![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Title: The Second Stain: Some Recent Colonial Developments
Author: gardnerhill
Word Count: 60
Rating: G
Warning:
Summary: The letter.
***
To the Queen of England and her ministers:
How can your hearts let you sleep at night – with the blood of children, old people and women dripping from our bales of tea and cotton? Would that I could show you the British soldiers standing over pits full of tiny bodies, make you hear their mothers' cries!
Arjun, Rajah of Nizamabad
Author: gardnerhill
Word Count: 60
Rating: G
Warning:
Summary: The letter.
***
To the Queen of England and her ministers:
How can your hearts let you sleep at night – with the blood of children, old people and women dripping from our bales of tea and cotton? Would that I could show you the British soldiers standing over pits full of tiny bodies, make you hear their mothers' cries!
Arjun, Rajah of Nizamabad
The Second Stain: Not so Inscrutable
Jan. 29th, 2017 11:18 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Rating: G
Warning: Lady Hilda Trelawney Hope/Mme. Henri Fournaye
Author's Note: Let's give our murderer a bit more consideration.
“My fate was sealed, Hilda, the day you answered my letter.”
“We were girls, Marie.”
“Henri! Bastard!”
“We’ll have our happy ending. I’ve found someone to help.”
“That detective’s blind.”
“But his companion is less so. You’ll be declared insane, returned to France by boat for commitment.”
Marie smiled. “Sea voyages are always perilous.”
“I’ll perish conveniently. We’ll start anew.”
The Second Stain: Another Stain
Jan. 29th, 2017 09:50 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Canon Story: The Second Stain
Title: Another Stain (the serialisation of the Private Journal of Dr Watson)
Author:
thesmallhobbit
Rating: PG
Lestrade was still annoyed with his constable when he called round that evening. I reassured him it had been worth calling Holmes in, for the visit had proved of great importance, and then set about distracting him. Before long his humour was vastly improved, although I was left with the problem of how to explain the stain to Mrs Hudson.
Title: Another Stain (the serialisation of the Private Journal of Dr Watson)
Author:
Rating: PG
Lestrade was still annoyed with his constable when he called round that evening. I reassured him it had been worth calling Holmes in, for the visit had proved of great importance, and then set about distracting him. Before long his humour was vastly improved, although I was left with the problem of how to explain the stain to Mrs Hudson.
The Second Stain: A Hairy Situation
Jan. 29th, 2017 08:03 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Canon Story: The Second Stain
Title: A Hairy Situation
Author:
scfrankles
Rating: G
Author's Notes: “...Their most trivial action may mean volumes, or their most extraordinary conduct may depend upon a hairpin or a curling-tongs. Good morning, Watson.” “You are off?”
“Oh, the way you shot up the stairs to warn us!”
Mrs. Hudson regarded Holmes steadily. “I’d only put the curling-tongs down for a moment, sir. To let in your client.”
Holmes laughed. “It’s so amusing though. You starting a fire for once!”
“Holmes…” Watson was backing slowly towards the door. “That vein in Mrs. Hudson’s temple is throbbing again…”
Title: A Hairy Situation
Author:
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
Rating: G
Author's Notes: “...Their most trivial action may mean volumes, or their most extraordinary conduct may depend upon a hairpin or a curling-tongs. Good morning, Watson.” “You are off?”
“Oh, the way you shot up the stairs to warn us!”
Mrs. Hudson regarded Holmes steadily. “I’d only put the curling-tongs down for a moment, sir. To let in your client.”
Holmes laughed. “It’s so amusing though. You starting a fire for once!”
“Holmes…” Watson was backing slowly towards the door. “That vein in Mrs. Hudson’s temple is throbbing again…”
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Welcome once again to my poetry page!
I hope each week you will read Dr. Watson’s delightful narrative and then go on to write a poem related to it in some way. All forms of poetry are permitted, and further down the page there is a selection you might like to consider using over the coming weeks.
