#flashfictionmonth

[trialbystory]

On Guilty Pleasure

Been a while since I've done a,, navel-gazing kind of post, so here's a brief, meandering, possibly pointless look at my relationship/history with the concept of "Things you like that you're hesitant to tell other people about".

So for me, I was pretty much unashamed of what I was into until I hit Grade 6 in school. Before that point I went to a small, close-knit school where everyone in the same year was more or less friends. But in Grade 6 we moved to a new building, taking in kids from a bunch of different elementary/primary schools and things became kind of... fractionated, cliqueish. Suddenly I was ostracized, not just by the strangers but by my best friends as well. Why? Because I didn't like football. Or South Park. Because when we were told to do independent reading, I had the audacity to actually read. Because I enjoyed Digimon. And videogames that didn't say "EA Sports" on the back of the case. It sucked, and I stopped mentioning the stuff I was into because of that kind of social sense of shame. But hey, happy ending, near the end of the school year I finally fell in with other kids who were also into the nerdy shit. I still talk to most of them even now. But there was still stuff that was too nerdy even for them. I could talk about anime and CCG's and Final Fantasy and sci-fi books with them, but they'd get a little... non committal when I talked about fanfiction. Which, I get, not for everyone, I just enjoy fanfics in private and don't talk about it, but unlike Grade 6 I still actually have friends, so that's nice. But it kind of set a precedent.

I started backing off of stuff that I was into and my friends weren't. Eventually I stopped reading fanfiction. I changed what music I listened to, none of it was forced, and it's not like I didn't actually enjoy the same stuff my friends were into, I just took the path of least resistance. Years of stuff like backpedaling on my enjoyment of Code Lyoko, or half-heartedly defending FFXIII when a friend called it irredeemable. Eventually I got over it. I matured, my friends matured, eventually they stopped feeling the need to judge the worthiness of every piece of media and I stopped tying up my own value in the approval of my friends over my own interests. When I got into pro wrestling after checking out a new podcast from Internet Funnypeople LoadingReadyRun, I hid it at first, then started slowly sneaking in jokes and references. When I admitted I was a wrestling fan now I hedged and justified and my friends...didn't care. Eventually I fell back into reading fanfiction and I started sharing funny moments from a Slyvanas/Jaina political marriage AU while we were playing WoW together, and they fully laughed along with me. The worst anyone said was that they didn't like Slyvanas as a character. Now I'm kind of over the idea of 'Guilty Pleasures,' I enjoy the things I enjoy, and I don't feel any guilt or shame over it, so I don't hide it. The closest I get is that some stuff just doesn't come up. For example, until FlashFictionMonth a couple years ago it was never really relevant that I have a particular fondness for sweet romance stories about queer women where one is a single parent (For the curious my infection vector on that one was First Time at a Second Chance by TheGreatWeissShark, It's great, but does contain some smut; I think you get warned about it when it comes up but I can't recall for sure, so just go in aware). Or more recently I've come to greatly enjoy stories about trans folks coming out (cracking their egg/hatching is a term I've seen used?) and getting love and support from either their family, friends, or even strangers; I find that kind of thing beautiful, but it's also the kind of thing that's not necessarily the kind of story that's mine to tell, you know? (Putting Myself Together by AmaraWolfe is where I first realized I had a pattern in regards to that kind of story)

Yeah this is another one of those rambling posts that doesn't have a point. I guess what I'm saying don't be afraid to like what you like? Or to talk about it with your friends, because even if they don't share your interest there's a strong chance they won't care. Or at least not for very long.

[jayalaw]

Good Place Deviation: The Bad Place Library

@ashleybenlove

Michael rarely came to the library. He didn't dislike books or librarians; in fact, he felt that the Bad Place Librarians got a bad rep for being information booths rather than actual technicians. He admired their technique.

