tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40358971815636065112024-03-13T03:45:03.864-07:00Cracked Flash Fiction CompetitionWriters meet a prompt and 24 hours.Mariah Burketthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11218074283132166810noreply@blogger.comBlogger206125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-42999559320672941382017-08-26T02:24:00.001-07:002017-08-26T02:24:12.025-07:00Short HiatusHey all, this is Mars.<br />
<br />
I've recently gotten a job, which accounts for my recent slips in judging CFFC, so I wanted to take a week or two to regroup and find another judge or two (Ronel needs the next month or two off), as well as get the three missing results up (the one from like four months ago, and these last two weeks). <br />
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Thank you all for your continuing support of CFFC :)<br />
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<3 MarsMariah Burketthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11218074283132166810noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-24000461578235674432017-08-19T04:03:00.001-07:002017-08-19T04:03:36.798-07:00Cracked Flash: Year 3, Week 4<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.com/p/submission-rules.html">Have some rules c:</a></b></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Judge This Week:</b> TBD</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Word Count:</b> 300 max</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!). One entry per person.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Deadline: <span style="color: #cc0000;">Sunday 8/20 at 4 AM PDT</span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Results announced: </b>Next <span style="color: #cc0000;">Wednesday<span style="color: #cc0000; font-weight: bold;"> </span></span>afternoon.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated into your stories; they're for inspiration (and amusement).)</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Prompt </h3>
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I dropped my shield.</div>
Mariah Burketthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11218074283132166810noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-44144782435823484652017-08-16T08:04:00.001-07:002017-08-16T08:04:58.690-07:00Cracked Flash Y3W3: Results!<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I enjoyed this week’s stories and even the spam had me LOL.
Though the last can be attributed to spring being here ;-)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Without further ado, here’s this week’s winner:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;">Y3W3 Winner</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>Carin Marais </b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>with “A Crown of Grey and Red”</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This dark tale had me from the moment the woman
was described and had me shivering since the sentence where the girl’s fate was
made clear until the end.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The only advice I have is to leave spaces between paragraphs to make it easier for readers to read.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Great work!</span>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">A Crown of Grey and Red</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“If you could even begin to comprehend where I’ve come from, you would be terrified of me.”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">I took in the grey-haired woman in front of me. All in greens and browns she was dressed, but wore a cloak of ox blood red. Her hair was entwined with holly berries; a crown of red above a wrinkled face. </span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“You should go back to town,” she said to me. </span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“They sent me to gather the water this year.”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“You?” she laughed. “You are too young.”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">I drew myself up to my full height. But even so I was noticeably short for my sixteen years. </span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“They said she would be here to lead me into the woods to the water. The last girl.”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“And what makes you think that I am not she?”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“Because that was five years ago and you’re too…”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“Old? The woods change you.” She stepped back into the shadows of the trees. “Are you coming or not?”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">I looked back at the town for a moment and clenched my jaw before following the woman. </span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“They lie when they say it holds the power to give eternal youth, you know,” she said when we reached a spring surrounded by dried and ashen vegetation.</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“Then why do we come?”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“Because the years we lose, they gain,” she said with nonchalance as she filled the bucket I had brought with water and started walking away. </span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">“And you will leave me here, to your fate?”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">She looked back. “If it means that I could see my son one more time before I die, yes.”</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">On the elected day I, too, entwined berries in my greying hair and ambled to the edge of the woods I would at last be permitted to leave. </span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">A young girl already stood waiting. </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xYWdyMRbs1c/WHIS-Dm0q4I/AAAAAAAAEF0/yZ8M8o15cucMh4uCrUo7K6rbjpjSJfzUwCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Flavio%2BApproves.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="273" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xYWdyMRbs1c/WHIS-Dm0q4I/AAAAAAAAEF0/yZ8M8o15cucMh4uCrUo7K6rbjpjSJfzUwCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Flavio%2BApproves.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you all for participating.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next Saturday...</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span>Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-38590849995379025252017-08-12T00:00:00.000-07:002017-08-12T00:00:41.797-07:00Cracked Flash: Year 3, Week 3<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Welcome to another round of <i>Cracked Flash Fiction Competition</i>!</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #171d7c; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; text-decoration-line: none;">We have some rules c:</span></b></a><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
<b>Judge this week: </b>Ronel<br />
<br />
<b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br />
<br />
<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your
name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!).
One entry per person.<br />
<br />
<b>Deadline:</b> </span><b><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Midnight
tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
<br />
<b>Results announced:</b> Next </span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Wednesday</span><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"> afternoon.<br />
<br />
<b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be
mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated
into your stories: they're for inspiration (and amusement).)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Prompt:</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘If you could even begin to comprehend where I’ve come from,
you would be terrified of me.’</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://ronelthemythmaker.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/dark-sorceres.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="713" data-original-width="473" height="320" src="https://ronelthemythmaker.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/dark-sorceres.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://ronelthemythmaker.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/dryad-in-tree.jpg?w=529&h=299" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="529" height="180" src="https://ronelthemythmaker.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/dryad-in-tree.jpg?w=529&h=299" width="320" /></a></div>
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Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-56084118258573433102017-08-05T01:06:00.000-07:002017-08-05T01:06:08.946-07:00Cracked Flash: Year 3, Week 2<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Welcome to another round of <i>Cracked Flash Fiction Competition</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I saw nothing was up yet, so here we go!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #171d7c; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; text-decoration-line: none;">We have some rules c:</span></b></a><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
<b>Judge this week: </b>To-be-determined.<br />
<br />
<b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br />
<br />
<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your
name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!).
