If you ran here, minus 10,000 from your steeze!😌😅 This is the last batch for the first stage and you don't want to rush through it. The contestants in batch six is going to have us reading between lines, hopefully. Let's have them:

028 Wordsmith
029 Medusa
030 Homa

Who's up first?

028 The Wordsmith

Prompt: "I hate you, but..."

Story: The hating game- Naija Edition

        “I hate you but… apparently, your village people hate you more, Benji” I called out the minute  I spotted my all time rival and arch nemesis on his way back from his trip to the mammy market, I could barely contain my glee.

         He had a bunch of handouts tucked under one arm and held a black polythene bag in the other hand. Benjamin shot me an irritated look before going back to the discussion he was having with a girl who had sidled up beside him, matching his step and engaging him. She giggled with every word he seemed to say. Floozy.

        “Who is that one now?” I muttered, surprising myself with the amount of irritation I felt.

         “Relax, your baby boy is all yours” I heard Miriam teased.

         “When it’s not that you’re mad ma” I countered, turning to face my accuser. Seeing my distraction, Kehinde snatched the rest of the awara from my hand, leather, toothpick and all. 

         We were all seated outside the main lecture theatre at the science faculty, looking nothing like our 400L selves should look. The rush had started, less than a semester to be officially done with uni seemed to bring out all the shadowy parts of my self, speaking of which, I noticed Benjamin had resumed walking towards where we sat.

         “What are you talking about?” Benjamin demanded coming up me. I stared up at him sweetly, this was too good an opportunity to pass up.

         “Dumb, Dumber” He called out in greeting, smirking at both Kehinde and Miriam. Miriam Ignored him whereas Kenny flipped him the bird, before going back to her awara.

         “Haven’t you seen the supervisor list?” I asked, pulling his attention back just as Kehinde began to cough.

         “Pele, Aljonu. It’s your evil thoughts that are chocking you. Here, drink water” He offered, providing a bottle of water from his polythene bag. Kehinde avoided his offer while Miriam slapped her back, cooing gently.

         “How…*cough, cough*…do I *cough*… know it’s not poisoned?” She argued mid choke. She was perfectly relentless.

         “Take jare!” He ordered. She eventually conceded and accepted.

         “It’s out? Where is it?” He asked returning his attention to me. We were close enough that I had to lean back just to look at him. There were some who would call Benjamin handsome. It had something to do with the symmetry of his face and the impressive beard, and maybe even his extremely full, dark lashes, but I certainly wasn’t part of that ‘some’.

         “You can figure out that part yourself na” I shot back, drawing my attention back to the present. He paused for an uncomfortably long minute regarding me until I had to look away.

         “Upstairs, departmental notice board” I answered, giving in

         “Alright, you’re coming with me” He announced to no one in particular, pulling me along like it was an already done deal.

         “Wait why? You put juju for mouth?” I argued, pulling away.

         “Ladi! Check your phone!” Miriam yelled! I turned around to see Miriam and Kehinde whispering and giggling conspiratorially.

         My phone lit up with a text notification that read ‘Missionary so that you can keep looking in his eyes while you both argue.’

         “What did she send? Let me see” Benjamin  pushed, leaning in to view my scream. My heart jumped in my throat and I scrambled to put my phone away.

         “Jesus! It’s none of your business. Aproko” I shot back, feeling my face getting hot all of a sudden. 

         “You’re being weird, but that’s not new, it’s like saying the sky is blue”

         “Oh my God soooooo funny” I deadpanned.

         “You know it is baby” He answered easily.

         “I doubt you’d want to miss my face when I find out”

         “Nah, I think you just need me there to hold your hand. It’s alright, you can admit it”

          He didn’t respond, but instead resumed pulling me along by my elbows; I gave in easier this time. We both marched up the stairs; him pulling, me following along, ignoring everyone else as we moved. I ignored the tingling I felt at this point.

       Neither of us said anything until we got to the floor and found ourselves right in front of the notice board. The initial crowed had thinned out leaving only one or two people loitering about, but they either ignored us or didn’t care that we were there.

I pointed out his name in the group of students with the attached supervisor and watched his face fall.

         “Told you, I might hate you, but your village people definitely hate you more” I reiterated, but somehow, it had none of the devious glee from before.

Commentary: "I hate you, but your village people hate you more" 😅♥️ This is unique. Over to the Judges.

JUDGES REVIEW

JUDGE NADIA SULAIMAN

First off, I'm not sure that this story was on theme. I stand to be corrected. Secondly, please work on your punctuations. You write well to some extent; you know how to use your words and construct your imagery, but the errors in punctuations of your dialogue kinda ruined your steeze there. Work on this please.