The fact was that he needed a place to hide the humans, where demons wouldn't even think to look. Michael had considered the Museum of Torture as one option, but Shawn had let slip that there was going to be an exhibit of the Neighborhood, so it'd be a giant gala opening. He went with plan B instead. On the train, everyone dressed quietly. Janet made wigs for Tahani and Eleanor, while Jason got a hat. Chidi refused any wig. He said that was too similar to lying. Eleanor said that was "bullshit," and squealed on realizing she could curse. Tahani practiced her American accent on Eleanor, who could help but marvel at the change. Jason tossed around an orange. It was a slow trek from the train station. Michael could see Tahani swallowing her coughs. Good. demons never coughed because of the train. They walked through the glass doors of the library. Despite the Bad Place having darkness, artificial sunlight shone through the library windows. That way you could see all the fake plastic displays. Michael wrinkled his nose as the videocassettes on display, with no VCR available. Obviously. He had chosen a day where only one librarian was behind the desk, a bad Janet. In any case, she couldn't leave the desk. Not unless another librarian backed her up. Michael had checked the schedule. All the librarians were off-duty. Probably helping Shawn with his paperwork.   The first floor didn't really have books. It had some plastic displays of books, but those would burn your fingers on touching them. There were some recorded story times of kids having to hear the most annoying children's books over and over again. Those rooms were closed. They could hear the muffled singsong. "I want to sit in for storytime!" Jason said. "No, Jason," Michael said with measured patience. "Your ears will burn off if you even listen a few minutes." Janet corralled Jason while making an effort to scowl and look bored. She still projected an aura of helpfulness. Michael hoped the librarian's phone was greatly intriguing her. "Why would you need such a nice library?" Tahani whispered. "I remember J.K. Rowling's private display, and it was nowhere near as majestic as this." "Sometimes demons need a change of pace when they need to find information," Michael explained. "You won't think it's as nice after a few sessions." The escalators to the second floor ran in two speeds: murderously fast and gruntingly slow. They squealed loudly, which made a grating sound in the silent sunlight. Each step had large gaps between them.  Jason made a beeline for the fast one. Janet grabbed him by his coat sleeves. "If you fall, you'll end up crashing into an endless void and suffocate," she warned. "Awesome!" Jason whispered. "Everyone, keep Jason from falling," Michael deadpanned. They slid onto the slow escalator, Eleanor, and Tahani in front while Chidi took up the rear with Michael. The steps squeaked upward, guaranteeing that no one could overhear them through the noise. "Okay," Michael said. "I'm going to try and find more pins so that we can all reach the judge. The second floor is usually very quiet. You should all be safe and Shawn won't think to look for you here." "I can't believe in the middle of all these torture sessions you actually have something as civilized as a library," Eleanor said. "In Arizona, the libraries double as locations for porn shoots." "I'm well aware of that," Michael replied. "It's not like we have anything else other than a few bars." He realized something was wrong as soon as they hopped the last step to the polished marble floors. There was ballet music from behind a closed door. It was ...nice. There was never nice music here. He had gotten some pieces from a stolen CD from the real Good Place for his fake neighborhood.   The door opened. Giant feathers flew out. Team Cockroach all leaped back. Loud music followed them. 'Oh. Director," Michael said. "Hi, Noelle." His heart sank. The Director was a technician that specialized in making torture a theater. Literally. She had platinum blond hair and star-shaped glasses. Her heels clicked against the floor. "Hey there, Michael," she said. "Congrats on your promotion. You should be with Shawn." "He gave me a break," Michael said. "I'm just trying to find a quiet place. You know." "We're doing Swan Lake," the Director said. "We need some extra hands for the tech crew. Isn't this your lucky day?" Oh no, Michael thought. He turned to the Team. Tahani looked interested in the ballet's name. "We actually have a torture meeting group upstairs," Eleanor lied with ease. "We're some new recruits learning from the best. Michael!" Her fake smile was dazzling. Michael knew she had used it to score free drinks from her bartender boyfriend. He was grateful to see it now. "Yes, Michael," Tahani drawled. "We're doing a seminar with him." "Ah well," the Director said. "Conference room is free. Keep it down or the swans will eat you." She slammed the door. The music died. Michael sighed in relief. "That was close," he said. "Let's go to the conference room before she decides to make you dance."

[amehanaarashi]

Flash Fiction Month Stories List!

