Tag: #WritingCommunity

Week 639 of #ThursThreads was a success, and y’all never disappoint. Thank you to everyone who writes each week. You are why we’re still doing this, and why we’ve made it 12 YEARS! If you’ve just found us, welcome to the crew! May you come back again and write more great flash. A thousand thanks to Mark Ethridge for judging this week. Follow Siobhan Muir on Bluesky or check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Facebook or the #ThursThreads Group on MeWe to keep up with news, etc. Entries: K.R. Van Horn Kelly Heinen Bill Engleson  Joe Hesch Mark A. Morris David A. Ludwig Siobhan Muir  Silver James Nellie Batz  M.L. Gammella K.M. Idamari Sandra L. Penrod Honorable Mentions Joe Hesch | Website Mark says: This was fun to read. And I’m not a wrestling fan. But I could see this happening at a match. David A. Ludwig | Website Mark says: Part of a larger tale. Makes me want to keep reading. I’m curious about Morrigan. M.L. Gammella | Website Mark says: 35 degrees F is cold in a flat. A tale of wealth inequity if ever there was one. The rich and everybody else. winner announcement Week 639 Winner Kelly Heinen Mark says: This was fun to read. I can imagine an HVAC guy being tricked into fixing the boiler in hell. Even in hell they have heating problems. My secretary opens the office door, her breath fogging. She’s wrapped in her black puffer coat, mittens, and hat, boots thumping the stone floor. “Mike is here with the furnace company.” Shedding four quilts, I stand, extending my mitten covered hand. It’s a trick bringing alive humans onto the Hell Plane, because they can’t know where they are. The chaos that brings is not something I care to deal with again. Thankfully, I can create the illusion of this being a medical clinic and he will be none the wiser. “Dr. Stan Marsden, nice to meet you. No one has heat and so we’re all glad you’re here.” He smiles in the way that repairmen do and he follows me down the hall. Our furnace is technically on the tenth level of Hell, since there’s a lot of square footage to keep warm. As far as Mike knows, it’s in the utility closet near the patient exam rooms. His tool bag settles onto the thin green carpet and the door squeaks open, our massive boiler reduced to a standard size commercial furnace; presenting Mike with a 2,000 year old boiler might be a bit much for the poor guy. “Nice to meet you as well. Let’s see if we can get this up and running again.” I leave him to it, as he takes the front cover off and frowns. I hope it’s not too bad; these old boilers are hard to replace these days, even with modern upgrades.~~~~~~~ Congratulations 3 weeks in a row, TWENTY-FIVE TIME WINNER, Kelly, and Honorable Mentions Joe, David, and M.L.! Don’t forget to claim your badges and display them with pride. You certainly earned it! Pass on the great news on Facebook, MeWe, Bluesky, Mastodon, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the original tales HERE. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading! 🙂

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Week 638 of #ThursThreads was a success, and y’all never disappoint. Thank you to everyone who writes each week. You are why we’re still doing this, and why we’ve made it 12 YEARS! If you’ve just found us, welcome to the crew! May you come back again and write more great flash. A thousand thanks to George Varhalmi for judging this week. Follow Siobhan Muir on Bluesky or check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Facebook or the #ThursThreads Group on MeWe to keep up with news, etc. Entries: Kyle Van Horn Bill Engleson  Sheilagh Lee Joe Hesch Richard Eccles Kelly Heinen Siobhan Muir  Mark Ethridge  Mark A. Morris Silver James David A. Ludwig  Miranda Gammella KM Idamari Honorable Mentions Silver James | Website George says: The energy of the scene was smooth and the tale flowed very nicely with a great ending. The tale captured the energy of being in the zone completing a task without any track of time. The twist of what her mind thought to whom she saw was great. DJ’s gonna have to watch out for them feds, they are squirrelly folks. Great tale, Silver, thank you for writing it. Mark A. Morris | Website George says: A game of who swindles the swindler. Will the glue hold in time or will the papers and provenance get the victory? That’s the question. It seems like these two dealers have had their fair share of one upping the other. The tension was great in the tale with an added dash of fear on both sides to me. This was a fun tale and one I enjoyed reading, thank you Mark. Joe Hesch | Website George says: This is a sweet and emotional tale. One that I have caught myself reflecting on from time to time. I loved the sincerity between both of them. While time may fly by, these two have fond memories of the adventure. Thank you, Joe, this was a sweet and heartwarming tale. winner announcement Week 638 Winner Kelly Heinen George says: The devil having to wait for the repairman. That was awesome. The tale was delightful and humorous from beginning to end. It was a true pleasure to read. The imagery of the devil hunkered down in quilts and mittens sold the tale just right. Now he’s just got to hold out one more day (hopefully) till the repairs get done. I do not know if he has the resolve or strength to do so. Thank you, Kelly, it was a pleasure. Despite turning up the thermostat, whacking it, and calling it names, the digital display stubbornly says 58. All of the furnace repair places are booked, since apparently everyone’s furnace quit on the same day. Joy. I’d start a fire but there’s no fireplace and I don’t want to suffocate from carbon monoxide poisoning. Instead, I hunker down under two thick quilts, trying to type with mittens on; work doesn’t quit because the furnace goes out. I try to ignore the fact my nose is numb. “Group one is arriving. Also, level five has no heat.” “No one has heat. I’ve called every repair place and it’s a minimum two days wait.” People think I can wave my hand and things are fixed; I’m the Devil, not a magician. I’m at the mercy of repairmen, same as everyone else. “Stan! Group two arrived early!” My secretary swings the door open, angry voices of the damned filling my office. Shit. Shedding my blankets with great reluctance, I walk into the reception area, suddenly over capacity. My secretary and I call off names and as always, there are people in the wrong place. I pull five people to the side and one elderly woman taps me on the arm. “They do go quickly, don’t they? My husband is waiting for me and has probably starved without my cooking!” “They go as fast as possible,” I say, smiling. “If you’re in line one, follow me!” Shivering, I hope that repairman comes a day early.~~~~~~~ Congratulations TWENTY-FOUR TIME WINNER Kelly, and Honorable Mentions Silver, Mark, and Joe! Don’t forget to claim your badges and display them with pride. You certainly earned it! Pass on the great news on Facebook, MeWe, Bluesky, Mastodon, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the original tales HERE. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading! 🙂

