Hello everyone!

We are now officially well and through the time of warmth and feasts. We’ll make up for it pretty soon with more winter festivities, but in the meant time we’ve got to find other ways to keep our mind off the cold.

Right now, we’re doing that by turning an eye toward the obscure, because…

This week’s prompt is:

The Sky Blinked

RULES AND GUIDELINES AT THE BOTTOM OF POST
Read them to participate! You may not be eligible if you don’t!

Strange one, no? Conjures images of gargantuan creatures swimming through the sky, glitches in reality where all the clouds go missing for one elusive moment, realities in which the dome of the “sky” is simply the inside curve of some god’s great blue eyeball.

These are the strange spaces that this prompt drew my curious, hapless mind into. Of course, it doesn’t have to be where yours goes.

Maybe you don’t see an anomaly here. Maybe you see a way to articulate the mundane. The Sky could represent the horizon of one’s Icarian ambitions, and when it blinks, that could be a moment of wavering uncertainty. It could be the vastness of one’s love for another, the blink a moment of doubt. It could be something vaguely religious, to do with the heavens and all the things which inhabit them.

As with most prompts, it could be just about anything. So long as you’re fascinated by it and we can, in some vague fashion, see the remnants of the themes nestled in there, we will be pleased to read your work.

Go on then. It’s time to see what all of you can do with total power over the firmament.

Remember, this is part of our weekly Writing Group stream! Submit a little piece following the rules and guidelines below, and there’s a chance your entry will be read live on stream! In addition, we’ll discuss it for a minute and give you some feedback.

Tune into the stream this Friday at 7:00pm CST to see if you made the cut!

The whole purpose of this is to show off the creativity of the community, while also helping each other to become better writers. Lean into that spirit, and get ready to help each other improve their confidence in their writing, as well as their skill with their craft!

Rules and Guidelines

We read six stories during each stream, three of which come from this public post, and three of which come from the much smaller private post. Submissions are randomly selected from among the top ten most-liked of each post, so be sure to share your submissions on social media and with your friends!

• English only.
• Prose only, no poetry or lyrics.
• One submission per participant.
• Use proper spelling, grammar, and syntax.
• Submit your entry in a comment on this post.
• No more than 350 words (you can use this website to see your wordcount).
• Include a submission title and an author name (doesn’t have to be your real name).
• Keep submissions “safe-for-work”; be sparing with sexuality, violence, and profanity.
• Try to focus on making your submission a single meaningful moment rather than an entire story.
• Please format your submission as “Submission Title” by Author Name and be sure to separate paragraphs. (Example Submission)
• You must leave a review on two other submissions to be eligible, and your reviews must be at least 50 words long (if you’re submitting to the private post, feel free to leave these reviews on either the private or the public post).
• Understand that by submitting here, you are giving us permission to read your submission aloud live on stream and upload public, archived recordings of said stream to our social media platforms. You will always be credited, but only by the author name you supply as per these rules. No other links or credits will be provided.

Comments on this post that aren’t submissions will be deleted, except for replies/reviews left on existing submissions.

Hello everyone!

It’s that time of year again. The turkeys are sprinting toward their golden-brown destiny, potatoes all amash, gravy cascading from spouts across the nation. We are officially staring down the barrel of what we here in the States know as Thanksgiving, and for purely many reasons that have nothing to do with raw gluttony and decadence, we are all very excited.

Of course, not everyone is in the spirit. It’s not a universal holiday, but it is a universal feeling. Everyone knows the warm afterglow of a good meal in good company. And that’s what we’re going to try to capture here, because…

This week’s prompt is:

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry!

RULES AND GUIDELINES HAVE CHANGED! (again, again)
Read them below to participate! You may not be eligible if you don’t!

As I alluded to in the opener a up there, this isn’t explicitly about Thanksgiving. Those stories are totally acceptable and will fulfill the prompt, but also feel free to draw on any idea that evokes the prompt’s theme. If it has anything at all to do with a jubilant feast of any kind, it’s fair game.

For reference, this could mean a feast shared among cannibals, told from the perspective of a not-so-lucky meal. It could mean something meager and threadbare—scraps of melon rind and chewed ham hock—cobbled together in the depths of poverty. Taking a step away from the table, and it could be an outside perspective looking in on the merrymaking. Maybe someone less fortunate, feeling envious, mournful, distant. Or maybe someone altogether unaffected, seeing great value in their own, smaller, less decadent jubilation.

Whatever you serve up, know that we’re all waiting here with growling bellies. Let the feast begin!