Flash Fiction Month is happening, and I have been working on catching up to it. You can read my flash fictions for free on my Deviant Art gallery. Views help boost me in the algorithm, if I understand things correctly. I will update this list to link to where you can read the flash fictions written for this month.

Flash Fiction Month 2021

The Idols: Obsession, or safety? https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM2021-1-The-Idols-884398326

Rainbringer: When the rain runs dry, what happens when there is less to bring? https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM2021-2-Rainbringer-884402495

I Want Flames: Aging does not mean growing up. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-3-I-Want-Flames-885840121

Wind and Stream: Experience the connection of a tree between her suitors. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-4-Wind-and-Stream-885848421

I Just Want A Bed: No, really. I just want a bed! https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-5-I-Just-Want-a-Bed-886131751

Sloth: Be careful what you program. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-6-Sloth-886138477

Within Her Mirror: Snow White from the Magic Mirror's perspective. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-7-Within-Her-Mirror-886218522

A) The Fae Bride: A Fairy bride and what a chance encounter means for her future groom. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-8-The-Fae-Bride-886230385 B) They: Wander with a spirit that had never walked as human. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-8b-They-886338858

Cloud In The Storm: The Cloud Maiden always wanders far, and sometimes she comes when called. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-9-Cloud-in-the-Storm-886233369

Starstone City: Adventurers, a love triangle, and personality clashes. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-10-Starstone-City-886247909

Providence: A half selkie shipwrecked encounters a full selkie family. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-11-Providence-886241301

The Taste of People: A forest spirit speaks his mind https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-12-The-Taste-of-People-886149220

You'll Be Mine: Loving? Obsessive? You get to make up your own mind about this Fae and his letter. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-13-You-ll-Be-Mine-886146025

The Cloud Maiden's Shrine Origin: The Cloud Maiden chooses a home, and a priest to serve her. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-14-The-Cloud-Maiden-s-Shrine-Origin-886141083

Wishing Cookies: Just a little bit of baking. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM2021-15-Wishing-Cookies-886040849

An Unusual Day In The Life of Sir Seb (or Sir Sebastion): When a villain is bad at being bad and it's the castle dragon that needs rescuing Sir Sebastion gets to clean up the mess. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM2021-16-An-Unusual-Day-in-the-Life-of-Sir-Seb-885959154

Temptations: In which I mock blouse ripper romance and shed a little light on certain aspects of the Temple of Mara that aren't so fun. Or is it just angst? https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-17-Temptations-886054881

Who Summoned Me To Punch A Fish?: Teenagers, elder gods possessing tentacles, and wannabe gangs. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-18-Who-Summoned-Me-to-Punch-a-Fish-886057619

Dragon And Hawk Reunite: A long flash forward for Ryu Take and BlowingWind Mountainchild from my Dragon Shaman books. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-19-Dragon-and-Hawk-Reunite-886209592

Untethering The Dragon: When a spirit incarnates as a human but needs their powers there is always some sort of price. https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-20-Untethering-The-Dragon-886335217

The Cloud Dance: Your typical unruly princess, and the typical falling for a guard. The Cloud Maiden has plans for them https://www.deviantart.com/amehanarainstardrago/art/FFM-2021-21-The-Cloud-Dance-886350253

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Look for places to find me via my Linktree! https://www.linktr.ee/Amehana

[writingsfromspace]

Human

207 words | Foolhardy

Prompt by Hydra (a.k.a. the FlashFictionMonth team)

The quality of my FFM entries is quickly deteriorating lol but this is one of the earlier ones. Enjoy.

They looked down on the being resting on the bed between them. It was barely breathing, but surely, it would heal - they both knew too well its kind was hard to kill.

Ann looked over the bandages Horea had applied, as carefully as he would to any of the team, and knew he had been right - denying it this would have been a betrayal of all he stood for.

~

“We can’t just take a creature like that in! Just because it’s been restrained so - so cruelly doesn’t mean it’s less of a-”

“We can’t just leave it, either, can we? What would that make us, huh? I don’t want to argue with you, Ann, and - and I won’t! We’re taking it home-”

“You can’t just decide that on your own, it’s dangerous-!”

