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Published on 4 Comments on National Flash-Fiction Day Anthology 2015

Well, it's been a tortuous job to winnow the 200+ submission down to our selection, but Angi Holden and myself have finally managed it. And so we are pleased to announce that the stories in this years anthology will be as follows:

A Curious State of Affairs  by  Ingrid Jendrzejewski
A Secret Weight  by  KM Elkes
Bad Geography  by  James Coates
Colouring In  by  Shirley Golden
Coming Back to Primorsk  by  Anna Nazarova-Evans
Countdown  by  Susan Howe
Devil's Mountain  by  Joanna Campbell
Dinner and Geography  by  Keith Gillison
Disputed Zone  by  Barbara Leahy
Double Geography  by  Jane Cooper
Forty Seconds  by  Katie Stevens
How The Earth Began  by    Jenny Woodhouse
Her geography    by  Rob Walton
Holiday Photograph  by  Else Fitzgerald
I Am Maps*  by  H Anthony Hildebrand
Keeping in touch  by  Amanda Quinn
Landmarks  by  Ian Shine
London  by  Tracey Upchurch
Love  by  Nik Perring
North  by   Michelle Elvy
On Location  by  Jon Volkmer
On the Beach  by  Kate Mahony
Pen Y Fan  by  Susan Carey (Angela Williams)
Petty Larceny at the Grocery  by  Beverly C. Lucey
Postcards  by  Mike Scott Thomson
Re:Help  by  Sandra Kohls
Saharan Shades  by  Santino Prinzi
Spinning the Bottle  by  Timothy Mark Roberts
Sweet Gestures  by  Chris Stanley
The Beautiful Game  by  Sonya Oldwin
The Blue House  by  Cath Barton
The Gambler  by  Richard Holt
The Next Island  by  Jamie Hubner
The Owner  by  Bart Van Goethem
The Psychiatrist's Shoe  by  Nod Ghosh
Toy Soldier  by  Pauline Masurel
Tunnels  by  Marie Gethins
Tunnels  by  Isobel Victoria Newham (Vicky)
Useless Without The Other Half  by  Vanessa Savage
Wall Map  by  Emeline Morin
Welcome to All Souls’ Park  by  Gemma Govier
Who Can Hear The Screaming  by  Kirsten Anne McKenzie
Would It Kill You to Smile, Blanca Gomez?  by  Nuala Ní Chonchúir
You Promised  by  Cath Bore
Love in Different Time Zones  by  Jane Roberts
A Place in Time   by  Ruth Doris
Five Travellers in a Small Ford   by  James Norcliffe
Scattered (After Mike Blow's Aeolus)   by  Emily Koch
The Somewhere Road  by  Alex Reece Abbott
Third Shadow  by  Tim Stevenson
Hilary Is the Winters of Keith's Discontent  by  Kevlin
We Endure  by  Cathy Lennon
How Can I Get You to Dance?  by  Angela Readman
Ultima Thule  by  Jonathan Pinnock
Travels in Ink  by  Angi Holden
Your Body Is Terrain They Can Map Now (Not That That Helps You, Much)  by  Amy Mackelden
A Face in the Crowd  by  Calum Kerr
Saddle Stitch  by  Michelle Keefe
I am East  by  Sarah Hilary
Fingers Crossed  by  SJI Holliday
Fable  by  Oli Morris
With the winning and commended titles from the Micro-Fiction Competition:

Fly  by  Rob Walton
i want someone who loves me so much they don't care about grammar  by  Laura Tansley
A Weekend Away  by  Diane Simmons
The Pacifist  by  Nick Triplow
Marks and Sparks  by  Ian Shine
Spreading The Chaos  by  Mark Newman
A History Of Ants In The Sugar Bowl  by  Julie Sawyer
Maturity  by  Jude Higgins
Stiff  by  Joanna Campbell
And A Bottle Of Rum  by  Garreth Wilcock

Congratulations to all who made it in. Commiserations to those who were unsuccessful. 
We are currently working on the title and the cover, and those will be announced as soon as can be!
Thanks to all who took part, to Angi for helping to select the stories, and to Amy and Tino for their amazing work.
More soon...
Calum Kerr
Director of NFFD

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Published on 2 Comments on NFFD Micro-Fiction Competition Winners!