One entry per person.<br />
<br />
<b>Deadline:</b> </span><b><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Midnight
tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
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<b>Results announced:</b> Next </span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Wednesday</span><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"> afternoon.<br />
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<b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be
mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated
into your stories: they're for inspiration (and amusement).)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To say the wedding wasn’t going as planned was the
understatement of the century.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-85082924511640191802017-08-04T00:38:00.003-07:002017-08-04T00:38:27.950-07:00Year 3, Week 1: Results!<span style="font-size: large;"><u>Runner Up</u></span><br /><span style="color: #cc0000;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000;">Bill Engleson's <i>Lock Step</i></span><br /><br />“Screw tradition. // I want stuff.” I appreciate this attitude from a main character (though perhaps not the whole “stealing from the neighbors and the destitute” part), especially in a world where people are shouting for less thief and scumbag books (they've obviously never read Locke Lamora). The thing that lost me with this story was that there was a lack of conflict; all the action relevant to the story had already happened by the time it started. Good job!<br /><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u>Y3W1 Winner!</u></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><u><span style="color: #cc0000;">Dave Mikulas</span></u></span><br /><br /><b>with</b> <b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><i>Picks & Rakes</i></span></b></div>
<br />Carrying an entire story through dialogue can be a tough challenge. It certainly worked well for this story, though, as describing the little thieves could have given away the big reveal at the end! I do like the foreshadowing with the “That's not my pick set. They're too small,” line. (I also have “Big Fun” from Heathers' running through my head at the “I need a hit” line, so thanks haha.) This is a cute little piece after the reveal, though I was caught for a moment in thinking the police were onto them. Good job!<br />
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<b><span style="color: #4c1130;">Picks & Rakes</span></b><br /><br /><span style="color: #4c1130;">“I taught you how to pick locks and this, this is the extent of your skills Jimmy?”<br /><br />“Shut up Charlie.”<br /><br />“You’re fumbling like a teenager in the back seat of mom’s Chevy.”<br /><br />“And what would you know about that?”<br /><br />“I know enough Jimmy! Now hurry up!”<br /><br />“Here, you take the rake and do it yourself.”<br /><br />“That’s not my pick set. They’re too small.”<br /><br />“Then please, let me be.”<br /><br />“Hurry up. They’re comin’ back any second.”<br /><br />“I know.”<br /><br />“You’ve got to hurry.”<br /><br />“I know.”<br /><br />“Any second she could come back and we’re busted.”<br /><br />“Then be. Quiet. And keep a lookout.”<br /><br />“You should be done already! What’s the problem?”<br /><br />“You’re not helping Charlie. Hold the light steady. I can’t see a damn thing.”<br /><br />“Oh, come on! I need a hit Jimmy!”<br /><br />“I told you before; you’re welcome to take over.”<br /><br />“Don’t stop you’ve almost got it! Keep going! Keep going!”<br /><br />“I’m working as fast as I can but I’ve got someone squawking at me every. Three. Seconds. Now zip it and let me work.”<br /><br />“Are you in yet?”<br /><br />“Wow. You lasted exactly two seconds. A personal record Charlie. Let me work.”<br /><br />“Okay. Okay.”<br /><br />“There.”<br /><br />“About time. Grab ‘em and go! Go! Go! Go!”<br /><br />“YOU TWO! HANDS UP!”<br /><br />“Crap. Busted.”<br /><br />“TURN AROUND! “EMPTY YOUR POCKETS!”<br /><br />“It was all Jimmy’s idea!”<br /><br />“My idea?!? My idea! You’re the one that knew where she kept the goods!”<br /><br />“CHARLES! JAMES! HERE! NOW!!”<br /><br />“Yes mom.”<br /><br />“Yes mom.”<br /><br />“Drop the candy. All of it Charles.”<br /><br />“Yes mom.”<br /><br />“I teach you two how to pick locks and this is how you use that skill?<br /><br />“Bravo boys. But next time…wait until I go to bed.”</span></blockquote>
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Mariah Burketthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11218074283132166810noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-63709526154009168422017-07-28T23:59:00.000-07:002017-07-28T23:59:06.033-07:00Cracked Flash: Year 3, Week 1<div style="text-align: justify;">
HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY I'm back from college! I oughtta be around for a long stretch this time. </div>
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JSYK Ronel and Kelly are <b><i><u>amazing</u></i></b>. CFFC probably would have gone on hiatus for three or so months if they hadn't stepped up to the judging plate. Thank them when you next see them, please! </div>
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ALSO we forgot to celebrate CFFC's second anniversary last month! We're onto Year Three as of June 27th!! I can't express how amazing y'all are to have stuck around this long!</div>
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So I'm back in the judging rotation, and I'll be judging this round :D<br />
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<span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.com/p/submission-rules.html">Have some rules c:</a></b></span></span></div>
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<b>Judge This Week:</b> Mars</div>
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<b>Word Count:</b> 300 max</div>
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<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!). One entry per person.</div>
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<b>Deadline: </b>Midnight tonight, PDT! </div>
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<b>Results announced: </b>Next <span style="color: #cc0000;">Wednesday<span style="color: #cc0000; font-weight: bold;"> </span></span>afternoon.</div>
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<b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated into your stories; they're for inspiration (and amusement).)</div>
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Prompt </h3>
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"I taught you to pick locks and this is how you use that skill?"<br />
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Mariah Burketthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11218074283132166810noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-23359196844464323692017-07-26T13:00:00.000-07:002017-07-26T13:00:00.188-07:00Year 2 Week 48 Results!What fun twists on the man, Job. He was the first person known to wear worms and a crust of dirt (Job 7:5). The winning story stood out immediately, but the runner up was a tougher choice. Each entry had beautiful lines, images, and/or phrases.<br />
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"Unfinished" had some stand-out, antiquated images I was thankful to see again.<br />
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"Total Win" had a <b>winning</b> narrational attitude, but swung wildly from <i>deal with it</i> to <i>let's tie the knot</i>. Bit of a capricious zombie!<br />
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"The Equalizer" had probably my favorite line of the year: "Rich and poor use the same alphabet. "I was unclear as to who was driving the corvette. Were they in the car together? This piece sent me on a researching spree: decomposition. I learned those gut bacteria DO bloat your entrails till they come out your... (well, look it up if you want to be disgusted!)<br />
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On to the winners.<br />
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<b><span style="color: red;">Runner Up</span></b></h3>