And here, courtesy of my housemaid Rachel, is this week’s suggested poem to read—a suggestion inspired by the themes and subjects in this week's story. Hopefully you will enjoy the poem, and perhaps it may give you some ideas for a poem of your own or allow you to look at Dr. Watson's story in a new way.
Scaffolding
By Seamus Heaney
Note from Rachel: It is hard to tell the strength or weakness of a marriage from the outside. But even if we are anxious to seem perfect and beyond reproach in the bloom of early love, in time we learn to trust one another with our weaknesses and flaws as well. I like to imagine that, had Lady Hilda found the courage to take her husband into her confidence rather than acceding to blackmail, she might have discovered that their relationship was strong enough to survive. Mrs. Hudson tells me that she believes Lady Hilda can still find that courage, and may yet confess the truth to her husband. My hope is that he will respond in terms as compassionate and loving as this poem.
Thank you so much to Rachel. And here is my suggested poetry form to try this week—a form we have not had before: the epistle.
poets.org states: Epistolary poems, from the Latin “epistula” for “letter," are, quite literally, poems that read as letters. As poems of direct address, they can be intimate and colloquial or formal and measured. The subject matter can range from philosophical investigation to a declaration of love to a list of errands, and epistles can take any form, from heroic couplets to free verse.
But you do not have to use that form. Any form of poetry is welcome this week—and every week! Here are a few suggestions for you:
221B verselet, abecedarian poetry, acrostic poetry, alexandrine, ballad, beeswing, blackout poetry, blues stanza, bref double, Burns stanza, call and response, chastushka, cinquain, circular poetry, clerihew, colour poems, concrete poetry, Cornish verse, curtal sonnet, diamante, doggerel, double dactyl, ekphrasis, elegiac couplet, elegiac stanza, elfje, englyn, epigram, epistle, epitaph, epulaeryu, Etheree, fable, Fib, florette, found poetry, free verse, ghazal, haiku, In Memoriam stanza, Italian sonnet, jueju, kennings poem, lanturne, limerick, line messaging, lyric poetry, mathnawī, micropoetry, mini-monoverse, musette, palindrome poetry, pantoum, Parallelismus Membrorum, poem cycle, quintilla, renga, riddle, rime couée, Schüttelreim, sedoka, septet, sestina, sonnet, tanka, tercet, terza rima, tongue twister poetry, triangular triplet, triolet, Tyburn, villanelle
Please leave all your poems inspired by The Second Stain in the comments on this post. I look forward to seeing them!
Warm regards,
Mrs. Hudson
I hope each week you will read Dr. Watson’s delightful narrative and then go on to write a poem related to it in some way. All forms of poetry are permitted, and further down the page there is a selection you might like to consider using over the coming weeks.
And here, courtesy of my housemaid Rachel, is this week’s suggested poem to read—a suggestion inspired by the themes and subjects in this week's story. Hopefully you will enjoy the poem, and perhaps it may give you some ideas for a poem of your own or allow you to look at Dr. Watson's story in a new way.
By Seamus Heaney
Note from Rachel: It is hard to tell the strength or weakness of a marriage from the outside. But even if we are anxious to seem perfect and beyond reproach in the bloom of early love, in time we learn to trust one another with our weaknesses and flaws as well. I like to imagine that, had Lady Hilda found the courage to take her husband into her confidence rather than acceding to blackmail, she might have discovered that their relationship was strong enough to survive. Mrs. Hudson tells me that she believes Lady Hilda can still find that courage, and may yet confess the truth to her husband. My hope is that he will respond in terms as compassionate and loving as this poem.
Thank you so much to Rachel. And here is my suggested poetry form to try this week—a form we have not had before: the epistle.
poets.org states: Epistolary poems, from the Latin “epistula” for “letter," are, quite literally, poems that read as letters. As poems of direct address, they can be intimate and colloquial or formal and measured. The subject matter can range from philosophical investigation to a declaration of love to a list of errands, and epistles can take any form, from heroic couplets to free verse.