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Week 637 of #ThursThreads was a success, and y’all never disappoint. Thank you to everyone who writes each week. You are why we’re still doing this, and why we’ve made it 12 YEARS! If you’ve just found us, welcome to the crew! May you come back again and write more great flash. A thousand thanks to Muirlette #1 for judging this week. Follow Siobhan Muir on Bluesky or check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Facebook or the #ThursThreads Group on MeWe to keep up with news, etc. Entries: Bill Engleson  Kelly Heinen Eric Martell Silver James Mark Ethridge  David A. Ludwig  Siobhan Muir  Patty Dump Nellie Batz  Sandra L. Penrod Kyle Honorable Mentions Nellie Batz | Website Muirlette says: I really like the feeling and emotion in this story, even though the prompt wasn’t exactly right. The love and connection makes it really heartfelt. I’d love to know what happened or where it goes from here. Great job. Sandra L. Penrod | Website Muirlette says: I really liked the twist at the end. I honestly thought they were actually in jail, but it turns out they’re not? That was cool, and I’d love to see how it progresses. Bill Engleson | Website Muirlette says: I was greatly entertained by the whole conversation. It took me all the way to the end to realize it was between two cats. I really enjoyed this story. winner announcement Week 637 Winner Kelly Heinen Muirlette says: I really love the snarkiness of this tale. And I find it really interesting that Death works as a nurse in a hospital by day. Funny and cute, very well done. We’re in this together he said. You can’t back out he said. Yeah, well, your Council threw an almighty fit, too. Oh no! A woman! And now I’m stuck in this job I don’t want, for two hundred years. I’m all for breaking into roles traditionally filled by men, but this one the men could’ve kept. I am The One True Death, Adrianna RN by day, approver of expired hour glasses by night. The irony is not lost on me. “All right, deary, time to review the crossovers for tonight!” Petunia, my secretary, bustles in, kitten heels clicking on the stone floor. “How was work today?” “Slow, which was nice. We’ve been hit hard with the usual winter illnesses, and beings we only have 25 beds, that’s a lot of transfer paperwork.” Being a charge nurse in the ER at a rural intake hospital means paperwork when we transfer patients to bigger hospitals; being in charge of Death means signing off on people dying. “Eleanor MacAtee? She was doing better when I left.” Petunia looks at her list. “Yes, it seems she took a turn for the worst. They do go quickly, don’t they?” “So they do.” I scan each hour glass and before long, the Deathers, who crossover the souls of the Dead, start arriving. Petunia hands out lists and when it’s quiet again, I sit at the huge, carved desk in the even bigger office. Maybe I could love this job in the future. But not now.~~~~~~~ Congratulations TWENTY-THREE TIME WINNER Kelly, and Honorable Mentions Nellie, Sandra, and Bill! Don’t forget to claim your badges and display them with pride. You certainly earned it! Pass on the great news on Facebook, MeWe, Bluesky, Mastodon, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the original tales HERE. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading! 🙂

