Forever Distracted By Life
Flash-Fiction Writing Prompt
#FoDiByLi – #FDBLvss
Friday 26 August 2022
Using the first line given, write a flash-fiction story.
‘I hate looking people in the eye.’
Karen Todd
Suggestion given by Karen in the Friends of #FoDiByLi Facebook Group consider joining to have your creative voice heard and input into the creative development of the #FoDiByLi content.
Feel free to share your work here on Forever Distracted By Life or on any of the linked #FoDiByLi platforms below:
What is Flash-Fiction?
The term Flash-Fiction covers a wide range and broad spectrum of writing styles. From finding just the right words when writing Micro-Fiction like The Six Word Story or composing that perfect piece of Twitterature, to slightly longer stories which blur the boundaries of the traditional short-story which is usually anywhere between 2000-5000 words .
For our purposes anything up to 1,500 words is eligible to be called Flash-Fiction, but there are several different styles listed here and further information on the different forms and styles can be found on reedsyblog as a great introduction to the many forms of flash-fiction. All forms of flash-fiction share some sense of immediacy. The minimal word count in these styles means that any story or narrative needs to be cut down to its most essential moments to ensure maximum impact when read.
Flash-Fiction is designed to be read in one sitting, something to pass the time on a train journey, or to read in the waiting room before a dentist appointment; but these stories don’t have to be throw away moments, great flash-fiction can stay with you for days, the message contained within burning away in the back of your mind.
Micro-Fiction on #FoDiByLi (500 words)
Six Word Story: (6 words)
The six word story is a self contained prose story written in just six words. There should still be some sense of internal narrative, something provocative or with a subtle double meaning. Well crafted six word stories can still evoke great emotion.
‘For sale: baby shoes, never worn‘
– Ernest Hemingway
Hemingway’s writing, though bleak, is undeniably powerful and with inference delivers an emotional blow beyond words. Six Word Stories are often fun though and #FoDiByLi often shares image prompts on social media to encourage and inspire.
You can follow #FoDiByLi on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest and share your #SixWordStories there along with the hashtags:
#FoDiByLi #SixWordStories
Twitterature (280 character stories)
Twitterature, as the name suggests, is a form of short-fiction that is found on Twitter where a whole story is told within 280 characters. Often added as replies to image or text prompts these short pieces of fiction are usually fun reading and an exciting writing challenge.
If you follow #FoDiByLi on Twitter, why not share your #VeryShortStories there along with the tag: #FDBLvss
(271 Characters + #FDBLvss = 280 characters total) #vss
Dribble to Drabble (50 – 100 words)
Dribble fiction is anything up to 50 words, and Drabble fiction is anything up to 100 Words. Both are deceptively tricky forms of fiction writing as it is easy to get carried away.
A Sudden/Flash (750 – 1,500 Words)
The boundary of the term Micro-Fiction is somewhere between 500 – 750 words. As stories pass 750 words they enter the territory of Sudden-Fiction, which as the name suggests is a short piece of prose writing which shares the sense of immediacy as the micro-fiction forms. The stories of this length are well suited to the suspense and horror genres as they start at the climax of the story, often building to a tense ambiguous ending.
Beyond 750 words and you’re not only writing something that may be intended to be read in multiple sittings, but you’re approaching the border of the the flash-fiction writing styles. Any story up to 1,500 words is still likely to be considered flash-fiction, but with bigger word counts stories begin to delve a little deeper, pulling at a range of emotions and a broader range of writing styles and genres.
Writers if sharing your #VeryShortStories here on Forever Distracted By Life or any of the linked Social Media platforms please remember to use the tags:
#FoDiByLi #FDBLvss
Using the #FoDiByLi tags helps us reach a wider audience and hopefully spreads a little more creativity out into the world.
Follow Forever Distracted By Life on any of the linked social media accounts for more writing prompts, original poetry and fiction. Remember, like and share these prompts and posts when you see them to help spread the word about #FoDiByLi.
Recent Writing Prompts from #FoDiByLi
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