Category: Flash Fiction

Flash Fiction, tutto e niente

this time

Tina Stewart Brakebill

Memories flooded my brain as the smoke from the flickering candle enveloped me. The hint of menthol cigarettes lingering in the air only amplified my déjà vu. My cowardice urged me to turn and run, but before my feet could obey this frantic command the sight of the Two of Swords reminded me of the weight of the choice ahead of me. I couldn’t let one bad incident stop me from seeking guidance. Maybe if I had listened that time, instead of mocking, I would have taken a different road, so instead of taking flight, I sank into the chair. Holding my question in my mind, I shuffled the cards and made a promise to myself:  this time, I would listen, really really listen.

The Two of Swords card, conceptualized by Pamela Colman Smith

I had fun today, creating a six-sentence story and incorporating some additional word prompts that included CARDS, AMPLIFY, CHOICE, and INCIDENT. Visit the site below for more info and more great writing. 

Writing Prompts
Amplify
It’s Thursday’s Six Sentence Story Blog Hop
FOWC With Fandango — Incident

 

Flash Fiction, Random Rants, tutto e niente

tomorrow is another day

Tina Stewart Brakebill

Determined to shake off the misery for just one day, Margaret vowed to adhere to her self-imposed 24-hour digital detox. Word puzzles filled her first hour. A quick trip to Trader Joe’s for flowers was next. All was good, but then she caught sight of her woebegone expression in the revolving door. Without thinking, she clicked on Insta and the dopamine rush cast a temporary “woe-be-gone” enchantment. Damn, she had failed again! Oh well, there’s always tomorrow.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

 

Weekend Writing Prompt #434 – Woebegone

 

 

Flash Fiction, tutto e niente

first dates and pilot lights

Tina Stewart Brakebill

As it often did, the whoosh of the burner sent Linda’s mind back. He wasn’t her type, but she had promised her roommate she’d be the fourth for one double date. Standing in her shared college kitchen, he had said “do you mind” as he had casually leaned over the stove and lit a cigarette on the pilot light. Linda had always hated smoking but something about that casual lean gave her a thrill. Now forty years later, the thrill was still there. Thankfully the cigarettes were not.

Photo by Mateusz Feliksik on Pexels.com

 

Thanks for the inspiration to tell a highly fictionalized version of our first date. 

It’s Thursday’s Six Sentence Story Blog Hop

 

 

Flash Fiction, tutto e niente

Finally

Tina Stewart Brakebill

The house was quiet.

Finally.

The loud click of the lock had echoed in her mind for just a moment as she shut out the last of the stragglers. But the constant stream of words had stopped.

Finally.

No more kind-hearted souls urging her to “eat something.” No more obsequious parishioners offering her sympathy and prayers. No more polite policeman asking stupid questions. No more of his exacting demands for unattainable perfection. No more of her internal screams of anguish. No more.

Finally.

She gazed out the window. His final view offering her an open road to the future.

Finally.  

PHOTO PROMPT © Sandra Crook

The attempts at unblocking my writer’s block seems to be have channeled me to the dark side! Thanks Rochelle and Sandra for the inspiration for this 100 word ode to revenge or maybe regret or possibly hope. The reader can decide. Visit her site for more info on the Friday Fictioneers challenge. 

19 September 2025