But you do not have to use that form. Any form of poetry is welcome this week—and every week! Here are a few suggestions for you:
221B verselet, abecedarian poetry, acrostic poetry, alexandrine, ballad, beeswing, blackout poetry, blues stanza, bref double, Burns stanza, call and response, chastushka, cinquain, circular poetry, clerihew, colour poems, concrete poetry, Cornish verse, curtal sonnet, diamante, doggerel, double dactyl, ekphrasis, elegiac couplet, elegiac stanza, elfje, englyn, epigram, epistle, epitaph, epulaeryu, Etheree, fable, Fib, florette, found poetry, free verse, ghazal, haiku, In Memoriam stanza, Italian sonnet, jueju, kennings poem, lanturne, limerick, line messaging, lyric poetry, mathnawī, micropoetry, mini-monoverse, musette, palindrome poetry, pantoum, Parallelismus Membrorum, poem cycle, quintilla, renga, riddle, rime couée, Schüttelreim, sedoka, septet, sestina, sonnet, tanka, tercet, terza rima, tongue twister poetry, triangular triplet, triolet, Tyburn, villanelle
Please leave all your poems inspired by The Second Stain in the comments on this post. I look forward to seeing them!
Mrs. Hudson
Discussion Post: The Second Stain
Jan. 29th, 2017 08:01 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
This week, the canon story we’re looking at is The Second Stain and the chosen topic is Politics.
( Discussion continues... )
( Discussion continues... )
The Second Stain: Do I Hear Three?
Jan. 29th, 2017 12:23 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Title: The Second Stain: Do I Hear Three?
Author: gardnerhill
Word Count: 60
Rating: G
Warning: Graphic postulation. Also, H&W acting wildly out of character.
Summary: Dirty, dirty carpet.
***
There was indeed a second stain bedecking the drugget – which, with the stain on the woodwork, made three.
For I was so overcome with passion by my dear friend’s amazing deductions that I leapt on him whilst he lay magnificently sprawled across the ruined carpet mid-search, and our eagerness quite made up for our haste before Lestrade could come back.
Author: gardnerhill
Word Count: 60
Rating: G
Warning: Graphic postulation. Also, H&W acting wildly out of character.
Summary: Dirty, dirty carpet.
***
There was indeed a second stain bedecking the drugget – which, with the stain on the woodwork, made three.
For I was so overcome with passion by my dear friend’s amazing deductions that I leapt on him whilst he lay magnificently sprawled across the ruined carpet mid-search, and our eagerness quite made up for our haste before Lestrade could come back.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
This Sunday, 29th January, we'll be posting our 60 word ficlets for The Second Stain.
We begin our story with the Secretary for European Affairs and the Prime Minister himself sitting on the settee at Baker Street. A highly sensitive document has disappeared - can Holmes possibly retrieve it in time to avoid a terrible war..?
If you haven't tried 60 for 60 before, full information - including our schedule - can be found on our profile. But in essence: you read ACD's story and then you write a 60 word story inspired by it! You don't have to post a story every week - just join in whenever you feel like it.
Each Sunday we will also have our weekly discussion post, where we discuss a topic inspired by the canon story. And there’s Mrs. Hudson's Poetry Page too - any poems written about this week’s story can be left as a comment on her post. Mrs. Hudson informs me we're trying a new poetry form this week: the epistle. And as always, her housemaid Rachel will be suggesting a poem for us to read, to give us added inspiration.
You can choose one activity, or have a go at everything. Or just come along and read the 60s! (And have a chat in the comments.) All options are absolutely fine.
Hope to see you on Sunday. But don’t worry if you can’t join us then - we stay open for posting and commenting all week!