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Sara Codair with "What Comes out of the Ground"<br />
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The mother's sass was fun. I also enjoyed the literal take on the prompt and the details that painted an exact time/scene. The clear plot and surprise ending was ultimately what made this my runner-up.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;"><b>Winner!</b></span><span style="color: red;"><b>Y2W48</b></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.engleson.ca/" target="_blank">Bill Engleson</a> with "A Heart-Worming Story"</div>
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The funny, strong voice immediately pulled me in. Then you make the idea of him waiting and listening under there with the beautifully understated phrase, "It was all very remarkable." Then, the betrayal! The origin of the walking dead- love!<br />
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My flesh is clothed with worms and a crust of dirt.<br />
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The dirt is essential. The worms absolutely insist. I don’t mind. They are unusually polite, not a characteristic you would normally expect from worms.<br />
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I had once considered cremation. It seemed a nice tidy way to exit.<br />
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But I dawdled with my will and no specific changes made it into the final draft.<br />
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Sam Salter, my lawyer, kept at me, of course. “Spell it out, Walt. If you have a preference, state it.”<br />
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I suppose it was the smoke, the flame, the fire, the blast of heat that caused me to hesitate. In the end, I went for the traditional funeral, the box, the lowering into the ground, the eternal wait.<br />
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After a goodly number of months of interminable rest, the cold, the heat, the changing seasons up above, the voices of other new members of our cemetery community, my consciousness began to stir. It was all quite remarkable.<br />
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Cecile came often. I could almost hear her. “Oh Walt, I hope you don’t think me disloyal. Sam has been very helpful with the estate. We have become closer than I ever imagined possible.”<br />
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As I heard her confession, I thought, well, at least I know him. He was a pretty fair lawyer. He might make a suitable lover.”<br />
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The worms thought otherwise. Surprisingly, they could not curb their tongues. “Lawyers. Squirming sleazy lawyers,” they would say. “We can barely find the courage to slither into their corpses. We let the other creatures of the soil slip under their skin. Beetles! Ants! Oh, the ants love to crawl into the orifices of dead lawyers.”<br />
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Eventually, the concept of the walking dead arose in discussion.<br />
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The worms heartily endorsed the activity.<br />
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Sam and Cecile can expect a visit any night now.<br />
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I'm happy to tell you Si is back from the academic underworld and will be returning to CFF!<br />
<span style="color: red;"><b><br /></b></span>Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-4192819145870060182017-07-22T00:00:00.000-07:002017-07-22T00:00:37.679-07:00Cracked Flash: Year 2, Week 48<div>
<span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Happy Saturday! And to make Saturday even happier, welcome to another round of </span><i style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Cracked Flash Fiction Competition.</i></div>
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<a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" style="color: #171d7c; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;">We have some rules c:</span></b></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><br /><b>Judge this week: Kelly</b><br /><br /><b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br /><br /><b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!). One entry per person.<br /><br /><b>Deadline:</b> </span><b><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;">Midnight tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><br /><br /><b>Results announced:</b> Next </span><span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;">Wednesday</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"> afternoon.<br /><br /><b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated into your stories: they're for inspiration (and amusement).)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">"My flesh is clothed with worms and a crust of dirt."</span></div>
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Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-68955313034338910842017-07-20T00:03:00.001-07:002017-07-20T00:03:53.268-07:00Cracked Flash Y2W47: Results!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had so much fun reading this week’s entries. I enjoyed the
different takes on the prompt and had a hard time figuring out who the winners
are. Well done everyone! I apologise for the late announcement, but I forgot
what day it is… Blame my Grimm folktale retellings for that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On to the results:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>Honourable Mention</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KM Zafari with “Fear and Loathing in Los Angeles”</b></span></div>
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I love the humour of this piece. A cat-underground filled with catnip thefts
makes me think there’s much more to this story…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>First Runner-Up</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: red;">Nancy Beach with “Sanity’s Pull”</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I enjoyed the description of what the mind does when it
doesn’t get enough sleep and the MC’s interaction with her husband. The story
pulled me in and kept my attention until the end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> A few notes: you don’t
need the quotation marks at the start of the story – unless I missed where the
dialogue should end? “mosquito bite
-this feels” Either do a double dash -- or allow your wordprocessor to
automatically turn it into a longer dash – as it should be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;"><b>Winner Y2W47</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>Sara Codair with “Padded Walls”</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I really like the premise of this story. And the twist is
awesome!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few notes: “it’s
maw” should be “its maw” because <i>it’s</i>
is a contraction for <i>it is</i>. Check the
rest of the story for the right use and typos like turning one word into two,
etc. “ran charged through them” Choose either ran or charged. (I fixed
all this in the story below.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well done.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Padded Walls</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">
“When this is over, I want my sanity back,” said Elena as matter-of-factly as
one could say anything when wearing a straightjacket in a padded room.<br />
<br />
The padded walls spread their crusty purple lips, revealing row upon row of
pointy yellow teeth and laughed.<br />
<br />
“I mean it.” She waggled her pointer finger at the ceiling.<br />
<br />
“Who says it will ever be over?” The wall’s lips cracked as it spoke.<br />
<br />
“Who said I was talking to you,” retorted Elena, tearing her eyes away from the
ceiling so she could glare at the wall.<br />
<br />
Black blood dripped out of the wall’s cracked lip, trickling down to the floor.
