Interview with the February Pic 1 k winner, Laura Eno!

What was your inspiration for your Pic 1 k story, Seaweed? (Other than the picture!) Laughing – it really was the picture. I am often inspired by water so when I saw the sand and water I just knew that I had to write a story. The empty shoes spoke to me of yearning and loss. They seemed abandoned. How long did it take to write? Not very long, under an hour. Stories like that seem to write themselves. What are your favorite stories that you have written and where can we read them? My favorite story is always the next one that I'm going to write! I participate in #fridayflash, so you can find a new flash fiction story on my blog every Friday at http://lauraeno.blogspot.com/ Do you have anything being published in 2010? I have stories in several anthologies coming out this year from Pill Hill Press and Lame Goat Press. I am also involved in a thrilling collaborative work called Chinese Whisperings – The Yin Book, coming out in Oct 2010. You can read more about it at http://chinesewhisperings.com/ Where can we read more of your work? The easiest way to track my work is in the bar on the right side of my blog. It has a list of stories that are in both print and online editions, along with their links. I am thrilled to be chosen for this interview for Soft Whispers, Jim. Thank you for providing this wonderful venue for writers to showcase their work and for all of the effort that you put into it! Read SEAWEED in Issue Two of Soft Whispers along with all the other great stories, poetry, and pictures/art. And in case you didn't know, Soft Whispers is FREE! Issue Two

Seaweed

by

Laura Eno

I remember the day you came into my life, wearing nothing but water and a smile. I blushed as I handed you my towel, there on the shoreline. I'd been lying in the sand, dreaming of the perfect man and there you stood. How foolish to think my desire would just walk into my life. To be fair, you often told me you could not stay even as you stole my heart. The months passed and I began to believe otherwise. You seemed to have a fondness for me; you tried to blend into my life and surroundings. One morning I awoke to an empty space, both of hearth and heart. I ran to the shoreline, the place where we first met. Your shoes sat in the sand, the only goodbye you could give me. I sometimes sit there next to those shoes, staring out to sea. At sunset, I think I see you skimming the water at horizon's edge. At other times, it's your laugh that floats along the breeze. No matter how long I keep vigil, you never come back. This lone reminder mocks me of unrequited love. If I walk out to greet you, will I become a Selkie too? Or will I perish in the depths, lost forever, my life over with no one to mourn me? It matters not, I think, for I've made my decision. I place my own shoes next to yours and walk out to join you.