Category: Flash Fiction

‘As It Ends’ Was Shortlisted for the Reedsy Contest!

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Hey, everyone! Sorry for being so quiet on here lately, but life has been so busy! Anyway, I’ve been shortlisted for the Reedsy contest again! This marks the second time I’ve been shortlisted for the contest. Of course, I’d love to win the contest again, I’m still really pleased at being shortlisted!

If you haven’t already, you can read As It Ends here, or over on my Reedsy profile.

Sally didn’t see the nukes explode.

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If you’d like to read my previously shortlisted story, What Did We Do? click here or here. And if you’d like to read my stories that actually won, you can read The Things That Do Not Float here and here, and Astro Naught here and here.

Check back tomorrow to read my latest entry! I feel as if I’ve broken new ground with this most recent piece…

‘Play It Again, Daddy-O’: My short story for the November BlogBattle!

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Well, here we are again! Another month, another #BlogBattle prompt. The word for November is ‘harp’. At first I was a bit baffled as to where to take the prompt, but after the first idea floated to the top of my mind the rest slotted into place rather smoothly!

“Take it away, man,” said the first.

“Play it, daddy-o,” said the second.

“Gotcha,” replied the third.

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I tried to avoid writing a chase scene again, as I’d done a few of those already for the … I quite like the direction the story took. Perhaps we’ll visit this world again, at some point in the future? I feel that there’s potential here.

As always, check out the other bloggers’ stories when they get posted! They’re always great!

 

‘Shine a Light’: A Story in 99 Words

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Dusk dissolved into the hungry night. Night fed into dawn. Dawn became day.

In the space of 24 hours the planet had undergone a revolution. The cold light of day shined upon the smoking ruins and gore-strewn streets, revealing the new world.

Watery grey light washed over the city. The horrors that had been obscured by shadow were now unflinchingly illuminated. That which had been denied or debated was held under the microscope. Stony truth thudded down.

She picked up her satchel and set off, listening to the moans of the dead sighing through the streets like a gale.

 

photo of skyscrapers surrounded with clouds
Photo by Aleksandar Pasaric on Pexels.com

 

Written in response to CarrotRanch’s October 31, 2019, prompt: Day of the Dead.

‘What Did We Do?’ Was Shortlisted for the Reedsy Contest!

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So, I didn’t win the Reedsy contest this week, but I’m not going to grumble, considering I’ve already won it twice! (Three times would definitely be nice, though…) However,  I received an email telling me that my story What Did We Do? was very well received, and was actually shortlisted for the prize — so I’ll take that as a sort of win, in any case.

If you haven’t already, you can read What Did We Do? here on WordPress, or over on my Reedsy profile.

The dogs were the first to sense it. Without them, who knows how it would have all turned out? Maybe it would have all been over within a few hours.

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And if you’re interested in my previous stories which won the competition, they’re called The Things That Do Not Float and Astro Naught. You can read the former here or here, and you can read the latter here and here.

Have a nice day, everyone!

Bite-Sized Halloween #23: “If I Ever Get Back Home…”

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He was still between worlds. He could feel neither the warmth from the sun nor the blades of grass beneath his hands. The child suffered no panic; only resignation.

Charlie lay down between the headstones – not experiencing the cold morning dew dampening his clothes – and rested his head on his hands. He was tired. He didn’t think he’d ever been as weary in his life. Slowly, his eyelids began to close.

Just before sleep took the boy, he thought he heard a voice – his father.

“Charlie, where are you?”

And then a whisper. “I’ll keep him safe,” said Marion.

 

This is the final part of a larger story for Halloween. All sections are in the form of a 99-word story. Check out the links below for previous parts!

Previous parts:
#1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 | #7 | #8 | #9 | #10 | #11 | #12 | #13 | #14 | #15 | #16 | #17 | #18 | #19 | #20 | #21 | #22

Bite-Sized Halloween #22: The Cold, Grey Light of Day

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The final BONG! reverberated through his skull, moments before he burst from the crypt. Charlie exploded out into the fresh air, just as the door slammed shut behind him with seconds to spare.

Charlie collapsed to his knees in the grass, eyes wide, hair wild, gasping for breath.

