Good evening, friends.
Many thanks for your patience. I was traveling today and just now sat down to an internet connection. Many thanks also to Clive Tern for reading and judging stories this week. You’ll find his top picks below:
Third Place – Dumped by Sal Page
This is a sweet coming of age story, and achieves a lot in a tight space. We have the background, the action, and the final result. What I liked was the sense of real-ness which shone through, the crispness of memory from a childhood even which left deep impressions. Though it was left unsaid, it was impossible not to feel the ache the narrators chest.
Second Place
Somethin’ Stupid by Brian S. Creek
For me this was the most complete story of those submitted. I liked that way the story turned with the line that started so casually, ‘Or in layman’s terms…’. The use of a dead narrator is not one I enjoy, but here I felt it was put to good effect, allowing us to follow the intimacy of the violence, while maintaining the objectivity the narrator established from the start.
And our Flash Frenzy Round 66 FLASH MASTER is…
Steph Ellis
with
Lost in Transmission
I love this story. The horrific-ness of the premise, to have our inner thought open for public consumption, is exquisite. But beyond that we are given a credible reason for how and why it happens, and why it can’t be stopped. The detail of how it affects the narrator’s life are real and sympathy inducing, as is the discovery that this new technology is not the wondrous thing first envisaged.
Congratulations, Steph! Your story will be featured as Wednesday’s HumpDay Quickie! Please contact me here with any bio information, publications, links to personal sites, or any other information you would like to appear on your winner’s page.
Next weekend, F.E. Clark will be acting judge. Hope to see you all there. 🙂