“No one leaves here alive.”<br />
<br />
Elena laughed. The sound was harsher, more maniacal than it had been two weeks
ago.<br />
<br />
“You do not believe?” asked the wall.<br />
<br />
“You’re the reason I’m here.” She crouched down, wriggling in the straightjacket
that was not nearly as tight as the orderlies thought, thankful for all the
months she’d trained for prior to taking this assignment.<br />
<br />
“You can’t do that,” said the wall.<br />
<br />
Elena arched one eyebrow as she shrugged off the jacket and used it to wipe up
the black blood.<br />
<br />
The wall opened its mouth and screamed. Elena didn’t flinch. It inhaled,
sucking in air so hard her hair blew towards its maw. She closed her eyes,
cleared her mind of the all the drug-induced hallucinations she’d had during
her stay Frommington Hospital, waiting for the wall to show its true
face.<br />
<br />
She whispered words of power in the ancient tongue. The blood soaked jacket
caught fire. The wall screamed as it burned with the jacket. The door opened as
orderlies rushed in to put out the fire. Elena charged through them and
strolled out of the burning hospital like she owned the place. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="273" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" /></a> </o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you all for participating.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next Saturday…</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sZM17Pl_Joo/WAdLsXKbDOI/AAAAAAAAACY/5dyMtdj9lBICSl1jyxRXeeRKPYghqRbwACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/dori%2Bdistracted.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sZM17Pl_Joo/WAdLsXKbDOI/AAAAAAAAACY/5dyMtdj9lBICSl1jyxRXeeRKPYghqRbwACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/dori%2Bdistracted.png" /></a>Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-584815521907057772017-07-15T00:00:00.000-07:002017-07-15T00:00:00.151-07:00Cracked Flash: Year2, Week 47<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Welcome to another round of <i>Cracked Flash Fiction Competition</i>!</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #171d7c; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; text-decoration-line: none;">We have some rules c:</span></b></a><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
<b>Judge this week: </b>Ronel<br />
<br />
<b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br />
<br />
<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your
name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!).
One entry per person.<br />
<br />
<b>Deadline:</b> </span><b><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Midnight
tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
<br />
<b>Results announced:</b> Next </span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Wednesday</span><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"> afternoon.<br />
<br />
<b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be
mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated
into your stories: they're for inspiration (and amusement).)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Prompt:</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘When this is all over, I want my sanity back.’</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-4659776510165273972017-07-12T13:00:00.000-07:002017-07-12T13:00:34.854-07:00Year 2, Week 46 Results!Hi Cracked Flash Fictionados,<br />
<br />
We had four entries last week, and it was TOUGH choosing. I decided to pick one winner and give some feedback to everyone else. I love feedback, and hopefully you do too.<br />
<br />
The untitled piece by <a href="http://www.filledtoempty.com/" target="_blank">Nancy Beach</a> pulled me in and was completely satisfying, especially the use of onomatopoeia sown throughout-- that made for a delightful rhythm. Also, I was rooting for Ellie and was disappointed when the psychopathic dad won. And horrified. What a startling twist!<br />
<br />
"You'll Never Get Burned by a Hot Poker Hand" by <a href="http://www.engleson.ca/" target="_blank">Bill Engleson</a>. I enjoyed wondering what was distressing the narrator and was impressed with your smooth incorporation of flashback.<br />
<br />
The untitled piece by Dave Mikulas was funny, turned in unexpected ways, and had several fresh similes.<br />
<br />
And now... our winner!<br />
<br />
"Wants and Needs" by <a href="http://www.medium.com/@HomemadeHalo" target="_blank">Tip Tim</a><br />
<br />
There were several reasons this piece stood out to me. I thought the second use of the prompt was clever. The change in POV was smoothly executed and added a complexity difficult to pull off in a flash piece. The substitute doctor ratcheted up the tension. I thought the doc was scared because he was a novice, but then you altered the revelation again, uncovering something even more sinister. Well played.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Wants and Needs</b></div>
“I can handle this.” Stewart thought as he was being wheeled along on a gurney. He looked up at the lights on the ceiling passing hypnotically in a train as they went down the long corridor headed for the theater room. It was for a good cause. It was a necessary cost. Things had taken a rough bend down the past 2 years. He was staring at bankruptcy in the face and was in danger of being kicked out on the streets. And if selling a kidney would get him the money required, to take care of his son Alex’s financial needs, his tuition for college…. Heck, even food on the table, then it was price he could pay. He was by chance a rare match to Lord Mel. They had come to him with an offer he couldn’t refuse. Besides, he had been assured that it was routine, and one kidney could more than adequately serve him well for the rest of his life.<br />
“I can handle this.” Doctor Mulberry scrubbed his trembling hands prepping for surgery. He knew what he had to do, but he was scared. He wasn’t supposed to be the doctor on call. An hour earlier, he had gotten the phone call and had argued feebly for a bit, but he knew it was futile; they had him dead to rights. He could only comply. He had been assured that everyone else that would be in the surgery room would be in on it. Lord Mel had lived a riotous lifestyle generous to his appetite. Right now, he needed ALL the kidneys he could get.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="273" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Come back next Saturday for Ronel's prompt!</div>
Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-10565479199844016302017-07-08T00:00:00.000-07:002017-07-08T00:00:54.427-07:00Year 2, Week 46<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Welcome to another round of <i>Cracked Flash Fiction Competition</i>! </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" style="color: #171d7c; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;">We have some rules c:</span></b></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><br /><b>Judge this week: Kelly</b><br /><br /><b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br /><br /><b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!). One entry per person.<br /><br /><b>Deadline:</b> </span><b><span style="color: red; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;">Midnight tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><br /><br /><b>Results announced:</b> Next </span><span style="color: red; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;">Wednesday</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"> afternoon.<br /><br /><b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated into your stories: they're for inspiration and amusement.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Prompt:</span></b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" />
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I can handle this.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-olEev6tLiEc/WV2G38Ai3SI/AAAAAAAABI8/GijMWWoPlnYui2OkvhVUv3dITrvufjNIgCLcBGAs/s1600/img_fjords.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-olEev6tLiEc/WV2G38Ai3SI/AAAAAAAABI8/GijMWWoPlnYui2OkvhVUv3dITrvufjNIgCLcBGAs/s320/img_fjords.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-29971885016894591982017-07-05T12:55:00.001-07:002017-07-05T12:55:37.857-07:00Year 2, Week 45: Results!<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There’s not much to say this week… I enjoyed the entries a
lot and the two winning stories are near to perfection. Well done everyone!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Runner Up</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: red;">Angie with “Honor in dying”</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love the imagery.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’d shorten the paragraphs to add to the tension, though.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;"><b>Winner Y2W45</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>Bill Engleson with “The Art Class of War”</b></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Excellent story. I
love the twist! </span><br />
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
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<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">The Art Class of
