Flash Fiction Draw for November 2021… and someone clearly can’t tell time

Jeffrey Ricker

True confession: I have a hard time with time. I lose track of it, can’t judge it, and fritter it away. So if you tell me that tomorrow’s the first Monday in November, I’ll believe you.

We’ll both be wrong, of course.

Long story short, this prompt should have been posted last week, but I got my dates mixed up. So, here we are, a little behind, with November’s flash fiction draw writing prompt. If you have no idea what the ham sandwich I’m talking about, the first Monday of every month I create a writing prompt by drawing three cards, each from a different suit, which give us our genre, setting, and a random object to include in the story. Your mission (should you choose to accept it) is to write a 1,000-word (max) story by next Monday, send me the link, and I’ll post a roundup of all the stories created using the prompt.

Here’s what we’ve used so far (grayed out ones have been used):

♣♥♦
Card drawnGenreSettingObject
1RomanceSpaceshipRay gun
2Science FictionRestaurant kitchenKey
3Fairy TaleStudio apartment in a big cityHairbrush
4HorrorAuditoriumLength of rope
5MysterySewerPendant and necklace
6ThrillerHighway tollboothPotted plant
7ComedyFarm fieldTablet computer
8FantasyPawn shopFountain pen
9Ghost StoryMarshDecorative pillow
10SuspenseTulip fieldVacuum cleaner
JCrime CaperTrunk of a carBouquet of roses
QAction/AdventureToolshed / Utility closetA stray sock
KHistorical FictionShopping mallSuitcase

And here’s what I drew after shuffling these now very thin stacks of cards:

Photo of three playing cards on a red marbled color background. The cards are the eight of clubs, over which is the word "fantasy"; the ace of hearts, over which is the word "spaceship"; and the three of diamonds, over which is the word "hairbrush."

That means your mission by next Monday is to write:

  • a fantasy,
  • set on a spaceship,
  • including a hairbrush.

Well, that’s random. But I’m sure you’re up to the task! So, write a 1,000-word story, post it somewhere online by next Monday, and send me the link to it, and I’ll post a roundup of all the stories on Nov. 15.

Which, to be clear, is the third Monday in November. See? I’m learning.