We begin our story with the Secretary for European Affairs and the Prime Minister himself sitting on the settee at Baker Street. A highly sensitive document has disappeared - can Holmes possibly retrieve it in time to avoid a terrible war..?
If you haven't tried 60 for 60 before, full information - including our schedule - can be found on our profile. But in essence: you read ACD's story and then you write a 60 word story inspired by it! You don't have to post a story every week - just join in whenever you feel like it.
Each Sunday we will also have our weekly discussion post, where we discuss a topic inspired by the canon story. And there’s Mrs. Hudson's Poetry Page too - any poems written about this week’s story can be left as a comment on her post. Mrs. Hudson informs me we're trying a new poetry form this week: the epistle. And as always, her housemaid Rachel will be suggesting a poem for us to read, to give us added inspiration.
You can choose one activity, or have a go at everything. Or just come along and read the 60s! (And have a chat in the comments.) All options are absolutely fine.
Hope to see you on Sunday. But don’t worry if you can’t join us then - we stay open for posting and commenting all week!
The Second Stain: Advertisement
Nov. 1st, 2015 11:57 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Canon Story: The Second Stain
Title: Advertisement (as featured in the Marylebone Illustrated)
Author:
thesmallhobbit
Rating: G
For all your cleaning products you can do no better than call at Martin’s on Crawford Street. Amongst other items we stock Pears soap; Soapine, which will not injure hands nor fabric; and Dome boot polish, the tin with St Paul’s on the lid. We have a number of suitable agents for stain removal, including kerosene for removing blood stains.
Title: Advertisement (as featured in the Marylebone Illustrated)
Author:
Rating: G
For all your cleaning products you can do no better than call at Martin’s on Crawford Street. Amongst other items we stock Pears soap; Soapine, which will not injure hands nor fabric; and Dome boot polish, the tin with St Paul’s on the lid. We have a number of suitable agents for stain removal, including kerosene for removing blood stains.
The Second Stain: Mail
Nov. 1st, 2015 08:03 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Canon Story: The Second Stain
Title: Mail
Author:
scfrankles
Rating: G
Author's Notes: It has been written hurriedly… ...he has acted in an indiscreet and hot-headed manner. Always pause and think before sending…
Subject: Idiot Friends
Holmes,
next time you travel to Swansea, give me the drawer key first so I can retrieve my chequebook.
The laundry is refusing to relinquish my trousers.
Watson thrust the note at Billy.
“Send!”
Billy headed for the post office.
Watson sighed. Then scowled as he spotted the diagram of himself throttling Holmes.
“Damn. Forgot the attachment.”
[A/N: This 60 was partly inspired by
rachelindeed’s comments on the last DANC discussion.]
Title: Mail
Author:
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
Rating: G
Author's Notes: It has been written hurriedly… ...he has acted in an indiscreet and hot-headed manner. Always pause and think before sending…
Subject: Idiot Friends
Holmes,
next time you travel to Swansea, give me the drawer key first so I can retrieve my chequebook.
The laundry is refusing to relinquish my trousers.
Watson thrust the note at Billy.
“Send!”
Billy headed for the post office.
Watson sighed. Then scowled as he spotted the diagram of himself throttling Holmes.
“Damn. Forgot the attachment.”
[A/N: This 60 was partly inspired by
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Welcome once again to my poetry page!
I hope each week you will read Dr. Watson’s delightful narrative and then be inspired to write a poem related to it in some way. All forms of poetry are permitted, and further down the page there is a selection you might like to consider using over the coming weeks.
This week my featured form is the bref double.
