Here are the prompts, chosen by last week's winner, Sherbert20111.
You may use one or both to inspire your writing.
"Life is really simple,
but we insist on making it complicated"
-Confucius
but we insist on making it complicated"
-Confucius
Picture from picship.
Remember to check the rules.
Have your 100 - 200 words submitted by 12:01am Friday, August 30, US EDST.
We want anything and everything: poetry, prose, fanfic, OF.
JUST GET WRITING!
Leave your entry as a comment - include your word count, and your twitter handle if you have one.
Probably good practice to reference any source material, too.
FYI - entries that exceed (or are under) the word limits will not be considered by the judge.
Also, I've had a few questions lately regarding the submission of more than one entry. Yes, you may submit more than one flashfic. I'm going to say a maximum of two (2) entries though. Furthermore, they're not to be continuations, or related to each other in any way -- they need to be completely separate, stand alone entries.
P.S. Don't forget to follow @fanficflashfic on twitter.
....
IMPORTANT NEWS HERE:
Yo! Flashers ...
Did you know you can get the super awesome people over at the Emergency Beta Service to have a look over your flashes before you submit them? Click this link, or the box on the right of screen, and it'll send you right over to their website. You can submit a question, and have them look over your flash for you. Just remember to check out their rules first, and give them a few hours to get back to ya!
...
@Deebelle1
ReplyDeleteWord Count:199
I told him to relax, have fun. What we were doing wasn’t meant to be taken so heavily. We were just a couple of teenagers on the cusp of adulthood, enjoying one last hoorah before we started college.
He’d always taken life just a little too serious; dotted his i’s and crossed his t’s. I lived on the edge, jumped before I even knew if
I would land safely. We were yin and yang, fire and ice, truth and consequence all rolled into one couple. We worked because of those differences. He was my calm and I was his adventure. We balanced each other out, made each other better.
I was determined to get him to relax this one last time before college.
“Come on. It’ll be fun.”
“What’s fun about freezing my balls off in the ice, cold ocean?” he questioned.
I smirked and gave him a seductive look, even wiggled my eyebrows for added measure. “Warming each other up afterwards.”
“Well what are we waiting for?” He hopped on one foot, pulling his shoes and socks off before he raced for the water’s edge.
I giggled and chased after him.
What a way to end the summer.
Word count: 200 words, on the nose
ReplyDeleteTwitter handle: @AnnaLund2011
~~~~~~~~~
We finally met.
After months on end, chatting over IRC in Undernet, through strange and wondrous stations—it was a bit like amateur radio in its day—and I got to use my brand new and shiny Powerbook 140.
You know, the little machine that came equipped with all of an extended 4 MB ram and 40 MB of hard disk. God, that makes me laugh today.
Not like today, no, in those days you needed to be a dedicated geek to connect.
You needed the correct software, people who could help you to the right server to connect to…and suddenly… CONNECTION.
Try a channel, any channel, go, run, hurry, maybe #Ferrari? Or #Italia? Undernet was a confusing place, and doing it all in Italian just added spice.
I still remember the thrill that went through my whole body every time the 28.8 did its little song and dance.
Soon, soon, it said. Soon you’ll be talking to him again.
And I did. We talked, and talked, and talked. For hours. For months.
And then.
We met.
The first man to travel across a whole continent to get to me.
Of course I never let go.
Life is really simple.
~~~~~~~~~
@sparklymeg
ReplyDelete200 words
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prompt: "Life is really simple,
but we insist on making it complicated"
-Confucius
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When you take away airs and graces, fake smiles and made up faces, she stands apart.
But here, her black dress swishes behind her, the beading twinkling under fairy lights.
She schmoozes, making small talk, eyes flitting to me, cheeks reddening under my stare.
I see the flaws she wears on her sleeve, to others they are buried deep.
I see it all. The good, the bad, the ugly.
The beautiful, the majestic, the mysterious.
She keeps me at arms length.
Keeping her options open. I'm not good enough, I know it, she knows it. Her stuffy friends remind her.
She glides past me, eyes elsewhere. I grab her wrist, pull her into a dark hallway, pin her against the wall, press my body to hers.
With my words and kisses, I make it simple. I strip away her excuses. I lay down my heart. I leave her with no doubt.
"I won't wait forever."
I will, but she doesn't need to know this. I need to give her a push, see if she takes the bait.
Her lips brush mine, eyes begging for time.
"It's complicated."
"It doesn't have to be." I spin on my heel and walk away.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
@QuinnSkylark
ReplyDeleteWords: 167
I pull him toward me, tugging at his red and blue and white plaid shirt. It smells like the mountains - clean and fresh, like pine - from when it was hanging out to dry this morning.