“I’m a medic, Ann! The end!”

~

Usually, they were the ones hunting monsters. Being called in to dispose of one that was already captured was new, and Ann wasn’t at all sure how she felt about it.

Still, monsters were dangerous, and she was willing to take the job, until they saw it, until Horea rushed right past her and started loosing its restraints like a madman.

“We have to get it out of here.”

[cassi-misc-art]

Romeo & Romeo

[taramorrigan-writing]

A Murder Most Sweet

Wordcount: 259

Prompt: Write about a society in which murder is legal--what are the implications?

Written By: Lyrael

I left work in a sour mood and started plotting. My boss had been riding my ass for months now, and I'd tried to talk to him about it, tried to remind him that since they'd passed that new law a few weeks back he really shouldn't be pulling that shit anymore, but he kept at it. Kept getting in my face and yelling at me for shit that weren't even my fucking responsibility. Kept calling me in for overtime then forgetting to fucking pay me it. Kept docking my normal pay for fucking bullshit reasons. Of course I'm gonna be fucking late when he insists on scheduling me before the buses run in the morning, what does he expect me to do about that? And how is it my fucking fault if some cunts come and shoplift shit? I ain't no fucking security guard. I don't get paid enough to stop the fucking hoodlums. They can take whatever they fucking want far as I give a shit.

But he kept on cunting on and now it was time to do something about it. "Murder's legal if you can prove it benefits society", they say. Well, I'd spent every fucking night since that law had passed taking a petition round to everyone I knew who ever worked for the cunt. Which is a fucking lot when you have such a high fucking turnover as this fucking place. A fucking lot of people who hated his fucking guts. And he'd just let slip where he was gonna be at tonight...

[trialbystory]

Flash Fiction Friday: Parley With Rebels

So over the several FFM's I've done it became something of a personal tradition to take one of the days and write some kind of (usually villainous or villain-adjacent) monologue. My approach is usually "The final scene from the Killing Joke, as imagined/delivered by Handsome Jack or Cave Johnson." It doesn't ever really work out that way, but that's my starting point. And while every one of these I've written was done so with the intent of maybe actually recording it one day, I never have. Until now. If you have, for some reason, conjured up in your head some idealized version of what I sound like, then this is your warning that that image may be shattered by listening to the following file. This is three and a half minutes of me, with little to no affectation, reading my piece from Day 8 of FlashFictionMonth 2019: Parley With Rebels.

Fun fact, I had the thought to write the larger story this would've been a part of, and actually did write the first chapter, which detailed the last stand of the 'fallen hero' mentioned here and the first moments of her resurrection. I didn't take it beyond that first part, but the concept has stuck with me and I still kind of want to revisit it one day.

Oh, and if you'd rather just read this week's piece, here's my original version back on deviantart. That profile is functionally defunct, in that I'm not gonna be posting stuff there anymore, but I don't plan on closing it either, so if you ever get bored and want to poke around the dirty laundry of my writing past you totally could, but I don't recommend it, because boy does some of it feel cringe, looking back.

[trialbystory]

I think I might pull some of my stories from deviantArt over to ao3. Focusing mainly on my FlashFictionMonth stuff, because the otherstuff is either terminally unfinished or bad even by my standards.

I figure if I'm gonna eventually open up the possibility of commisions/requests via Kofi it makes sense to have some examples of what I can do beyond the realm of SoC. Plus I want them at least somewhat preserved and I'm not exactly overwhelmed with faith in da as a platform the last couple of years.

[trialbystory]

FlashFiction Friday: After the Storm

This was the leadoff for FlashFictionMonth 2021, and as promised, this is one where I followed a challenge. Specifically I had to write something that was A)Exactly 55 words. B)About or rooted in fear. And C)Don't actually say that it's about fear. Despite it having bee 18 months since I'd written literally anything, I enjoyed making this one. I came up with the idea real quick and then it was just a matter of making it fit in the miniscule wordcount. I hope you enjoy!

