Click here to read this adventure from the beginning.
Brian (our beloved host, at least in his own mind): “Welcome to the first installment of the Bonnywood Manor version of sitting around the campfire and sharing sordid tales of debauchery and mayhem. Wait, that might sound a bit extreme.” [Clears throat, flips through pages of the script that he should have been following if he had any sense, which he does not, until he finds the exact wording approved by the Advisory Board.] “Welcome to Bonnywood, where we welcome all guests in a completely non-judgmental manner and we celebrate diversity with an intensity that is completely unfathomable to people who are not on the Advisory Board.”
Lone member of the audience, who is only there because she was on a quest to find the loo and decided she should rest a bit on one of the plushly-comfortable chairs in the Bonnywood Manor auditorium: “Who the hell are you and why are you spewing so many fancy words?”
Brian, undaunted: “I’m the host, here to help you through the post.”
Lone: “How cute. A rhyme. Like nobody has ever done that before, Shakespeare.”
Brian, daunted: “You seem to have an issue.”
Lone: “Of course I do. My bladder is bulging and my retirement investments are in shambles because somebody thought it might be fun to eat animals that they shouldn’t.”
Brian: “Oh, I feel your pain.”
Lone: “Do you really? You’re a man, so you can pee wherever you want. I have to squat, which limits my options. If I don’t have a level surface and some hand-bars or a bronzed, swarthy assistant to help me get back up, I could tumble down the mountainside, spritzing everybody.”
Brian: “You’re right. I can’t imagine that. And I don’t want to. But rumor has it that our president would find it interesting.”
Advisory Board member, offstage: “Pssst.”
Brian, glancing over, mildly miffed: “I’m in the middle of something here. I’ll sign autographs later.”
ABM: “We agreed that we would keep the politics low-key until folks have settled in around our virtual campfire.”
Brian: “Oh, right. So, what should I do?”
ABM: “Stick to the script, Bone Spur.”
“Got it.” Brian turns back to the diminutive and clenched audience. “Ladies and… okay, lady. Thank you for joining the first category of our Campfire Songs project. This one is entitled ‘Prose, Promos and Prompts’.”
Lone: “Yeah, I got that when I read the title of this post. You do know how a blog post works, right?”
Brian: “I think the jury is still out on that.”
ABM, hissing: “Script!”
Brian, reading: “This category page is for sharing links in the following areas:
PROSE. This would be anything that you have written yourself, be it a short story, a personal reflection, a quasi-historical account of that one time at band camp, or a bit of poetry you composed in a moment of post-coital bliss, scribbled on the back of the hotel receipt. Your piece might have a better fit on one of the other category pages, so check those out, but if not, plunk it here.
PROMOS. This involves luring innocent victims to the main page of your own blog (if you have one), links to your own books (if you have written such) or links to the books of others (if your blog involves book promotion and author support). You can also provide links to blogs and websites that you just find interesting.
PROMPTS. This would be writing prompts that will help inspire fellow writers who might need a little creative push, sitting in front of a blank screen and a questionable future. You can simply suggest something in the comments, link to a related post in your own blogosphere or helpfully direct folks toward sites that regularly feature writing-prompt challenges. Turn page.”
Lone: “I’m thinking you probably could have kept that last bit to yourself. But since you’ve stopped moving your mouth for two seconds, I’ve got to go. Literally. I’ll just dash off while you prepare for the next category page.”
Brian: “So you’re coming back?”
Lone: “Of course. I’m really enjoying watching you fumble through this.”
Click here to read the next Fire.
Categories: Hope
Bonnywood Manor 
Here’s my blog of pretty much random stuff.
https://aunatural.org/
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Thanks for joining in, Fred!
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Um. I’m ‘shy’ (read introverted, full of anxiety or whatever clever label they dreamt up today to describe those of us who dwell in caves on purpose) and self-promotion makes me twitchy. Even thought it’s anonymous (sort of) and I don’t have to actually engage with another human in really real time. So that’s out. Prose might be my thing and prompts? I do them A LOT. Especially lately when it appears that going outside (where the IRL humans are) is a truly bad idea whose time has come. I’m doing a re-blog of your initial post on this endeavor and I’m including the links to all these four other posts (well I have three of them. One appears to have escaped….
) Uhm. Good idea dude. Community is vital, especially now when ‘community’ has become a dirty four lettered (well nine letters..) word. I saw one of the restaurants on Main was open and I almost went in. Then I saw the big sandwich board reading “Open for Take Out Orders ONLY” Well okay then. At least my therapist is keeping her doors open (on a case by case basis. She’s seeing me. In real time. I know I’m not affected).
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Well, we share the shyness and anxiety and the cave-dwelling. But we both manage to blossom when it comes to the written word, so this can be our way of helping everyone get through the mess. I’m currently working on some “prompt” posts, but I’m not quite satisfied with how they look right now and I’m still tinkering. (You know how it goes.) I hope to have them up shortly.
Now, I’m off to catch up with your posts, as I know I’m woefully behind…
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I would like to participate, but right now, I am up to my eyes in virus protocols, cleaning products and calming the troops. And it all has to be done from isolation. It’s busy …
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I fully understand, so no worries. In this odd time where some folks are sadly losing their jobs, the workload has exploded in other occupations. Partner is working 12-14 hours a day. He’s getting to do so from home, but still…
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That’s about what I’m putting in as well. Stay safe. 🙂
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Hello, I’m in Cornwall in the UK. I wrote this yesterday in a kind of semi-restrained ranty type way. It’s got illustrations and everything and is about our selfish population, which I am sure you’ve got your side too… There is a swear word or two but you could probably pretend that there are asterisks in the appropriate places and pretend you have no idea what letters would have actually been there. https://o4fsbryntin.wordpress.com/2020/03/21/lets-go-on-a-ramble-complete-selfish-bastards/
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Thanks for jumping in, Kind Sir.
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I’m all about luring innocent victims….
And the not so innocent as well.
😉
https://riversworld.live/
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Luring any victim is fun, but the innocent ones are the most tasty. 😉 Thanks for participating!
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Well, thank you for this because it led me to view Dead Fly Art from Rivergirl (above). And now I know what was missing in my life.
As for self-promotion… um… you know I’m bad at that, right? No surprise there. But I’ll share this because it’s so damn great:
And that makes me think maybe I need to give myself a mason jar full of waterlilies?
All right, I’ll give it a go. I feel pretty good about this one: https://feedingonfolly.com/2019/06/13/all-hail-lord-cockroach-its-only-a-matter-of-time/
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I was fascinated by the Dead Fly Art. It was one of the first posts I perused on Rivergirl’s blog (she’s just recently joined Bonnywood), and I was instantly hooked…
And thanks for offering up a post. I see that I “liked” it but I didn’t comment. How rude of me. Please forgive.
But this video? Holy COW it’s terrific. I’m instantly in love. I’ve been toying with the idea of taking some of these “comment shares” and turning them into standalone posts. Do you mind if I do that with this video?
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Oh, please Brian – share away. The more people in love with Andrea, the better!
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Blimey, I saw the Twitter repost for this article today and thought I’d nip back to see the hundreds of links everyone has shared since I was last here…. Can’t believe you have so many shy readers Brian!
Oh well, I did this poem that might have a sort of coviddy element to it… https://o4fsbryntin.wordpress.com/2020/04/25/sometimes-i-rhymes-fatalistic-behaviour/
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Well, I used to have big dreams about hundreds of people joining in my warped adventures. Now I’m just happy if more than two people click “like”… 😉
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Nice blog
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Thank you!
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My pleasure, followed you✨
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