The Headphones

Reads 5
Votes 0
Parts 1
Time 15m

Reads 5
Votes 0
Parts 1
Time 15m

Councillor Habton is late for a committee meeting. When she does arrive, her appearance with the titular headphones (which she refuses to remove) incites anger, both at her and at politicians more broadly, sparking a national debate about how much we can expect of someone working in the public sector and what they owe to us and their loved ones.
    
    This short story takes inspiration from Nathaniel Hawthorne and hopes to tempt those seeking light horror with some deeper questions behind it. 
    
    ---
    
    If you're interested... BEHIND THE SCENES!
    
    Writing is a process, and in this work I've tried to improve my writing in two ways:
    
    (1) Limiting extraneous plotlines - My stories often have a lot of background research that I try to wedge into them. I wanted this one to be self-contained and short, to see if I could focus the plot and still satisfy the reader; and
    (2) Giving myself a short window to work within, to see if I can write quickly - I tend to go back over the same pieces of a story over and over again, sometimes getting stuck for hours on one paragraph. I wrote this in about four hours over one morning.
    
    Feedback is always welcome!All Rights Reserved

body british council debate hawthorne headphones horror mystery politicians politics public scandal shortstory

Table of contents

The Headphones
Wed, Oct 23, 2024

Councillor Habton is late for a committee meeting. When she does arrive, her appearance with the titular headphones (which she refuses to remove) incites anger, both at her and at politicians more broadly, sparking a national debate about how much we can expect of someone working in the public sector and what they owe to us and their loved ones.
    
    This short story takes inspiration from Nathaniel Hawthorne and hopes to tempt those seeking light horror with some deeper questions behind it. 
    
    ---
    
    If you're interested... BEHIND THE SCENES!
    
    Writing is a process, and in this work I've tried to improve my writing in two ways:
    
    (1) Limiting extraneous plotlines - My stories often have a lot of background research that I try to wedge into them. I wanted this one to be self-contained and short, to see if I could focus the plot and still satisfy the reader; and
    (2) Giving myself a short window to work within, to see if I can write quickly - I tend to go back over the same pieces of a story over and over again, sometimes getting stuck for hours on one paragraph. I wrote this in about four hours over one morning.
    
    Feedback is always welcome!

1 part