Thursday, May 22, 2014

Picture This

by Cynthia Acee from the May 5, 2014 issue

Tagline: Matt's sister tried to convince him that visualization would bring the perfect woman into his life. Matt didn't believe a word of it--or did he?

In a Nutshell: Matt finds a dog and takes it in for the night. The next morning the owner comes knocking at his door.

Observations: So much to like about this story. I liked the first person male POV. It's refreshing. We got to see Matt's open mind at work. The author showed him taking his sister's advice. We got to see what he thought of himself and that he had a nice healthy level of self-esteem. In my opinion, a lot of what was great about this story was the characterization.

I also enjoyed the humor.

"...you do want to meet someone, don't you?"

"Of course," I admitted.

"Then visualize, brother dear," she coaxed. "Visualize."

"But visualize what? The dog or the woman?"

Acee plotted well with the grocer being the middleman who put the owner and finder in touch with each other. And the ending? Superb. She came full circle to bring the visualization back in very neatly.

Photo credit: Janine via Wikimedia Commons


14 comments:

Kate Willoughby said...

is the poll feature working for you guys? I can't see to see any votes.

Chris said...

Naturally, I loved this one - it starred a dog. Nice to see a male POV story again, too. Really nicely done.

As for the voting thing, I don't do it, Kate. Prefer to leave a comment.

Betsi said...

Kate, I voted on "Aglow with Love" (although I have to admit I don't remember either of these stories very well) and I'm still not seeing any results in either poll.

Mary Jo said...

The polls are not working, and even when they do, it appears that few of your readers use them. The votes then are all over the map with seldom any consensus. So my question is, do you feel they have any constructive value?

Kate Willoughby said...

Good point. I had them so if people wanted to participate without having to go to all the trouble of a comment...

I'll get rid of them. They ARE extra work.

Betsi said...

Maybe you should take a poll to see if your readers want them. ;-)

Pat said...

I also loved this story. Loved the male POV, the characters, and the dog.

I always voted but if it's too much work, Kate, I can do without it.

Unknown said...

Hello, I'm new here.
I agree, it was nice to have a male POV story.

I just sold my first story and was wondering if Johnene replies with a confirmation that she's received the emailed manuscript? Since it's my first I don't want to mess anything up.

Kate Willoughby said...

Hi, Melody! Congratulations on your sale!!!

No, she doesn't reply. :)

Unknown said...

Kate, thank you for the information.

Chris said...

Melody, congratulations on your sale to WW. That's a big deal. Well done. Did you send many stories in before getting a yes?

Looking forward to seeing your story in WW.

Unknown said...

Thanks everyone for your congratulations.
I tried for over a year to sell to them so I sent in a lot of stories.

Betsi said...

Congratulations, Melody! What issue will your story be in? I have one coming up in #28.

Unknown said...

Thank you, Betsi.
Mine is in #27.