200 Word Challenge

The challenge from Rach Writes was to:

Write a short story/flash fiction story in 200 words or less, excluding the title. It can be in any format, including a poem. Begin the story with the words, “Shadows crept across the wall”. These five words will be included in the word count. 

If you want to give yourself an added challenge (optional), do one or more of these:

• end the story with the words: "everything faded." (also included in the word count)

• include the word "orange" in the story

• write in the same genre you normally write

• make your story 200 words exactly!

I needed this exercise, I've been busy formatting, compiling and converting MY ZOMBIE DOG into a Kindle book this week. It's been very educational for me, but my brain was techno-fried. In my next post I'll share what I learned and some links for formatting ebooks.

Here is my flash fiction and I'm proud to say I met every one of the challenges above - Are you going to give it a go?

Just the Wind?

Shadows crept across the wall. Hector sucked in his breath.

Just moonlight flickering through trees. Nothing more.

Creak, creak, creak. What was that? His eyes bulged. The covers were pulled tightly to his chin despite the humid night.

It’s just an old house. Old houses creak. Hector wasn’t scared. He was thirteen now, not a little kid.

Scratch, scratch.

Maybe his parents were home early? But they wouldn’t be. He was big enough to be left alone, they would not be home until well after midnight. Downstairs, the grandfather clock chimed twelve times.

Midnight.

He was a big kid, too old to be scared. He leaned to his beside table and grabbed his torch. The light glowed a soft orange. Great, batteries going flat.

Rattle, clink, clink.

Just the wind blowing chimes. Wait… did they have chimes?

Squeak, clang.

The front door? No. Just his imagination.

Thump, thump… up the stairs!

Hector leapt up, but tangled in bedclothes he tripped. Sprawled on the floor he gasped as the handle to his door turned. He scrambled to stand, thrusting the torch out as a weapon.

“Hector? We’re home early.”

“I was fine alone.” 

The torch light flickered once, then everything faded.