Applied Writing
The Crows
“The Crows” is the first work of fiction that I completed and workshopped with my peers. It is a short story piece that follows a week in the life of Pauline, a homicide detective. Her life takes a turn when she discovers a dead body outside the door of her apartment. The reader catches a glimpse of the days leading up to the death, where an old nursery rhyme seems to be predicting future events in her life. Little is truly known about Pauline (did she kill the man?), but this is intentional. The reader is meant to laugh but also meant to feel slightly uncomfortable by the mundane sincerity of Pauline’s personality. My desire is for the reader to form their own opinions of the story. Read the first paragraphs below and click the link to continue reading.
The Crows
Pauline stood above the dead body of her lover and took a drag of her cigarette. It was Thursday.
Damn it, she thought, dropping the cigarette to the floor and grinding it with her heel. Above Pauline, the rising sun was beginning to phase in through the mucky skylights. A ceiling fan churned lazily through the thick summer air, doing nothing to dispel the heat.
Pauline swatted at a fly. What a terrible Thursday.
Last night, after buzzing him in, Pauline had opened the balcony door to light a quick cigarette. The humidity of the day had condensed onto the metal railing, making it sweaty and slick. The flock of crows appeared, expecting their traditional dinner of birdseed and smoke. How many were there again?
They had watched each other, Pauline and the crows, in the light coming from the kitchen and through the glass door. By now she recognized the pattern; she knew what it meant. When would it come?