Word for Word: Handful

I’m in a writers’ group that meets on Zoom, though before the pandemic we met in person. Every week, we do a writing prompt: someone gives a page number, and our organizer picks a word from a huge dictionary. We write for five minutes. In this example, the word is: handful.

Soaked from my carriage journey, I entered the parlor. A crackling fire in the hearth drew me toward it. A velvet armchair looked enticing, but after I crossed the room and was about to sit down and rest my weary bones, I saw a kitten curled up in the chair. I scooped the kitten up and held a handful of purring softness.

I sank into the chair, and the kitten curled up in my lap as though we were old friends, not strangers who just met. I closed my eyes and listened to the feline’s rumbling purr and the crackle, hiss, and pop from the fireplace.

I’ve self-published a few books (including The Rowanwick Witches, which includes a talking cat) that are available on Amazon.com. Here’s where I’ve been published this year:

• My poem “Bonsai Tree” in the webzine Grim & Gilded, September 2022 issue.