Flash 55: The Gift

Consignment wedding dress: seventy-five dollars.

The girl lifted it, held it against her.

“Can we?” Fairytale sequins and lace glistened.

He shook his head. “We won’t have enough money until Wednesday.”

A woman listened. “I’ll put twenty dollars towards it. A wedding gift.”

“He leaves for Iraq next week.”

Rewards outweigh money sometimes.

Flash 55 is flash fiction of 55 words, no more or less. See Mr. Know-It-All's blog for more. It was his big idea--and a good one, too.

Try it, I think you;'ll like it.

Flash 55: Harvest

picture by USDA

Harvest

He bent to pull chickweed away from the zucchini plant. No squash yet, but bloom was plentiful.

The snake, harboring in the cool shade, raised its head.
The man froze, hand clutching the wilting weed.

Slit eyes met blue eyes.

Seconds, minutes passed.

A voice called, “Henry, where are you?”

The snake turned its head.

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Now, your turn to write a flash fiction piece--55 words no more, no less. Post your piece as a comment to Mr. Know-It-All's blog for today on his site. What easier way to get inspired and get writing?

Flash Fiction: Reading Light

He waited; day's light faded to dull metallic.

On his lap electric blue glimmered along the edges of the book’s cover.

Opening, light flowed from pages where men and women, tiny figures, danced.

Music tinkled, glasses clinked. Pages turned. Night passed. Dawn edged the horizon with gold.

He stepped between the covers.

The book closed.


For more flash fiction stories, go Mr. Know-It-All's blog for links to this Friday's submissions.

Choice: Flash Fiction Friday

Following Susan of Stony River Farm blog's suggestion, I'm trying out this form of very short story. To tell a story in 55 words or less is no easy task, especially for someone as wordy as I am.

Here's what I came up with:

Choice

photo citation: Steve Dewey,

Utah State University, Bugwood.org
Steam rose from the blue pottery mug. An age-spotted hand lifted it unsteadily.
A sip. A sigh.
The cup returned to the counter.
Another hand, young and soft, picked it up.
“Good?”
“Yes.”
“Ready?”
“Yes.”
“This is how you want it?”

“Yes. Good-bye, dear.”

She’s gone now.
It’s time.
Six, dressed in black, filed in.

If you want to give this a try, be sure to go to Mr. Know-It-All's blog and leave him a comment on his Flash 55 post. It was his idea, after all. It's a good exercise for writers to hone their words to the minimum.