Suparna Chakraborti
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decidetoread.bsky.social
Suparna Chakraborti
@decidetoread.bsky.social
260 followers 270 following 630 posts
Human, writer, SLP
*no AI*
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decidetoread.bsky.social
From an essay about hooks in stories - this clip seems to fit the mood for "welcome." #WIPSnips
#writingcommunity
When I pick up a book, I'm hoping to find a good introduction. I don't need to be thrown into the deep end of the plot. Use your words to immerse me (the reader) in the world you've created. Invite the reader into your story.
October 11, 2025 at 5:41 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (river)
#writingcommunity
When Santanu met Ganga, he did not realize she was the river goddess. She appeared to him as a beautiful young woman. King Santanu asked Ganga to marry him, and she agreed, with one stipulation. She would remain with him, as long as he spoke kindly, and did not question anything she did.
October 1, 2025 at 11:24 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (leave)
#writingcommunity
On the first night of our stay, my father made me leave the room while he told ghost stories to the boys. It was true that I had nightmares, when I watched horror movies at home, but I didn't appreciate being left out on this occasion, especially by my father.
September 24, 2025 at 1:58 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (skill)
Here's the introduction to a story I wrote last month.
#writingcimmunity
It was the rare child who could discern the differences in shading that distinguished stones of quality. Layla had the gift. Her skill was first noticed by the young village stone master. Year by year, the village master supervised Layla's growing skill. She showed Layla the uses and magical properties of the different stones they collected.
September 23, 2025 at 2:41 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
Here's a non-fiction clip this morning - I was struck by the number of words when I first read this fact, the Mahabharata has 1.8 million words 😳
#WIPSnips (difference) #writingcommunity
This sprawling epic contains such diverse subject matter because it was composed over a period of 600 years, by many different people. It references historical events, mixed with mythology, religion, and storytelling. The Mahabharata was composed in Sanskrit, as a poem containing 100,000 verses. It is ten times longer than the Iliad and the Odyssey combined. It contains 1.8 million words.
September 17, 2025 at 1:01 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (other)
#writingcommunity
The light faded quickly, and Tillie might have lost herself if the place was not so familiar. She was not accustomed to being outdoors in the darkness. When she reached her own door, it opened at once, and her father's hands pulled her inside. "Where did you go?" her sister asked. "We must be quiet," her mother said. "I must tell you what I saw." Tillie spoke in a rush, looking from one to the other of their faces.
September 15, 2025 at 1:57 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (outside)
From my flash/ speculative fiction story.
#writingcommunity
Even so, as the days passed, Tillie found it difficult to remain silent. She would have returned to the outer fence, to confirm the details of her first vision, except she now had a better sense of the danger. It did not help matters that Tillie's sister questioned her frequently, not only at home, but also outside where others might hear, asking why she had come back late that day.
September 10, 2025 at 2:21 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (ability)
#writingcommunity
From my flash/ fantasy story.
Every day during the stone keepers' stay in the village, Layla went out with the older woman, who encouraged her to ask questions. "Did you feel sorry to leave your family?" Layla asked. "I did miss my family at first," Myra said, "but I was glad for the chance to use my ability." "Did you ever consider doing something else?" "Not many people share our skill, Myra replied. "Nothing else I did would be as important." Layla reflected on this answer. It seemed to her, one skill might not outweigh the others.
September 8, 2025 at 6:05 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (coffee)
#writingcommunity
I seem to mention coffee constantly (not surprising).
I started meeting Monica for coffee once or twice a week. It felt less complicated than meeting for dinner, and we discovered that we both liked iced coffee after work during the summer.
September 4, 2025 at 7:04 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
Here's a clip from a flash fiction story I wrote this weekend (I was thinking about the beginning of school). #WIPSnips
#writingcommunity
Happy Labor Day in the US.
The class was scheduled to start at noon, and it was twenty minutes before the hour. I used the time to look over my schedule, debating the merits of a class change I had been contemplating. Just before the bell rang, I heard a voice beside me say, "Excuse me. Can I sit there?" Looking up, I saw a tall, slim girl standing in the aisle.
September 1, 2025 at 6:03 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (faith/ speculative mood)
#writingcommunity
Having watched the priests in action for several years, I would concede they had proved helpful in working with the people, While the people might obey us, they trusted the priests, who could channel the emotions of the reactive element into willing approval more readily than we could do. I appreciated their assistance in that respect, but their involvement had come at a price.
August 31, 2025 at 3:46 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#writingcommunity
The lookout remained on duty after the sun set, relying more on hearing than vision at that point. Birdsong welled up before the sun went down, and then faded, being replaced by noises of the night. Unexpectedly, a thick, sweet smell, as of flowers, wafted across the boat. It was heavier than the other forest smells, and lingered for a moment before it passed away.
