The Reviewer
A Story Every Day in 2024 March 26th 86/366
It had gone well, she thought as she wrapped up her first book signing. She had been worried as it was intimidating to stand up infront of a load of strangers and read your works. You had to believe that they liked you or why would they be there?
"I think you've sold 50 copies tonight," the bookshop owner, Annie said warmly.
50 copies! A boxful! As a start, she was ecstatic, gratified even. And the buyers had been such lovely people. There had been that one odd little man who had presented her with a book which wasn't her own - had she read it, she'd thought? - but she had been so caught up in the excitement of the evening that she hadn't given it much head room until now. He'd been a bit glarey too, intensely staring at her while she'd read but she'd deliberately kept her expression neutral and her eyes away from contact. Strange. She hoped he wasn't a stalker.
As she headed out, waving to Annie and thanking her, the bell on the door rang and consolidated her mood with its tinkling. She did a little run on the spot and punched the air infront of her with unbridled joy.
What should she do to celebrate? As she headed along the pavement to her car, thinking of popping corks and dreaming of the Hay Literary Festival and movie spin-offs, she could see the poster advertising her reading. She could also smell the meaty potent aroma of dog mess and saw the deep imprint of a ridged sole moulded in a caramel canine expulsion.
Oh, she thought. They'll need a bamboo skewer and a toothbrush to deal with that. And lots of hot soapy water.
And then, she noticed her poster had been graffitied.
Rather than being shocked, she approached her face and marvelled at how she actually looked quite handsome with a moustache. She was glad that the artist had chosen a more flamboyant form with body and wonderful curlicues at the tips and not something Hitler-esque.
She looked left. She looked right. Quickly, she peeled the poster and tucked it into her bag.
The artist would have been furious!
***
366 words
A sequel to yesterday's tale which you can read here:
And a big thank you to Hannah Moore, a wonderful and versatile writer who made a comment on this piece about what the reviewer would do, and John Cox, another talented storyteller who supported Hannah's suggestion. I decided to run with it.
Thank you, you two.
You can read their glorious creations here:
Thanks for stopping by! If you do read this, please do leave a comment as I love to interact with my readers.
86/366
About the Creator
Rachel Deeming
Mum, blogger, crafter, reviewer, writer, traveller: I love to write and I am not limited by form. Here, you will find stories, articles, opinion pieces, poems, all of which reflect me: who I am, what I love, what I feel, how I view things.
Keep reading
More stories from Rachel Deeming and writers in Fiction and other communities.
The Review
Lance was going to confront her. Moments like these presented themselves so rarely that he knew he had to take advantage of it. He'd been longing to confront his critic ever since the review of his book had appeared. And now, here she was, the reviewer herself, at his local bookshop, hosting an evening to promote her own book! What was worse, it was having more success than his.
By Rachel Deemingabout a month ago in Fiction
The Dangling Bead
My life is splashing before my eyes, as I precariously suspend and prepare for the end, the consumption of my Self and identity. I know that gravity will be the victor in this struggle. Like a pendant, slipping from the chain, the tension has caught me in this moment, bestowing one last gift of reflection. I cling desperately, questioning my purpose. Searching for comfort. And I remember…
By Leslie Staven6 days ago in Fiction
Love is blind
Jack reveled in the tranquility of the beach, soaking up the warmth of the sun. He meticulously filled his bucket with sand, getting the water-to-sand ratio just right. Today was going to be the day he built the most impressive sandcastle. His dad had even gifted him a variety of buckets for crafting different shapes and sizes.
By Arshad Mecci3 days ago in Fiction
Comments (9)
Hahahaahhaahahahah oh boy, imagine his anger when he sees that the poster is now missing! Poor bloke! His book and doodling, none of it appreciate by this woman! I mean she admired it, yes, but didn't leave it up for others to see, so that's more insult to him on top of the 1 star she gave him 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I love that she loved it & kept it as a souvenir. Oh, if he ever finds out--which of course would have to be some time after he finishes cleaning his shoes. Otherwise he'd be a real stinker in more ways than one.
Haha! Hard to see the haters down below when you're feeling the ecstasy of being on a mountaintop! Her thinking about the daunting task of such a shoe cleaning procedure was nice little nugget...
So good reading this from the other side. FAB!
Seein' ya on the flip side. Nice.
I loved this other side take of your story, especially the clandestine theft of her own poster. Hannah’s suggestion really is brilliant. Thanks for the shout out, that was very kind of you, Rachel!
Love her spirit!
A cunning sequel that shows that Lance is a twit from more than one perspective.
Ha ha! Excellent!