As you may recall (but probably not) I shared a very short story (100 words precisely, in fact) that was entered in a NYC Midnight competition about a couple of teenagers kissing on a train.
If you missed it (and who could blame you?) here it is again
****
Love On The Way Home From School
I remember the world thundering by. Our destination almost upon us.
The rattle and rumble of the tracks like gunfire above which we hear only each other’s thoughts. She takes my hand in hers.
School bags at our feet. For these were simple times. Or seemed so.
A shock of air through the carriage as we hurtle into the black cocoon of the tunnel. She leans forward to kiss me.
Then suddenly into the blinding light of the station. She is on her feet. Smiling. Suppressing a giggle. And then gone. Until tomorrow.
For as long as tomorrows might last.
****
Surprisingly, the judges had an off day and awarded it a 3rd placing and thus ushered me into the 2nd round where they required a drama about injuring a knee and including the word ‘line’. Likewise a maximum of 100 words
This is what I wrote,
****
Leaving Home
She glanced back only briefly towards the cottage where she had left the note for him to later read in habitual drunken rage.
A line of trees, planted with her naïve optimism of twenty years previous, marked a boundary obstructing her view to the road and beyond. Stepping through it, in the fading light, she stumbled over a fallen branch and felt the wood piercing her skin, but it was only in the taxi that she noticed the little stream of blood trickling from her knee.
“Does it hurt?” the driver asked.
“No,” she whispered, “I can’t feel anything, anymore.”
****
Richmond Road 
Congrats on third place. I liked your next one as well.
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Thank you. But I hold out little hope for it.
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Third place is better than “no” place! 🙂
True talent eventually gets recognized.
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Isn’t there some sort of a rule about not posting it anywhere till the results come out?
CongratZ on making it to the next round. I’m out
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And there certainly is a good deal of luck involved in the process.
You’re allowed to post once they tell you that all submissions are received
So you ought to post yours!
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I thought it was until results were out so the judges couldn’t be biased. I posted mine…
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Can you, will you, give information on this competition? Or do you fear the competition? Yah, hah, hah…..
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There’s normally around 5000 entrants each time, so inviting you along only pushes me 1 place further from where I normally sit (somewhere around 4726th) – so no real harm done. You should be able to find out all you need here …. https://www.nycmidnight.com/ssc
I think the next event is the flash fiction competition …. https://www.nycmidnight.com/
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Thanks, Richmond, yer a peach…
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Richmond, I can’t thank you enough for introducing my to the NYC Midnight winning stories. I’ve been reading them for hours. Incredible.
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No problem. There is a forum you can join to discuss things with others and exchange stories and ideas – you may have already found it.
The Flash Fiction Contest is a good place to start because the first round requires 2 stories, so no matter how badly the first story goes you get another chance to shine before elimination starts. The other ones are a bit more brutal.
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Wow. Looking at the guidelines and deadlines makes me appreciate your stories/efforts even more. I love to write … but I KNOW I couldn’t compete under those conditions. Guess I’m just not that kind of writer … 😛
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Nor me
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