Well, the judges have sweated and grumbled, but in the end we managed to get them to make a decision, and we're pleased to announce the winning 10 stories from this year's over-300 entries to the Micro-Fiction competition.

The only stipulation was that the story should be 100 words or fewer and I think you'll be amazed at what they achieved.

The top three will win packages of books and cash, and all ten will appear in this year's anthology, which will be available for National Flash-Fiction Day on 27th June.

Congratulations and thanks to all who entered for making the judges' jobs so hard, and extra congratulations to our winners!


FIRST PRIZE
Fly
by Rob Walton
I’m rushing to push my lunch box in to my bag when I see these two who must be flying a kite on the green triangle outside the school because she’s holding a length of string, showing him how to thread it through his fingers, but then I realise she’s teaching fly fishing with no river for miles and the nearest polluted anyway and I look again, and she’s reading him Ted Hughes and he’s hanging on every word as he casts better than anyone I’ve ever seen, and we all realise that rivers are just a bonus extra.
SECOND PRIZE
I want someone who wants me so much they don’t care about grammar 
by Laura Tansley
On a canker of a concrete wall in a ground-up grey car park the colour of chewed gum a lover paints in lower case ‘your nicer than my wife’ above the butt bumper of a blue Fiesta. Each morning it waggles its way out of the space like a preening duck presenting. And when the bay is empty I lie on the earth to feel the heat of tires, the smoked breath of exhaust fumes and high-humidity whispers.
THIRD PRIZE
A Weekend Away 
by Diane Simmons
When I struggled off the train, you laughed, ‘You’ve brought rather a lot.’
In formal hall, I copied how others ate, tried not to grimace at the musty wine. At the theatre, you laughed when an actor spat into the audience. I tried to look like I thought it funny.
I tried to enjoy the beer you bought me in Trinity College bar, tried to like your boisterous friends, was pleased when one asked, ‘What are you reading?’
I didn’t understand why everyone laughed when I replied, ‘The new Ian Rankin.’
But when you laughed, I understood you.
HIGHLY COMMENDED

