'Pear Juice' by Liz Milne

‘Do you have any pear juice?’

Shelley looked at the woman behind the counter, waiting for a reply.

The woman hesitated for a moment. ‘No, sorry,’ she said, ‘we don’t have pear juice?’ Her tone made it a question.

Shelley sighed loudly, shrugging a shoulder away from her nine-year-old daughter, Karina. No pear juice. ‘A small cappuccino, then.’ She counted out the coins, pennies – pence – unfamiliar to eyes accustomed to dollars and cents.

There was a candy bar on offer. Thirty pence. Karina traced the sign with a finger, sounding out, ‘Thirty pee.’ She cupped her mouth with her hand, laughing silently so her mother wouldn’t see and realise that she’d said a swear.

Shelley picked up one of the candy bars and frowned at it, before pushing it across the counter to the woman who’d already made the coffee, and was placing it carefully in front of Shelley.

Karina picked up the candy bar, holding it tight.

Shelley warned, ‘Don’t eat that!’

‘I won’t, mama. I just want to smell it.’

The woman asked, ‘Would the little girl like a drink?’

‘No.’

The woman blinked at Shelley’s curt tone.

‘I am a bit thirsty…’ murmured Karina.

‘But they don’t have pear juice.’

‘I could give her some milk in a cup? No charge?’

Shelley nodded, unwillingly.

The woman began to pour the milk, then asked, ‘A splash of chocolate, too?’

Karina nodded, her face brightening.

Before the woman add the chocolate syrup, Shelley spoke, ‘Oh, no, actually. No milk, no chocolate. We’ve got a coach trip later.’

‘Ah… Car sick, is she?’

‘Hmm-mm.’ Shelley picked up her coffee and turned away.

Karina looked at the woman, shaking her head, no.

She followed her mother, still holding the candy bar, dipping her head down to sniff at it.

FlashFlood Advent Calendar 2018: Day 1

Day 1: Beginnings and Endings

Welcome to the FlashFlood Advent Calendar!  Today we bring you the first of twenty-five days of flashy prompts, so it's fitting that we're thinking about beginnings....

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You know those amazing first lines, the ones that grab you by the throat and don't let go of you until you've read the rest of the story (and even then they linger)?  Things like:

• “The road is covered in ghost.” —Jane Monson, 'The Unmended', Speaking Without Tongues
• “Those who don't know any better come into our neighborhood scared.” —Sandra Cisneros, 'Those Who Don't', The House on Mango Street
• “Peony has whiskers; she has a pointy face and a tail made out of blue raffia; she's messing about in boats and dabbling-up-tails-all, and I am in love.” —C.G. Menon, 'Watermelon Seeds', Love Across A Broken Map: Short Stories from The Whole Kahani 
• “To lift yourself out of a miserable mood, even if you have to do it by strength of will, should be easy.” —Franz Kafka, 'Resolutions' (translated by Willa and Edwin Muir) 
• “My mother was an upright piano, spine erect, lid tightly closed, unplayable except by the maestro.“ —Tania Hershman, 'My Mother Was an Upright Piano'

Find yourself a magical opening lines.

Write it yourself, take the first sentence of something you've already written, use one of these, or steal a line from the beginning of your favourite flash, poem, novel, short story or script.  Nick it from a cereal packet or the instruction manual for your microwave, if you like.  Just get one.

Then, write a flash using that amazing FIRST line as the LAST sentence in your flash.

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If you'd like to share your writing, swap first lines, or just enjoy some encouraging chat with other writers who are also trying to carve away some time for writing amidst the chaos of the holiday season, feel free to join our private Facebook group.

Happy writing!

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Speaking of beginnings and endings, National Flash Fiction Day is celebrating the end of an era and a new beginning this year.  

NFFD was founded in 2012 by Calum Kerr, and since then we have published hundreds of flash fictions by hundreds of different authors across anthologies, FlashFlood, and other flashy projects. We’ve had numerous readings, launches, workshops, and other events around the country to celebrate flash fiction. This was all thanks to Calum, who decided that this year would be his last NFFD.

When Calum stepped down, the future of NFFD was uncertain, but we believe that the best way to say thank you to Calum and all the writers and readers who have participated in NFFD activities over the years is to keep the project going. This year, National Flash Fiction Day will be run by three co-directors, Santino Prinzi, Ingrid Jendrzejewski and Diane Simmons, who will strive to keep the momentum going and build on what Calum started.

We can't do this alone.  In the past, events and activities have relied on generous donations and a small armies of volunteers.  And, of course, NFFD wouldn't exist if it weren't for the legions of writers and readers who come together to celebrate flash fiction.

Along with our prompts, we'll also provide you with some ideas of how you might support NFFD, your own writing communities and projects, and each other, should you feel so inclined.  However, fear not; we'll make sure all of this waffle is displayed at the very bottom of each post, so you can focus on what's most important: the writing!

As for today, if you'd like to show some support for National Flash Fiction Day, we'd love it if you shared this post with a friend, or give us a shout out on Twitter or Facebook. When it comes to writing challenges, the more the merrier!

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Find out more about National Flash Fiction Day at our website or get in touch if you'd like to learn more about how you can get involved.

Announcing the 2018 Flash Flood Advent Calendar

To celebrate the holiday season, Flash Flood would like to gift the flash fiction community with an Advent Calendar full of flashy prompts.

One prompt a day will be posted here at Flash Flood from the 1st to the 25th of December 2018.  Writers who wish to share their work are free to join our private Facebook group (details coming soon).

We hope to see some of the resulting work come through our submission queues for Flash Flood, the NFFD Microfiction Competition, and the NFFD Anthology in 2019.

Participation is completely free, though we welcome donations to help fund National Flash Fiction Day 2019 and other flashy projects in future.

Happy holidays and happy writing!