The alarm went off, sounding strangely distant. As he had done every Monday since he’d started school, Charlie Thompson sat up in his bed with his eyes shut, desperately delaying that moment when he had to admit to himself that he was awake and had to embrace the day ahead.

Only, this morning, things were a little different. Instead of sitting up and blinking in the morning…

I can’t hold on much longer. Don’t look down; don’t. But I can’t tear my eyes away from the dark sea, churning far below. Icy wind howls and plucks at my body, pulls it away from the ship even as I struggle to hold on, to swing myself back up to safety. If you can call it that. This ship isn’t safe, not for me. My hands are numb; I can’t feel them anymore. I fall...

My breath came in short painful gasps.  My chest heaved.  Sweat ran down my back.  Even my shoulders ached.  My legs felt heavy, like lead weights, and every stride was a hammer-blow to my aching knees.  I wasn't going to stop, though.  I glanced over my shoulder.  No sign of them.  But they would be there somewhere.  Somewhere behind me.  I knew it.  They would not give up.  So, I wouldn't give up either.  I wouldn't, I couldn't stop…

He thought that he knew exactly where it was, but places look so different in the dark. It had been a long time since he'd been there and three years is more than enough time to forget those tiny but vital details. It didn't help that his memory had not been quite right since the accident.

Climbing in was easy enough, especially as he had grown a lot stronger since he was last…

I thought we were safe. I had got across all the roads and closed the park gate behind me.  I could let Rex off his lead.  As usual, he sniffed around lazily for a bit, 'reading his wee mails' as Mum called it. I took off my backpack an slumped down onto the bench to start my homework.  Rex barked, and I rummaged in my pocket for a treat to shut him up.  He took a couple of steps towards me, then he froze, and stared into the distance.  A…

It was midnight. The room contained three chairs – an armchair, a wooden chair and an office chair with wheels. The carpet was a deep red. The walls were a sickly yellow. There was no other furniture in the room. One door.  No windows. One tractor. One teddy bear. Three letter bricks – A, B and C.

On the floor sat a boy. Eleven years old. Way past his bedtime. He knew that from…

 Amy Warburton sooooooo wanted to win the school’s Most Unusual Pet competition. The trouble was, she didn’t have a pet – usual or unusual. 

There were also some good contenders.

Vicky Jones had a dog with no hair called Shiver.…

It’s cold today. Isn’t it colder than usual? I don’t know. I get confused these days. I can’t remember when the confusion started, but it was about the time the clocks stopped. Haha – I’m saying ‘about the time’ but it’s hard to know what the time is any more!

                My friend Blue says it’s happened before, way before I was born. I think he’s making it up. He…

I’m having an epically horrific twenty-four hours. The TV news will report my story but only after 10 p.m. when children are asleep. When people hear about my day, they will weep uncontrollably, ask how this could happen, and assign blame so they can believe something like this could never happen to someone like them. They will kiss their loved ones and thank the heavens above that they are not me. …

Ronnie was a dog of great intelligence.  He could ‘fetch’, ‘sit’, ‘lie’ and even ‘jump’ to order.  He knew how to persuade his best friend, Sal, to give him food and drink - or to take him for a walk any time he felt like it.  Oh yes, he had his owner, twelve year-old Sal, wrapped around his giant paw.

Sal was only nine when she picked Ronnie out from a litter of tiny pups at the…

The ability to walk in a straight line is something we take for granted. You know, you swing your legs out of bed, stumble to the bathroom, wash your face. Easy. Only it isn't. Not for everybody. One morning, one of those sunny, birdsong, dawns, I woke up as usual, lowered my feet to the floor and….nothing. There was no strength in my legs. I couldn't force myself to my feet. What the hell was happening to me? There was no pain, no tingling,…

Jamie had been staying at the hotel for a week when his sister disappeared. 

It was the last day of their holiday, in fact, and the McDare family were all looking forward to getting home. Blasted by the North Sea, the ramshackle inn was so damp and cold that even the spiders sat frozen in their webs. Why on earth mum had booked them into this dusty old dump was beyond Jamie. The…

Only two weeks to go! I have some wonderful story and poetry starters, can't wait to see how they are continued ;-) Today is the last day to sign up (although I can usually squeeze a few more in if necessary!) as this weekend I will be preparing the timetable for the event. I will as always try to take into account any time constraints I have been given. Looking forward to working with lots of you again soon........the countdown begins!