“The Edible Part (or The Bottom Half of a Cut-Up Strawberry)” was published by HAD on February 14, 2023.
Those submitting to the call on February 8th were tasked with recycling 50% of the material from an already published piece. I chose “Strawberry”. One of my favorite stories, one of the easiest and most fun to write, was published in 2021 by X-R-A-Y. (Here’s a link!)
“Strawberry” was an 1,800-word story about the loss of a man’s mind after the loss of his wife. He is contemplating suicide. But is distracted by a friend (Henry) who offers him strawberries. Not thinking straight, the man forgets he is allergic to strawberry seeds. A psychedelic experience begins he and Henry travel through a cycle of universes and lifetimes until he winds up back in his living room, and chooses life because the way he conducts himself every day is a testament to his late wife. He stays alive because he is already as close to her as he can be; because they are always together in spirit.
This original story (“Strawberry”) contained 220 lines (technically 221), so I chose the bottom 50%, the latter 110 lines (technically 110.5). Rearranged them by random lottery, picked one by one.
Candles were used, but there were no definite approaches of the spirit world.
I did eat a Delta 9 gummy and was just really trying not to focus on the fact that Earth is just a giant spaceship we are riding on. So this call for submissions (aka my favorite distraction) couldn’t have come at a better time. Thanks, Joshua.
The images below show some of the cutting process.
Loved the story in its original form and would especially like to read the reworked version. I read the HAD callout on twitter but didn't even think, silly me, to send anything. Yay! Congrats!