Flash Fiction Story Published

Exciting news! My flash fiction piece "Wedding Day" is featured today on the wonderfully zany new lit zine Dr. Hurley's Snake-Oil Cure. The goal of this literary journal is to "attack tedium in all its forms" and it is meant to be a "course of healing that will lead [readers] back to vitality, interest, health and youth." I am honored to have my story published by them!

Here is the opening of my story:

A bride, dressed in white gown and flowing veil, totters in high heels down the uneven pavement past Simone's Café. She holds a bouquet of red and orange chrysanthemums. Three men, wearing black tuxes, accompany her; one of them holds up the hem of her dress so it doesn't drag on the ground. 

"Congratulations!" I call out, raising my paper cup of coffee in a toast.

They stare at me, confused. Maybe they don't speak English? They are Asian, all of them, perhaps not born in America, perhaps immigrants from Japan or China, Taiwan or Korea. Or Thailand, maybe? Is Thailand an Asian country, or is it South American? My wife always had a thing for Thailand. Some friend of hers traveled there in college, for spring break or something, and wouldn't stop gushing about how beautiful it was, and ever since then Molly got it into her head that she wanted to go there...

# # #

You can read the rest at http://www.fictionaut.com/stories/dallas-woodburn/wedding-day. I'd love to hear your comments!

Tainted Tea's Writing Contest

Looking for a fun, free writing and/or art contest to enter? Tainted Tea is a marvelous new literary magazine -- and a wonderful supporter of literacy and Write On! -- and the editors have announced a flash fiction and bookmark contest!! Here's the information:

Flash Fiction Contest
Complete a story in 1,000 words or less. There is no specific subject, but all stories must either be dark, macabre, or something in the horror genre. Judging will be based on character development, plot, originality, and overall storytelling. Please submit stories in .doc or .rtf.

Prizes
The WINNER will receive Underland by Mick Farren, a novel involving vampires, Nazis, and Antarctica. The winner will also be published in the Spring 2010 issue of Tainted Tea and will receive a free PDF. The RUNNER-UP will be published on Tainted Tea's blog.

Bookmark Contest
Create bookmark. It doesn't matter how, just as long as the bookmark fits with Tainted Tea's theme. Judging will be based on subject matter, composition, and overall design. Tainted Tea cannot receive mail, so we can only accept bookmarks mailed as JPGs.

Prizes
The WINNER will receive the tea cup and saucer featured on the cover of Tainted Tea Spring 2010 issue. The winner will also be published in the Spring 2010 issue and will receive a free PDF. The RUNNER -UP will be published on Tainted Tea's blog.

Deadline
The deadline is April 1, 2010.

Send all submissions to TaintedTea.Editors@gmail.com. You can find all the contest information, plus more delightful literary odds and ends, at the Tainted Tea blog: http://taintedtea.blogspot.com/2010/01/flash-fiction-and-bookmark-contest.html

Writer Advice Flash Fiction Contest

WriterAdvice is a wonderful resource for writers and a great supporter of Write On!

The editors seek flash fiction, memoir, and creative non-fiction that mesmerizes the reader in 750 words or less.

DEADLINE: April 15, 2010.

Entry fee: $10 per submission.

First prize: $150.

Former prizewinners are the judges.

You can find complete guidelines, mailing address, and prizes listed at www.writeradvice.com.

"Boysenberry Jam" Published in Debut Issue of New Literary Magazine Eclectic Flash!

I am thrilled and honored to announce that my flash fiction story "Boysenberry Jam" has been published in the debut issue of the wonderful new lit magazine Eclectic Flash.

Here is the opening:

A place for everything, and everything in its place – though her rationale behind the placement of each item was a mystery to him. It all seemed haphazard, random. Cans of tomatoes and corn and peas stretched back into the darkness. Cereal boxes stood guard beside the Ritz crackers and hot chocolate mix. Tins of tea rattled beside plastic jars of peanut butter, store-bought, and glass jars of jam, personally canned. Some she had canned herself, others were gifts from friends. Raspberry, strawberry, boysenberry.

The pantry door squeaked slightly when opened. It sounded like an admonishment. After all, he wasn’ t hungry. But he stood there, in his threadbare socks and drawstring pants, staring at the life she had accumulated for them. No matter how angry she was at him, no matter how badly her third-grade class had behaved that day, no matter how many ragamuffin friends (or, later, ragamuffin boyfriends and girlfriends) the kids brought home with them after school to eat their food, she never complained. She always had the pantry stacked to overflowing, and she always had dinner ready on the table at 6:00 sharp, after Wheel of Fortune. They ate together, as a family, during Jeopardy. The volume muted, they guessed at the answers, shouting to blank-eyed TV contestants who never heard them.

He took a jar of jam off the shelf and studied the label. Boysenberry. For Ida Jean, With Love, Carlotta.


You can read the rest of the story -- as well as numerous other provoking, humorous, chilling, delightful fiction, nonfiction and poetry pieces -- at this link:

http://www.eclecticflash.com/files/VOL_1_JAN_2010.pdf

You can also order print copies of the journal here:

http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/eclectic-flash-volume-1-january-2010/8017577

Thank you to editor Brad Nelson for all the hard work he put into this
terrific first issue! And thanks for letting me be a part of it!

Story Published in The Newport Review!

I have exciting news to share: my short story "How My Parents Fell in Love" won third place in The Newport Review flash fiction contest!

Here's the beginning:

My mother walked out of a grocery store. She wore a red dress and her hair was permed, the way it looks in the photo albums. My father drove up in a car, a fast car, silver, a car that goes vroom vroom. He did not know her yet. She was a pretty woman in a red dress with ruffles at the hem. He rolled down the window. He leaned out and smiled at her and said, “Hubba, hubba!”

They fell in love and lived happily ever after.

You can read the entire story here: http://newportreview.org/?contest-winners/dwoodburn.html

Have You Tried Flash Fiction?

Flash fiction -- sometimes also called "sudden fiction" or "short-short fiction" -- is a fun new genre to try your hand at. Some flash fiction is more like a prose poem, under 300 words, while other flash fiction stories are closer to 1,000 words or so. Most flash fiction focuses on a moment in time rather than a series of episodes -- like a snapshot rather than a short film. With such a brief space to work in, you really have to make every word and sentence count!

A neat thing about flash fiction is the freedom it gives you to push your boundaries, step outside of convention, and try something completely new! What do you have to lose? Only a few hours of your time! Surprise yourself! When I am feeling stuck in a writing rut, I often start a new flash fiction story. My imaginative spirit and love for writing is rejuvenated.

Want to read some flash fiction? There are many great resources. Flash Fiction Online and flashquake are two terrific online journals. I also love the anthology Sudden Fiction -- look for it at your local library or here's a link to the Amazon page.