Also, I picked up something in your work that I don't want to see again in the next stage.

Where you said:

“How…*cough, cough*…do I *cough*… know it’s not poisoned?” She argued mid choke. She was perfectly relentless.

Don't try this thing again o.

It's not done in writing. You could have written this scene without inserting the asterisked ‘cough cough’ into your work. It just made it messy. For example:

“How–How do I—” she started choking on her own words, relentlessly trying to force out the rest of her argument through a coughing fit, “How do I know it's not poisoned?”

We still get the same picture. She's choking while talking. Please let's be guided. Next.

JUDGE OLAITAN DAVIS

You are not exactly wordsmithing.

Better luck next time.

JUDGE NINA OGBEIDE

A subtle reminder that this is a competition and not a play ground.

JUDGE UMAR HASAN

Wordsmith, I'm sorry, but your words didn't exactly word. You dig?

JUDGE GIWA FALADE

Are you scared of using full stop at the end of your dialogue? Or is it perhaps missing from your keyboard?

You definitely like Question Marks and Exclamations though.

Commentary: Sooo, let's see our next contestant. 😊❤️

029 Medusa

Prompt: "I hate you, but..."

Story: The Artist's Muse

“I hate you, but…” Ore stared at her phone. She was barely audible as the thoughts that swarmed her mind were louder than her voice. She threw her blackberry phone at the wall opposite her, the screen smashed to pieces. She knew oh-so-well that if she had finished that sentence, then her two-year long ‘healing process’ was nothing but a waste of time.

She moved her chair further away from the phone, like it would cause some allergic reaction. The swarms of thoughts were replaced with one question, “Why him?’.

Ore was a celebrity, who would go out of her way to look good, then purposely say ‘I’m so insecure about myself’, to receive compliments from her fans. She did this every time, until someone finally beat her to it, ‘You’re so insecure about yourself’. She never realized how different ‘I’m insecure’ was to ‘You’re insecure’.

“You’re a fool to believe I loved you!” She looked around; empty. No one was there except the silent silhouette behind the counter. But the voices in her head persisted, “Delusional freak.”

Tears welled up her eyes, she kept scratching her head, as if to kill that familiar voice. “Jesus Christ, Ore.” A muffled sound came from a chubby figure.

“Ore.” The person called again.

The figure finally took a bottled water and poured it all over Ore’s face, thankfully, this made Ore snap out of it, and look at her best friend, Chioma.

Chioma quickly gave Ore some serviette, and signaled to the bartender to give them their privacy. “Have you finally gone mad?” Chioma raised her voice.

Ore simply looked out of the window, not wanting to see the disappointed look on Chioma’s face. She didn’t even notice that Chioma had arrived. “I can’t keep letting you ruin your life like this, this has been going on for two years now. It honestly hurts me to see you like this.”

Again, no answer from Ore.

Chioma knew if she said the next words, she might lose her friendship forever, but it was either that or letting Ore lose herself. “Who the fuck is Jola?”

23/04/2006

If confidence was a person, it would be Oreoluwa Davies. You wouldn’t expect less from an amateur model, who landed her first modelling gig with a famous painter, that ended up becoming her boyfriend.

“Why do you only paint me?” The question had nagged at Ore, whenever she’d go to Jola’s house or studio, she’d always see paintings of herself, and no one else; Even his famous pieces were nowhere to be found.

A golden streak of light streamed through the curtains, as they both laid on Jola’s bed, facing each other. “It’s like asking why a bird flies or why the sun shines; dumb right? What you don’t get, Ore, is that I was made to paint you, you belong on my canvas, I’m just a mere story teller, but you… You’re the story itself, and it’s my duty to tell the story.”

Ore pulls the duvet over her face, trying to hide her blushing face from Jola. This wasn’t the first time Jola had said something like this, he always had his way with words. “If you knew you were a story teller, why didn’t you just pick a more direct means of storytelling, like poetry, isn’t that how you toasted me sef?”

This made Jola chuckle, as he caressed her cheeks, “To me, Art is the best means of storytelling, every good piece of art has a story to tell, but if you, the story, wants to be told through poetry, I’ll have no choice but to become a poet for you, my love.’

He kissed her neck, nibbling at a spot, then moved up her jaw, and left a gentle kiss on her lips. “I just got an inspiration.” He quickly stood up, grabbed his drawing pad, and started sketching, leaving Ore smiling in awe.

If only this feeling had lasted longer than a year… Did it even exist? Maybe Ore was delusional, thinking there was something more between them. Perhaps she was nothing but his muse, and he the artist. All artists eventually get bored of their muse some day and simply… leave.