"Bella..." He whispers, looking frantically around the cabin to make sure that my son isn't around. Finally, when he sees that we're perfectly alone, he gives up fighting my pull and moves toward me, placing his hands on my hips. "You know this isn't the most conventional of situations. I don't want us destroying what we already had."
I can read the underlying meaning - the words left unspoken. He's still protecting me. This time, however, it's from himself. "Fine. Then let's not," I say, turning in his arms to move away.
But he catches me tightly and spins me back to face him. Smiling, I know that I've won this round. I lean into him and press my mouth against his. "Stop complicating something so wonderfully simple, and just fuck me already."
@MadiMerek
ReplyDeleteWords: 144
I pushed
You pulled
I cried
And you did a shitty job of trying to console.
Somehow,
This mess has blown up in my face
Because you only wanted to complicate
This simple thing we'd made.
I asked for more than stolen moments with you
You asked how many.
I begged for time to get to know you
You wondered why.
I only wanted your love
You needed to make sure I never got that far.
Now,
I watch you standing on my doorstep
With the rain pouring down your face
And your eyes plead with me to
Forgive
Forget.
But my broken heart knows
That the sweetest misery
Won't be corrected by apologies
Nor by tears,
But by the power of love.
I push the door closed
Because,
Sadly,
Love was too simple for you back then
And too complicated for me now.
@Mylisssa
ReplyDeletewords: 200
The mall is Christmastime-crowded on a Saturday in July. We’re sipping on creamy orange smoothies and munching on fries.
“Let’s face it, Bella.” Alice brushes the salt off her hands. “Relationships are too complicated. We’re doomed to be single all our lives.”
I take another sip. “Maybe they don’t have to be. Do you ever think that maybe we’re the ones complicating things?”
Three guys are about to walk past us. I stand up, blocking their path. I give a split second glance to each one before choosing the one in the middle.
“Hi, I’m Bella. What’s your name?”
He points to himself, eyebrows raised. I nod.
“Ah…Edward.”
“You’re single, yes?”
“Um…yeah.”
“Not anymore.”
I grab his collar, pull him closer, and wait.
He stammers and looks around but doesn’t keep me waiting long.
“Cool,” he says before he kisses me. Soft lips and the way his hands grip my waist tell me I chose the right guy.
My arms go around his neck as I glance over his shoulder. Alice is already chatting up the blond one.
Their friend looks between us and scrunches his nose.
“Our friend will be here any minute,” I tell him.
He grins.
Simple.
Oh, the cuteness! <3
DeletePinkcookie (PM me at fanfiction.net/Pinkcookie)
ReplyDelete200 words
“Come on, come on! I want one fabulous picture of us to remember this perfect summer.” “You know I hate these contraptions; everyone always looks so goofy.” “Well, we won’t because I’ll pose us just right.”
I let her push me into the photo booth and she immediately removed my hat and started smoothing my wild mess of hair. Then she started trying different poses.
First she sat on my knee and pressed her cheek tightly to mine. I liked it. But looking into the mirror, she sighed, “too conventional.” Next she knelt behind me with her arms draped around my neck and pressed her cheek to mine again. I liked that one a lot. But she deemed it, “too old-fashioned looking.” Next she had us simply sit side-by-side and smile. I loved that one, but she pouted, “it’s so boring!”
She was making this simple task far too complicated. I grabbed her hips, turned her to me and said, “lay one on me baby!” She clutched my shirt, and while she was laughing, I pressed the button to snap the photo.
That was fifteen years ago, and she still has that shot framed and hanging in our family room.
@TiramiSue84
ReplyDeleteWord count: 197
--------
If I reached for his hand right now,
he’d let me have it and, entwining fingers,
hold on to mine.
If I asked for his arms to wrap around my body and hold me tight,
for him to press my chest to his and envelope me whole,
he’d do it in a heartbeat.
If I sat down on his lap sideways and lean into him,
my head resting in the nook where his neck and shoulder met,
he’d draw butterfly patterns on my back until sleep was just a blink away.
If I brought my face so close to his that only a gasp of air
would separate his lips from my own,
he’d grin and close the gap in a heartbeat.
If I were brave enough to let him uncover all my hidden flaws,
knowing that the gentle look in his eyes will remain even after the veil’s been lifted,
I’d give him all of me without wasting any more time.
I want him to. I want him, and I know he wants me, too. A bit.
Yet, I can’t bring myself to do it.
I’m too scared my reality would shatter his fantasy.
twitter: @bigblueboat
ReplyDeleteword count: 200
**************************
Friday night with deep-fried Twinkies, what could possibly go wrong?
