FLASHVERSARY Bash!

WELCOME TO FLASHVERSARY and the final contest here at Flash! Friday before we close our doors. I’m going to save my mushiest stuff for the winners’ post on Tuesday (to sum up: I looooooove you!), but let me just say up front that this contest is always my favorite each year, because it’s when I get to thank and honor you for your amazing writing and all-round gorgeousness. Three years! Who’d have thought it?!

In the meantime, if you’re in the mood and feeling brave/ornery, please feel welcome to follow me on Twitter & friend me on Facebook. I’d love to stay nosy connected.

⇒ Here’s a quick look at how Flashversary will work this year: you will have 24 hours, as always, to submit your story on a single prompt. That’s it! No second round this time; we’re keeping it short ‘n’ sweet. As thanks and so everyone can participate, I will be judging alone (however, the stories will be stripped so I can judge blind). Write your most fabulous, write in your favorite genre, play with form if you wish, have a blast. This is the last Flash! Friday contest ever: make it count. ♥ 

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Before we move on to Flashversary itself (and all the yummy PRIZES!), I need to hand the mic to my darlings at Dragon Team Five for a moment — that’s Foy Iver & Holly Geely, of course! — to share some final thoughts with you, as they’d been cruelly denied the opportunity:

Foy: The only thing worse than saying goodbye, is not having the chance to. But I want to be careful not to write a eulogy. 

Thank you, thank you, Rebekah, for your hard work, attention, insights, and time. You push forward the better writer — the better self! — in me, and for that, I’m eternally grateful. 

A thousand thank you’s and imaginary roses (I hope you’re not allergic) to the wonderful, fun, and timely Holly Geely. Folks, she made Team Five tick! 

And thanks to every one of you who made Flash! Friday the supportive womb that it is. As long as the dragon flame burns, fearful yet overcoming, in our ribs than this gathering’s purpose is alive. I’m excited for this community bursting with talent, I’m hopeful that we’ll pursue excellence in bigger and brighter spheres, and I’m certain that the ashes of this phoenix will send us off on bolder wings.

Holly: Without Flash! Friday I would never have had the guts to publish my book or submit my short stories anywhere; I would have remained lost in the void. I’ve met so many lovely people and read so many wonderful stories. I’ve learned how to combat the writers block that I now know was a lack of confidence. I’ve discovered my style. 

Enough about me, though… I want to thank my partner in crime for being so much fun! She has been nothing but encouraging and she laughs at my lame jokes so I hope we are friends forever. 

It’s sad to say goodbye so I won’t; I know I’ll see you all around and I hope we can continue to make flash fiction like champions.

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FLASH! FRIDAY PRIZE BOX

Grand Dragon Champion: 

-a Flashversary poster printed with your winning story,
-a Flash! Friday commemorative poster,
-a Flash! Friday commemorative mug
-a FF community book & art prize basket including:
* FlashDogs Anthologies (following February publication, paper version), from Flashdogs HQ
* Mortal Musings & Life Under Examination, by Aria Glazki (ebooks)
* Silverwood, by Betsy Streeter (paper version)
* The Gantean + The Cedna, by Emily June Street (paper or digital, winner’s choice)
* A Man of Character & A Matter of Time, by Margaret Locke (paper versions)
* Kindle the Flame & Mark of Four, by Tamara Shoemaker (paper versions)
* Haunting Valley & Scrappy Information Security, by Michael Seese (paper versions)
* The Dragon’s Toenail, by Holly Geely (paper version)
* The Better Spy & The Yellow Scarf, by Maggie Duncan (paper versions)
* On Writing (Stephen King) & Lost Ocean (Johanna Basford coloring book), from Casey Rose Frank
* Drawn By a Star (Meg Robinson) & personally crafted notecards, from F.E. Clark
* Blood for Blood, by Ben Wolf (ebook)
* Take the Reins, by Siobhan Muir (ebook)
* Wisdom & Folly, Part I & Wisdom & Folly, Part II, by Michele Israel Harper (Kindle/Nook) 
* Original artwork, by M.T. Decker

1st Runner Up:  One Flashversary poster printed with your winning story, a Flash! Friday commemorative poster, a FF commemorative mug, and your choice of an anthology from the upcoming (February) Flashdogs collection   

2nd Runner Up: A Flash! Friday commemorative poster and a FF commemorative item 

3rd Runner Up: A Flash! Friday commemorative poster and a FF commemorative item

Honorable Mentions: A Flash! Friday commemorative poster

Wall of Flame lottery: A Flash! Friday commemorative poster & mug; a copy of Calum Kerr’s The 2014 Flash365 Anthology; a year’s subscription to all three Splickety imprints

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FLASHVERSARY TIME!

(Questions? Tweet @FlashFridayFic or email Flash! Friday here.)

RULES: Open to ALL WRITERS. 

* As always, limit TWO ENTRIES per person, submitted as a comment to this post. Note: Proofread carefully: as I’m judging, no corrections or changes will be made to your entry once you submit it. Usual content restrictions apply.
* Submission window: As always, open from 12:01am until 11:59pm, Friday, Dec 11 Washington, DC time (24 hours)
* What happens next: I (Rebekah) will judge your stories; they will be stripped of ID so I can judge blind. Results will post a day later than normal, on Tuesday.  

WINNERS ANNOUNCED: Tuesday, December 15, 2015 at 7:30am Washington, DC time. This will include the winner of the #WallofFlame drawing. 

Note: The Flash! Friday site will officially close on Friday, Dec 18. You will see a static hello screen; but your stories, all the Spotlight & Sixty Seconds interviews, Flash Points, and winners’ pages will remain accessible.  

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Round One Word Count: 100 words exactly, no more, no less. 

How to Enter: Post your entry (maximum of two per writer) here in the comments. Include your word count (100 words exactly, exclusive of title/byline) and Twitter handle if you’ve got one (if not, be sure to link your email address or some way for us to contact you). Be sure to proofread; once your entry is submitted, no changes or corrections are able to be made.

**And now for your final Flashversary prompt!** 

The very first Flash! Friday prompt posted on December 7, 2012. Some of those original writers (there were fewer than 15 that day!) are still writing with us: Maggie Duncan, Anthony Marchese, & Susan Warren Utley are names you might recognize, along with my darling Beth Peterson, who left our world in September.  

And since the end of a story so often echoes its beginning, it’s only right that our final prompt mirrors our first one.

• Write a 100 word story (100 words exactly, exclusive of title/byline) that begins with the following sentence:

On Friday everything changed.

OPTIONAL PHOTO PROMPT (not required; for inspiration only):

“Balancing on the Brink.” Eagle Peak Summit, Chugach Mountains, Alaska. CC2.0 photo by Paxson Woelber.