Flash Fiction

[Prof. Tarma Amelia Black]

We're starting another round of Flash Fiction here in Book Club!

You might wonder 'but what is Flash Fiction'?

You are telling a story in miniature. As Sky wrote, back when it started in 2018 "flash fictions are stories that pride themselves on being short, really short. Providing it has a beginning, middle and an end, even a sentence can tell a story. A typical example is this one by Augusto Monterroso:

When he woke up, the Dinosaur was still there.

Each week we'll give you three random items. You create a tiny story of 30 to 50 words with them.

Again, from our previous posts, "Your story can be funny, serious or completely random: from a simple 'this is how the day started' to finding out that the butler really did do it - in a galaxy far, far away! Write about anything you like -- but you need to include all 3 items and have a beginning, middle and end in your story." You must use the words (or a variant of the words, change of tense, make plural, etc.) provided for that week (no going back and using previous ones). Remember to keep the HOL rules in mind when creating your stories.

We look forward to reading what you write. Oh, yes, you’ll earn 15 beans per story! (Beans will be sent at the end of each month.)

Note: there are several word counters available online - The Word Counter, Word Counter, WORDCounter - so you can check out the number of words in your creation.

[Prof. Tarma Amelia Black]

We'll be starting Flash Fiction off with a look at the past from Professor Amy Lupin:

badge, postcard, map

The detective rested his badge on the desk next to some discarded post. Rifling through, he discovered a vaguely familiar postcard. He took out a stack of scuffed postcards and spread them out. The backs together formed a map of where a decade-old case, still unclosed, had unfolded. (48 words)

[Emily Spencer]

Jack Harkness was Torchwood; he had to make this right. Tears fell on the badge in his hand.

"Owen...it should have been me..."

He looked down at his map.

"Gotcha!"

Space vampires-nasty lot. They would pay. Owen would not die in vain.

Postcard not needed. Surprise factor paramount. Retribution unavoidable. (50 words)

[Prof. Tarma Amelia Black]

Our next three words to create your story -

lever, reflect, horse

The carousel horse stood there, frozen in place. She sneaked around the fence and crept over to the lever. Flashing lights of many colours reflected off the mirrors. She pulled the handle, and leapt onto the horse. It shook its mane and broke free, spreading wings and flying off, free. [50 words]

[Emily Spencer]

He didn't have time to reflect on ramifications should this go wrong. With a shrug he pulled the lever, the metal horse appearing as if by magic. A button on its neck activated it to life, and they were off! The life of an airship pirate was never dull. (49 words)

[Prof. Tarma Amelia Black]

Create your next story with these words --

goblet, cactus, satchel

I approached the cactus and, with my knife, severed the prickly pear from the main body. Reaching into my satchel, I got the wide-mouthed goblet and put the fruit in it. Next, remove thorns, peel and – voila - lunch! (40 words)

[Silvana Mandeville]

I passed through a field, found a lot of cactus growing there. I took out my dagger and remove one from the ground. Staring at it for a while, I took an empty goblet from my satchel, then put the plant inside. (42 words)

[Aurelia West]

After I drank from the strange goblet, I took a look around me for the first time. It seemed like the nearby cactus was staring at me. Shaking my head, I dug into my satchel for some water. I decided not to drink from abandoned cups anymore. (47 words)

[Emily Spencer]

I was surrounded by cactus and dry sagebrush. I stared at my goblet ruefully. A fat lot of good it did me with no water in sight. Regretfully, I tucked it back in my satchel and prayed I did not die of thirst before I found my way home. Onward! (50 words)

[Prof. Tarma Amelia Black]

Beans were sent to Silvana, Aurelia and Emily.

Here's your next group of words with which to create a story -

midnight, dwell, hummingbird

The hummingbird darted and dashed through the flowers, dwelling where it would, to sip nectar. Then, a flower, appearing to be in the middle of spiraling rainbow colours and shaded with the darkest colours of midnight, caught its attention, and the hummingbird zipped off, never to be seen again. (49 words)

[Aurelia West]

It was past midnight and the small moonlit clearing seemed to be asleep. From the darkness came a hummingbird, still maddeningly awake, its wings flitting wildly as it emerged from where it dwelled. It seemed to be listening for something, but no sounds emerged from the dark. (47 words)

[Silvana Mandeville]

It was midnight, but I can't sleep yet. I was sitting at the balcony when I saw a hummingbirdㅡah no, a couple of them came out from where they dwelled. They fly around in the garden below my room, it looks like they're on a date. I think so. (50 words)

[Prof. Tarma Amelia Black]

Beans were sent to Aurelia and Silvana

Here's our last group of words for February, with which to create a story:

bus, fish, hat

"Excuse me," the bus driver said, while expertly weaving her way through traffic. "Would you please remove your hat? It's blocking my conductors path down the aisle."
"Oh!" I replied, and removed my flying fish shaped sombrero. "Sorry." (38 words)

[Silvana Mandeville]

I adjusted the hat on my head and sat on the bench at the bus stop while waiting for the next bus. "Hi, Silvana," said someone from my left. I turned to the person, surprised to see my boss who was sitting next to me eating fish-shaped cookies. (48 words)

[Prof. Sky Alton]

Beans from last week have been sent

We'll be kicking off March with the following words....
direction, whistle, forest

For Example:
The wind was a cruel whistle through the narrow pass. He shuffled forward, his shoulders hunched and his thoughts on the shelter of the forest he’d left. He glanced up to check he was still going in the right direction but the rocky sides blocked his view of the stars. (50 words)

[Emily Spencer]

I headed in the direction of the mysterious whistling sound I heard, my footsteps taking me ever deeper into the forest. Imagine my surprise when I found a gray chipmunk was the source of the noise. We had tea and a lovely conversation that afternoon. Fun times! (50 words)

[Silvana Mandeville]

Aura and I arrived at our destination, we are on a mission to collect wild herbs. As we walked into the forest, many birds were whistling beautifully as if welcoming us. We didn't dwelled long as we quickly moved to the direction where the herbs are growing. (47 words)

[Aurelia West]

The forest was lonely that night. Winds would whistle through every now and again, but they brought no wildlife to the scene. It seemed like the perfect direction to head for a secluded meeting, but the twins knew better than to trust a place so quiet. (46 words)

[Hannah Lovegood]

I went to a Quidditch game in a forest. When I sat down at the game a whistle blew. During the game one of the players was going in my direction and they looked like they were going to fall. (40)

[Prof. Sky Alton]

Beans have been awarded for last week.

This week, our words are....

Jersey, fly, television

For example:
The young girl leaned towards the television, her nose brushing the screen. Her eyes tracked the cyclists speeding up the mountain and in particular the one in the yellow jersey who was impossibly far in front. That, she thought, must be the closest anyone got to being able to fly. (50 words)