Twisting Color Association- ORANGE

[noodle]

Color is a powerful tool in writing. Proper description and hints at the coloring of settings and objects- and yes, even people- can set the scene with emotions that the writer wishes to convey. The proper combinations of colors can warn of impending disaster, show a character slipping into depression, or finish off a happy ending with a nice little bow.

The most common example of color association is black and white- black is often associated with night, darkness...evil, if you will. And on the opposite side of the spectrum, there is white. White is usually shown as being light, hope, and on the side of good.

So what is the purpose of this exercise series?

I want you to take a color that I give you...and twist it. I want you to take the common feeling of a color, weave it into your writing, and then shatter the preconception of what we thought it was. I want you to make an evil color good, and a good color evil. I want love to turn to hatred, and hatred to love.

...I'm sure you get the point.

RULES:​

The most important rule to remember is that there are no rules. The only thing you have to do is twist the association!

Post length- anything!

Setting, genre, style- anything!

Wanna write a poem? Sure. One sentence? Sure. A novel will be fine if that's what you wanna do.

Really, the only thing I ask is that you (a: twist the association and (b: tell me if you don't want me to give your writing a review.

orange

Today's color is: ORANGE

Orange is often associated with encouragement, adaptability, stimulation, attraction, plenty, and kindness.

Happy writing, folks!

divider by @Quincunx

 

[Shiri]

"I love a good fire and a blanket," Alfeo declared to his two traveling companions as they huddled near the lit fireplace. The wind outside could be heard whistling and moaning through the walls of the wooden lodge. "Reminds me of the days my mum used to read to me before the fire and serve me hot cocoa. She'd read me all sorts of stories; about castles, and pirates, and talking rabbits - not at the same time, mind you. What a great story that would have been, eh?" Alfeo asked. He had a knack for exuberance and talking about frivolous things. In long conversations it could drive a sane person mad.

"My mother wasn't so gifted," Marsha muttered from her seat across from his. She held her blanket tightly to herself, willing the fabric and the orange fire to chase the cold away faster. She glanced to the third person sprawled on a sofa. "How about you, you lump?"

"Nah. I never had a fireplace. I wouldn't even know how to start one," Liam replied, sounding slightly sore.

"A night of firsts then, isn't it?" Alfeo added with a boyish smile. "I'd never seen a ghost before tonight."

"It wasn't a ghost," Liam explained. "It was just a trick of the mind. We were cold out there and in a hurry, it was probably just a shadow that we saw."

"Yeaaah," Alfeo said slowly before shaking his head. "No, no! It was a ghost, I'm sure!" He stood up suddenly, nearly knocking the blanket off his shoulders. "We saw it," he reasoned while pulling the fabric. "We all saw it together. There's no way we were hallucinating the same thing at the same time. Something had to be out there!"

"Alfeo," Marsha sighed.

"I admit, I might be thinking about it all wrong," Alfeo started to pace. "Maybe it's less of a ghost and more of a spirity...thing. Like uh - like a bear or something else that walks on two legs on occasion. I can't really think of anything else like that around here. Is there another animal that walks on two legs?"

"Alfeo."

"Not now, Marsha," Alfeo dismissed. "I guess it could be a bird. A really big bird. Can emu live in the snow?"

"ALFEO! LIAM! The fire!" Marsha gestured at the other part of the room.

The two boys ceased their activities and faced the fireplace with a sudden spark of alertness. The fire had changed while they weren't looking. The flames took the form of a woman draped in bright orange light. But as its ruse was found out, the spirit began to shift from a warm orange to an icy white.

Marsha thought aloud, "The fire hasn't been warm, it's been..."

"Cold," Alfeo breathed. "Horribly cold. Oh boy."

 

[PoetLore]

The dining room looked so inviting in the lovely burnt pumpkin paint she'd chosen. Standing back and looking at it from the front door it just seemed to pull her back to that room in the most delightful way. One room was good, two would be spectacular, she thought suddenly and began pulling things off the wall in the living room to prepare for painting. After all, there were still four gallons of paint left and it was expensive. Waste not want not, wasn't that what everyone always said? besides this room was in need of new paint as well.

A few hours later, with the help of the nifty constant flow paint roller that attached to the paint bucket, she had the entire room covered in the glorious color. Smiling she peeked at the foyer and went to work moving things off the wall there as well and kept on painting. Once she finished the foyer though the paint was getting low, and she thought maybe she should save a little for touch ups and color matching later.

Now standing at the front door and looking at the house, what had been a warm and inviting space at the back of the house almost seemed to have opened up and swallowed the whole level. That warmth was gone and was instead almost nauseating and repulsive, no it WAS nauseating and repulsive. "Oh no!" she squealed looking at the clock. He'd be home from work any minute....

"I need damage control..." She said as she raced through the house cleaning up the supplies and starting with the dining room began to hang pictures and make the color disappear as much as she could. It was a futile thing and she knew it, and she was only done with the dining room when he returned. She stood in the doorway between the dining room and living room with her hands folded nervously biting on her lip waiting for him to say something.

He stood there in shock just taking it all in, and thinking the dining room didn't look bad but there was just too much. His mind immediately thought of the time he'd eaten an entire pumpkin pie on a dare and had felt like he was going to explode. A pumpkin pie exploded in his house, that was the very thing. It amused him and he almost started laughing but his eyes fell on her and that look of terror. ""You've been busy.."

Tears spilled down her cheeks, "I'm so sorry...I loved the dining room and I thought well...it's perfect so I had more paint and ..."

He grinned and crossed the room to where she was standing, "I like the dining room too...we'll have something to eat in there and then go find another color for um...the rest...ok?" Something NOT orange.