Last month, when I sat down to write my ghost story, I thought about my issue with purely episodic storytelling. Before I wrote Partners, the only thing connecting my ghost stories was the note directing the shade to their next step in their journey. However, I thought about my favorite television shows, and I realized they fleshed out a central storyline one installment at a time. So, I created a pair of characters while laying the groundwork for the central storyline I wanted to follow with every future installment...

Unlike the flash fiction I write for my patrons, where they select the genres, when I prepare these micro tales, I maintain complete control over the process. Despite the rapid turnover with flash fiction, micro fiction is even faster with its word limitation. That constant churn works wonders for my skills. The severe limit of this type of writing has its drawbacks and benefits. While it’s challenging to cram the entirety of a story into two hundred and fifty words, it allows me to hone aspects of my word smithing that still require work. Thankfully, that is exactly the reason I love writing micro-fiction...

Every character needs to have a handful of defining traits. These range from aspects of their personality to specific garments or gear. This gruff wanderer’s key item is his helmet, which was the first thing I defined for Ramas. Eventually, I added a few more pieces of equipment, including his cloak, and gifted him with a set of powers that I was eager to explore. While I enjoy exploring this unique collection of abilities, I cannot for the life of me remember what inspired them...

Having just finished Partners and Select Wares, I was staring at the end of the month with one more story to finish for my patrons. However, I didn’t have a single idea for that storyline. Fortunately, when I don’t have any idea about potential narratives, I am quick to pull a prompt to seed my stories. So, I sat down at my laptop and pulled up some past prompts from NYC Midnight and randomly drew the skeleton for my latest thriller. This tale would take place on a canal and a headlight would make an appearance during the narrative...

With each passing year, I fully intend to dedicate all the spare time I have to writing. Despite those lofty goals, life steps in and kicks me in the mouth. Whether I get sucked into some games, tv shows, books, or troubling times, I’ve never been able to claim that level of dedication. This year is no different. The constant barrage upon my focus forces me to make choices concerning the one limited resource we all have: time...

With the month rapidly coming to a close, the moment I finished crafting Partners I turned my attention to the second genre selected by my patrons, Science Fiction. While I have crafted several worlds that could serve as the basis for this tale, one of them jumped to the front of the list. Despite knowing the genre and the location, I was having some trouble crafting the ultimate storyline. With the block fully in place, I plucked a prompt from NYC Midnight’s collection...

The thing I love about micro fiction is the word limit. Having to tell a story with a cap of two hundred and fifty words forces me to focus on my diction and keeping the narrative tight. With that limitation, I’m willing to experiment with genres that I’m not entirely comfortable with, like romance and comedy. However, that doesn’t mean stories always flutter to the forefront of my mind. So, when I sat down to outline this piece of micro fiction, I pulled a random first line to kick-start my creativity juices...

Despite playing a lot of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, I’ve kept myself focused on my writing. When I pulled the genre poll for March, I was happy that my patrons wanted to see another Ghost Story. While I enjoy the formula I’ve found with Journey of Thanks, I wanted to try something a little different. So, I sat down in front of my computer and stared at my collection of screens. Unfortunately, for a while, I couldn’t think of a potential storyline to explore. But as my mind went blank, I started skimming through various streaming services and the nascent idea for this ghost story burst into existence...

When I sat down to pull the prompts for my Micro Fiction, I didn’t have a clue what shape this micro tale would take, aside from leveraging Solomon. So, when I sat down to crank out this narrative, I pulled up the first line generator and was intrigued by what splashed across the screen...

This past Christmas, Santa brought an Animal Crossing Nintendo Switch for the family. Unfortunately, for the first couple of weeks, it sat on the television stand collecting dust. Despite bringing Super Smash Brothers Ultimate, Santa brought no more games for the family. One day, after I finished pummeling computer opponents with Kirby, I returned the console to its dock. As it slipped into its home, I saw the trio of racoons standing on a tiny island. With a brief smile, I remembered playing the game on the GameCube...

While I’m still working on my artwork, other projects have been busy sapping my free time. However, I’ve added a pair of name plates to my growing collection. Despite the different feel from the previous entries, I’m happy with how the plaques for Chris and Charles turned out. Over the next several weeks, I’m planning on bringing more artwork to the world, so stay tuned...

Whenever I pull a Chicken/Beef pot pie out of the oven, I take a deep breath and I’m instantly transported back to my childhood. While my mother didn’t make them often (I don’t remember if she made them by hand or pulled them from the freezer), I can’t help but see my mom’s beaming smile. Whenever my mind wanders to my mother, I feel her love wash over me. Fortunately, pulling out one of these pastries isn’t the only way for me to feel connected to her. Since she was the cook for my family, whenever I’m preparing meals for my family or myself, a warm smile creeps onto my face...

Every so often as I sit with my nothing box, my mind drifts to the memories when my life flashed before me. While most of those moments lasted a handful of heartbeats, a single instance drew out for several days. For those who aren’t aware, Guillain-Barre is a syndrome where your immune system gets kicked into overdrive to combat a disease. Unfortunately, it gets confused and once it’s finished dealing with the original issue; it attacks your nerves. Thankfully, with swift and proper care, I didn’t have a severe case...

With Conversations and Recovery finished, I turned my attention to the last piece of flash fiction for my patrons. While I’ve leaned into Political Satire’s in the real world, it’s so much easier to create a fun story when I blend it with another genre. Thankfully, I’ve created a few worlds that are perfect canvases for these projects. With the setting chosen, it took me a little while to connect all the connective tissue with the base infrastructure I had created...

With the requirement from Arlen weighing Darren down like an anchor, the student pushes himself to complete his personal challenge. When he’s not in class, eating meals, working with Lia, or sleeping, Darren locks his door and toils away at his creation. Every time a classmate comes to his door to pry him away from his obsession, Darren refuses and sequesters himself with his work...