Marks and Sparks 
by Ian Shine
Her online dating profile said she was into M&S, so I proposed we meet up at our local shopping centre. I've been helping her with her dyslexia for a few months now, and she's been giving me the time of my life.
The Pacifist 
by Nick Triplow
Old man Wilson, he calls himself a pacifist. Exchanges opinions and anecdotes for drinks at the Danny’s Bar: a cut price raconteur preaching non-violence. Last night I discovered he carried a loaded .38 in the pocket of his reefer. I said, ‘How d’you square it, this turn the other cheek shit, with the thirty-eight?’
He boot-heeled his cigarette, gave a smile that showed gaps where teeth used to be. ‘Wouldn’t feel right bein’ a pacifist without it.’
"But— "
He pulled it, cocked it and rested the business end against my forehead. ‘See son, how peaceful that makes you feel?’
A History of Ants in the Sugar Bowl 
by Julie Sawyer
“Little blighters are back again” Stan said. “Look” he added, finger stabbing the sugar bowl. Margo looked. “This‘ll teach ‘em” Stan muttered, pouring boiling water from the kettle into the frosted glass, grunting with satisfaction as a dozen or so agonised black forms caught mid-syrup. Margo imagined she could hear their tiny screams. “You’ll have to ant powder the place again” she said. Stan glared at the offending bowl and harrumphed, before stomping out to the shed. Touching the recently emptied matchbox in her pocket, Margo watched him go; knowing that she now had a whole afternoon to herself.  
And A Bottle of Rum 
by Garreth Wilcock
"Then the Pirate Queen sliced my ribs with her cutlass and I fell to the deck as she left."
He lifted his gown to show the gruesome scar to his niece.
"So how did you get off your ship and into Papworth Hospital?"
"Glad you asked. Mermaids towed my ship to shore, and my parrot stole a mobile and called 999."
"Daddy says you had a double lung transplant, and you might be confused. Because of morphine."
Morphine, yes, but not confused. Just not ready to tell a child that he was breathing with treasure from a dead man's chest.
Spreading the Chaos 
by Mark Newman
He is taking groceries into the house, an obedient little puppy; his wife directing him as if this is something that needs supervision.
Out the window she yells 'oi, shit brains. I've had the abortion, so screw you, have it all your way'.
He looks on with a bemused expression, a lost little boy, unsure which way to turn. His wife punches him on the shoulder; still he holds her gaze.
She winds the window up; gives a mock salute and drives away.
She has never seen this man before. This is just something she does; spreading the chaos.
Maturity 
by Jude Higgins
I'll avoid sitting on cold flag stones, swimming on a full stomach, going out with wet hair, bringing lilacs into the house or trusting men whose eyebrows meet in the middle.
I'll wear a dress – sometimes heels, attend my degree ceremonies, get a proper job, stay married, have babies, cook roast dinners, celebrate Christmas, visit relatives, hold family gatherings, stop causing arguments. Be kind.
I'll do what I want, even if my mother wants it too.
Even if it makes me happy.
Stiff 
by Joanna Campbell
When our Rose wouldn't put her arms in the sleeves of her best frock, Mam wept. Not just because of wanting Rose beautiful, but on account of the photographer charging by the minute.
“We’re up to a week’s housekeeping already,” Mam hissed, pinching Rose’s cheeks to raise a bloom.
I imagined four loaves, three quarts of milk and a string of prime sausage floating out the window.
Rose were right starchy-stiff. I couldn't twist her arm.

So I crouched behind and pushed my arms through her sleeves, lacing my fingers, just how our Mam wanted the corpse to look.





Published on Leave a comment on Micro-Fiction Competition 2015 – Longlist

Hello everyone,

Well, the judges have been doing their thing, and we are close to being able to announce our top 10 and our winner!

But just to get you in the mood, here is our longlist of 25. I will only post the titles at the moment, but you'll know who you are.

Final announcement of the top ten will be out soon.

Well done to everyone who entered. A hard job for the judges as ever.

Longlist:

A Giant Emerges
A History Of Ants In The Sugar Bowl
A Weekend Away
And A Bottle Of Rum
Another's
At the Seams
Cosmic Latte
Fly
Home Maintenance
I want someone who wants me so much they don’t care about grammar
Instructions for Dreaming of the Dead
Justified Violence
Letters
Marks and Sparks
Maturity
Night Watch
Ramon The Killer
Sisters
Spreading the Chaos
Staying At Grandma’s
Stiff
The City in Winter
The Mark of the Finger
The Pacifist
Tinted