Remember, this is part of our weekly Writing Group stream! Submit a little piece following the rules and guidelines below, and there’s a chance your entry will be read live on stream! In addition, we’ll discuss it for a minute and give you some feedback.

Tune into the stream this Friday at 7:00pm CST to see if you made the cut!

The whole purpose of this is to show off the creativity of the community, while also helping each other to become better writers. Lean into that spirit, and get ready to help each other improve their confidence in their writing, as well as their skill with their craft!

Rules and Guidelines

We read six stories during each stream, three of which come from this public post, and three of which come from the much smaller private post. Submissions are randomly selected from among the top ten most-liked of each post, so be sure to share your submissions on social media and with your friends!

• English only.
• Prose only, no poetry or lyrics.
• One submission per participant.
• Use proper spelling, grammar, and syntax.
• Submit your entry in a comment on this post.
• No more than 350 words (you can use this website to see your wordcount).
• Include a submission title and an author name (doesn’t have to be your real name).
• Keep submissions “safe-for-work”; be sparing with sexuality, violence, and profanity.
• Try to focus on making your submission a single meaningful moment rather than an entire story.
• Please format your submission as “Submission Title” by Author Name and be sure to separate paragraphs. (Example Submission)
• You must leave a review on two other submission to be eligible, and your reviews must be at least 50 words long (if you’re submitting to the private post, feel free to leave these reviews on either the private or the public post).
• Understand that by submitting here, you are giving us permission to read your submission aloud live on stream and upload public, archived recordings of said stream to our social media platforms. You will always be credited, but only by the author name you supply as per these rules. No other links or credits will be provided.

Comments on this post that aren’t submissions will be deleted, except for replies/reviews left on existing submissions.

Hello everyone!

Over here in the States, we’re standing on the precipice of something that represents golden gratitude to a lot of people (although maybe the historical precedents aren’t quite there…). Give us another few weeks, and we’ll all be stuffing our faces, spending too much money, and acknowledging for a rare occasion how wonderful it is that we are so very comfortable and so very happy. And there is a lot to celebrate.

So, in order to acknowledge the goodness of the cosmos for showing us what kindness it does…

This week’s prompt is:

A Kindness

RULES AND GUIDELINES HAVE CHANGED! (again)
Read them below to participate! You may not be eligible if you don’t!

I know we’ve got Turkey Day on the mind here, but anything to do with gratitude whatsoever works for this prompt even better. Don’t feel obliged to include flightless birds of any variety, indulgent banquet spreads, questionably-treated natives, or brazen colonists in your story at all.

Instead, think about what departures you could take. A kindness could also be a mercy, the decision to take pity on someone less fortunate. Kindness can also be begrudging, something one does whether or not they really want to. My favorite angle on this at a glance is a tiny, insignificant moment, though. The sort of kindness which goes unsung, but warms you for the single moment you experience it. A gift left on a pillow. A chore done on your behalf. An important date remembered.

We got a lot of realistic fiction last time, and I think this prompt leans in that direction pretty hard, so take it on as a challenge: how can you represent a kindness in a more fantastical or supernatural light? (but of course, if you’d like to write something realistic, definitely go for it!)

Have fun basking in the warmth of this wholesome thing… even if you decide to write something less than wholesome! Wherever you take it, we’ll be grateful just to see your creativity.

Remember, this is part of our weekly Writing Group stream! Submit a little piece following the rules and guidelines below, and there’s a chance your entry will be read live on stream! In addition, we’ll discuss it for a minute and give you some feedback.

Tune into the stream this Friday at 7:00pm CST to see if you made the cut!

The whole purpose of this is to show off the creativity of the community, while also helping each other to become better writers. Lean into that spirit, and get ready to help each other improve their confidence in their writing, as well as their skill with their craft!

Rules and Guidelines

We read six stories during each stream, three of which come from this public post, and three of which come from the much smaller private post. Submissions are randomly selected from among the top ten most-liked of each post, so be sure to share your submissions on social media and with your friends!

• English only.
• Prose only, no poetry or lyrics.
• One submission per participant.
• Use proper spelling, grammar, and syntax.
• Submit your entry in a comment on this post.
• You must leave a review on two other submission to be eligible, and your reviews must be at least 50 words long.
• No more than 350 words (you can use this website to see your wordcount).
• Include a submission title and an author name (doesn’t have to be your real name)
• Keep submissions “safe-for-work”; be sparing with sexuality, violence, and profanity.
• Try to focus on making your submission a single meaningful moment rather than an entire story.
• Please format your submission as “Submission Title” by Author Name and be sure to separate paragraphs. (Example Submission)
• Understand that by submitting here, you are giving us permission to read your submission live on stream and share it on our social media sites. You will always be credited as the author.

