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Today begins the first challenge from the Writers' Platform-Building Campaign. Here is my challenge: "Write a short story/flash fiction story in 200 words or less, excluding the title. It can be in any format, including a poem. Begin the story with the words, “The door swung open” These four words will be included in the word count. If you want to give yourself an added challenge (optional), use the same beginning words and end with the words: "the door swung shut." (also included in the word count) For those who want an even greater challenge, make your story 200 words EXACTLY!" If you would like to read other authors' submissions, travel to this link. It's also the webpage where you can vote for mine! I'm #115 with a picture of some penguins dancing. Here goes my very first piece of flash fiction of 200 words exactly. The door swung open. A thud echoed through the room when the heavy wood hit the dirt at his feet. The stench of unwashed bodies, vinegar, and mold drifted up from the ink-black regions below. The whisper-thin man covered his mouth with a handkerchief pulled from his Bib overalls pocket. "Ernest. Answer me, son." Harvey rubbed the handkerchief across his face before turning to spit a stream of tobacco juice to his right. He used the cloth to wipe the spittle from his chin. He balanced his boot on the rotting threshold and bent with one hand on the frame of the storm cellar. "Did you hear me?" he yelled into the blackness. Turning, he carefully positioned his right foot, his good one, on the top rung of the step ladder. He grabbed the other side of the doorframe and dropped his left foot to the second rung. He peered in the direction of the scuffling sound. "I always knew bad blood would out. Your poor mama don't need this aggravation. That's why I had to put you down here." The old man lost his grip on the wood when two hands jerked at his ankles. The door slammed shut. |
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