War <br />
<br />
Two thousand warriors drew their swords for a war they would not win.<br />
<br />
It was downright embarrassing.<br />
<br />
“Two thousand,” I explode. “TWO THOUSAND!”<br />
<br />
“Shush, Moog,” someone says from a desk, three rows over. It’s Gorge the
Hammer. I give Gorgie my best battle-weary finger and whisper, “You’re fine
with this?”<br />
<br />
“Shush, both of you,” someone further back chimes in. And then that shush-happy
soldier adds, “Stick to the task at hand.”<br />
<br />
“Frigging Pols,” I mutter, and return to my sketch, remembering how this all
came about.<br />
<br />
Was it only a month ago that General Scourge revealed the new policy from our
superiors.<br />
<br />
“Men,” he had said, in that deep gravelly voice that we all associated with the
glory of attack, “We are in uncharted waters. Glimp the Younger, Prime Minister
of Dampmania, has decreed that the glorious battles of yore, the ones once
fought bravely, ferociously, and quite bloodily by our fathers and their
fathers are no more. It is said that Glimp the Younger could not sleep one
snowy night a few months ago. He went for a walk and upon reaching a small hill
had an epiphany…”<br />
<br />
“A what?” I blurted out.<br />
<br />
“Moog. Is that you interrupting me?” the General demanded to know. The boar fat
was in the fire now, I thought.<br />
<br />
“Yes, my General. Two Thousand apologies.”<br />
<br />
“You still have one serviceable ear, right Moog?”<br />
<br />
“Yes, my General. Most of it.”<br />
<br />
“Then use it. Listen and learn. Glimp saw the future. Our fighting men, all
earless. All limbless. He saw that war would continue but perhaps Dampmania
could profit by it, provision the armies of the world who continue to engage in
pointless bloodshed.”<br />
<br />
“Phooey,” I had said.<br />
<br />
That was last month.<br />
<br />
I refocus and continue drawing the Moog Blade.<br />
<br />
It will be a masterful prototype. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="273" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you all for participating!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until Saturday...</span><br />
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<br />Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-1502724488740140652017-07-01T00:00:00.000-07:002017-07-01T00:00:17.735-07:00Cracked Flash: Year2, Week 45<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Welcome to another round of <i>Cracked Flash Fiction Competition</i>!</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" target="_blank"><b><span style="color: #171d7c; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; text-decoration-line: none;">We have some rules c:</span></b></a><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
<b>Judge this week: </b>Ronel<br />
<br />
<b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br />
<br />
<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your
name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!).
One entry per person.<br />
<br />
<b>Deadline:</b> </span><b><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Midnight
tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><br />
<br />
<b>Results announced:</b> Next </span><span style="color: red; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Wednesday</span><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"> afternoon.<br />
<br />
<b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be
mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated
into your stories: they're for inspiration (and amusement).)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;">Prompt:</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-ZA;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two thousand warriors
drew their swords for a war they would not win.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-44604608897527626692017-06-28T06:44:00.000-07:002017-06-28T06:46:52.045-07:00Year 2, Week 44: Results!<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I had a great time reading this week’s entries. Lots of
imagination among the lot of you. Well done everyone! Due to time-constraints
and health (check my blog for more on that), I’m only going to tell the runner-up
and winner what I thought about their stories.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Runner-up</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill Engleson with “Once Upon a Time in The Dragonsong
Mountains” </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">LOL! I really enjoyed this piece. Lucille is quite a
character.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The semi-colon in
the following sentence should be replaced by a colon. (A colon emphases what’s
to come, while a semi-colon connects two related sentences.) So your sentence
will look like this: “Which, I don’t need to remind most Aircraft
enthusiasts, is what the classic Detwiller
looks like: a giant dill pickle.” Check out the link below for a great article
explaining the use of semi-colons.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well done!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Winner Y2W44</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Neha
Srivastava with “Warped Reality”</span></span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I really enjoyed
the imagery in this piece. For a while I thought the main character was somehow
able to split herself in two. Great twist!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A few notes:
physics doesn’t need capitalisation (see below), the instances of semi-colon
use must be replaced with either colons (:) or with commas (,) as shown in the
piece below. <a href="https://klwightman.com/2017/06/26/3-ways-you-can-use-the-semicolon/" target="_blank">Check out this article on the correct use of semi-colons</a>. I also removed the extra comma in the fifth paragraph and the extra ones in the
last. The words in bold I added – the sentences needed them to be complete. I
also moved the last sentence to stand on its own for effect.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All-in-all a great
flash fiction piece. Well done!</span><br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
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<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt;">Warped Reality<br />
<br />
"Why aren't you obeying the laws of physics?" I shouted at myself.<br />
<br />
<b>I</b> clung to the roof like a ceiling
fan with four arms, my four limbs transformed into those four arms, I looked
like a creature from the netherworld. But I knew it was me.<br />
<br />
A sudden jolt of electricity shook my core, like the motor of a fan when
someone switches on the button. Hell, someone had switched on the button. The
fan started rotating, first slowly and then at top speed.<br />
<br />
Switching on a fan and it rotating is normal business, except this time the fan
was me. As the speed increased, I began gasping for breath. My limbs were
almost coming apart, my being screaming for help, for someone to switch off the
fan, for the rotations to stop.<br />
<br />
I wanted to come back to my gross body which lay in the bed below: the vantage
point from where I was observing me. As my body on the ceiling rotated, my body
on the bed went out of breath. In two places at the same time. Physics could
not explain what was happening, but both my bodies wanted the fan <b>to</b> be turned off. Some external force
prevented this.<br />
<br />
Tired from trying to prevent my limbs from tearing or my heart from exploding,
my bodies dozed off. I didn't realize when. Upon waking, I was no longer short
of breath. However, my head was heavy and my body lethargic.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;">The cannabis drink
was wearing off.</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="273" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thank you all for participating!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Until next Saturday…</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sZM17Pl_Joo/WAdLsXKbDOI/AAAAAAAAACY/5dyMtdj9lBICSl1jyxRXeeRKPYghqRbwACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/dori%2Bdistracted.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sZM17Pl_Joo/WAdLsXKbDOI/AAAAAAAAACY/5dyMtdj9lBICSl1jyxRXeeRKPYghqRbwACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/dori%2Bdistracted.png" /></a></div>
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Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-55695140617840080272017-06-24T00:00:00.000-07:002017-06-24T00:00:13.306-07:00Cracked Flash: Year2, Week 44<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Welcome to another round of <i>Cracked Flash Fiction Competition</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: #171d7c; font-size: 10.5pt; text-decoration-line: none;"><a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" target="_blank">We have some rules c:</a></span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #323232; font-size: 10.5pt;"><br />
<b>Judge this week: </b>Ronel<br />
<br />
<b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br />
<br />
<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your
name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!).