Present Day (16/09/2009)

She should hate him, want nothing to do with him, so why did she spend half a million to get an invite to an art exhibition Jola was hosting? For all she knew, the Facebook news could’ve been a scam. Why would Jola suddenly reappear after disappearing?

“Are you sure about this.” Chioma asked yet again, placing her hands on Ore’s lap. Sincerity flooded her eyes. Ore nodded, giving her a reassuring smile before exiting the car.

Closure, that’s what she wanted, but deep down she knew closure was nothing, this was just a chance to see Jola again. She entered the building with a façade as strong as steel, but every stride she took, broke the façade, bit by bit.

Stepping into the main room, her breath caught in her throat. Every angle she turned her head towards - including the ceiling and the floor she was walking on - she saw a three-year younger reflection of herself.

Her eyes spotted the smallest frame in a corner where framed paintings were hung, it was the drawing he made when she asked why he only painted her. It was also the only one with words. Sadly, she couldn’t tell what the foreign words meant.

“Every bit of love that I possess within me, all of it, is just for you.” That voice, engraved in her head like a tattoo, and this time it isn’t some obnoxious sound in her head, it was real. “That’s what the words meant, it’s Italian.”

Without hesitation, she hugged Jola. It didn’t matter if she was supposed to be angry at him, or push him away and curse him, all that mattered was that she was hugging him tight and he was hugging her tighter.

Commentary: I go love oo. 😅♥️ Are the Judges sailing or sinking this ship?

JUDGES REVIEW

JUDGE NADIA SULAIMAN

Not a bad story. Occasionally, I liked the writer's tone, but in general, this story didn't mean too much to me.

JUDGE OLAITAN DAVIS

My confusion knows no bounds, or maybe it is because I'm tired? I honestly don't know.
Better luck next time, Medusa.

JUDGE NINA OGBEIDE

I was lost all through.

JUDGE UMAR HASSAN

Um the story would have been better if your plot was strong; it wasn't. There's so much room for improvement, ya daodi?

JUDGE GIWA FALADE

You have potential and your story is actually not bad.

Commentary: Not bad. I'm eager to see our last story for the prompt. Oya oo 😏

030 Homa

Prompt: "I hate you, but..."

Story: Petals of Love

“I hate you, but I can't say how much I do.” A  surge of emotions and conflicting thoughts ran through my mind as I heard my name ‘Adebowale’. I turned to face her smirking expression.

She observed “I never knew you were such a great dancer,” I reduced the television’s volume before I spoke, “Was that a compliment or ridicule?” I demanded, my arms over my chest. I also have a problem, I have never failed to stir up a fight between Wendy and me.

“Whichever you take it to be”, she replied. Out of embarrassment, I looked away avoiding eye contact. Silence rented the air showing my helplessness. I dance in the comfort of my home, not the public.

Wendy is my colleague at work. Some devils wear good souls however Wendy's isn't the same. I wonder what mission she is on now. Why has our Boss sent her to my house to celebrate the new year festival? He is indirectly hooking us up and that won't work.

"Can we go eat?" I asked after a while, my fingers soaked in my hair. "Of course," she replied. We headed to the kitchen and I assisted her in carrying the dishes upstairs. Back on the rooftop, we sat down on the mat we used earlier. She opened the food and the breath-taking aroma flowed into my nostrils. My mouth turned watery instantly.

“This is fantastic," I said, forgetting all the shame and scooping several spoons of the delicious noodles in my mouth. “Enjoying it?" Wendy asked, smiling for no reason in particular. I decided to ignore her and we both ate in silence.

"Thank you," I said, dropping the fork I used to eat. I stared at Wendy who seemed extremely attractive to me. She was nice and caring. I admired the way she ate, so clean, and her lips were pouted.

It was midnight, and as the fireworks went off, we were standing on the rooftop, looking out at the lights of the city. As the last few seconds of the year counted down, Wendy held my left hand "Adebowale," she called my name in a seductive tone which sent a shiver down my spine.

I looked up at her, staring at me "I've never felt like this before," she admitted. "Me neither," I replied. Is she insane? No, I am the one, I have to stop her. In the final second of the year, I don't know what's wrong with me and why I am feeling this way. My breath seized after her confession.

She leaned towards me and I responded by kissing her, as the fireworks lit up the sky and the crowd below cheered, what happened next was completely unexpected.

A rogue firework went astray, and it soared right towards the rooftop where I stood with Wendy. At the last second, before I could process anything. I threw myself right in front of Wendy, shielding her from the explosion. The fireworks bursted and filled the air with smoke and sparks.

When the dust settled, I was on the ground, with a singed sleeve and a few singed hairs, but I was otherwise okay. She remained unharmed.

Wendy locked her eyes onto mine with amazement. "You just saved my life," she stated while tears brimmed her eyes.