It was never supposed to be me, you know. I wasn’t even the second choice. But the fight’s been going on so long they had to start digging deeper. No one expected me to actually pull it off, to win. Now everyone I see looks to me with the same damn question: What happens next?

[trialbystory]

FlashFiction Friday: The Question

This week's FFF offering is from FlashFictionMonth 2021 Day 2. At some point I'll start posting ones where I was bound by challenge rules, but this is another where I just had an idea and went with it. So please enjoy this bite-sized portion of romance. As a treat.

Sarah’s mind raced as she stepped out of the car. Is it too soon? It’s too soon, isn’t it? But I don’t want to keep putting it off. She thought they were ready; despite only seeing each other for a couple of months something about it just felt right. But the doubts were there, creeping around the edges. The two of them had been having so much fun together, but this was a pretty big step. It would make this whole thing between them more...Real. She took a deep breath to steady herself as she approached the small cafe. Stop second-guessing yourself. Just because it seems fast doesn’t mean it’s wrong. Regardless, she was out of time now. Her date was waiting for her, drinks already on the table. This was it. Don’t chicken out now. She took her seat, looked across the table, and forgot her worries. “Hey you. So what’s the big question you wanted to ask me?” Sarah could still change course, come up with something else, or brush it off. But she didn’t want to anymore. That voice, those eyes, they filled her with a confidence and sense of love that was almost shocking. It isn’t too soon.

She took one more deep breath and met the gaze she’d fallen in love with. “Would you like to meet my daughter?”

[trialbystory]

Before I wrote one pretty okay fanfiction on ao3 I wrote a bunch of mediocre flash fiction on deviantart. I'm thinking I might occasionally throw some of it up here once in a while. All original stuff, mostly from past iterations of FlashFictionMonth, probably with a focus on the ones I most enjoyed writing or was proud of.

Still undecided, we'll see what happens.

[trialbystory]

A New Beginning

Okay, so this is the start of me on tumblr. Well technically I made a previous attempt on tumblr, but I never actually did anything with it so I'm counting this as the start. Anyway, new story coming soon. Everything I've written in the last 3-5 years has been for FlashFictionMonth over on Deviant Art which means: A)It's all been 1k words or less, and B)Basically all my writing has been localized to the span of about a month each year. So I'm easing back into things with my first longform story in at least 5 years and my first fanfiction in almost twice as long. It'll be a RWBY fanfic, and to make things even easier on myself it'll be an AU set in the world of another fandom. As of this morning I have the first two chapters I've completed and I plan on posting first one over the weekend. I don't plan until sharing this blog until after that goes live, but if you somehow stumble across the page early, please look forward to it.

[cassi-misc-art]

FFM 2018 D1 Challenge

For flashfictionmonth on deviantArt. Story beneath the cut.

She lay on the lid of the dumpster's closed side, flinging item after item out of the way, leaning deeper and deeper until she felt her lunch threaten to protest at the pressure on her stomach. It was at this point she realized that she had no way of elegantly repositioning herself, and sighed. Roll over and risk injuring her back? Crawl into the dumpster? Try to wiggle backwards? Wiggling seemed like the best idea. Her lunch disagreed with vehemence. Well... at least she was already leaning over a dumpster. When she settled onto the ground again, she took a swig from her water bottle, sloshing the liquid around in her mouth and spitting that into the dumpster as well, then wiped her face on her sleeve before taking a proper drink. No luck. She crouched in the shadow between dumpster and wall, trying to remember how long ago humanity had tried to colonize the alien land. The archeologists and historians had been furious, she knew that much from her books. But now it didn't matter who was angry, who was brave, who was intelligent. Now it only mattered who was alive. Well, that, and who could be relied on. She wondered how many times she'd been laughed at, crawling into vents, sorting through garbage, running through sandstorms only for the wind to die down minutes later. She tried to gently pour a measure of water into her palm, and promptly lost her grip, spilling the liquid down her shirt and pants. She sighed, unheard mockery echoing silently through her head. And it only grew louder when she found what she'd been looking for under the second water bottle.

https://www.deviantart.com/cassidypeterson/art/FFM-2018-Day-1-Challenge-752348793