One entry per person.<br />
<br />
<b>Deadline:</b> </span><b><span style="color: red; font-size: 10.5pt;">Midnight
tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-size: 10.5pt;"><br />
<br />
<b>Results announced:</b> Next </span><span style="color: red; font-size: 10.5pt;">Wednesday</span><span style="color: #323232; font-size: 10.5pt;"> afternoon.<br />
<br />
<b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be
mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated
into your stories: they're for inspiration (and amusement).)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: #323232; font-size: 13.5pt;">Prompt:</span></b><span style="color: #323232; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘Why aren’t you
obeying the laws of physics?’</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-88815733676774143862017-06-21T01:00:00.000-07:002017-06-21T01:00:18.403-07:00Year 2 Week 43 Results!Thanks to the four entrants for Week 43. Since there were four of you, I picked one winner and decided to comment on what I enjoyed about your pieces.<br />
<br />
<b>By the River</b> by <a href="https://www.blogger.com/profile/02556202236187525673" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #2932d4; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold;">AJ Aguilar-van der Merwe</a><br />
<br />
Some nice storytelling. This deserves to be read around the campfire!<br />
<br />
<b>Another Round at the Fox and Fowl</b> by <a href="https://www.blogger.com/profile/07246052593447513968" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #2932d4; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold;">Bill Engleson</a><br />
<br />
Lots of fresh simile and imagery. The second read through delivered more depth.<br />
<br />
<b>Siren Call </b>by <a href="https://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #2932d4; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold;">Ronel Janse van Vuuren</a><br />
<br />
Beautiful descriptions of the mature and emerging sirens. Unexpected twist at the end-- I always love those.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #cc0000;">Winner!</span> </h2>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Wicked Runs in the Genes</b> by <a href="https://www.blogger.com/profile/11526047905462023471" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #2932d4; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold;">Anjela</a></div>
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Hilarious! Reading that line surprised and delighted me. I wasn't sure where you were going to take the story after the zinger of a first line, and you didn't disappoint. Your narrator is genuine and likeable. You took on an edgy topic and kept it real for general audiences. The curve ball into a more personal tone at the end works too.</div>
<br />
Anjela Curtis<br />
www.anjelacurtis.com<br />
@anjelacurtis<br />
257 words (Scrivner)<br />
<br />
Wicked Runs in the Genes<br />
<br />
Only the very oldest people remembered the old-fashioned way to make babies.<br />
<br />
Grandma would sometimes drink wine and tell me wicked stories about how, once, humans were born with external sex organs. This was before the Government Omniscience Directive, the G.O.D., gained control and thought to mutate the human genome to prevent over-population.<br />
<br />
With the number of people on Earth having reached critical mass, many died of starvation. More died from the resulting Hunger Wars that broke out when the strongest survivors attempted to claim Earth’s few remaining resources. Fearing the loss of power, the G.O.D. chose to intervene then and enforce government rule.<br />
<br />
Forced to undergo sterilization, many of the elders escaped underground and continued to fight for humanity. My grandmother was one of the leaders, a former government genealogist and medical doctor. She rescued me—her only living genetic descendant, despite my lab beaker origins—and went on to build the resistance into what it is today. To honor her memory, I continue the fight and lead by example.<br />
<br />
Having both endured years of sexual reassignment surgeries, my partner and I will be the first “beaker-babies” to attempt procreation in a manner in which humans were intended.<br />
<br />
I’m neither a criminal nor the sexual deviant that the G.O.D would have you believe. I’m just a human being in love, who wanted dearly to have a baby with the person I chose as my mate. I could lie and say I wasn't looking forward to it. But, I guess "wicked" runs in my genes.<br />
<br />
© 2017<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="273" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHI/meQgy2LfKPsJWFD1p0hFH3xiYazf18U1QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" /></a></div>
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<br />Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-50752816143167742582017-06-17T00:00:00.000-07:002017-06-17T00:00:25.728-07:00Year 2, Week 43<div style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.com/p/submission-rules.html" style="color: #171d7c; text-decoration-line: none;">Have some rules c:</a></b></span></span></div>
<div style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">
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<div style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">
<b>Judge This Week:</b> Kelly</div>
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<b>Word Count:</b> 300 max</div>
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<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!). One entry per person.</div>
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<b>Deadline: </b>Midnight tonight, PDT! </div>
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<b>Results announced: </b>Next <span style="color: #cc0000;">Wednesday<span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span></span>afternoon.</div>
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<b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated into your stories; they're for inspiration (and amusement).)</div>
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My husband sent me this quote to pet me about our prodigal teenager, but it applies to the writer life or any struggle for greatness. I hope you like it as much as I did.</div>
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"It is not the critic who counts: </div>
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not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled </div>
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or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.</div>
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The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena. </div>
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whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;</div>
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who strives valiantly;</div>
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who errs and comes short again and again' </div>
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who knows great enthusiasms,</div>
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the great devotions; </div>
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who spends himself in a worthy cause; </div>
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who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement,</div>
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and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly </div>
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so that his place shall never be with those timid souls </div>
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who neither victory or defeat". </div>
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~ Theodore Roosevelt</div>
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Prompt </h3>
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"Only the very oldest people remembered."</div>
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Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-75440481659713293232017-06-14T13:00:00.000-07:002017-06-14T13:00:05.644-07:00Year 2, Week 42 Results!We had six stories, including one late entry which couldn't be considered for the contest. Still, I had a great time reading them all. Stephen King would be impressed I'm sure. :)<br />
