Friday 3 April 2015

C is for Clubbable


For this year's A-Z Challenge I have selected a word from the dictionary for each day and written a story around it with a 100 word limit. For extra interest I have chosen words that are unknown or unfamiliar to me. All definitions are from the Oxford Dictionary & Thesaurus 2007 Edition. Today's word is Clubbable.

Clubbable: Sociable and popular.

Simon sauntered along after a hard night strutting his stuff at Escape. Clubbable, that’s what his mates called him. “He’s the most clubbable bloke we know, innit?” He never missed a weekend on the town, and if he hadn’t left with a piece of fluff tonight, he still had a couple of numbers.


Spotting a taxi idling at the kerb, he increased his stride, swaggering towards it like he owned it. That was until he felt a dull thud and the world shifted and spun. This wasn’t the sort of clubbable I had in mind, he thought before blacking out.

45 comments:

Scribbles From Jenn said...

Ha! I didn't see that coming. I love that twist ending. Although Simon getting hit seems more like the clubbing I think about when I think of the word clubbable.

Scribbles From Jenn - Visiting from the A to Z Challenge

Debbie D. said...

Your ending was more like what I envisioned with "Clubbable", but a fun twist, nonetheless.

Holly Jahangiri said...

I'm with Debbie. I saw your word and cringed - my first thought was of baby seals, and my second was, "How tasteless." Funny how you first gave an unexpected definition, then turned it right back around - unexpectedly - to the expected!

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Nick - my first thought was clubbable at any night club ... but now I wonder what happened to him after his clubbed event and black-out ..

Cheers Hilary

Dee said...

Haha, that clubbable that happened at the end was what I thought clubbable meant! Fun story. :)

A Deecoded Life [A to Z Challenge]

Tasha Duncan-Drake said...

See, your ending is where my mind went when I saw the word in the first place. I had no idea it meant "sociable and popular" :) Great drabble, liked the twist in the tale.
Tasha
Tasha's Thinkings | Wittegen Press | FB3X (AC)

Keith's Ramblings said...

Love it! I didn't see it coming any more than he did!

Sophie Duncan said...

Nice double use of the word! And I learnt a new meaning, I had not a clue about the sociable meaning to clubbable! :)
Sophie
Sophie's Thoughts & Fumbles
FB3X
Wittegen Press

Unknown said...

What a twist ending! I was so caught up in your vivid vocab (sauntered, love it) that I totally didn't see that coming.

JeffO said...

I don't know what this says about me, but when I read the dictionary definition of 'clubbable' I thought, "Wait, that's not right!"

Sarah Foster said...

Haha, nice twist! I don't think I've ever heard the word clubbable before.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Somebody clubbed him! He really was clubbable.

Bish Denham said...

LOL. Good one, Nick. Simon was obviously popular and unpopular at the same time!

Zannie Rose said...

clever and creative- how long did it take to write. ?

Unknown said...

Great twist! I love the word "clubbable" - it says it all! lol.

Anonymous said...

Love that ending! I'm really enjoying this series, Nick.

Unknown said...

I never would have guessed the real meaning of "clubbable." I figured it meant easy to hit, like "Those baby seals sure are clubbable," said the evil fur trader. lol

Shell Flower said...

Hahaha. I love where this went in the end. He was certainly both kinds of clubbable.

Anonymous said...

Wow, either a mugging or he made someone angry with all his partying, womanizing ways.

Mina Burrows said...

No doubt! Poor guy. Awesome stuff. :)

Jennifer Hawes said...

That last paragraph is what I imagined the word "clubbable" meant! :)

Anonymous said...

Dark ending. I think I'll skip clubbing with Simon this time.

~Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine~
Member of C. Lee's Muffin Commando Squad
Story Dam
Patricia Lynne, Indie Author

Click said...

I liked this because when I read the word 'Clubbable' I was thinking of someone being the type of person you'd want to hit over the head, hehe. I like that it had a dual meaning in this story. :-)

Cait @ Click's Clan

djinnia said...

My mind didn't go anywhere with the word until I saw the meaning. Then the ending and his last thought struck me as funny. I'm thinking irony but it's early enough in the morning that I'm probably not working on all cylinders yet for the correct term.

Great piece.

Chrys Fey said...

I like that word! It's a lot of fun to say and the meaning is perfect.

Peaches D. Ledwidge said...

Ouch! A club in the head for Clubbable.

Misha Gerrick said...

Yep. Definitely twisted. ;-) *giggling*

Mark Koopmans said...

First thing I thought was of a baby seal... but that's so 1980s.

You are coming up with some unique words... although I'm sure I used this one back in my misspent youth :)

David P. King said...

I'm glad that's what it means and not what I was thinking, as in, something that merits hitting with a club. :)

JazzFeathers said...

That was fun! :-)

Annalisa Crawford said...

I've never heard the word clubbable, but I like what you did there :-)

Anonymous said...

Eeek - don't stop there! I want to know what happens NEXT!

Liz Brownlee said...

GREAT, I love 100 word flash fiction. ~Liz http://www.lizbrownleepoet.com

J E Oneil said...

Another new word for me :). I have to admit, I think clubbable makes more sense for the second paragraph of your story.

Unknown said...

Thank you for the introduction to a new word and definiton. Awesome drabble :-)

Nick Wilford said...

Jenn - Yes, I was surprised at that definition! So I worked my own in there.

Debbie - Thanks!

Holly - No baby seals were harmed.

Hilary - I hope he's OK.

Dee - Thanks! I think most people thought that way.

Natasha - No idea it was a word! Thanks.

Keith - Thanks!

Sophie - It's the only meaning in the dictionary! Seemed odd to me.

Melanie - Thanks!

Jeff - I know!

Sarah - Me neither.

Alex - But was it a random attack?

Nick Wilford said...

Bish - Someone didn't like him.

Zannie - Thanks! Averaging about half an hour per story (from looking for words).

Carolyn, doorway - Thanks!

Lexa - Glad it wasn't that.

Shell - Thanks.

Medeia - Jealous boyfriend?

Mina - Thanks!

Jennifer - Me too!

Patricia - Good idea.

Click - He straddled both meanings.

Djinnia - You could be onto something.

Nick Wilford said...

Chrys - Thanks! Glad you liked it.

Peaches - Ouch indeed.

Misha - There's a theme here!

Mark - Baby seals are coming up a lot. Not going there!

David - Well, Simon did!

Sarah, Annalisa - Thanks!

Datatater - Maybe he calmed down on the clubbability.

Liz - Thanks!

JE - Yeah, me too.

Rose - Thank you!

Liz A. said...

Uh oh... Perhaps he's a little too popular?

Liz A. from Laws of Gravity

jaybird said...

Nick- that was a great piece of work!! Nice voice and what swagger our boy had until all of a sudden- uh oh. I think none of us expected that he would meet that kind of end. Really enjoyed that.

Heather R. Holden said...

LOL, love the twist at the end! When I first read the word clubbable, I hadn't expected it to mean popular and sociable, so that twist fits my first instinct very well... XD

liz young said...

Great flash fiction - an entire story with a twist. I'll be back!

http://lizy-expat-writer.blogspot.com.es/

loverofwords said...

Double meaning though. I like that. Somehow it sounds masculine. Would you say a woman is clubbable?

Anonymous said...

Wow! Never heard this word before! I love to learn words that are new to me.

Laura Clipson said...

Love your use of the word, great story!