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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#230: In a Flash

I’ve been reading a lot of flash fiction recently. It’s a great format for close study, as its compression forces writers to question the function of every sentence.

Since there are many lessons to be learned from reading, writing, and thinking about flash fiction, I thought we could make it the focus of this week’s contest. To be clear, this contest accepts stories between 1,000 and 3,000 words, but this week, I’m inviting you to try and stay as close to the lower limit as you can. Our usual word count range is still the official guideline, and stories that are closer to 3,000 words will not be disqualified — but I hope that with flash stories in mind, you’ll feel inspired to be as economical with language as possible.

Not sure how to begin? Check out our best tips for writing flash fiction.

This week's prompts

Write a story framed by a single scene: something happens, a flashback or inner monologue intervenes, and then the story ends with the rest of the original scene.

Narrative – 90 stories

Write a story in which a character achieves a new level of clarity about how they’re really feeling.

Character – 57 stories

Start your story with someone uttering a very strange sentence.

Dialogue – 52 stories

Write a story that hides something from its reader until the very end.

Mystery – 101 stories

Write a story in the form of a list.

Narrative – 62 stories

Stories

“I SAW WHAT I SAW” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #230

"Look in the mirror." It was my better half, the person I used to be, who made me look straight down the rabbit hole I fell, into a squalor of purgatory. I had been fighting with the gang since who knows how long. "Hear no evil; see no evil." This was their mantra and I was made to swear to it from the moment I unknowingly made a bad choice in walking on the opposite side of the tracks. I ended up in a huge mistake in life by going down the wrong neighborhood street. It led to an unavoidable meet up with Hazy Sleeze Job and his boys. I...

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“Just Another Wednesday” by Delilah G

Submitted to Contest #230

Just Another Wednesday Oh, you know, the grasshopper validated the porcupine’s obsession. But that doesn’t—well, if you give the moon a moment, it will ride with the hay. How does the variable align with the carrots? I’m not sure but I’d like to know how factoids cover makeup. But if we’re all in this together, how do the bees know when to hibernate? I bet I can soup the trees into submission. Oh, cats are just like me, but they have the foxes to thank. If octopi are equivalent to drowning, I overcooked the goose. Runnin...

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“The Clock smith's Wake up Call” by Marguerite Diggens

Submitted to Contest #230

“The movements are deranged,” I utter, as I look in astonishment at the faces which surround me, their hands pointing to twelve. It is noon, but not a sound, not a chime, not a bell, not even a tick-tock. Perplexed, I look across the room at my dog, Ben. He is still sleeping. Feeling unsteady I flop down into my old leather chair. I close my eyes. Upon opening them, I see myself asleep in my chair. My heart pounds, chest tightens, and mouth dries. Maybe I am dead. I try to shout, and a bark comes out. I sound just like my dog, Ben. I look si...

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“The Green Flash” by Daniel Ward

Submitted to Contest #230

The Green Flash By Dan Ward The rooster must have eaten a chili this morning. He sat on Carl’s unscreened window sill and crowed like he owned the morning. At the first flicker of morning light, the beautiful but totally moronic bird crammed his noise into Carl’s unwelcoming ears like an old guy on a Harley. “Asshole,” Carl muttered, cracking an eye. It was Monday, the day after Rita’s cleaning day. Three days a week, Maria cleaned his house, which was three rooms in a concrete shell on the edge of the sandy bay known as Boca de T...

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“Who am I ?” by Vanessa Severino

Submitted to Contest #230

It's true to say, I (secret character) wasn't born in your era. I (secret character) somehow missed out on communicating through a rotary phone, until the phone clicked, indicating there was an important call on the other line, requiring me to cut the conversation short. I (secret character) do not know what it is like to fight over the remote. as siblings argue who gets to watch their favorite show that evening. I own both my own phone, as well as my own tv. Even if I (secret character) was to miss my favorite program, there is a thing ...

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“Afterwards” by April Zachman

Submitted to Contest #230

The door slammed shut behind her, and she leaned against it. Her bag hung limply from her fingers, hitting the floor before she did as her back slid down the length of the door. She brought her knees up to her chest and buried her face. Just breathe. In, one two three four, out, one two three four five six seven, in… After only two rounds of this, she heard the click clack of nails against the wooden floor and felt as a cold, wet nose pushed its way between her folded arms and pressed itself against her face. Despite herself, she le...

