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Wednesday, 29 April 2015

Y is for Yawp


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: Yawp.

 Yawp: (noun) A harsh or hoarse cry or yelp. (verb) Shout or exclaim hoarsely.

 Sorry I'm late today. This was my hardest story to edit down, from an initial length of about 230 words.

* * *

Lawrence yawped as he twisted his ankle on the uneven ground. When the Frisbee sailed into Old Stanley’s field, he wanted to run. But his brother had goaded him on before disappearing.

He hobbled on, glancing around. A movement from a hut at the boundary caught his eye. He gasped. A boy about his age was waving frantically at him through the window. Should he go help?

After two faltering steps, everything went black. Next thing, he was in a hospital bed with his family around him. Where was the boy? He should tell them… but had he imagined it?
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30 comments:

  1. Alex J. Cavanaugh29 April 2015 at 11:27

    And did he retrieve his Frisbee?

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  2. Jennifer Hawes29 April 2015 at 13:01

    I knew the word yawp! I just added "yelp" the other day to my WIP. I do love a good "Y" word:)

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  3. Tamara Narayan29 April 2015 at 13:33

    Mysterious. I hope Lawrence says something about the boy to someone.

    I actually had "yawp" as my y-word last year from a Walt Whitman quote: "I sound my barbaric yawp over the rooftops of the world."

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  4. A Tarkabarka Hölgy29 April 2015 at 13:37

    This sounds like a beginning for a ghost story... :D

    @TarkabarkaHolgy from
    Multicolored Diary - Epics from A to Z
    MopDog - 26 Ways to Die in Medieval Hungary

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  5. T. Powell Coltrin29 April 2015 at 13:49

    This is a new word to me. :)

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  6. Chrys Fey29 April 2015 at 13:51

    The pain could've caused him to hallucinate. I hope so anyway...

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  7. Shell Flower29 April 2015 at 14:40

    This is somehow sinister, though you only hint at it. Way to make me wonder.

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  8. Christine Rains29 April 2015 at 15:07

    Oh oh. Tell them, just in case!

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  9. Sara C. Snider29 April 2015 at 15:10

    Creepy. Possible ghost, or maybe just a boy cleaning the windows. ;)

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  10. diedre Knight29 April 2015 at 16:44

    Great flash fiction! But now I'll think about that boy all day...:-)

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  11. Bish Denham29 April 2015 at 17:22

    Yawp I know. Great word. Yes, he should tell them what he saw, tell them he doesn't know if it was real or not but that he wants to make sure there isn't someone being held prisoner.

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  12. Annalisa Crawford29 April 2015 at 17:23

    Love this word. I've seen it used before. It was a ghost, obviously!

    Annalisa, writing A-Z vignettes, at Wake Up, Eat, Write, Sleep

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  13. Susan Gourley/Kelley29 April 2015 at 17:35

    I didn't know that was a real world. Scary story today.

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  14. Kathryn Thornton29 April 2015 at 18:10

    A new word to add to my vocabulary.
    Thanks for sharing the work involved in editing down. That is always so hard but worthwhile. I find word count restrictions really get better work from me.

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  15. djinnia29 April 2015 at 18:16

    Ooo! I did this one in last year's A to Z! Yay!

    Mysterious! Was it real or was it a hallucination? *Twilight Zone theme music plays*

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  16. iluvfiction29 April 2015 at 18:17

    Coming back after a long time :-) Learnt Wyvern, Xebec and Yawp. Great going!

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  17. Keith's Ramblings29 April 2015 at 18:24

    Excellent teaser! I bet it was even more intriguing with double the number of words!
    Keith's Ramblings

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  18. cleemckenzie29 April 2015 at 19:26

    I like the sound of this word. I may have to adopt it.

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  19. Nick Wilford29 April 2015 at 19:30

    Thanks, all! In the original draft, he woke up and the mysterious boy was in the next bed. But I decided to leave it more open ended.

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  20. Cortney Pearson29 April 2015 at 20:14

    Nice. This word always makes me think of Dead Poet's Society and the Barbaric Yawp. :D

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  21. J E Oneil29 April 2015 at 23:00

    I never knew yawp was a word but it's strangely appropriate.

    I definitely want to know more about this story.

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  22. Anonymous30 April 2015 at 01:02

    You crafted a mystery with that story.

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

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  23. Liz A.30 April 2015 at 02:07

    Uh oh. I remember yawp from Dead Poets Society.

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  24. betty30 April 2015 at 03:29

    Oh I hope he does go back and check it out!

    betty

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  25. Hilary Melton-Butcher30 April 2015 at 09:03

    Hi Nick - I certainly hadn't picked out yawp as a word ... but this description fits perfectly ... much worse than a 'yelp' .. and a story to be continued ..

    Cheers Hilary

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  26. Tasha Duncan-Drake30 April 2015 at 10:51

    Tell them Lawrence, tell them! New word on me, but I think I know why it is not in favour - it doesn't really sound like it's definition. I think it's too close to yawn ;)
    Tasha
    Tasha's Thinkings | Wittegen Press | FB3X (AC)

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  27. Holly Jahangiri30 April 2015 at 12:01

    Huh. I always thought Dr. Seuss made that word up.

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  28. Mina Burrows4 May 2015 at 03:13

    Yawp! Excellent choice. And yes, he should tell them. ;)

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  29. Melissa Sugar4 May 2015 at 21:12

    Hey Nick, you won a $25 Amazon gift card on my blog during the challenge. I thought I left you a message, but maybe I forgot. Can you email me please at sugarlaw13@live.com with the email address that you want the card sent to. Thank you.

    sugarlaw13@live.com

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  30. Anonymous6 May 2015 at 03:29

    I don't think it was his imagination. Great Y post.

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