Published on Leave a comment on Bulletin 07/05/15

Hello everyone,

Well, here in the UK it is Election Day. I'm just about to head out to vote and I urge you to do the same. (If I said I don't care who you vote for, I'd be lying - of course I care - but whoever it is, I just think you should vote.)
Once you've written your X in the box, maybe it's time to sit down and use even more letters to create something almost as wonderful as a functioning democracy. I'm talking, of course, about flash-fictions!
Our Anthology is still open for submissions. This year's theme is 'geography' which covers everything from technical terms about erosion or land-masses to stories rooted firmly in place (galaxy, planet, country, city, village, house, lounge, this chair... the choice is yours.) The closing date is 15th May so you still have time to enter. Details at: http://nationalflashfictionday.co.uk/anth.html
And, we are also running our Micro-Fiction competition looking for stories of 100 words or fewer. This one has prizes including books (some listed on the site, more to be added) and cash! Also, the top ten will be featured in this year's anthology. So, it's definitely worth a go. Full details at http://nationalflashfictionday.co.uk/comp.html.
If you could post, tweet, blog and otherwise share the news of those two opportunities (repeatedly) then we would, as ever, be utterly grateful.
Other things are on the horizon, with Bristol announcing their Flash-Fiction Day activities, including this year's reading being hosted by Foyles!
Big Smoke in Dublin are also gearing up, as are a number of others. We're adding events to the website at http://nationalflashfictionday.co.uk/events.html, so send us yours and we'll put you up there. 
Coming up sooner, for those in and around Manchester, you can see the wondrous David Gaffney, Sarah-Clare Conlon, Nicholas Royle, Kate Feld, Claire Dean, Sarah Butler and more at 'Re/Place – Stories that are right up your street'. It takes place on 20th May and is free. Doors are open at 7.30pm. 30 Manchester Road, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, M21 9PH. See replacemcr.wordpress.com for more.

Anyway, that's it for now. Share our news, go out and vote, then come back and get writing. 
Happy Flashing!
Calum.

--

Calum Kerr
Director, National Flash-Fiction Day
(This bulletin was originally sent as an email to our mailing list. If you would like to be added, please email us at nationalflashfictionday@gmail.com and we'll put you on the list for future mailings.)

Published on Leave a comment on Bulletin 09/04/15

Hello everyone,


Well, it's taken a little longer than usual to get up and running this year (thanks to that thing called 'Life') but here we are, and we're starting to look forward to this year's National Flash-Fiction Day. 

It will be held on Saturday 27th June 2015, some events are already in the pipeline, but now is the time for you to start thinking about what you'd like to do in your area to celebrate Flash-Fiction and short, short stories of all kinds.

In previous years, people have held readings, workshops, and slams, run competitions, compiled anthologies, staged Flash flash-mobs and more. What are you going to do? Let us know and we'll help promote your event.

To get things going we're now accepting submissions for a new issue of our pop-up journal, Flash-Flood. Submissions are open until midnight on Wednesday 15th April, and the journal will appear online all day on Friday 17th April. More information and submission guidelines can be found at http://flashfloodjournal.blogspot.co.uk/ and http://flashfloodjournal.blogspot.co.uk/p/submission-guidelines.html. Please spread the word and, of course, send us your stories.

We will also soon be launching both our Micro-Fiction competition and our Anthology, so stay turned for more information on those.

This is the fourth year of National Flash-Fiction Day and we hope you're as excited as we are. We'll be doing lots of things here, but with your help we can make it the best one yet.

More soon,

Published on Leave a comment on Happy National Flash-Fiction Day 2014!
Hooray!

It seems to have been on its way for a long time, but the day is finally here.


So Happy National Flash-Fiction Day everyone!

I shan't keep you for long, but just to round up all the things you need to be aware of.

First, we have the events which are running today. Details of those are on the website and on the blog. I shall be in Bristol doing the FREE workshop and the FREE reading, along with loads of other talented writers, so do come along and say 'hi!'. Or, if it's too far away, consider one of the other events.

And if they are all too far, but you want to get involved, then we have launched a Write-In which will be taking place all day. A team of editors are standing by, and a selection of prompts are there to get you started. All that is over at https://thewrite-in.blogspot.com/ so why not pop over and write a quick one!

We are also promoting a range of eBooks, some free, some ridiculously cheap, including both the previous NFFD anthologies and the new one. All the details of that are also on the blog. 

Paper copies of the new anthology will be on sale at the Bristol events, or you can order one now from Amazon. It is, as ever, a fantastic read. 

And we are, of course, streaming stories out into the world all day, with FlashFlood. So do pop over, read some, and leave the writers some nice comments. 

And, at this point, before I sign off, I need to say a few words of thanks:

First, and most importantly, thanks to my wife, Kath. She had put up with me working long days on NFFD, and being either spaced out or grumpy. And she stepped in as a FlashFlood editor too. So, thanks, love!

