I really enjoy writing short fiction. It’s a great way to slip into another gear, which can help with plotting elsewhere, or sometimes it’s just fun to write something completely new. I also enjoy the challenge of fitting enough story into a short piece to either make sense or cause someone to think beyond and maybe finish the tale in their own minds.
Writing for Lex Chase’s blog is extra fun because she chooses the prompts. Participants get sent three and this round—as with last round—I ended up picking the prompt I initially had little reaction to. Last time, I wrote about Anton, a farmer on a distant planet who finds the body of an old “friend” buried in the fields behind his farm. I stuck fairly close to the prompt, which was a farmer finding a mass grave in his fields. Seriously, Lex, where do you get these ideas?
This time, I chose the following prompt:
A vagrant approaches a well-heeled man exiting a trendy coffee shop with a five-dollar latte and a fat-free muffin.
My vagrant is a breeze and I’m pretty sure the muffin wasn’t fat-free. But as with all short shorts, the story I wrote could be part of a larger tale. Maybe one day I’ll pick it up again and write the next chapter.
You can read “The Lost Ones” here, on Lex Chase’s blog. While you’re there, check out the other stories she has posted. There are a lot of good ones!
I have a collection of shorter shorts, some weird, some sexy, on a tumblr. Link is at the bottom of my Free Reads page. Finally, if you like reading and writing Flash Fiction, check out the Monday Flash Fics Group on Facebook. Sadly, I’ve written nothing for them yet. I’ve copied several of the pictures and started one story, but Sunday is NOT a writing day for me. I really need to start one earlier in the week. 😀
Kelly Jensen 