit dinners, and soon her belly began to swell with a baby.

As the baby grew, her husband began to spend more time at the office.   He stopped bringing flowers and picking up his dirty socks.  As she aged her hips widened and her face cracked with wrinkles, while her husband grew more dashing.  She saw him stepping out with beautiful young women, while she sat at home trying to keep his dinner warm.  Finally, she saw him packing his things and leaving her crying and alone.

The fairy took her hands away, and wiped tears from the bride’s cheeks.  ”There, there, my sweet.  It doesn’t have to be that way.”

The bride gulped back a sob.  ”That was awful.  I can’t possibly marry him.”

“That’s right, my dear.  It would be a terrible mistake.”  The fairy smiled and turned away, but the bride grabbed her sleeve.

“Wait!” she cried.  ”Show me the man I’m meant to marry, so I can go and find him.”

The fairy stopped short, back rigid.  She took a deep breath, turned back to the bride and smiled, showing her perfect white teeth.  ”I’m afraid it doesn’t work that way.”

“What do you mean?” the bride asked.

“I can only save you from making the mistake.  Finding the right man is up to you.”

The bride crossed her arms across her bodice and glared at the fairy.  ”So you can come in here and ruin my wedding by showing me what a horrible marriage this will be, but you can’t show me the man I’m supposed to marry?”

The fairy nodded.  ”That’s right.”

The bride thought about this for a long moment.  Then she took a breath, turned her back on the fairy and nodded at the pastor.  ”Let’s get this show on the road.”  She walked over to the groom and took his hand.

“But wait!” the fairy said.  ”What are you doing?”

The bride looked back over her shoulder.  ”Marrying this man.  You showed me what the future might be like with this man, but not who would be better for me.”

“You would marry him, even knowing what the future holds?”

The bride smiled at her future husband.  ”That would have been my future if you hadn’t shown it to me.  But now?  I can change it.”

The WritersWeekly.com 24-Hour Short Story Contest Winter 2009 Winners List has been posted.  My name is not on it.

I must admit the winning entry is quite good, but this contest is seriously messing with my self-esteem.  I think I’ve entered it for the last time.

My entry will be posted later this week.

Not even an honorable mention?  Gah.