Cut Short

It didn't work out. Sadly, I didn't make it through to the second round of the competition, but I'm happy with my story. I'm should receive feedback from the judges soon. Looking forward to seeing what they thought.

In the mean time, here's the story. Let me know what you think.

Their Man

His face was unforgettable. It had been behind the gun that killed her sister. Seeing him, Number 5 in a lineup for her stolen purse from the day before, brought back all the fear and confusion Dana felt five years ago.

How reassuring the police had been back then. With CCTV from the convenience store and my eyewitness description, they were sure to find their man.

Well, here was “their man”. Could she point him out, keep all the other details of the bag snatch the same? They would take DNA samples, right? Then match him to Shanice’s murder? She’d heard stories about DNA evidence going to waste. Could she falsely accuse him and hope?

But there was number 2. That was the man who robbed her, for sure. The comb-over and huge overbite were giveaways. If another witness were to pick him, both men might get away. Dana was raised to do the right thing, and she’d been growing past fear.

“Number 2,” she said, pointing at comb-over.

“You’re sure, Miss Carey?”

“Yes. I’m sure.”

“Hey. About number 5...”

“Officer Denton?” He looked like he’d been caught stealing. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have told you that. He’s one of ours. We sometimes ask the guys to step in. Did you see him earlier?”

That figured. He was “their man”, through and through, and never caught.

Dana decided to buy the gun she’d resisted these last five years. What might she, raised to do the right thing, use it for?

So Few Words, So Little Time

I entered a competition. It's another flash fiction competition. I'm starting to get a feel for the style and I like the shorter than short stories I've been creating. 250 words is VERY LITTLE. Having to conceive, write, edit and submit 250 words in a genre chosen by someone else, that must contain a particular event/action and a specific word (often the easiest part of the challenge) is even harder.

Doing all of that in 24 hours is ...

... SO MUCH FUN!

I know 250 words doesn't sound like a lot. It isn't. Writing 250 words is also not hard. Writing 250 words in a story is another matter. Formulate the idea based around a character who we have to care for in 40 words or less. Describe the scenarios (terrible, of course) in 80 words. Then there are 80-90 words to challenge the character and resolve before giving a denouement (positive or negative) in 20 words.

The most important things are, this must be internally honest and subjectively satisfying to as many as possible. How?

I've set myself a couple of rules:

1. No matter the scenario, it must be believeable! The reader must be able to imagine themselves facing this challenge.

2. It must not be irredeemably bleak. There must be some hope to cling on to. A reader can empathise more easily with a character who faces a surmountable challenge. Why? Because nobody likes no-win situations.

3. The ending must feel like it is leading to something else. The end of the story isn't the end of the story. The character must be moving forward with something (horror is the exception to this, where the protagonist may well be eviscerated by a horrid beast).

So, out of the 5486 entries for the competition, only 1150 will go through to the second round. I'll be happy if I get that far.

Wish me luck?