I’m the youngest daughter of a widow, fourteen today. “On the cusp of womanhood,” my mother said. “Finish your meal, then meet me in the woods.” “Where?” But she was already gone, my older sister close behind. Coat on, collar up, I stumbled in the gloom, teeth chattering, talking to myself. “If you look over […]
Tag: Flash Fiction
Luna and the Blood Moon
Luna was hunting. She had left the house before twilight and was waiting for her namesake to give her a sign. She had already feasted on a vole and a field mouse. Magic was in the air. Grandmother’s grimoire had promised freedom from her feline form. The words were indelibly burnt in her memory: When […]
A Way Back to the Garden
In the garden she was lovingly cultivating, Mother Nature stood back. The plants were doing well, flourishing even, producing flowers and fruit of every colour, even some she hadn’t invented yet – they were going it alone. Birds and insects carried pollen from one part of the garden to another, cross-pollinating, creating forest and jungle, […]
Surprised by Love
Unlike most of her friends and acquaintances, her teenage years and early twenties were not so much sweet with romance but bitter with break-ups and dour with disappointment. “I don’t know why I was surprised every time love started or ended,” she told her therapist, “I never chose the unlikely men I ended up with, […]
Strange things happen at sea
The walk along the beach that Sunday was wild. The wind racing across the sand was fast and powerful, blowing bubbles of foam into the dunes and sand into hair and eyes. The tall dark-haired woman in the Fair-isle hat bent down to stroke the terrier at her feet and lifted a stone from a […]
Tearing down the House
The abandoned building rose out of the snowy scrub, a fungus spreading spores of fear and sorrow. Uninhabited for over fifty years, suicide and murder tainted its walls and floors with faded splashes of red that refused to disappear. It was no mystery who had murdered the family; he had been executed long ago. Everyone […]
Christmas Comet
When the comet hit, the town lit up like a Christmas tree. In the darkest hours of morning, there was no one there to see – just a lonely street sweeper, his eyes like slits, too tired to blink. The whole town was asleep, dreaming of better times, of snowflakes and presents under a tree. […]
Spoon Man
A flicker of flash fiction for a Monday morning. Vicki bounded up the steps, Jez and Connor right behind her, lugging guitar cases. She sat down outside the café. ‘What’s your poison?’ Jez asked. Vicki was about to request a mocha, when she heard a sound like bells. She twisted her body and, in between […]
Dancing with Shadows
I found out today that this flash fiction submission was unsuccessful. Her feet guided her across the sprung wooden floor. She felt the music through her toes and heels, the rhythm pulling her with ribbons of movement like a puppet into arabesques and pirouettes. It was invigorating and exhausting. When would the music stop? Twisting her […]
All the lonely people
I am preparing for a couple of short story competitions and decided to write a piece of flash fiction based on the Beatles’ song ‘Eleanor Rigby’. This isn’t going to be submitted to any competitions – it’s just a writing exercise. Eleanor picked up a handful of rice outside the church porch. The wedding had been beautiful. […]
writing in north norfolk 