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Runner-up<br />
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<a href="http://ronelthemythmaker.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Ronel Janse van Vuuren</a> with <b>Forest Inferno</b><br />
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What stuck with me about this story was the fine use of anthropomorphism. The fire's roar of rage over the bad eats was fun! Also the idea of sweating away one's very existence hits home with me personally as it was 90 degrees in my corner of the world today. This is more of a vignette than a story, but a well-painted one.<br />
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Winner!<br />
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<a href="http://kim%20davis/" target="_blank">Kim Davis </a>with <b>Shit Happens</b><br />
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This story instantly places me, gives me character, tone, tension. The writing is pristine, which never hurts. I found myself thinking of it long after, especially the moment when they locked eyes, when "the champagne glass came unseated." Well done! I love image of a newborn mountaintop rearing up like a giant's fist. Unexpected and jarring, but fresh and wonderful because of it. My one wish would be for a more creative title.<br />
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<span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;"><b>Shit Happens</b></span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">When it happened, it happened fast. We were screaming along on a downwind run with the spinnaker pulling us into a glorious South Pacific sunset. The boss and his guests stood toasting one another with champagne in crystal classes. I’d tried break him of that habit, because I so often ended up scrambling around after broken glass when some fool forgot and a jibe sent his glass flying. This time, though, the weather couldn’t have been more perfect. I saw no danger in the champagne flutes. I’d topped them up and stood with Bill at the wheel. </span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">None of us knew what happened. We were suddenly flying as the boat pitch poled and headed down. I caught the boss’s eye as his glasses came unseated and his champagne glass left his hand in slow motion. His mouth was open, but I couldn’t hear his voice with my own scream filling my ears. When the old man hit the water, I saw the boom smack the back of his head. His friends—who’d been forward of the mast—were forced down by the mainsail. None made it back to the surface. Bill and I were thrown clear of the boat by some miracle. Tommy, the deckhand, was trapped in his cabin.</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">We later learned that a newborn mountaintop had reared up like a giant’s fist to catch hold of our keel. Our forward momentum sent the bow straight down. Life rafts and safety vests were useless—there’d been no time. Bill and I were lucky. The crew of a schooner several hundred yards to starboard saw the whole thing and picked us up.</span><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;" /><span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: justify;">That day has become a metaphor that sums up life for me. Shit happens, even amid perfection. </span><br />
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Till next time, writer friends. :)</div>
Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-54934298928389909622017-06-10T00:00:00.000-07:002017-06-10T00:00:16.499-07:00Year 2, Week 42<h3 style="background-color: #c1d5d6; border-top: 0px solid transparent; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding-top: 8px; text-align: center;">
<b> <span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.com/p/submission-rules.html" style="color: #171d7c; text-decoration-line: none;">Have some rules c:</a></b></span></span></b></h3>
<span style="background-color: #c1d5d6; color: #323232; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Welcome to this week's Cracked Flash Fiction. This week's prompt comes from the book <i>The Stand</i> by Stephen King. And oldie but a goodie. </span><br />
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<b>Judge This Week:</b> Kelly </div>
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<b>Word Count:</b> 300 max</div>
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<b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a <u><b>comment</b></u> to this post, along with your name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!). One entry per person. Thanks :)</div>
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<b>Deadline: <span style="color: #cc0000;">12 AM SUNDAY (6/11) PST</span></b></div>
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<b>Results announced: </b>Next <span style="color: #cc0000;">Wednesday<span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span></span>afternoon/evening.</div>
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<b>Remember:</b> Your entry <u>must</u> begin with the prompt! The prompt can be mutilated, but not beyond recognition. Have fun!</div>
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Prompt: "When it happened, it happened fast."</div>
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Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-37462554988826763102017-06-07T12:00:00.000-07:002017-06-07T12:00:11.953-07:00Year 2, Week 41: Results!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I really do apologise over the time-zone glitches that
sprung up this week – who knew that certain applications will ignore the time
you tell them they should be in and decide to take your actual location? Rise
of the machines…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyhow, <b>thanks Anne and Bill for participating</b>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here’s what I loved about your stories:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bill, your tongue-in-the-cheek global warming take had me
grinning from the start.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anne, I like your portal-fantasy a lot and think there’s a
lot of potential there for a longer piece (more about the problem, fleshing out
of characters, etc.).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I can't pick a favourite, so let's call it a fun writing exercise.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Until next Saturday…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-75866854453563019502017-06-03T00:00:00.000-07:002017-06-04T06:27:42.573-07:00Year 2, Week 41<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Welcome to another round of CFFC!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: 10.5pt;"><a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" style="color: #171d7c; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">We have some rules c:</a></span></b><span style="font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10.5pt;"><br /><b>Judge this week: Ronel</b><br /><br /><b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br /><br /><b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!). One entry per person.<br /><br /><b>Deadline:</b> </span><b><span style="color: red; font-size: 10.5pt;">Midnight tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="font-size: 10.5pt;"><br /><br /><b>Results announced:</b> Next <span style="color: red;">Wednesday</span></span><span style="font-size: 10.5pt;"> afternoon.<br /><br /><b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated into your stories: they're for inspiration (and amusement).)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Prompt:</span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘Yes, but last week a dragon almost set my hair on fire, so
it’s your turn to negotiate.’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Ronel Janse van Vuurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04041347187777879494noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-72180360275273211192017-05-31T13:01:00.000-07:002017-05-31T13:01:10.224-07:00Year 2, Week 38: Results!<br /><div class="MsoNormal">