Thanks to the judges of our Micro-Fiction competition - Cathy Bryant, Jon Pinnock, Carys Bray, Angela Readman, Kevlin Henney and Tim Stevenson. 

Extra thanks to Tim for rebuilding our website and putting up with me being stroppy, and to Angela for helping to edit the anthology and pull together another amazing selection of stories. And thanks also to Amy Mackelden for sterling work marshaling the stories, preparing manuscripts, keeping track of everything, and even co-editing the anthology. Every despot needs an Amy.

And finally, thanks to all of you. Without the readers and the writers, National Flash-Fiction Day would just be me, in a room, typing to myself. So, I thank you, and my sanity thanks you. 

Now, that's all. Get on with you, you crazy kids, haven;t you got stories to write, or read, or share?


Have a great day.
Calum

Published on Leave a comment on Special Offer eBooks for National Flash-Fiction Day 21st June 2014

Yes, you read that correctly. Not only are we bringing you a host of lovely words and events, but we're bringing you genuine Special Offers!

So, below, please find a list of ebooks, mostly on Kindle, but some not, which will be FREE, DISCOUNTED, or just generally LOW PRICED, all day on 21st June 2014, available all around the world!

Just one thing. The writers of all of these books would appreciate it if, after you read (and hopefully enjoy) their books, you could write them a review either on Amazon or on your own blog. That way other people can enjoy their stories too. Thank  you!

(Please note - timings for Kindle promotions are based on the time in San Francisco, or LA, or one of those West Coast places. So they don't tend to start until about 8am in the UK (and often start late, too!) So check that the price is what you expect before you click the 'Buy' button. Also, this post is coming out early - this is books which will be on offer tomorrow UK time.

Also, please note that all links are to the UK Amazon. If you are elsewhere, simply change the .co.uk in the link to .com, or whatever, and it will take you straight to the right page.)

FREE BOOKS:

Jawbreakers - the 2012 NFFD Anthology
Scraps - the 2013 NFFD Anthology

The Funerals at Christmas by Dixon Barker
Thresholds by David Hartley
75x75 = Flash Fraction by Helena Mallett 
Enough by Valerie O'Riordan
31 by Calum Kerr
Apocalypse by Calum Kerr
The Audacious Adventuress by Calum Kerr
The Grandmaster by Calum Kerr
Lunch Hour by Calum Kerr
Mr & Mrs Flash by Kath Kerr and Calum Kerr

Also:
"Long Stories Short" by Marc Nash (Kindle only)
Marc Nash's third collection of flash fiction (stories of 1000 words or less) sees the master craftsman wrangle language like no other and make daring leaps of narrative style in this 32 story collection. Themes include Royal Wedding street parties, neon cowboys, dating apps, Hollywood directors, angels, assassins, glass eyes, arthritic stand up comedians, Geishas, Warrior-Poets, marionettes, Crime Scene Reconstruction actors, paintballing and waking up; images and metaphors for our modern age. The whole gamut of human emotions, relationships and idiosyncrasies is on show in this collection and all genres are playfully subverted.
e-mail sewell.d@googlemail.com for a Mobi kindle compatible version to be emailed back to you.
Offer closes June 22nd 23.00pm BST

DISCOUNTED & LOW PRICE BOOKS:

Eating My Words - the 2014 NFFD Anthology (New release) 98p

Time by Calum Kerr (New release) 98p
Rapture and what comes after by Virginia Moffatt (New release) 98p
28 Far Cries by Marc Nash (New release) 98p
The Book of Small Changes by Tim Stevenson 98p
The World in a Flash by Calum Kerr (Non-Fiction) 98p

This post is a work in progress. So if you book is going to be free or under £1 tomorrow, send the link to nationalflashfictionday@gmail.com.

Published on Leave a comment on Saturday is the Day!

