I’M EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE that I am no longer simply a bridesmaid, but now a bride. “But, Audrey,” you’re likely thinking, “you’ve been married a long time.” Oh, yes, I have. However, I recently placed first in a writing competition, making me a “bride” after numerous past honorable mentions and second placings as a “bridesmaid.”
This past Saturday I traveled to Jack Pines Resort near Park Rapids in far northern Minnesota to collect my cash prize and to read my winning short story, “Ingrid’s Dream.” It is the story of a writer who plans to build a writer’s shed with wood salvaged from the barn on the homestead of her great grandparents. Conflict arises when her husband objects.
I’m not giving away the ending to this 564-word short story. You’ll have to buy a copy of Lyrics, Talking Stick #35 published by the nonprofit Jack Pine Writers’ Bloc (no connection to the resort). But I will share that, even though I didn’t realize it while writing this piece back in February, real-life events subconsciously influenced my story. Operation Metro Surge, the federal immigration enforcement effort in Minnesota, was in full-on mode when I crafted “Ingrid’s Dream.” And Ingrid’s great grandparents were Norwegian immigrants with hopes and dreams.
This story is in no way a political statement. Those are not allowed in the Talking Stick competition. But it touches on immigration, reminding all of us that, unless we are Native or the descendants of slaves, we are, or are of, immigrants.
To read Ingrid’s story aloud to an appreciative audience of Minnesota writers and others on Saturday felt simultaneously humbling and empowering. I was honored to have my work initially selected by the Talking Stick editorial team for prize consideration and then chosen by Minnesota author Jeanne Cooney for the top fiction prize. Cooney writes the Hot Dish Heaven mysteries and the It’s Murder series.
Lyrics, Talking Stick #35 features the work of 68 writers who are either Minnesotans or who have a strong connection to our state. That’s an entry requirement. In this year’s contest, 132 writers submitted 330 entries with 71 poems, 18 creative nonfiction stories, 15 fiction stories and 17 creative twist stories chosen for publication.
I enter in all four categories, a bit of an anomaly among writers. My writing has published for nearly 20 consecutive years in the Talking Stick anthology. In addition to the fictional “Ingrid’s Dream,” my creative nonfiction entries, “About That Hole in the Wall” and “Unlocking Silence,” made it into this year’s book. One is about an embarrassing cardboard wall covering a hole in my dining room and the other about an aged accordion gifted from an aunt to her nephew.
While listening to other writers read their works at Jack Pines Resort, I was once again reminded of the incredible creative talent rooted in Minnesota. This includes recognizable names like Nicole Borg, Charmaine Pappas Donovan, Laura L. Hansen, Margaret Hasse, Mike Lein, Niomi Rohn Phillips and more along with Brenda Charpentier, a newbie to the competition and first place winner in creative nonfiction. Like me, she comes to creative writing with a journalism background as does another writer, Bernadette Hondl Thomasy, originally from Owatonna and with a poem and creative nonfiction story published in Lyrics, Talking Stick #35.
My admiration of Minnesota writers was reinforced after the reading when some of us socialized and talked shop afterwards over dinner. Writing is such a solitary pursuit. But in gathering with others who love the craft, I felt a surge of energy, of validation, of gratitude that I can do what I love. Write.
FYI: Lyrics, Talking Stick #35 is available for purchase online.
Commentary: 100 days in & he’s talking dolls May 2, 2025
Tags: America, fiction, opinion, political commentary, short story, The Land of Plenty, thoughts
ONCE UPON A TIME in The Land of Plenty there lived a ruler who, once he took office, commenced to ruthlessly flaunt his authority (which fits, given his self-proclaimed ruler status). He really didn’t care what he said or did as long as it fit his agenda to make his kingdom—more precisely himself—great. The forceful leader promised that the “golden age” of Acirema would start on the day he assumed power. Perhaps he was referencing the opulent gold décor in his redecorated palace office.
The ruler gathered his team of loyalists and followers, assuring them that as long as they followed his plans, his instructions, his actions, his orders, he would reward them, or at least keep them out of the dungeon. Threats and intimidation have a way of instilling self-preservation and obedience.
But not everyone much cared for the self-centered leader or his policies. They never fell under his spell, his control. They were willing to stand up to him, question him, even at the risk of raising his ire. Or worse. They began to rise up and challenge him and his underlings. That didn’t sit well with the ruler. I mean, how would you like the courts calling you out, gray-haired ladies protesting, students criticizing you in schoolyards? Nope, can’t have that happening in Acirema. Never mind that The Land of Plenty was a land of freedom, of laws, of due process, of balanced powers. Or at least it was before the authoritarian ruler took over.
A JOB REVIEW 100 DAYS IN
And so, 100 days into his reign, the ruler underwent a job review of sorts. Job reviews held no sway with him, although he should have understood their importance based on his previous experiences as a land baron who banished many a worker. Whatever. He was above everyone. All of them. He didn’t believe multiple reports of his declining popularity. He was doing a great job, he proclaimed. Great! And that was that. Don’t tell him otherwise for fear of being branded a liar. Or worse, banished from the kingdom. Just nod and agree that everything is going great and the ruler would call you a friend rather than a foe.
But you can only push people so far before they break and stop believing you, if they ever did in the first place. And many in the kingdom never did take this man at his word. He had a habit of distorting the truth, in other words lying. Now name-calling is not nice. But truth is truth.
BULLYING AND BLAMING
Many in the kingdom were weary of the bullying coming from the palace. No one likes a bully. No one likes decrees that harm, rather than help, the kingdom. When the ruler levied new taxes on goods, promising to enrich his subjects, many did not believe him. (It should be noted that some—too many—still believed him.) He urged patience and calm as anger rose both inside and outside the kingdom. The ruler had upset the marketplace apple cart. Yet, he would hear none of the verbal resistance. As was his usual reaction, he blamed the previous overseer of The Land of Plenty for the rising costs of food and for marketplace shortages. “It was him, not me!” the ruler shouted. He used that blame tactic often.
2 DOLLS, 30 DOLLS, 900 DOLLS
But then he said something that deeply upset his subjects. “Well, maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls,” the ruler responded when asked about rising prices and marketplace shortages. Outrage ensued. Thirty dolls? It was then that the people of the kingdom realized how disconnected the leader was from reality. Many of them now lived in poverty due to his policies. Their children had no dolls, unless you counted those crafted from corn cobs. The ruler’s grandchildren, however, had an entire playroom filled with imported dolls. Lovely dolls. Thirty times thirty. That’s 900 if you’re counting.
By this time the citizens of The Land of Plenty were counting only one thing—the number of days until they could vote in a new leader of Acirema. If that would even be an option. If they weren’t all banished. If they still had a country.
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NOTE: While this is a fictional story, it is rooted in truth. Feel free to leave a comment, understanding that I moderate all comments on this, my personal blog.
© Copyright 2025 Audrey Kletscher Helbling