( Definition and Example )
As always, this is simply something to consider for the future. Any form of poetry is welcome this week—and every week! Here are a few suggestions for you:
221B verselet, abecedarian poetry, acrostic poetry, alexandrine, beeswing, blackout poetry, blues stanza, bref double, call and response, chastushka, cinquain, circular poetry, clerihew, colour poems, concrete poetry, curtal sonnet, diamante, doggerel, double dactyl, ekphrasis, elegiac couplet, englyn, epigram, epulaeryu, fable, found poetry, ghazal, haiku, kennings poem, lanturne, limerick, lyric poetry, palindrome poetry, pantoum, poem cycle, renga, riddle, rime couée, Schüttelreim, sedoka, septet, sestina, sonnet, tanka, tercet, terza rima, tongue twister poetry, triolet, tyburn, villanelle
Please leave all your poems inspired by The Second Stain in the comments on this post. I look forward to seeing them!
Warm regards,
Mrs. Hudson
I hope each week you will read Dr. Watson’s delightful narrative and then be inspired to write a poem related to it in some way. All forms of poetry are permitted, and further down the page there is a selection you might like to consider using over the coming weeks.
This week my featured form is the bref double.
( Definition and Example )
As always, this is simply something to consider for the future. Any form of poetry is welcome this week—and every week! Here are a few suggestions for you:
221B verselet, abecedarian poetry, acrostic poetry, alexandrine, beeswing, blackout poetry, blues stanza, bref double, call and response, chastushka, cinquain, circular poetry, clerihew, colour poems, concrete poetry, curtal sonnet, diamante, doggerel, double dactyl, ekphrasis, elegiac couplet, englyn, epigram, epulaeryu, fable, found poetry, ghazal, haiku, kennings poem, lanturne, limerick, lyric poetry, palindrome poetry, pantoum, poem cycle, renga, riddle, rime couée, Schüttelreim, sedoka, septet, sestina, sonnet, tanka, tercet, terza rima, tongue twister poetry, triolet, tyburn, villanelle
Please leave all your poems inspired by The Second Stain in the comments on this post. I look forward to seeing them!
Mrs. Hudson
Canon Discussion: The Second Stain
Nov. 1st, 2015 08:01 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
This week we’re having a look at The Second Stain. I’ve typed up a few thoughts and questions to get the discussion going—please leave your own ideas in the comments!
( Discussion continues... )
( Discussion continues... )
The Second Stain: Security
Nov. 1st, 2015 01:34 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Title: The Second Stain: Security
Author: gardnerhill
Word Count: 60
Rating: G
Warning: None
Summary: Makes you wonder just how these guys got their trustworthy reputation.
***
“The potentate letter.” Holmes sighed. “Another beryl coronet.”
I shook my own head with my friend. “Agreed. Surrounded by the finest top-of-the-line security devices and measures Her Majesty can provide, the first instinct of the keeper of such precious items…”
“Is to take it home and lock it in one’s own little safe. As if burglars wouldn’t find that easier!”
Author: gardnerhill
Word Count: 60
Rating: G
Warning: None
Summary: Makes you wonder just how these guys got their trustworthy reputation.
***
“The potentate letter.” Holmes sighed. “Another beryl coronet.”
I shook my own head with my friend. “Agreed. Surrounded by the finest top-of-the-line security devices and measures Her Majesty can provide, the first instinct of the keeper of such precious items…”
“Is to take it home and lock it in one’s own little safe. As if burglars wouldn’t find that easier!”
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
This Sunday, 1st November, we'll be posting our 60 word ficlets for The Second Stain.
The Prime Minister and the Secretary for European Affairs have come to Baker Street in need of urgent assistance. A highly sensitive document has gone missing. Can Holmes find it in time to avert a possible war..?
If you haven't tried 60 for 60 before, full information - including our schedule - can be found on our profile. But in essence: you read ACD's story and then you write a 60 word story inspired by it! You don't have to post a story every week - just join in whenever you feel like it.
Each Sunday we will also have our weekly discussion post, and Mrs. Hudson's Poetry Page. Any poems inspired by this week’s story can be left as a comment on her post.
You can choose one activity, or have a go at everything. Or just come along and read the 60s! (And have a chat in the comments ^^) All options are absolutely fine.