"I couldn't let anything happen to you," I retorted. And in that moment, I realized it was as if the time was frozen, and neither of us knew what to say. I just kept staring into her beautiful dark eyes.

Finally, she spoke. "I think I'm falling in love with you," she revealed slowly, her expression turning pale. I looked speechless, but my eyes betrayed me. "I feel the same way," I accepted but I covered my mouth immediately shocked.

A little awkwardly, she asked, "Can I kiss you?" My eyes lightened up, and I nodded. As the first seconds of the new year ticked by, my lips clapped with Wendy's luscious lip under the stars. The crowd below cheered, as the beginning of a new year struck.

After the kiss, she pulled me in for a tight hug. "Do you have any feelings for me beforehand?" She asked and I released my body from her.

"No" I reply honestly, “You?" I asked curious. "Yeah, kind of," Wendy replied, smiling as if she just won the lottery. "Why didn't you tell me?" I asked. "We always ended up fighting so I never had the courage. I always refer to you as the ‘angry tiger’ behind your back" she confessed.

"Angry tiger?" I asked, surprised. "Yes, you will forever be my angry tiger," she said while I looked away shyly. "I wanted to confirm if you are like this… you know a sweet person or you are the same as you are in the office but you proved me wrong seriously" she added.

“Really?” I asked. "That's why I told our Boss to set this up for me" she grunted looking over her shoulders. A light gasp escaped my mouth “God! So you planned all this just to know me well?" I questioned. "A woman will go to any length to get what she wants," Wendy cooed. "Okay. Why don't we join the crowd outside to enjoy the new year?" I suggested. 

"Why not?" She stood up quickly and stretched her hands at me. "Let's go,” she complied quickly, holding my hand, and for a second, I felt as if the world only revolved around us. I'm in love with this woman!

Never count yourself out of love. Love can find you anywhere whether you want it or not.

Commentary: Screaming, awwnn. Let me shift small, our Judges want to talk now.

JUDGES REVIEW

JUDGE NADIA SULAIMAN

It might seem crazy what I'm about to say…

Hear me out...

But, I saw potential in this.

You're not a bad writer, Homa. You have the vision, you have a story to tell… you just don't know how to tell it.

To begin with, it was difficult to understand some parts of the dialogue because I wasn't even sure who was speaking. In the beginning for example, where you said:

She observed “I never knew you were such a great dancer,” I reduced the television’s volume before I spoke, “Was that a compliment or ridicule?” I demanded, my arms over my chest. I also have a problem, I have never failed to stir up a fight between Wendy and me.

This paragraph was very messy.

Maybe start by spacing your dialogues if it's different people talking. Your MC and Wendy did not need to struggle in the same paragraph to speak, you could have just started off your main character's dialogue in the next line.

Also, there were a lot of questions I could ask in your work. For example, why did they even hate each other in the past? There was no specific reason given. And how they could move past all their hate and fall in love, from where to where?

These are loopholes you need to fix. I'd recommend something. When you are writing, ask yourself certain questions about the actions and thoughts of your characters. Like, why are they doing what they are doing? Why are they thinking this way, what is causing it? These are the things that help you create characters that are not one dimensional.

Again, like I told someone in one of their entries, be careful to not alienate the tone of your characters. I started reading your work thinking your main character was a woman and not a man. It doesn't matter that he is dancing to himself, there are ways that you can make things like that clear to your readers that they're witnessing a man and not a woman, even without outrightly saying it. If you're writing a man, be careful to make him sound like one. And if a woman, same. A child, do the same thing too. An adult, an old person, I need to know these things through the way you write them. Do you understand?

You have a story to tell. Just be careful to make sure you don't ruin it next time.

JUDGE OLAITAN DAVIS

Absolutely no words.
Better luck next time, Homa.

JUDGE NINA OGBEIDE

Is it possible for someone's fingers to be soaked in the hair?? And “God abeg” for the whole story. I don't understand anything.

JUDGE UMAR HASSAN

One question, and that's all I'll say in this review: do you read romance at all?

JUDGE GIWA FALADE

Why are you not spacing your dialogues out? You shouldn't write two different people In the same paragraph?

Commentary: Our Judges are IDANS and their reviews are wise and educating. 😌♥️

A/N :
I love you, but let the single breathe! Small Light Romance, our contestants want to finish us with love. They did not come to play and neither did our Judges. This is why you can't miss the Judges Verdict tomorrow night, happening live at the main crib. See you there.

But before I close this page, where are the fandoms? Start rooting for your favourite contestants. We have no clue of what our Judges has decided and can only guess for now.

The contestants are all so talented, but there can only be one Project Pen Master.

Hehehe.