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Getting Revved Up for Flash Fiction!

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steph9289 View Drop Down
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    Posted: 10 May 2017 at 4:40pm
Just registered for the Flash Fiction contest for the first time! For those of you who have participated in both Short Story and Flash Fiction, what would you say is the biggest difference between the two challenges? What are some strategies that have worked well for Flash?

Thanks,
Steph
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote lisafox10800 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 10 May 2017 at 6:43pm
Originally posted by steph9289 steph9289 wrote:

Just registered for the Flash Fiction contest for the first time! For those of you who have participated in both Short Story and Flash Fiction, what would you say is the biggest difference between the two challenges? What are some strategies that have worked well for Flash?

Thanks,
Steph

Hi, Steph! Just signed up for Flash as well - so excited! This will be my second time in the competition.

For me, the biggest difference is the lack of breathing room in word count for Flash (Every. Word. Matters.) It's important to be careful not to take on too big a story for the words allotted. Of course, you can say the same for SSC but with only 1,000 words you feel it a lot more.

The other difference is the fact that you have two chances to make it to the semi-finals. It's not sudden death, which helps especially if you're just on the cusp. Last year in FFC I placed 6th in the first heat and 3rd in the second, which got me to the semis. In SSC, I placed 6th in Round 1 and was given my walking papers.  So while there isn't much breathing space with word count, there is when it comes to how you do. It's a little less pressure in the first heat of Challenge 1 because you know you have a second chance if you tank. But it's more pressure in the second heat of Challenge 1 if you've done well in the first heat, because you don't want to blow it. KWIM?

Oh! And the other difference is that instead of a 'subject' like in SSC, you need to include an object in your story. So think Action Adventure/Canyon/Umbrella -  my first-round assignment. The object is a lot more random than the subject that you build a story around in SSC. It's important to make the object's appearance logical, but it doesn't have to be an integral part of the story. Or it can be. All the luck of the draw...

Hope this helps! I'm still a relative newbie to all this, so others who have been around longer will certainly have better advice. Good luck and I look forward to seeing you there!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Puffindor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11 May 2017 at 2:08pm
I also entered! I wanted to enter the FF contest last year, but I couldn't because I was studying for the bar exam. Excited for it this year :D Hopefully it'll go better for me than the SSC did this year :/ 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote SakuraHime Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 May 2017 at 11:20pm
I haven't decided if I want to enter FF or not. This SSC was my first time doing anything like this and it was super rewarding to make it to round 2, but I"m working full time, plus running a brewery that my hubby and I own, plus finishing my master's degree (which will be done in November). It's a lot to take on, and that's part of why I screwed up in round 2 - I only had 1 day to write because of my other commitments. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Suave Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14 May 2017 at 12:09am
I am still thinking on it.  I will be three days into my traveling Vietnam during the second challenge in September, but I am leaning towards joining anyway.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote Puffindor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 May 2017 at 10:24am
Originally posted by Suave Suave wrote:

I am still thinking on it.  I will be three days into my traveling Vietnam during the second challenge in September, but I am leaning towards joining anyway.

Make sure to visit Hoi An! Some really great restaurants there. The Indian restaurant Ganesh in Hoi An is amazing, as well as Minh Hien (vegetarian)! At Ganesh, make sure to get the pineapple lassi. I have not come across pineapple lassi anywhere but in Vietnam in all my travels so far. Mostly Indian restaurants serve mango lassi. The pineapple one was so good though! And do a boat tour in Ha Long Bay!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Suave Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 May 2017 at 10:35am
Originally posted by Puffindor Puffindor wrote:

Originally posted by Suave Suave wrote:

I am still thinking on it.  I will be three days into my traveling Vietnam during the second challenge in September, but I am leaning towards joining anyway.

Make sure to visit Hoi An! Some really great restaurants there. The Indian restaurant Ganesh in Hoi An is amazing, as well as Minh Hien (vegetarian)! At Ganesh, make sure to get the pineapple lassi. I have not come across pineapple lassi anywhere but in Vietnam in all my travels so far. Mostly Indian restaurants serve mango lassi. The pineapple one was so good though! And do a boat tour in Ha Long Bay!


Will be spending the first three days in Ho Chi Minh, then taking a boat to the coast, Vung Tau - where I will be doing my writing if I enter.  Will make Vung Tau my home base, renting scooters to travel around a little.  Mostly I just want to soak in a little Nam, eat and swim.  I am betting that the Lassi served in Nam is not as "good" as what you might find in India. . .


Edited by Suave - 17 May 2017 at 10:38am
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote De Chelonian Mobile Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 May 2017 at 6:10pm
All signed up for Flash Fiction! I hope I have as much fun as I did with SSC.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Puffindor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 May 2017 at 11:25am
I'm South Asian... and it was better. :)
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Puffindor Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 May 2017 at 11:26am
Originally posted by Suave Suave wrote:

Originally posted by Puffindor Puffindor wrote:

Originally posted by Suave Suave wrote:

I am still thinking on it.  I will be three days into my traveling Vietnam during the second challenge in September, but I am leaning towards joining anyway.

Make sure to visit Hoi An! Some really great restaurants there. The Indian restaurant Ganesh in Hoi An is amazing, as well as Minh Hien (vegetarian)! At Ganesh, make sure to get the pineapple lassi. I have not come across pineapple lassi anywhere but in Vietnam in all my travels so far. Mostly Indian restaurants serve mango lassi. The pineapple one was so good though! And do a boat tour in Ha Long Bay!


Will be spending the first three days in Ho Chi Minh, then taking a boat to the coast, Vung Tau - where I will be doing my writing if I enter.  Will make Vung Tau my home base, renting scooters to travel around a little.  Mostly I just want to soak in a little Nam, eat and swim.  I am betting that the Lassi served in Nam is not as "good" as what you might find in India. . .

I'm South Asian... and it was better :) The restaurant is owned by Indians.
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