Flash Fiction Competition
As part of WRITE 2017, a Flash Fiction Competition was launched.
The competition asked for stories, no longer than 100 words in length, to be submitted by the public. There were no restrictions on the subject of the story and participants were encouraged to let their imagination run wild. The competition was divided into 2 categories: 16 and under & over 17.
All submissions were read by a panel of judges and on Sunday 25 June, the shortlisted from each category were invited to The Word, where the stories would be read out and the winner announced.
16 and under winner
Teddy by Chloe Gray
Vicious wind howled outside of the orphan bear’s cave. Abandoned by his unloving mother, and as a young male cub, he had no choice but to press on through the harsh conditions. Prey was scarce, and the humans had claimed their territory. The bear knew it would be a tough journey.
He scaled the steep curtain, eventually reaching the peak. Following the curtain railing, his fabric arms clung to the wood. Leaping down to the soft duvet, he cuddled into the blankets below him.
A bear doesn’t always have to be filled with stuffing.
Some, instead, are filled with love.
Over 17’s winner
Visiting Time by John Irving Clarke
They tear cellophane from their greetings and present fruit to its best advantage. Amiable and awkward, they’ll say, It’s not such a bad day, introducing silence with their smiles.
They troop the ward at the allotted time, these faces as numerous as spoons in a drawer with names he had put down somewhere. He wanted to go back to the meadow he’d glimpsed earlier where the wind kissed the top of the grass and the river ran pure and true.
But first there were these faces, smiling and respectful. He would wait. They would soon be gone.
He would wait.