I can’t write flash fiction without thinking of Fran Rizer. She ‘complained’ those ultra-short stories upset her Sunday routine of preparing coffee and then breakfast, whereupon she’d spend a few minutes enjoying SleuthSayers.
On flash fiction days, that’s when (a) she’d find those few minutes were reduced to a few seconds, and (b) it caused her to snort coffee up her nose. Damn, I miss Fran.
Here’s a flash fiction with her in mind.
My Husband Died
by Leigh Lundin
After he died, I couldn’t even look at another man for almost twenty years. But now that I’m out of prison, I can honestly say it was worth it. |
LOL! (Though it took me a few moments.)
ReplyDeleteHi Anne! Thank you.
DeleteYou reacted exactly as one might expect for that type of joke called paraprosdokian, which causes the audience to reconsider the first part.
Another of that type is, "I'd like to die peacefully in my sleep like my grandfather, not screaming in terror like his passengers."
Yikes!
LOVE IT!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Eve. It's been a while since I've attempted a flash fiction.
DeleteGood one.
ReplyDeleteThanks, RT. They are fun.
DeleteBoth are terrific! And yes, I'm snorting coffee as Fran would have. I wonder if she knows how often we think of her.
ReplyDeleteShe was such a character, Melodie, politically incorrect and terribly (meaning wonderfully) flirtatious… not that you or I would know anything about that. She's surely smiling at your sweet comment.
DeleteOh, I love flash fiction, & the dear departed Fran. Have you ever tried six-word stories? A friend wrote one: "Found love online, but email bounced." Here's one of mine, "Am I boring you? Well, anyway -- "
ReplyDeleteNo, Elizabeth, I haven't seen six-word stories before. Yours is clever. It makes me think of haiku stories.
DeleteI'm surprised magazines and maybe short story anthologies don't use these as fillers. These are fun.
ReplyDeleteAnon, I wish the market allowed for super-short stories, but unfortunately it's not. In this era of digital publications where page sizes have little relevance, I don't see the situation improving even in a Tik-Tok world.
Delete