After walking through the woodcraft hall, I head for sustenance. No point in going to the fair if you aren't going to gorge on fried foods.
I’m standing in line for lemonade when I spot him laughing and holding hands with some girl. I've never seen my brother with such a dorky grin. Never seen him with a girl either. It explains why he wouldn't tell me his plans for tonight. I eventually move my eyes from him to the girl. At this distance, I can’t make out her features, but her silhouette gives her away. I’d recognize her anywhere. How could I not? We’d only been dating for two years.
My stomach flips. Everything is fuzzy except for my brother’s eyes shining at my girl. Without realizing it, I end up standing behind them. I don’t know how or why my feet decided I needed to confront them, but he looks up, catches sight of me and pales. She stops giggling. I can imagine the confused look on her face. She glances behind her. A breath escapes her lungs. One clear word enters my ears over the ruckus.
“Rose?”
@bebeginja
ReplyDeleteWord count: 199
Weeks of innuendo and misread signals have led to this day. An entire school year of lingering glances and accidental touches is about to culminate here, as he boards his train to go home for the summer.
It’s time.
Time for my brain to check in from its hiatus and tidy up the mess my heart has made of me.
I step forward to wrap my arms around his waist. He doesn’t stop me.
He drops his duffle and pulls me into an embrace reserved for lovers.
Standing here in his arms−this feels like the beginning of something, not the end.
I’m waiting. This is as far as my nerve will take me.
He breaks the awkward silence first.
Without letting go, he lowers his face closer to me. We probably look like we’re kissing, and I kind of like it that way.
“You think it’s time we stop messing around here?”
I snort, his favorite thing I do. “I think it’s time we start.”
His laugh reverberates through my chest. “That was easier than I thought it would be.”
“You doubted?” I ask.
“No.” He squeezes me tighter. “So, when I get back?”
“It’ll be even easier.”
i love this, so much
Delete@moonlit__girl
@ChocoMG2112
ReplyDeleteWord count: 199
She slowly traced her fingertip down my cheek. My heart raced. Her thumb caressed my bottom lip and my body ignited. Desire, a sensation that I had never truly experienced before today, flamed through my veins.
I licked my lip.
“What do you want?” she asked quietly.
Did this beautiful, improbable woman actually speak or did I merely hear what I wanted?
My body trembled with hesitation and passion. I warred with myself. I closed my eyes and whispered, “I… I want to kiss you.”
Her hand slid down my arm and gently she entwined her fingers with mine. My eyes still closed, I felt her breath on my mouth.
“Life is simple, but we insist on making it complicated. Kiss me.”
This was wrong; it was against my vows.
My heart beat excitedly, with fear and a yearning I had never felt before.
I moved.
My lips touched hers gently and I smiled.
“See? Simple.”
My arms held her face and in a split second, I irrevocably let go of what I previously held dear. A visceral, carnal need pulled her body tight, close to my heart.
As my lips melded to hers, the dragon’s fire consumed me.
To the casual observer we look happy and in love. He has his arms around me and I’m laughing into his face. But, if you look closer, things are different, kind of like one of those Magic Eye pictures.
ReplyDeleteHis hand is grabbing a little too tightly at my waist. His fingers digging hard enough to leave bruises.
My lips aren’t parted in joy, but in a grimace at the pain he’s causing now, and what I know is to come.
He’s not leaning towards me to kiss me, I’m pulling away from him because I’m scared by the words he’s just whispered to me.
My hand resting on his chest, is not on its way to slide around his neck and play in his hair, but to push him back, so he’s not so close.
We look like other couples but nothing could be further from the truth.
Because sometimes what looks simple is more complicated than you can imagine.
@adriftinmyhead
161 words
@moonlit__girl
ReplyDelete200 words
The van was full the night we drove by Kate the first time. I pulled over, asked her if she was ok, handed her an apple and a coke and my card. She smiled. I asked her to come by the center sometime, then watched her watch me drive away.
The next night she was on a bench in the square. She wasn’t interested in group, didn’t want a bed. She was living on the street but didn’t smell like booze and her arms were clean so I didn’t push it. She was older than the others. Maybe my age.
The morning she stops in it’s raining. She perches on a folding chair.
I watch her blink a drop of water away and I wait.
“Thank you for the apple.” Her voice is soft but clear. “My life used to be so easy that it was complicated. I had everything I wanted and didn’t care about anything.”
She smiles ”Now life is hard, but simple. When you’re hungry everything tastes better. That apple was the crispest, sweetest apple in the entire world. Sounds crazy, right? But if you can appreciate an apple...”
I think she’s the smartest person I’ve met.