Monday, January 27, 2014

The Colors of Autumn

Short Short by Stephen Davis

“Did you read the paper this morning?” Stephen asked his wife as she walked into the kitchen. She poured coffee into a red mug before she sat down.

“I did,” Diane replied, “another war is exactly what this country doesn’t need. It’s terrifying and it seems like war is everywhere.” She picked up the newspaper and began skimming through the front page article again.

“Well, at least we don't have to worry about seeing any action over here.” He attempted reassurance as he stood up and began walking towards the living room. “I’m going to take Gabrielle to the park to play for a while… Gabrielle it’s time to go.”

Stephen walked across the hard wood floor and grabbed shoes for his daughter. Gabrielle sat down on the couch nearest the door while her father laced up her pink and white Dora shoes. They walked down the brick steps, hand in hand, into a beautiful autumn morning. Elm trees lined the street in colors of red and yellow, piles of leaves littered the sidewalk.

As they both crossed the street and walked onto the grass, Gabrielle took off in a sprint to the jungle gym. Stephen continued to walk, following after, and began laughing. Gabrielle was yelling with excitement, so much that it would have been difficult for anyone else not to share in that joy. She jumped from the sidewalk onto the sand without care. Her feet quickly sunk below ground level, filling the sides of her shoes with sand. She ran up a flight of stairs only to disappear inside the three story plastic contraption, complete with five different slides. Stephen smiled again as Gabrielle was lost in the masses of children, all yelling and screaming with laughter.

“Daddy, Daddy! Will you go down the slide with me?” Gabrielle yelled, peering out a porthole at the top. Stephen hesitated for a moment, considering the implications of squeezing his way into a looping slide meant for someone half his size. Not wanting to disappoint, he began the adventure anyway. Stepping on the sand, he carefully avoided any spillage into his shoes. He dodged children running at full speed, children oblivious and seemingly impervious to damage. Stephen successfully made it to the fort and pulled himself up out of the crossfire of little bodies everywhere. He climbed to the top. Gabrielle laughed as he closed in and took off down the slide ahead of him, her laughter echoing down the tunnel. He dove in after her, tumbling down the tube, and stopped well short of the edge of the slide.

Stephen pulled himself to the edge, feeling scuff marks made by little feet under his palms. He saw Gabrielle crying and sitting on the ground, comforting her knee.

“Oh, Baby, what’s wrong?” He asked in a comforting tone, ignoring the sea of seemingly endless children running by.

“I fell and scraped my knee….there’s blood!” she wailed. Her Daddy knelt beside her and put his arms around her. He held her for a few moments before standing up and giving her his hand.

“Come on, let’s clean you up.” Stephen held her hand and walked her to a water fountain while she slightly whimpered.

“Don’t wash it Daddy, it will sting!” She pleaded, squeezing his hand tighter as he began to drip water over her knee.

“Everything is going to be okay my love,” he reassured her.

Something bright flashed in his peripheral vision. Multiple colors of light shined everywhere in the distance. Beautiful stars of red and yellow, the color of autumn.

Contributor's Note: Stephen Davis is a Cerro Coso student. This short short was written for English 141: Creative Writing.

Friday, January 17, 2014

2014 Met Awards - Call for Flash Fiction and Poetry

Metamorphoses, in cooperation with the English Department and the Student Government of Cerro Coso, is hosting the 2014 Met Awards for Creative Writing. The editors are calling for poetry and flash fiction—very short short stories sometimes called short shorts, of between 500 and 1,000 words—written by Cerro Coso and local high school students. 

Well-Used Pencil - Gary Enns
Well-Used Pencil - Photo by Gary Enns
First and second place writers will receive a $50 or $25 gift card and publication in the Fall edition of Metamorphoses Online. Runners-up may also be considered for publication.

Eligibility

Participants must be current students of Cerro Coso or one of the many high schools in the college's service area (Mammoth, Bishop, Ridgecrest, California City, Edwards Air Force Base, and Kern River Valley areas).

Length

Fiction must be between 500-1,000 words.

Poems must be under 50 lines.

More about Flash Fiction

Flash fiction is an economical form of story-telling: in a small amount of space, the writer of a short short exhibits the essentials of good fiction: character, plot, setting, language that surprises, and a significant ending which points to a meaning beyond any surprise or twist the author offers.

The best flash fiction implies significant meaning beneath the surface of its plot and shimmers with emotional resonance.

For an interesting article on the composition of short shorts, see Flash Fiction Editor-in-Chief Suzanne Vincent’s article, “Managing Story Length.” "Economy," Vincent says, is the most important quality of a successful short short:
An economical writer (the most enjoyable type of writer to read) doesn't waste words, doesn't repeat what's already been said, chooses the "less is more" path to revealing information to the reader. (Vincent)
Following is a list of sample short shorts from the Flash Fiction  and SmokeLong Quarterly online publications. In each, notice the economical use of language, the surprising detail, the characterization through action, dialog, and description, and the enduring sense of significance. As you read each short short, ask yourself, Why is this story worth telling?
"Fork" by Glen Pourciau
"Stalling" by Andrew Roe
"The Runner" by Curtis Smith
"Kolkata Sea" by Indrapramit Das
"Vacation" by Peter DeMarco
"When the Cicadas Come" by Tara Laskowski 
More about Poetry

Bob Dylan said, “a poem is a naked person.” Poetry reveals the layers beneath our everyday experiences. What is a personal experience moves beyond the self to create a shared experience and reveal a common knowledge that unites us.

Poetry uses language in surprising ways and isn’t afraid to be. Poetry shows.

Following is a list of poems; as you read each one, notice the use of metaphor and imagery; what is revealed as each poem progresses?
“The Gift” by Li-Young Lee
“Her Kind” by Anne Sexton
“The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner” by Randall Jarell
Prizes

Thank you to the Student Government of Cerro Coso for providing funding for the following prizes:
High School Fiction
First prize 50$ and online publication in Met
Second prize 25$ and online publication in Met

High School Poetry
First Prize 50$ and online publication in Met
Second prize 25$ and online publication in Met
College Fiction
First prize 50$ and online publication in Met
Second prize 25$ and online publication in Met

College Poetry
First Prize 50$ and online publication in Met
Second prize 25$ and online publication in Met
Timeline
Submission Deadline: 28 March 2014
Awards Announced: 4 April 2014
Awards Ceremony and Reading: Friday, 25 April 2014 in Ridgecrest
Publication: Fall 2014
How to Submit

Us the submission page to submission page to enter your work. At the beginning of your contributor's note, mention the word "Awards." If you are a high school student, also be sure to include the name and location of your school.