Weekly Whisker Round Up
Felines and Fiction: 0908-091325
“Twist”
Cassie sat surrounded by a pile of papers and boxes. She hated doing grunt work. Unfortunately, as an intern at the local paper, she didn’t have much choice. Her attempts to convince the editor-in-chief to give her a byline fell on deaf ears.
She reached out and scratched the ears of Copycat, the paper’s cat that took care of any vermin. It was nice to have some company in the dank room.
Pulling a photo out of a dusty box, she squinted at it. “Well, this is interesting. Think it will get me a byline, Copycat? Me neither.”
Decoy
Cassie wasn’t above playing a little dirty — not if it meant she got her first byline. So she’d put some catnip on Josie’s desk. Copycat was currently wreaking havoc, high from the favorite cat treat.
With the lead reporter busy, thanks to Cassie’s decoy, she headed toward the editor’s office, photo in hand. “Do you have a sec?” she asked, trying to sound confident but casual.
“Only a sec.”
“I found this in the record room. I thought I could write something on it.”
He took a look at it. “Hmm. Give it a go, but I’m not promising anything.”
“Regret”
Cassie sat staring at the blank screen on her computer. It was 1:15 in the morning. She couldn’t believe she’d talked her boss into giving her a chance to write a story. Nothing was coming to her. She’d stared at the picture for a full hour and at the screen for another half hour, and nothing.
She knew writer’s block was real, and the hardest part was getting started, but she couldn’t think of anything to write. Everything sounded stupid or contrived. Her first possible byline was making her freeze and sweat, and she was regretting ever asking for it.
“Sliding”
Cassie went to the back door and slid the sliding door open to let in Scoop, her tabby. He liked to go out and sit on the porch. He never went farther than the porch, but sunbathing was one of his favorite things.
Cassie wished that she could go sit on the porch, let the sun shine on her, and everything would be better. Her article was due this morning, and she thought it was terrible. She had finally gotten over her fear of writing, and six drafts later still wasn’t happy with it. “Well, Scoop, we did our best.”
“Drool”
Copycat was asleep on her desk when she arrived at work. A small pile of drool had gathered under his chin. She’d known dogs to drool, but Copycat was the only cat she’d seen drool. It was pretty gross. She went and got some napkins to clean up after shooing him away.
Sitting down at her desk, she reread her article, still not happy with how it turned out. So much for her first byline. She sighed and hit send on it anyway. It was due in five minutes, so she was cutting it close. Now to wait and see.
“Suspect”
“I suspect you bit off more than you could chew,” her editor said as she sat in front of him in the office. “This is subpar work. I expected better.”
She swallowed. “Yes, sir,” she said quietly.
“When I hired you, I knew you had talent. You need to remember that. You’re here for a reason. Next time I give you the chance to write something, don’t doubt yourself. Your writing will be better for it.”
“Next time?” She perked up hopefully.
“It will be a while, but yes. For now, you’ll be keeping Copycat company in the records room.”
I write Fiction and Also Cats to share my love of storytelling—usually involving cat hi-jinks—and plenty of cute cat pics. It’s free to read today, and always will be in part. But if you enjoyed this post, consider supporting the publication by pledging a future subscription. You won’t be charged unless payments are turned on. Whether you choose the free or paid tier, you’ll also receive my 100 Word Story Guide as a thank-you!
Fuel Fiction and Also Cats with a coffee or a share—both keep the stories (and the tabbies’ judgment) flowing.