Comments on this post that aren’t submissions will be deleted, except for replies/reviews left on existing submissions.

Hello everyone!

In an attempt to ring in Autumn rather than spookfest #5, we decided we’d look at a bunch of interesting prompt that have to do with the changing of the season this time. We had Autumnal Gloom, Before the Deep Sleep, and South for Winter among other contenders this week. But of course, only one could go on to have piles of microfiction spewed forth about it.

This week’s prompt is:

The Lengthening Night

RULES AND GUIDELINES HAVE CHANGED!
Read them below to participate! You may not be eligible if you don’t!

Because apparently we just can’t get enough darkness. Someday we’ll have an intrinsically pleasant prompt, but for now I’m not complaining. I do tend toward the macabre and the tragic anyway, and The Lengthening Night definitely fits that bill.

Like most of our prompts, this one has a blessed metaphorical richness. There’s all kinds of directions to take “night” and the process of it “lengthening”. Just think, “night” can represent any period of darkness one goes through, especially when contrasted with a period of light. It could be that one’s fortune is continuously diminishing, or a war is trudging on year after year, or a one still hasn’t recovered from some manner of comatose state. On the lighter side, night can also represent a period of peace, tranquility, quiet. This could be about coming to terms with something; recognizing, accepting, and learning to live in the darkness.

Wherever you take it, have fun in the dark! Here’s hoping you don’t stumble over too many things on your way to the bathroom.

Remember, this is part of our weekly Writing Group stream! Submit a little piece following the rules and guidelines below, and there’s a chance your entry will be read live on stream! In addition, we’ll discuss it for a minute and give you some feedback.

Tune into the stream this Friday at 7:00pm CST to see if you made the cut!

The whole purpose of this is to show off the creativity of the community, while also helping each other to become better writers. Lean into that spirit, and get ready to help each other improve their confidence in their writing, as well as their skill with their craft!

Rules and Guidelines

We read five stories during each stream, four of which are selected at random, and one of which is selected because it has the most likes.

• English only.
• Prose only, no poetry or song lyrics.
• One submission per participant.
• Use proper spelling, grammar, and syntax.
• Submit your entry in a comment on this post.
• You must leave a review on two other submission to be eligible, and your reviews must be at least 50 words long.
• No more than 350 words (you can use this website to see your wordcount).
• Include a story title and an author name (doesn’t have to be your real name)
• You must include the text “Submitted by” immediately before your author name, or you will not be recognized by our sorting process and you will not be eligible for selection. (Example Submission)
• Keep submissions “safe-for-work”; be sparing with sexuality, violence, and profanity.
• Try to focus on making your submission a single meaningful moment rather than an entire story.
• Understand that by submitting here, you are giving us permission to read your submission live on stream and share it on our social media sites. You will always be credited as the author.

Comments on this post that aren’t submissions will be deleted, except for replies/reviews left on existing submissions.

Hello everyone!

Now that Halloween has passed and the spirits’ve gone back into hibernation, we’re officially packing up and rolling on out of spooky town. Let’s have one last hurrah on the way out though, because this week we’re writing about a slightly darker-sounding aspect of the season of the Turkey…

This week’s prompt is:

The Harvest

Read the Rules and Guidelines below to participate!

Make it grim, make it dark, make it vaguely autumnal. There are a lot of directions to go with this prompt, but some of the most alluring out of the gate, especially if you’re leaning into the general creepiness of the prompt, is toward the harvest of people rather than produce. And those stories are bound to be a lot of fun, but remember, “harvest” can be a very broad theme. It could be about the things attached to harvest time as well: hunger, scarcity, plenty, reaping, sewing, life and death, etc., etc., etc. Just as scary to realize during harvest time that you’re facing famine as it would be to realize you’re the one being “harvested”.

Happy harvesting! Can’t wait to see what you all bring to the table.

Remember, this is part of our weekly Writing Group stream! Submit a little piece following the rules and guidelines below, and there’s a chance your entry will be read live on stream! In addition, we’ll discuss it for a minute and give you some feedback.

Tune into the stream this Friday at 7:00pm to see if you made the cut!

The whole purpose of this is to show off the creativity of the community, while also helping each other to become better writers. Lean into that spirit, and get ready to help each other improve their confidence in their writing, as well as their skill with their craft!