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“And the Journey was, and is, My Life” by Marilyn Karr

Submitted to Contest #230

I was born into a family of 12. When I was six weeks old, I was adopted out so I never knew my parents. Luckily, my new mum offered me a multitude of opportunities. Living at the beach afforded me the liberty to socialize with many others and we would often times play ball on the sand. At other times, I soak my body in the ocean and then lollygag in the pools of water lying on the sandy beach. I became an athlete in my youth. She enrolled me in prowess and sure-footed classes. With speed and agility, soon I competed in a series of obst...

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“A Lost Friend” by David D'EttoreUser

Submitted to Contest #230

A LOST FRIEND The last time I saw Marise was in Paris during the spring of 1971. Something happened then that is still not clear in my mind, or at least what I have left of my mind. Something that, to this day, I cannot forget. Winter stayed long that year, reaching well into May, leaving mounds of dirty snow in shaded areas of the city. A chill even pervaded sunny ...

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“The Sliver Waters Slicers” by Olivia Joy

Submitted to Contest #230

We’d all heard the warnings. “Come home straight from school, walk in big groups, don’t wander off in the dark alone.” The public service announcements had been seared into our minds coupled with the gory images of what would become of us if we did not take heed. I anxiously checked my watch, 3:15 PM. Sienna had promised she’d only be a few minutes. It had been 15 minutes already and with each tick of the clock my worry grew. The bus had left, and the walk home was at least another thirty minutes if we walked quickly. A loud cla...

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“The Lunatic ” by CLAIRE MOORE

Submitted to Contest #230

The town bore and fatigued the man, a vagrant with dwindled hope and tattered boots. The air blew with an indifferent bite, flittering along his skin as a keen reminder of impending conditions. He sat with his back against a telephone pole, shuffling fragments of frayed paper in his callused hands. He pondered. Transient thoughts, captured visions, phone numbers, and names were recalled as he sought direction, numbing in the hurried wind. Winter was coming with haste, with hunger, void of sympathy, tinting his nose pink and ruffling grey whi...

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“Fluffy Talk” by Phil Manders

Submitted to Contest #230

"So Darling, take me back to the very beginning." "This doesn't come easy, talking to you like this would be considered a sign of weakness in our family . . . I just feel so humiliated . . . It's hard. For someone like me. You know?" "Ok Darling, here comes the fluffy talk. I know it might seem hard to go there. I'm here to support you without judgment. I'm here to listen. If you need to stop at any point or feel uncomfortable, we can take a break any time. There's no right or wrong here. Just you sharing with me, blah, blah,...

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“Flight of Fantasy ” by Jeannie Labelle -Potvin

Submitted to Contest #230

Jean-Luc was a man of many fantasies.His most persistent ones were somewhat delusional and had begun early in his life. He had been a quiet child, somewhat introverted and yet had a way of firmly holding stage center. When he was quite young, his parents began to be concerned about the slightly kinky nature of his narratives and often tried to temper his stories of murder and mayhem. They weren’t very successful.Time passed and Jean-Luc gradually learned to reign in his imagination. The look of shock and horror on his aud...

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“Open Heart Surgery” by Leah Bunner

Submitted to Contest #230

PROLOGUEIt wasLove you fell in-different I saw you sleeping Next to meThough you were not there awake eyes open I saw you next to me One day we’ll talk about your tattoos I’ll listen with my head resting in my hands one day I swearI saw you next to me I'll be here, If you’re here nextTo me I’ll be here, I always was You Know that dream I had you Naked ...

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“Love in the City: A Romantic Journey” by Christie Mack

Submitted to Contest #230

The Chance Encounter—Emma and Liam found themselves on a crowded subway platform in the heart of the bustling city on a gloomy afternoon. The station was abuzz with shuffling feet, clanging metal doors, and the rumbling of trains arriving and departing. Raindrops fell rhythmically, creating a soothing symphony on the umbrellas of the hurried commuters. Lost in thought, Emma clutched her red umbrella tightly, trying to shield herself from the downpour. Liam, absorbed in his phone, seemed oblivious to the world around him, his earphones plugge...

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“The Five Stages of Grief: How Life Fell Apart Before Coming Back Together” by Sam Atdrik

Submitted to Contest #230

TW: Self-harm, Mental Health, and Death May 1st, 2022: the day the world stopped and a year since you’ve died. Even now, home doesn’t feel like home and your glaring absence haunts the rooms of this house. Your voice echoes in the living room, like a ghostly call, while your shadows lurk in every corner; your smell, too, somehow still permeates the air of this place. To feel closer to you I sit in the place you used to, cycling through memories of the aftermath of your death. This is my retelling of how the world began to spin slowly, day by...

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$250

Prize money

362

Contest entries

108

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Dec 29, 2023 EST

Won by Ethan Zimmerman 🏆

Title: The Lop-it-off-a-me List

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

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