I came up with this week's prompt while scraping wallpaper paste. Who doesn't love that? At least I got these wonderful entries to show for it. :) Thank you to each one who entered CFF. I can't promise 100% blindness, but I do my best to keep the names off the entries as I read. I hope you'll come back on Saturday for Ronel's prompt.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<u>Honorable Mention </u></div>
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/Sam-Lauren-284126114961223/" style="color: red;" target="_blank">Sam Malkowski</a><span style="color: red;"> with </span><i style="color: red;">Growing Pains</i></div>
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What a fresh direction to take the prompt. The muted terror is
nice, as are the vivid details of the fates of these two hikers. My only regret
is that he didn't just stay with her in the end. He was doomed anyway. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<u>Runner up</u></div>
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<a href="http://www.medium.com/@Homemadehalo" style="color: red;" target="_blank">TipTim</a><span style="color: red;"> with </span><i style="color: red;">Muck</i></div>
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Your well-crafted mundanity is a great set-up for the appearance of the flesh-eating blob. (LOVE the flesh-eating blob... it's been a while, what with zombies taking the spotlight and all...) The idea of something nefarious travelling behind my back is delightfully unnerving. The chewing gum simile and the details that solidified this world also made it a stand-out.</div>
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<u>Winner!</u></div>
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<a href="http://www.engleson.ca/" style="color: red;" target="_blank">B</a><a href="http://www.engleson.ca/" style="color: red;" target="_blank">ill Engleson</a><span style="color: red;"> with </span><i style="color: red;">A Day or Two Before the End of The World-Or, at Least, Our Neighbourhood-Something Like That, Anyways, But Who Knows as CNN is Toast</i></div>
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Holy long titles, Batman. What I appreciated about our winning post was the political nod, the humor in apocalypse (not easy to pull off), and the personality of this post. The narrator's voice is strong and unique, eccentric. I'm a sucker for a great image and "clutching her favorite shotgun as if it was a skinny but always reliable lover" was my favorite of the day.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">A Day or Two Before the End of The World-Or, at Least, Our Neighbourhood-Something Like That, Anyways, But Who Knows as CNN is Toast</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">“Scrape that off before you…”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">“Track in the mud? Seriously, Hon, that’s what you are worried about?”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">My Megikins stands in the doorway, a little wild-eyed, ferociously female, strong, sensual, MAYBE needing a bath...we’ve been without water for weeks…, but still, thank goodness for perfume…and clutching her favourite shotgun as if it was a skinny but always reliable lover.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Meg has always been one tough cookie, even before the Donald J. Trump Zombies went apeshit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">“Look at your boots, Ralphie. That’s not mud. Mud I could live with…”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So, as directed, I look. Down. Briefly, I remember when I bought my Magnum Stealth Force 8.0 Wide-Width Combat Boots at Crazy Clark Wallenski’s War Surplus Emporium back in the day. My big fat feet have never been happier. The last word in comfort. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Now, though, the glow is off my fine boots. The shine, the spit and polished love I have given them is long gone, a mucky reminder of distant times. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">“If I’m not mistaken, Ralphie, that glop on your footwear is brains, blood, and shards of human flesh. And you want to track Zombie gunk into MY house?”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Do I feel like a complete trailer park turkey? Meg’s always been a cleanoholic. I mean that in the best way. Still, we are smack dab in the middle of an apocalypse. The Undead are on a tear trying to make sure their guy stays in the White House. You’d think she would make allowances for a little stray boot-slime. I have been up half the night, hunting them down, engaging in serious bloodshed. Doing my bit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">But she’s right.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">“Maybe I’ll just take them off, Sweetie. That be okay?”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">“Of course, you big lug. Pucker up.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I do. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">We smooch and make up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">My worlds just become a little brighter.</span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHE/VDLwcP8wyKQxzpy51MThckg6lxbsK_ZSgCLcB/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="273" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NRP9OhfKZk4/WS3BYtqjh3I/AAAAAAAABHE/VDLwcP8wyKQxzpy51MThckg6lxbsK_ZSgCLcB/s1600/Flavio%2BApproves.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">See you next Saturday!</span></span></div>
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Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4035897181563606511.post-19565848056975616162017-05-27T00:00:00.000-07:002017-05-27T00:00:32.728-07:00Cracked Flash: Year 2, Week 40<div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-5512998513485986606" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: #c1d5d6; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; position: relative; width: 666px;">
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Cracked Flash is up and running! :)</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7C41oruDL_o/WSVqYSOu8nI/AAAAAAAABGs/V_SInFb_pKM9xkCktqzkL3qQkLmJ6cYWACLcB/s1600/FullSizeRender%2B%252828%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1184" data-original-width="1188" height="318" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7C41oruDL_o/WSVqYSOu8nI/AAAAAAAABGs/V_SInFb_pKM9xkCktqzkL3qQkLmJ6cYWACLcB/s320/FullSizeRender%2B%252828%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><a href="http://crackedflash.blogspot.co.za/p/submission-rules.html" style="color: #171d7c; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">We have some rules c:</a></span></b><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #323232; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><br /><b>Judge this week: Kelly</b><br /><br /><b>Word count:</b> 300 max<br /><br /><b>How:</b> Submit your stories as a comment to this post, along with your name, word count, and title (and Twitter handle or blog if you've got 'em!). One entry per person.<br /><br /><b>Deadline:</b> </span><b style="color: #323232;"><span style="color: red; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;">Midnight tonight, PDT.</span></b><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><br /><br /><b style="color: #323232;">Results announced:</b><span style="color: #323232;"> Next </span><span style="color: red;">Wednesday</span></span><span style="color: #323232; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"> afternoon.<br /><br /><b>Remember:</b> Your entry must begin with the prompt! The prompt can be mutilated, but not beyond recognition. (Pictures do not need to be incorporated into your stories: they're for inspiration (and amusement).)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">Prompt:</span></b><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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"Scrape that off before you..."</div>
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Kelly Griffithshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17546256446682411382noreply@blogger.com10