And still 5.5hours left to go...

Check out this cracker by @stillsquirrel.bsky.social

Blimey. This is such lovely news and I can't say how much it means. Couldn't be happier to be sharing it too with the magnificent @jackmmorris.bsky.social

Not only is the one and only Mr @mattkendrick.bsky.social a most talented and generous teacher but his courses will change the way you think about words for ever. Tagging @kazbarwrites.bsky.social who should still be doing handstands after the launch of her brilliant anthology Cold Toast.

'The stage was unlit and populated only by four chairs that, to be honest, both I and mother would have been ashamed to have had in our kitchen.' Unsettling and closely observed. Another corker from @kerryhp.bsky.social

Aw. Great to re-read this absolute cracker by @kiklodge.bsky.social

'...keep praying the elevator doors will shield you will swallow you whole like the whale swallowed Jonah but no this blond cop’s coming at you and what good are Bible stories anyway' Wowzer. Such powerful writing by @nomad-sw18.bsky.social 👏👏👏

This one’s a beauty 🍹🌍🏨

What great winning stories! Congratulations everyone. ⬇️⬇️⬇️

"Yet these broken bones rage as the night minutes grind. I sweat through the pain, breath in city lights. I still hear your taunts." Love the brotherly tension in this story by @kateaxeford.bsky.social in @nffr.bsky.social. The truths are laid down w precision. newflashfiction.com/the-truths-b...

"The infinite kiss of the prairie skyline. From the top of that pumpjack, all possibilities shimmered ahead." Wow, this phenomenal piece of writing by @kateaxeford.bsky.social in @nffr.bsky.social 💙💙💙 newflashfiction.com/the-truths-b...

‘Their food smells like difference. Imagine what resistance can do, the candidate says, how it will erase problems before they cross our borders.’ Such a haunting and beautiful story by Gary Fincke 👏 newflashfiction.com/the-adoratio...

‘He’s all cheekbones and squint and giving Robert De Niro. A real Purple Caramel.’ Gritty, quirky but with the hint of a soft centre. More brilliance by @kazbarwrites.bsky.social newflashfiction.com/spiral-by-ka...

Totally made up to be in this lovely looking issue with flashy friends old and new. A big shout out and thanks to @finnwritesstuff.bsky.social for their fabulous reading too.

So ... this beauty by @kazbarwrites.bsky.social popped through my letterbox this week. What a cover - and what a collection! 👏 👏

Starter pack of some of my favourite #flashfiction writers. If I missed you, it's because it's 5:45 AM and my eyes are crossing scrolling through my list. go.bsky.app/9ZFnPpg

Congratulations to all the winners of our ‘haircut’ stories from the Oct 26t Festival Day judged by @scooterwriter.bsky.social Check out who they are & their stories here https:/www.flashfictionfestival.com/winners-great-flash-fiction-festival-day-october-2024/

With news of winter fuel payment cuts, UK #FuelPoverty charities need our help more than ever. £10 from every copy of the Fuel Flash anthology of prizewinning #flashfiction is donated to 4 fuel poverty charities - and it's a fantastic read! Details here, will post worldwide: www.fuelflash.net

‘My bloated, lost son says to dustbin his goal of university, that it will likely be full of deers with antenna antlers sent by the FBI.’ This is heartbreakingly brilliant. A searing piece by mental health ally and incredibly talented @pleomorphic2.bsky.social 👏 👏

ICYMI delighted to make my debut with @mrbullbull.bsky.social

That’s a nice Friday surprise to see I’ve made the longlist. Good luck for the next stage everyone!

On #ShortStorySunday #AmReading stories in @reckonreview.bsky.social @fracturedlit.bsky.social @ellipsiszine.bsky.social MonkeyBicycle by Hannah Olabosibe Eko; Sudha Subramanian @kateaxeford.bsky.social; Gary Fincke coffeeandpaneer.wordpress.com/2023/11/26/s...

Thanks to Helen for judging, to all our entrants who helped us raise £300 for The Trussell Trust, and to our sensational reading team @fionamckay.bsky.social @markstocker.bsky.social @markthomson.bsky.social and @marthawrites.bsky.social. We are honoured to know you. Thank you all for your support🩷

Lovely to see my title hanging on in there and there’s some cracking stories on the shortlist - so do get reading and voting ! 🗳️

Prompted by a couple of posts I saw yesterday, a thread about how it's really tough being a creative writing freelancer right now. Please read and share if you can. (1/13)

"But the numbness persists when you’re freed from that chair." This extraordinary piece of writing by @kateaxeford.bsky.social in @ellipsiszine.bsky.social 💙💙💙

"You’re thinking about what she said when you’re floored by a wall of disinfectant, and you wonder how cold a morgue must feel." Gritty #FlashFiction from @kateaxeford.bsky.social with so much hidden in the white space. Great exploration of internal thought.

How lovely. Just seen I’ve made the longlist this time 😊

Ok, this is a grim and gritty tale about heroin, loss and pulling teeth… but so glad it found it’s home in Ellipsis Zine.

Here’s a little Samhain tale for ya with a spooktacularly good illustration by the marvellous Harry Venning 👻👻👻

It wasn’t that Ethel always scowled, but the rollers pinched, and it was hot as hell in ‘The Lunatic Fringe.’ She’d turn the air blue when she got home. How dare he write into the Problem Pages - and use their married name too!  #mpotd

If anyone is up for odd… www.peatsmokejournal.com/fall-2023-fl...

So many fabulous writerly things here from the ever generous Mr Matt Kendrick 👏 👏

For Best of the Net 2024, Splonk is happy to nominate stories by Rick White & Cathy Ulrich, and artwork by Janice Leagra, from Issues 8 and 9. Congrats all! www.splonk.ie @ricketywhite.bsky.social @janiceleagra.bsky.social

‘Johnny followed the rain to places made of more than dirt, where droplets flew wild in the night, free from sacrifice and prayer.’ ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️👏👏👏

Our Autumn Charity Flash Fiction Competition is open. Stories of 500 words, no theme. Deadline 8 October. @helenrye.bsky.social is our Guest Judge (how exciting) and will be awarding £150 in prizes. All proceeds to The Trussell Trust. thepropellingpencil.com/spring-2023-...

Psst here's a whole bunch of short stories about climate change featuring to you lovely lot fictionalsarah.substack.com/p/13-short-s... @authorizedmusings.bsky.social @mynachang.bsky.social @kimsrogers.bsky.social @coffeeandpaneer.bsky.social @brechtdp.bsky.social

🧵1/7 #flashlit #settings In the run-up to @tommydeanwriter.bsky.social's Immersive Settings #workshop at The Flash Cabin, I'm posting a link a day to stories where location is key. 1st up, Convenience Store Babies by @rosaleenlynch.bsky.social www.janusliterary.com/2021/09/30/r...

‘Sylvie’s limbs are taut as the handles of an overused carrier bag, and creak like trees in a storm.’ This tall tale by @stillsquirrel.bsky.social . Fabulous 👏👏