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Week 635 of #ThursThreads was a success, and y’all never disappoint. Thank you to everyone who writes each week. You are why we’re still doing this, and why we’ve made it 12 YEARS! If you’ve just found us, welcome to the crew! May you come back again and write more great flash. A thousand thanks to David A. Ludwig for judging this week. Follow Siobhan Muir on Bluesky or check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Facebook or the #ThursThreads Group on MeWe to keep up with news, etc. Entries: Alexandra Eve Bill Engleson  Jeffrey Hollar Silver James Siobhan Muir  David A. Ludwig  Mark Ethridge  Louisa Bacio  Honorable Mention Bill Engleson | Website David says: The sci-fi twist at the end really put this one over the top for me. And I loved how you used the prompt to transition into it. winner announcement Week 635 Winner Silver James David says: I love the way you immerse us in the domestic scene, raise the tension with the intelligence situation, and then snap us out of it with breaking glass. There were multiple tightly executed stories this week, and this was definitely one of them. I would have enjoyed spending more time with any character or activity here, and you fit it all into a very complete feeling 250 words. Well done! Mac glanced at his wife. Propped on her elbows, Hannah bent over the kitchen counter studying the cookbook sprawled open in front of her. Their son sat on a stool beside her. Liam patted her encouragingly. “It’s not that hard, Mom.” “Easy for you to say,” she muttered. Looking away in case she caught him smiling, he refocused on the intelligence report he held. They might be living off the grid but he had ways of keeping a finger on the pulse of their enemies. He had to take them down so his wife and son could live their lives out in the open—well, as open as any Wolf could live. And it wasn’t just Hannah and Liam. The fates of all his men and their families rested on his ability to lead them through perilous times. His phone pinged. Glancing down, he read Lightfoot’s text message. Mac’s second in command was moving Liz and Micah. Again. He’d gotten the same messages from Nate and Sean. Even Rudy and Antoine, despite the tightly-knit Cajun community out in the bayous keeping them and their mates safe, were on the move. This timing unsettled him. All of them were being herded to the same area. Why now? And why there? He needed more info Glass shattered in the kitchen. He jumped to his feet as Hannah let loose with a string of curses. He smiled. Frozen pizza for dinner. Again. He’d figure it out, keep them safe. That’s what Alphas did.~~~~~~~ Congratulations SEVENTY-TWO TIME WINNER Silver, and Honorable Mention Bill! Don’t forget to claim your badges and display them with pride. You certainly earned it! Pass on the great news on Facebook, MeWe, Bluesky, Mastodon, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the original tales HERE. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading! 🙂

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Week 634 of #ThursThreads was a success, and y’all never disappoint. Thank you to everyone who writes each week. You are why we’re still doing this, and why we’ve made it 12 YEARS! If you’ve just found us, welcome to the crew! May you come back again and write more great flash. A thousand thanks to  Daelyn Morgana for judging this week. Follow Siobhan Muir on Bluesky or check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Facebook or the #ThursThreads Group on MeWe to keep up with news, etc. Entries: Bill Engleson Josh McLees Kelly Heinen Silver James Siobhan Muir David A. Ludwig Sheilagh Lee Honorable Mentions Silver James | Website Daelyn says: I can’t quite put my finger on it, but something about this tale really drew me in. Maybe it was the tone. Or maybe it’s my own connection to not being able to get to sleep with so many thoughts plaguing. Great tale. I feel for the “supposed to be on the back burner” WiP vibe, too. winner announcement Week 634 Winner David A. Ludwig Daelyn says: I really like the mysterious undertones that this ends on. The storyline leaves me with questions, but not in a way that makes this little piece of flash unable to stand on its own. It just makes me more curious for more. I’m also a sucker for fantasy. Excellent little tale. Kerrigan hefted his obsidian greatsword onto its stand behind the throne. The youngest Unseelie King in history sank into his shadowy throne with a sigh. No Triumvirate was ever easy. There was one night left in this one. He was so exhausted; he didn’t expect its light to keep him up once his head hit the pillow. He just needed the reports from his warriors and to reassign his forces, if necessary. “Sire.” Commander Sharp saluted from the entrance of the grand hall. Kerrigan signaled his commander to ease. No reason to stand on ceremony when they were both weary from fighting together for the last twelve hours. “Is the next wave ready for tonight?” Sharp’s subtle reticence instantly multiplied Kerrigan’ fatigue. “Mostly, Sire. Morrigan is missing.” Kerrigan’s squire wasn’t the best warrior in his army. Yet. But Kerrigan’s rest did hinge on her taking the field tonight. “She’s probably gone to see her sister. Coordinate relief efforts with the Seelie Court, or some such.” Morrigan would never disappoint him. “No, Sire. It was her sister that alerted us. Morrigan left a note saying she means to depart The Green.” Kerrigan groaned. The one thing Morrigan was less likely to do than disappoint him, was to deceive her sister. This timing unsettled him. She knew he couldn’t spare anyone in the next twenty-four hours. “The Seelie Court have already dispatched search parties.” That didn’t help him. Sleep would have to wait. “I’ll have to lead her unit.”~~~~~~~ Congratulations TWENTY-SIX TIME WINNER David, and Honorable Mention Silver! Don’t forget to claim your badges and display them with pride. You certainly earned it! Pass on the great news on Facebook, MeWe, Bluesky, Mastodon, shiny mirrors, Morse Code, and signal flags. Check out all the original tales HERE. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading! 🙂

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