Dear all,

Just a quick catch up, while there are a few spare minutes here at NFFD Towers, to bring you up to date.
First, it's National Flash-Fiction Day on Saturday (in case you had forgotten). Various events are taking place, and details of them can be found at http://nationalflashfictionday.co.uk/events.html.
On the day, we are encouraging people at the events to tweet about them, using the hashtag #nffdlive. I know Bristol and Oxford are already taking part, but if you are at any event for the day, please feel free to use it.
In addition, we will be streaming a veritable flood of flashes through our online journal at http://flashfloodjournal.blogspot.co.uk/ and through ourFacebook and Twitter feeds. Stories will start appearing at midnight and run all day, but don't worry, they'll stay up afterwards so you can read them at your leisure. If you would like to submit to FlashFlood, submissions are open until midnight on Thursday (BST) and all the details can be found on the blog.
We are also planning a worldwide writing event for the day, so stay tuned for more on that.
Our anthology, Eating My Words, is now available in Kindle and paperback formats should you want to treat yourself, and it would be really good if you could spread the word about those too.
Other books, including our previous two anthologies, will be available for FREE download on the Day, and an email will come out about that with links to all the various books. If you have a flash-fiction collection on Kindle, and would like to promote it for free on the Day, let us know the link and we'll add you to the list.
Anything else you want to tell us, you know where we are.
I'll be in touch again, on the day (if not before) but if I don't see you, have a wonderful Flash-Fiction Day!
All best
Calum

--

Calum Kerr
Director, National Flash-Fiction Day
(You bulletin was originally sent as an email to our mailing list. If you would like to be added, please email us at nationalflashfictionday@gmail.com and we'll put you on the list for future mailings.)

