July Flashes

Congratulations to this month’s Flash Fiction winner, Linda Young, for her story, ‘Hard to Swallow’.

Genre:      comedy

Keyword:   election

Maximum words:   50

Minimum words:  45

Entry Conditions:

You must be a Ballarat Writers member to enter.

Entries will not be accepted if they exceed the maximum word limit – even if by a word, and must comply with all the stated parameters.

All entries are to be submitted to competitions@ballaratwriters.com by Friday, 22nd  July. Your email must include author’s name, story title and word count.

Voting will open the next day here on the blog.

Come along to our Members’ Night on Wednesday, 27th July, 7pm at the Bunch of Grapes Hotel to hear the winner announced. (Results will also be posted here on the blog the day after.)

 July stories

Entry 1   Election Day

Words:  48

The booths were crowded. For weeks before the big birds expounded ideas of compromise, cultural diversity, mutual respect, vegetarian diets, strutting impressively and kissing babies. The bush creatures gathered to vote, reassured by these radical new ideas.  Except Bobby bandicoot, who elected to run while the eagles feasted.

 

Entry 2  Hard to Swallow

Words:   49

Working at a polling booth on Election Day, I was enjoying a tea break with co-workers when I was called out to assist. Returning, I finished off my tea, as Sally, with a look of horror, cried out, ‘Was that your tea, I’ve just tipped in all the dregs!’

May Competition

Here are the parameters for our May Competition:

Length: 25 words or less

Genre: Comedy

Keyword: None this time either!

Entry Conditions:

• You must be a Ballarat Writers Member to enter.
• Entries will not be accepted if they exceed the word limit – even if by a word.
• All entries to be submitted USING THIS FORM by Friday May 22nd. Voting will open the next day here on the blog. Come along to our Members’ Night on Wednesday May 27th, 7pm at Irish Murphy’s to hear the winner announced. (It will also be posted here on the blog the day after).

And the July Flashes Winner is…

Pamela Miller with Fiftieth Wedding Anniversary! Congrats Pamela. 🙂

ENTRY 4

Title: Fiftieth Wedding Anniversary

Word Count: 197

The engine noise smothered my banging heart. For our fiftieth wedding anniversary we’d received the ‘thrill of a lifetime’. My lifetime was about to end. The seventy year old wife looked ecstatic—she loved adventure. I hid my feelings; if she could do this, so could I. The instructions were comprehensive—with rules galore. One such rule—make sure nothing loose is taken with you on the jump. I knew my toupee would be safe as it was tucked inside the compulsory helmet. My wife looked delirious as she was strapped to a well-built male. She grinned at me and I gave her a feeble wink. I was as uncomfortable as all hell having to be clipped so close to the front of my bloke, his hot breath in my ear. Get ready, came the instruction, and before we knew it we were away. She went first—I followed two-seconds later. Oh, the lightness! Oh, the wind! A gust smacked me in the face making my lips loose. I was about to respond to the instructor bellowing, ‘How are you?’ when fingers of wind whipped my dentures from my mouth. Some farmer will struggle with that mystery.