Rules and Guidelines

• English only.
• Prose only, no poetry or song lyrics.
• One submission per participant.
• Use proper spelling, grammar, and syntax.
• Submit your entry in a comment on this post.
• You must leave a review on two other submission to be eligible, and your reviews must be at least 50 words long.
• No more than 350 words (you can use this website to see your wordcount).
• Include a story title and an author name (doesn’t have to be your real name).
• Keep submissions “safe-for-work”; be sparing with sexuality, violence, and profanity.
• Try to focus on making your submission a single meaningful moment rather than an entire story.
• Understand that by submitting here, you are giving us permission to read your submission live on stream and share it on our social media sites. You will always be credited as the author.
• Comments on this post that aren’t submission will be deleted, except for replies/reviews left on existing entries

Example Submission

Hello everyone!

We’ve only got one or two more weeks of spooky themes left, and this week’s choice will not disappoint. There were a lot of good suggestions, but only one so monkey’s pawesomely faustian in its implications, that it had to be the winner.

This week’s prompt is:

They All Came Back

Read the Rules and Guidelines below to participate!

As I said before, this is a very, very open-ended prompt, but that’s a good thing! This could be about loved ones returning from the dead, changed. It could be about memories you thought you secreted away so far down they’d never resurface. It could even be about someone who doesn’t know how to turn away from a situation or a person they really ought to.

As long as you’re making us uncomfortable and spooked with this piece, you’ve done your job!

Remember, this is part of our weekly Writing Group stream! Submit a little piece following the rules and guidelines below, and there’s a chance your entry will be read live on stream! In addition, we’ll discuss it for a minute and give you some feedback.

Tune into the stream this Friday at 7:00pm to see if you made the cut!

The whole purpose of this is to show off the creativity of the community, while also helping each other to become better writers. Lean into that spirit, and get ready to help each other improve their confidence in their writing, as well as their skill with their craft!

Rules and Guidelines

• English only.
• Prose only, no poetry or song lyrics.
• One submission per participant.
• Use proper spelling, grammar, and syntax.
• Submit your entry in a comment on this post.
• You must leave a review on two other submission to be eligible, and your reviews must be at least 50 words long.
• No more than 350 words (you can use this website to see your wordcount).
• Include a story title and an author name (doesn’t have to be your real name).
• Keep submissions “safe-for-work”; be sparing with sexuality, violence, and profanity.
• Try to focus on making your submission a single meaningful moment rather than an entire story.
• Understand that by submitting here, you are giving us permission to read your submission live on stream and share it on our social media sites. You will always be credited as the author.
• Comments on this post that aren’t submission will be deleted, except for replies/reviews left on existing entries

Example Submission

Hello everyone!

Continuing the theme of spooks, scares, and things we pretend to be brave about in the daylight, we put a whole list of horrific prompt ideas to a vote on patreon. This included things like “The Bugs are Growing Louder”, “The Veil Thins”, and “Crows Circling Overhead”. But, the patrons have decided, and…

This week’s prompt is:

The Shadows are Watching

Read the Rules and Guidelines below to participate!

There are, as always, millions of possibilities for this prompt. The clearest given route would be to write a story about sentient shadows (but who would ever do something like that?), but I challenge you to think openly about the terms “shadow” and “watching”, here. It doesn’t have to be a literal shadow, rather it could be the dark side of something, or the influence of it. It doesn’t have to be watching like a creepy stalker, but rather it could be “watching” like a shepherd over its flock.

Be creative, be wild, be spooky, but most of all, be open to angles you might not usually look from.

Remember, this is part of our weekly Writing Group stream! Submit a little piece following the rules and guidelines below, and there’s a chance your entry will be read live on stream! In addition, we’ll discuss it for a minute and give you some feedback.

Tune into the stream this Friday at 7:00pm to see if you made the cut!

The whole purpose of this is to show off the creativity of the community, while also helping each other to become better writers. Lean into that spirit, and get ready to help each other improve their confidence in their writing, as well as their skill with their craft!

Rules and Guidelines

• English only.
• Prose only, no poetry or song lyrics.
• One submission per participant.
• Use proper spelling, grammar, and syntax.
• Submit your entry in a comment on this post.
• You must leave a review on two other submission to be eligible, and your reviews must be at least 50 words long.
• No more than 300 words (you can use this website to see your wordcount).
• Include a story title and an author name (doesn’t have to be your real name).
• Keep submissions “safe-for-work”; be sparing with sexuality, violence, and profanity.
• Try to focus on making your submission a single meaningful moment rather than an entire story.
• Understand that by submitting here, you are giving us permission to read your submission live on stream and share it on our social media sites. You will always be credited as the author.
• Comments on this post that aren’t submission will be deleted, except for replies/reviews left on existing entries

Example Submission