2

Published on 2 Comments on Bulletin 06/06/14

Hello all,

Well, we are just two weeks away from the big day and it's all been happening.
We have now finalised our list for the 2014 anthology. The title will be Eating My Words and it will feature the following stories/writers:
‘The Well’ by A. Joseph Black
‘Taste’ by Adam Wolstenholme
‘Nicotine’ by Amanda Mason
‘Old Friend Dinner’ by Amy Mackelden
‘A Sense of Balance’ by Andrew Jenkinson
‘Tasty’ by Andy Cashmore
‘Sun Synchronous Satellites’ by Andy Lavender
‘Hey, Why Not Be a Daughter?’ by Angela Readman
‘The Sensation of Pain’ by Angi Holden
‘One Rat for Every Person’ by Becky Tipper
‘Random’ by Calum Kerr
‘The Five Senses’ by Caroline Worsley
‘Tomorrow We Will Return’ by Cassandra Parkin
‘A Sticky End’ by Cath Barton
‘Friday Roses’ by Cath Bore
‘Show’ by Cathy Bryant
‘Handle With Care’ by Cathy Lennon
‘Hosting’ by Christopher Allsop
‘Spaghetti and Meat Balls’ by Colin Watts
‘Coming Clean’ by Davina Jones
‘Please Remain Silent for the Benefit of Other Library Users (In Hushed Tones)’ by Debbie Young
‘Launch Pad’ by Diane Simmons
‘Hotdogs’ by Dixon Barker
‘A Sense of Entitlement’ by E.L Norry
‘The Busker’ by Eabha Rose
‘5D’ by Ed Broom
‘The Water is Clear’ by Emmaleene Leahy
‘Skewed Perspective’ by Helen Knotts
‘All the Rage’ by Ian Shine
‘Bread’ by Ingrid Jendrzejewski
‘Dress Sense’ by James Coates
‘Angus Hears Things’ by Jane Roberts
‘Parched’ by Jeanette Sheppard
‘Where Memories Live’ by Jennifer Harvey
‘Postcard to My Best Friend from a Non-Londoner, One ‘Dull… of Soul’’ by Jenny Holden
‘Lear Bus’ by John F King
‘The Sixth Generation’ by Jon Pinnock
‘Cherished’ by Kay Beer
‘On Taking Measures to Eliminate Fair Play’ by Kevlin Henney
‘Strangers’ by L. D. Lapinski
‘A Visitor from the Past’ by Lawrence David Coss
‘Eating My Words’ by Marie Gethins
‘Half-Life’ by Michael Marshall Smith
‘Eye of the Beholder’ by Miranda Roszkowski
‘Fear’ by Moira Conway
‘Chekov's Gun’ by Nigel McLoughlin
‘I Am No Good at Video Games’ by Nik Perring
‘Cider and Simnel’ by Nuala Ní Chonchúir
‘Seven Breaths’ by Pam Plumb
‘To Test the Senses of Worms’ by Pauline Masurel
‘The Sundial’ by Rhys Barter
‘The Working Man's Struggle’ by Richard Holt
‘Bottle of Silence’ by Sal Page
‘What We Do In Our Sleep’ by Santino Prinzi
‘A Shanty for Sawdust and Cotton’ by Sarah Hilary
‘Masha's Burning Memory’ by Selina SIAK Chin Yoke (surname is SIAK)
‘The Notes Play On’ by Shirley Golden
‘What I'll Do to Be In Love With You’ by Simon Sylvester
‘The Law of Attraction in Action’ by Sonya Oldwin
‘The Bedroom Tax’ by Susan Howe
‘The Visitors From Out of Town’ by Tim Stevenson
‘Vinegar’ by Tracey Upchurch
Plus, of course, the winners of the micro-fiction competition:
‘Never Let Me Go’ by Cathy Lennon
‘Night-time Knitting’ by Roz Mascall
‘If Kissed by a Dragon Fish’ by Tania Hershman
‘Dare’ by Simon Sylvester
‘The Star Falling’ by Morgan Downie
‘Sintra’ by Parineeta Singh
‘The Sponge Diver’ by Danielle McLaughlin
‘Peppermint’ by Jennifer Harvey
‘The Invisible Girl’ by Karl A Russell
‘4am’ by Angi Holden
 It was, as ever, a really tough job choosing the stories, and our thanks go out to all of you who submitted. If you didn't make it, chances are it's not because it wasn't good enough, but because we could only fit 50 stories and so we had to make some hard decisions. Best of luck to you all in placing your stories elsewhere, and congratulations to those who made it!
In other news, we have had a slew of events come in which we need to tell you about. They are all listed on our site at http://nationalflashfictionday.co.uk/events.html, but here are the highlights so far:
June 14th 2014 - Bournemouth
Quick as a Flash Slam! 2014
June 14th 2014 - Abergavenny
Write and Read Event
Writing live at 2.30 and 3.30. Write for 15 minutes, then read your work. Free admission. 
June 21st 2014 - Bristol
Bristol Flash 2014 - National Flash-Fiction Day Workshop - Daytime
and Bristol Flash 2014 - National Flash-Fiction Day Readings - Evening
June 21st 2014 - ONLINE
Fish Facebook Flash 2014 - National Flash-Fiction Day Competition
June 21st 2014 - Dublin, Ireland
FLASH FURY 2014 - National Flash-Fiction Day Readings and Competition
June 21st 2014 - Oxford
The Albion Beatnik 2014 national Flash-Fiction Day Reading Event
June 23rd 2014 (closing date) - Online
Twisted Tales Competition
July 8th 2014 - Manchester
Flashtag Writers Short Short Story Slam
If you have an event we haven't listed, or want to set something up quickly - a competition or pop-up journal or something - then please make sure you let us know, and we'll tell the world. 
There will, of course, be other goodies. We're going to be running FlashFlood again, so look out for that. We want to see if we can get the full 144 stories!
Also, on the day, we'd like flash-fiction writers who have Kindle editions to consider offering their books for free. Our older anthologies will be available (as will a selection of my own books!). So, if you would like to join in, send us a link to your book and we'll make sure the world knows about it.
And, if there's anything else you think of, just drop us a line.
As we get closer to the day it would be great if you could spread the word about all these activities, as well as our Facebook page and ourTwitter feed, and please do get involved in one of the events to make this another fantastic day!
Right, that's it for now. So go and sign up for something, set something up, send us an event, send us a book link for our Kindle offer, or whatever flashy thing you fancy, and I'll be back in touch when we have more news on anything.
It's getting quite exciting now, isn't it?!
All the best
Calum
Calum Kerr
Director, National Flash-Fiction Day
(If you would like to receive these bulletins directly, please send an email asking to be added to the list to nationalflashfictionday@gmail.com.)