August 26, 2025 at 10:00 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (reptile)
#writingcommunity
"What story should we have today?" the man would ask, taking requests. The boys' requests changed over time, but certain subjects remained perennially popular. "Snake! Snake!" he heard this evening. "All right," he said, beginning the story.
August 25, 2025 at 6:05 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (same)
#writingcommunity

From a flash fiction story I wrote earlier this summer
More and more children were turning up at the clinic just before their tenth birthday, or shortly after, showing the same tell-tale symptoms, the bluish tinge to the fingers, the shortness of breath, mild at first, growing worse. What was causing it, and what to do about it?
August 24, 2025 at 3:11 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
Here's a snip from an essay I wrote recently.
#writingcommunity
#WIPSnips (recent)
Recently, the movie "Jaws" celebrated its 50th anniversary. "Jaws" is a time capsule in many ways. Towards the beginning of the movie, there's a scene where the parents are sleeping late on a weekend morning, and the kids have gone outside to play on a metal swing set. When one of the boys comes inside with his hand bleeding, his father (Roy Scheider) says flatly, who told you to mess around with that? It made me laugh out loud, rewatching it, because I heard variations of that statement so many times growing up. Now picture those same kids, grown up into parents of Gen Z children, and they hover. They hover relentlessly. It's a remarkable transformation.
August 22, 2025 at 4:09 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips #writingcommunity
Her husband, Raj, was the parent who stayed at home. He was conscientious about following the routine he had set out for the children, but management of the household fell to Shalini, regardless of where she might be during the week. She had grown accustomed to the continuous flow of demands, and expected the frequent interruptions at work. The call that came through daily at 3pm differed from the other calls she might receive from home.
August 7, 2025 at 4:27 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (balance)
#writingcommunity
It had seemed like a good choice for dessert, until I returned to my car with the cake and noted that the heat of the day had not diminished, even though it was late in the evening. Keeping the cake upright on the seat distracted me more than it should have done, and I nearly missed seeing the car that swept past the stop sign in front of me.
July 29, 2025 at 6:34 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (inside)
#writingcommunity

From a piece I wrote earlier in the spring about a day I spent in the hospital with my aunt.
"You should stay here," my aunt told me, but I accompanied her to the room where she would have the radiation . "Don't come inside," she stated, when we reached the door. "Why not?" "You never know what will happen to you." "I don"t think the radiation lingers in the air," I said, but l obeyed her, stepping out, seeing that she was concerned about me.
July 24, 2025 at 5:43 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (search)
#writingcommunity
From the story I shared this week "The Snake in the Kitchen"
His uncle merely nodded and continued, "Well, we woke up one morning, and we couldn't find one of the men. He had simply vanished. We looked everywhere, there was really nowhere to go out in the jungle, and finally we had to give up looking."
July 19, 2025 at 3:41 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (together)
#writingcommunity
Vik was enthusuastic about meeting us and telling us all about his trip; then, on the afternoon in question, he called and told me he could not make it. "I heard summer 'flu was going around," he said. "I bet I caught it on the flight. Are you going to be OK without me?"
July 18, 2025 at 6:06 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (sister)
#writingcommunity
"Let's talk about something else," | said firmly, trying to change the subject. Rakhi could be tenacious about certain topics. She did not let the subject go. "I'm saying this for your own good," she continued. "What happened with that last girl you were dating?" "I think you know what happened," I said quietly, lowering my voice, quite sure my sister had told her all about it.
July 15, 2025 at 4:51 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (apparition) #writingcommunity
Instinctively, I stayed out of the way during the baby shower games. Looking out into the yard, I saw Monica standing outside, talking with someone. When I approached, I saw that it was a trick of the light, and she was standing by herself.
July 11, 2025 at 9:00 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (stripe)
I did "line" - from a different story than the recent ones.
#writingcommunity
Vidya was not like the other girls in her group. From the first occasion when I noticed her, she seemed to see me clearly, standing in the bus line, instead of looking beyond me as the others girls did.
July 7, 2025 at 5:18 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
My last #WIPSnips had "finger" in the next paragraph, so here is a little longer segment.
#writingcommunity
My focus was interrupted by Sydney's sister who came over to take the child from Monica. "Here we go," she said in a breezy tone, "I can take him." Lowering her voice, she said, in a hushed way, "You know, l used to imagine you and Teias having beautiful children." "Yes," Monica said, simply, giving her the child. I reached over to take her hand, and she laced her fingers through mine. "Its's all right," she told me, after Sydney's sister walked away, not removing her hand.. "It's really not." Not correcting me, but clarifying, she said, "It's worse sometimes when people don't say anything."
July 4, 2025 at 2:48 PM
decidetoread.bsky.social
#WIPSnips (yesterday/ vibe) #writingcommunity
My focus was interrupted by Sydney's sister who came over to take the child from Monica. "Here we go," she said in a breezy tone, "I can take him." Lowering her voice, she said, in a hushed way, "You know, l used to imagine you and Tejas having beautiful children."
July 2, 2025 at 2:46 PM