The sun was peaking over the horizon. He could see the sky fading from its inky blackness to the cold, grey November morning that was lethargically advancing.

Charlie watched the sun rise, laughing. But a nasty thought was nagging at the back of his mind. His smile faltered.

Something was wrong.

 

This is part twenty-two of a larger story for Halloween. All sections are in the form of a 99-word story. Check back tomorrow for the final part!

Previous parts: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 | #7 | #8 | #9 | #10 | #11 | #12 | #13 | #14 | #15 | #16 | #17 | #18 | #19 | #20 | #21

Bite-Sized Halloween #21: Barriers Between Worlds

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The pumpkin hit the case behind The Collector. THUD! THUD! THUD! The rows of shelves began falling like dominos, glass orbs shattering as they hit the floor, freeing the trapped beings.

A tornado of souls began whirling about the witchdoctor. His scream sliced through Charlie’s ears. “Help. Me,” grimaced The Collector, reaching for Charlie. The boy dodged past the witchdoctor, running for the staircase.

He leapt up the stairs, hearing the man’s death throes.

BONG! A clock was chiming. BONG!

What time is it? he thought, as he frantically ran up the steps, two at a time.

Too late.

 

This is part twenty-one of a larger story for Halloween. All sections are in the form of a 99-word story. Check back tomorrow for part twenty-two!

Previous parts: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 | #7 | #8 | #9 | #10 | #11 | #12 | #13 | #14 | #15 | #16 | #17 | #18 | #19 | #20

Bite-Sized Halloween #20: The Library of Souls

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The staircase opened out into in a library. The shelves held no books. The endless rows of glass orbs were full of things crying for help.

On the far side was The Red Door. Charlie could feel the heat. Could smell the sulphur.

“Charliiiiieee!”

The boy spun around, heart in his throat.

“Do you like my collection,” said The Collector, gesturing at the overflowing shelves, “of souls?” He grinned madly.

“Please, just leave me alone!”

“Now, now. Why be alone, when you can join them?”

“Never!” screamed the child as he threw the jack-o’-lantern at the witchdoctor.

He missed.

 

This is part twenty of a larger story for Halloween. All sections are in the form of a 99-word story. Check back tomorrow for part twenty-one!

Previous parts: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 | #7 | #8 | #9 | #10 | #11 | #12 | #13 | #14 | #15 | #16 | #17 | #18 | #19

Bite-Sized Halloween #19: A Descending Stairway

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TO THE NETHERWORLD (KIDS ENTER FOR FREE) said the sign.

“This must’ve been what Marion was talking about…” said Charlie to nobody. “He told me to hide.” He pushed the crypt door open and took a step inside. A spiralling staircase lit by candles. A whiff of smoke. And… was that a scream?

He began his descent. Round and round. Deeper he went, the smells of rot and decay filling his nostrils.

Charlie thought he must be nearing the bottom when a voice called out from above. A voice that sounded like crunching gravel.

“I’m coming for youuuuuu, Charliiieeee!”

 

This is part nineteen of a larger story for Halloween. All sections are in the form of a 99-word story. Check back tomorrow for part twenty!

Previous parts: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 | #7 | #8 | #9 | #10 | #11 | #12 | #13 | #14 | #15 | #16 | #17 | #18

Bite-Sized Halloween #18: Shadows and Light

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With sorrow in his soul, Charlie pressed on. He carried the jack-o’-lantern, casting its glow whenever they approached.

Something with long nails and sharp teeth popped up behind a headstone. “Hey, kid!” it said, in voice that was far too deep. “Got some real nice candy, for ya!”

Charlie shone the light in its face. It screamed, swore at him, and then went skittering away into the darkness.

He walked on. How far should he go? Marion had never said. And it looked like Marion wasn’t coming back…

Minutes later, he found the crypt with the flashing neon sign.

 

This is part eighteen of a larger story for Halloween. All sections are in the form of a 99-word story. Check back tomorrow for part nineteen!

Previous parts: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 | #7 | #8 | #9 | #10 | #11 | #12 | #13 | #14 | #15 | #16 | #17