He was always the better one.
First out of the womb. Pitcher while I played the outfield. Scoring the winning touchdown while I sat on the sideline eating Cracker Jacks. Valedictorian in high school. I was a B-student at best.
The first in a coffin. Now I’ll never measure up.
Christa Lyon-Moon spends her free time crafting flash fiction that finds meaning in small moments where imagination meets real life.
“Magenta roses!” she exclaims as I step off the bus. “My favorite!”
“Ma’am, have we met?” I ask.
“No,” she says. “But it was fun to pretend to be the lucky lady.”
That evening, my mother reaches for her second best vase, then remarks, “Your brother got me opera tickets.”
Joanna Norland is a writing coach, playwright, mother of two and mom blogger at mumswrite.com. With just enough spare time on her hands to scribble fifty fictional words a month and read two fifty word stories a day.
It was a weekly family competition. My siblings interlocked and huddled over the table like a championship rugby scrum. Instead of a ball, a plate of Mom’s fried chicken was slipped onto the table beneath the players.
Dad blew a whistle. Game on.
Whoever ate the fastest got the most.
James Menges is a writer and photographer. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America.
For the Dying Race, there is no place,
In worlds of field or forest
For that breed, there is no need
There is no hope of trying.
Yet hope remains, that hope’s campaigns
Will break those chains
And overcome reigns
Of races better fit.
Do not outsource.
Stay the course.
Bobby Langhorne is a programmer and a wishful storyteller.
Today www.GeekingOutAbout.com shared a guest post I wrote for them, about my experiences writing fifty-word stories and some of my other favourite microfiction formats and websites. This post has taken a little while to put together, and to find the right timing for sharing it, but I’m really excited to get it out there for people to see, and GeekingOutAbout is a great place to post it. Head over there to get some insight and recommendations from me, including an excerpt from the Tips and Tricks section of Fifty-Word Stories: Volume One.
In addition to sharing my guest post, GeekingOutAbout is also running a 50-word story contest, to celebrate their one-year anniversary (congratulations, by the way, guys!). The details are all here. The best three stories sent to geekingoutabout@gmail.com by May 31 will win a free Fifty-Word Stories: Volume One ebook bundle, and the first-prize winner will also receive $25 to the online retailer of their choice! That’s a pretty awesome prize, in my opinion, so get writing, and I can’t wait to see all of your submissions.
Edit: Submissions for this contest are now closed. Winners will be announced soon!
FiftyWordStories.com is excited to present its first official 50-Word Story Contest: “A Mere 50 Words”!
How to Enter
The contest is open for anyone and everyone to enter. To submit your story for consideration, send it to mere50words@fiftywordstories.com and include the phrase “Mere 50 Words Entry” in the subject line. Please also include your name or a pen name under which the story can be posted.
Submissions will remain open until 11:59 PM, Pacific Standard Time (GMT -8), on August 21, 2009.
Entry Rules
All submitted stories must be exactly 50 words in length, not including the title. (If you are unsure of how to count hyphenated words, numerals, or other nonstandard words, use your word processor’s built-in Word Count function.)
The content of submitted stories should be appropriate for all ages.
There is no limit on the number of submissions per person.
All submissions must be the submitter’s original creation and must not have been previously published in print, online, or in any other format.
The rights to all submitted stories will be handled like regular Guest Writer submissions. For details, see our Submissions page.
Prizes
The prizes are as follows:
Grand Prize – $50 Chapters or Amazon gift card
First Runner Up – $20 Chapters or Amazon gift card
Honourable Mention (x3) – $10 Chapters or Amazon gift card
The winning entries and honourable mentions will be posted to the site after judging has been completed. Other high-quality entries may also be used for future Guest Writer Monday posts.
After the winners have been determined, they will be contacted through the email address their story was submitted by, and arrangements will be made either to have an online gift card purchased for them or to have a physical gift card mailed to them.
Judging
Entries will be judged by Tim Sevenhuysen, the creator of FiftyWordStories.com.
If you have any questions about the contest, leave a comment or send me an email at tim@fiftywordstories.com.