Hope to see you on Sunday ^^
The Prime Minister and the Secretary for European Affairs have come to Baker Street in need of urgent assistance. A highly sensitive document has gone missing. Can Holmes find it in time to avert a possible war..?
If you haven't tried 60 for 60 before, full information - including our schedule - can be found on our profile. But in essence: you read ACD's story and then you write a 60 word story inspired by it! You don't have to post a story every week - just join in whenever you feel like it.
Each Sunday we will also have our weekly discussion post, and Mrs. Hudson's Poetry Page. Any poems inspired by this week’s story can be left as a comment on her post.
You can choose one activity, or have a go at everything. Or just come along and read the 60s! (And have a chat in the comments ^^) All options are absolutely fine.
Hope to see you on Sunday ^^
The Second Stain: Bulldog Features
Apr. 27th, 2014 05:10 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Canon Story: The Second Stain
Title: Bulldog Features
Author:
thesmallhobbit
Rating: G
A/N: I could say I was sorry, but that wouldn't be true.
“I see it’s bulldog features that I have now,” Lestrade remarked to me, as he read the draft of what was to be my latest submission to The Strand Magazine. “I suppose it’s an improvement on ferret like.”
“I know neither is accurate, but if I told the truth I would sound like Mouselet’s descriptions of Stanley Hopkins,” I replied.
Title: Bulldog Features
Author:
Rating: G
A/N: I could say I was sorry, but that wouldn't be true.
“I see it’s bulldog features that I have now,” Lestrade remarked to me, as he read the draft of what was to be my latest submission to The Strand Magazine. “I suppose it’s an improvement on ferret like.”
“I know neither is accurate, but if I told the truth I would sound like Mouselet’s descriptions of Stanley Hopkins,” I replied.
The Second Stain: Oberstein
Apr. 27th, 2014 05:07 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Canon Story: The Second Stain
Author:
thesmallhobbit
Rating: G
Oberstein
Missed out on this gold mine
He knew there would be another letter
Which would be even better
Author:
Rating: G
Oberstein
Missed out on this gold mine
He knew there would be another letter
Which would be even better
The Second Stain: Regrets
Apr. 27th, 2014 05:06 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
Canon Story: The Second Stain
Title: Regrets
Author:
thesmallhobbit
Rating: G
Lady Trelawney Hope tried without success to comfort her grieving sisters. Both had lost sons.
Through her tears the eldest sobbed “To think that one letter could lead to so much death. You should be grateful, Hilda, that you have no child to mourn.”
Lady Hope woke with a start, thankful that Eduardo Lucas had been killed by his wife.
Title: Regrets
Author:
Rating: G
Lady Trelawney Hope tried without success to comfort her grieving sisters. Both had lost sons.
Through her tears the eldest sobbed “To think that one letter could lead to so much death. You should be grateful, Hilda, that you have no child to mourn.”
Lady Hope woke with a start, thankful that Eduardo Lucas had been killed by his wife.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Canon Story: The Adventure of the Second Stain
Title: The Nameless Decade
Author:
vaysh
Rating: G
Words: 60
Author's Note: This drabble is set on the evening of 1 August 1914, when Germany declared war on Russia.
This Saturday evening, I go through my old notes. A slip of paper falls from the diary marked 1881 - 89. In my friend's unmistakable hand it has the Kaiser written on it. For twenty-six years I held on to this memento from Holmes' most distinguished case. Today, with Europe on the brink of war, his supposition seems like prophecy.
Title: The Nameless Decade
Author:
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
Rating: G
Words: 60
Author's Note: This drabble is set on the evening of 1 August 1914, when Germany declared war on Russia.
This Saturday evening, I go through my old notes. A slip of paper falls from the diary marked 1881 - 89. In my friend's unmistakable hand it has the Kaiser written on it. For twenty-six years I held on to this memento from Holmes' most distinguished case. Today, with Europe on the brink of war, his supposition seems like prophecy.