Published on Leave a comment on Bulletin 09/05/2014

Well, hello there! 

Hope you're having a sunny day today, and looking forward to the summer and to the 3rd National Flash-Fiction Day on 21st June.
We have some updates for you today on our anthology, some competitions, some events, and some other opportunities. But to start off, I want to point out to you that it's now just 6 weeks until the big day, so if you are planning something, it's time to get the details to us so we can spread the word and get you as much attention as possible. All details, questions, suggestions etc. to us here at this address, and we'll try and get back to you as soon as we can. 
Okay, with that said, let's start with our anthology. We are accepting submissions until 18th May, stories should be 500 words maximum and on the subject of 'the senses' however you might like to interpret that. All selected contributors will receive a free print copy of the book. Full details are at http://host2021.temp.domains/~nationo0/anth.html and it would be extremely helpful if you could spread the word and keep spreading it up to the deadline, so we can get as many great stories as possible and make this year's book as exciting as Jawbreakers and Scraps. 
As promised, we also have some competitions and opportunities for you:
Winchester Writers' Festival is running a whole host of competitions, including a flash-fiction one being judged by yours truly. The closing date is 16th May. Full details at http://writersfestival.co.uk/competitions.
The Twisted Tales collection is running again (https://ragingaardvarkpublications.submittable.com/submit/28748) looking for stories between 350 and 750 words, with a closing date of 23rd June. 
And if you happen to be in New Zealand, they are running a competition for their NFFD at http://nationalflash.wordpress.com/competition/.
Not a competition, but Brilliant Flash Fiction Mag are looking for your stories over at http://brilliantflashfictionmag.wordpress.com/2014/04/14/welcome-readers-and-writers/comment-page-1/#comment-1.
And, in a turn around, we have someone looking for an opportunity which you might be able to help with. Australian Flash-Fictioneer Richard Holt will be in the UK for the day this year. He has created a flash-fiction video piece (titled 'Flashing the Square') and is wondering about the possibility of somewhere with public screens being willing to show it on the day. So if you can help, or know someone who can, please get in touch with us and we'll put you through to Richard.
On the day, we currently have two events being organised:
Oxford - Albion Beatnik Bookshop are hosting an evening reading event, organised by Virginia Moffat. More details from her at Virginia.Moffatt@ntlworld.com.
And we are once again having our main event in Bristol. More details to follow once we have them, but if you can make it, it would be great to see you there.
And, while I'm on, other flash-fiction things you might be interested in:
I will be doing a workshop at Wigan Literary Festival on 24th May - followed by a panel on getting your work out there. Details at http://www.wlct.org/default.aspx.LocID-0cs00r007001.Lang-EN.emID-970.rss-yes.EventID-16439.htm
Plus I will be doing a workshop as part of the Winchester Writers' Festival on the day after NFFD. Details at http://writersfestival.co.uk/the-festival.
And that's it for the moment. So, if you have news for us, or questions, then please get in touch. Otherwise, please spread the word about the anthology and our events, and let's make this year's NFFD another great success.
All the best
Calum
Calum Kerr
Director, National Flash-Fiction Day
(If you would like to receive these bulletins directly, please send an email asking to be added to the list to nationalflashfictionday@gmail.com.)