The Confabulator Cafe

Tag: confabulation

  • What Makes us Confabulators

    When we embarked upon this experiment a year ago, I’m not sure any of us were sure exactly what we were doing, or where we were going. The Cafe has evolved a lot since then, and we continue to define what it is we do with every assignment. I’ve learned something new about myself and my writing each week, not only because I’m forced to look closely at my process for each assignment, but also by reading how my fellow writers approach their craft. I think I’ve learned as much from them as I have from myself.

    One or two specific assignments stand out in my memory, but my absolute favorite category has been Confabulation. (more…)

  • Out of Time

    Library/Secret Room — 1968

    aluminum branchMadge was not impressed with the pink, aluminum Christmas tree in the library. Stella seemed to think it was the height of fashion and that their employers had remarkable taste. Madge preferred real trees that grew from soil, not some factory in Wisconsin.

    She plucked at the cold metal needles and tried to arrange them in some sort of natural arrangement. Her nose wrinkled in distaste. No matter what she did with it, the gaudy thing still looked like a mistake.

    “Hand me the box of green balls, Stella,” she said.

    (more…)

  • Refusal to Move (Flash Fiction)

    She was driving ninety-five miles an hour again. She knows I hate it when she goes that fast. I’ve tried to tell her to slow down, but she never listens. I knew she was trouble from the moment I saw her, walking into the dealership in her ruby stilettos and short skirt. She practically had the dealer eating out of the palm of her hand. It was disgusting. An hour later, he placed the keys into her hand. My keys. I’ve hated her ever since.

    This time, when she stuck the keys into the ignition, I refused to start. She called in service technician after service technician, and I started up perfectly for them. But the moment she slipped on her ruby heels and slid into my seat, nothing worked. She’d cajole me, she’d threaten me, she’d scream obscenities. But for once, I had the upper hand.

    If she doesn’t learn to listen soon, I’ll wrap us around a tree.