I present to you my works of flash fiction. My escape into free writing. I don’t think too much, I don’t edit too much, and I don’t give myself too much time. I hope you like ’em.
The Deal
It’s a common misconception that only the desperate seek me out. The greedy, the vain, the shallow, the scared, the lonely, and even the righteous have found their way to my door. Take a look at the world around you. Do you truly believe that all those people you envy got where they are on their own merit? No, my dear. Actually, that is quite laughable. And before you say a word, let me ponder what category you fit into and what it is you think you want.
Another misconception – the price. It’s never the same. So worry not that you may need x-amount of dollars, or a first born. My stocks are full and money hardly has its uses where I’m from. No, I will know the exact payment to accept from you.
You’re sweating. You’re worried. You should be. You have but mere moments to retreat. You won’t. I suppose it is the desperate that seek me out. They think they have no alternative. They lack the capacity for hard work, perseverance, mediocrity. That is why you are sitting here yourself…your own shortcomings. So let us strike the deal, and in the blink of an eye you will have all you ever dreamed of. I can’t wait to meet you again, to hear if it was worth it.
*The following Writing Prompt is a line of dialogue I included in #75 with the above image. It was a two-fer. As I had no image for it, I put the line in bold lettering, but it barely shows up, so it’s underlined as well.
Solidarity
We stood on the battlements side by side as we had every day for the past three years. It was going to be a beautiful day. The sun was still low on the horizon, but the sky was clear and the air was crisp. I turned my face skyward and closed my eyes. I took a deep breath hoping to smell the lavender planted in the garden, or the citrus trees that lined the path. The image of my love flashed once before my eyes, as it usually did, a bewitching smile upon the most alluring lips. Had I not looked down, it could be mistaken for any other day.
“Is this one of those times you want me to lie to protect your delicate emotions?” My queen asked slyly. She stood tall with her hands behind her back, her chin defiantly jutted outward, and yet there was that gleam in her eye. She was a clever one, and it was one of the reasons I had stood by her. I unsheathed my sword and stretched my arm, feeling the weight of it. I lowered my gaze to the imposing army marching through the valley. I replied with my own air of nonchalance, “Seems as good a time as any.”
Waiting
He sat alone in “their place”. The tentacles of dread weaving their destructive way through his mind. It didn’t stop there. The tingling continued down his spine, while it’s icy touch lingered around his heart. She had never been late, even when he expected her to be. After the many long months of separation, he was certain he would have found her running across the field in the hopes she would be running into his open arms. He stared out to the horizon for what felt like hours, trusting that one of those dots would grow larger and take her form. No such luck.
He did not fidget. He sat immobilized with the thoughts of the unknown. What if she did not return? How would he find her? He didn’t even know where she had been. What would he do…without her? His body felt heavy, crushed under the weight of the despair that had quickly materialized. Why did he not give her more credit? Clearly she had been able to take care of herself all this time. He swallowed back the lump that threatened to choke him, when he felt her warm touch. His whole body went slack with a relief that was almost as crushing.
The Signal
It was quiet, quieter than I expected. Without the engines humming, the normal sounds of operation, or even the sounds of life, it was as if we were walking into a crypt. Perhaps we were. The emergency lights gave off an eerie red glow, while some overhead lights flickered, each played with our vision equally. I swear I could see things moving in the shadows, but I knew it to be a trick of the imagination. We decided to split up, search the vessel for survivors and what may have happened to silence an entire ship and her crew.
I decided to head to the command deck in the hopes of retrieving the captain’s journal and the flight logs. The team would search the rest of this level before we headed further into the belly of the ship together. As I ascended the ladder that would allow me access to the upper deck, I called back in a harsh whisper, “If I need you I’ll give you a signal.” My companions all looked up with inquisitive eyes. “What signal?” “I’ll imitate the scream of a terrified little girl.” To that I received obligatory snorts and the shaking of heads. I winked once and continued upward.
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I’d love to read what you create, so don’t forget to share! Take a look through the Writing Prompts and see what inspires you. Happy Writing!
While reading On Writing by Stephen King at the beginning of the year, I made notes, wherever was convenient at that particular moment – things I wanted to remember. I like getting a resource messy – highlighting passages, underlying things, and making notes in the margins because the book is a tool, and although I felt that way about On Writing, I couldn’t force myself to mark up it’s pages.
I wanted to be…better, in all aspects of my life. So, I decided to mix things up and create for myself a new schedule that would lead me to the things I wanted. I wanted to get fit, so I’ve made it a goal to work out every other day. So far, I’ve been pretty good about it, and I do feel better. I wanted to read more, since last year I didn’t read a single book, and I’m close to finishing no#5. I wanted to write more, and I’m on a third rewrite of my tv pilot, I’ve written more fanfic, and I’ve taken on more Writing Prompt Challenges.
Life gets busy. It’s easy to get sidetracked. Sometimes it’s comforting to get lost in TV and gaming, I should know, but in order to reach our goals and follow our dreams, we have to be relentless in that pursuit.
Some time back in July, I wrote the first part of this topic. You can read it 
Tired of dragging my heels, I finally made it a point to write the first draft, regardless of how much information I was still lacking, and this was a huge step forward for me. I’m one of those who painstakingly writes each word. I tend to rewrite while I’m writing, and this causes a lot of lag time. I wanted to pound out the first draft as quickly as possible (I think I wrote it in 3-4 days), then I would know what I was missing and how to proceed in my research and decision making. So here is a suggestion for something I have never done before.
My last insight is this. Fantasy and sci-fi, in particular, allow for a number of freedoms in their stories, but it also offers writers the opportunity to highlight social and political issues under this guise. Just another topic to consider while you’re world building. Is there something going on in the world that you want to talk about? Setting your story against an alien/fantasy backdrop may offer you the freedom to share your insight. This is something I learned years ago, when I decided I didn’t want my first story to be just a fluff piece. I utilize my fantasy and sci-fi worlds to highlight the current state of humanity, the deterioration of the environment, and the pros and cons in the advancement of technology.
A Writer's Discrepant Memoirs and Other Tales 