Friday Fictioneers – Knight’s Move

During November, I am participating in NaNoWriMo. I’m excited, but the challenge will take all my time and energy. Therefore, addicted though I am to Friday Fictioneers, I am unlikely to post anything until December. I shall miss you all, stories, comments and friendship! Don’t forget me!

Every week, Rochelle Wisoff-Fields (thank you, Rochelle!) hosts a flash fiction challenge, to write a complete story, based on a photoprompt, with a beginning, middle and end, in 100 words or less. Post it on your blog, and include the Photoprompt and Inlinkz (the blue frog) on your page. Link your story URL. Then the fun starts as you read other peoples’ stories and comment on them!

FF - Knights Move 181031

PHOTO PROMPT © Jeff Arnold

Knight’s Move

Susan and her coach, Tibor, had struggled all evening with the chess problem.

“Judit could solve this,” sighed Susan.

Tibor shrugged. “She’s in bed. Besides, she’s only five. Do you think she’s better than I am?”

“I’m only twelve…” said Susan, slyly, and let the sentence hang.

“Well, do whatever you want.”

“That was a lovely dream,” Judit murmured as Susan woke her.

Downstairs she looked at the chessboard. Her eyes sparkled. She reached out and moved a knight, then yawned and snuggled against her sister. Her thumb went into her mouth.

Tibor stared. Judit had solved the problem.

Genre: Historical Fiction

Word count: 99

Author’s note

Judit Polgar was the best female chess player of all time. She was an astonishing child prodigy, attaining Grandmaster ranking at an even younger age than Bobby Fischer had. She refused to play in women’s tournaments, holding that women were equal in intellect with men. She was eventually ranked within the top ten players in the world. She no longer plays competitive chess. Both Judit and her elder sister Susan (who also attained Grandmaster status) apparently enjoyed the discomfiture of male opponents who underestimated them…

52 thoughts on “Friday Fictioneers – Knight’s Move”

  2. An interesting bit of history Penny, thanks for sharing. I was not aware of them at all! Good luck with NaNoWriMo. I am attempting it again this year too, although half-heartedly, but will see how I get on. I managed to complete it last year, but it does take over the entire month!

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  6. I’ll be doing Nano, too… though unofficially. At least that way I can guarantee that this year my computer won’t be hit with a virus or hacked! I’ll be posting… just maybe little excerpts from what I’m writing that may/may not have anything to do with the prompt…hehe! See you in December, and Good Luck with NANO!

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  8. Oh! I loved this. Interestingly, it is not ALL that of a different ballpark from what I’d posted on this, though … well … perhaps it is … 😉 Still, I enjoyed this. Now, of course, I have to go check what that NaNo thingy is … (won’t be taking on anything at the moment but curious is as curious gets …). Good luck on your November adventure! Na’ama

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  10. good luck on this NaNoWriMo ( whatever it is)…the story is very fine!!! I loved the thumb going into her mouth and the secret of the dream…and by the way I did not know, that they make differences between woman and men in chess!! It make sense on sportive competitions where the physical body is crucial…

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    • Dear anie
      Thank you for reading and commenting. I felt it was important to include the dream as a symbol of Judit’s rich inner life.
      NaNoWriMo is a writing challenge to complete 50,000 words of a brand-new novel during the thirty days of November. I’ve written 5,773 words so far, which means I’m ahead of schedule, so I’m taking some time to read comments! Thanks for wishing me luck!
      With very best wishes
      Penny

      Liked by 1 person

      • Thank you for taking time to answer, and cross fingers that the words tumble down as easy as at the start of your challenge. Do you mean that there are differences in richness of inner lifes? I mean everybody dreams and everybody has a human body with similar functions…I just thought that the richness or quantity, or how ever to describe, is the same for everybody, just the experience and evaluation is different?

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  11. I have played chess for years, but I did not know about Judit and Susan. So the footnote clarified the story for me. I am always pleased when I learn some thing new. I hope the NaNoWriMo works out well for you.

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    • Dear Linda
      Thank you for reading and commenting. Both Susan and Judit rather enjoyed taking male players down a peg or two – and I’m sure that would have started in childhood. Yes, I could see Susan’s face too!
      With best wishes
      Penny

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    • Dear Dale
      Thank you for reading and commenting. I agree with you – kudos to Judit for refusing to accept second class status, and insisting on competing on level terms with men. She showed ’em what for!
      With best wishes
      Penny

      Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Anurag
      Thank you for reading and commenting. Small scale, personal history of this sort can be more enthralling than the grand sweep of warfare and conquest, I sometimes think.
      With best wishes
      Penny

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  15. I love how Judit almost absent-mindedly solves the problem, then snuggles up 🙂
    Reading other comments, in my opinion it didn’t need the explanatory note at all to make the story, that was just a bit of interesting background.

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  17. Dear Penny,

    Thank you for the explanation at the end. With or without it, I loved the story. You said so much in so few. The image of Judit solving the problem and then popping her thumb into her mouth spoke volumes. Although a prodigy, she was still a child. Made me smile.
    Best wishes in NaNoWriMo. You will be sorely missed by this Fairy Blog Mother.

    Shalom,

    Rochelle

    Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Rochelle
      Thank you for reading and commenting, and for wishing me good luck for NanNoWriMo. And how sweet of you to say you’ll miss me. Hopefully I’ll be back bright-eyed and bushy-tailed in December – although if the novel is going well I shall probably give it priority – you know the dilemma very well, I’m sure.
      And now it’s late. I must watch the news and then go to bed!
      With very best wishes
      Penny

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  20. She is certainly better than her older sister. Besides, that is what a talented person do. They see solution in an otherwise unsolvable situation.

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  24. A wonderful story, made even better when I discovered the story behind the story.

    I will miss you Penny. You always have such thoughtful, insightful comments to make. Best of luck on your NaNoWriMo project.

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  29. The moment I read the name ‘Judith’, I felt this was going to be about Judith Polgár and so it was. Nice one (and based on a real incident too).
    Good luck with NaNoWriMo. Like every year I thought about doing it. Maybe next year I might do it 😉

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