/lit/ - Literature

>>17566416
Agreed. I'm surprised by how good the stories are and how many have been posted. It's a strong anthology.

I’ve got one coming for “a man crosses an ocean by himself”, which I will post soon

>>17574165
Looking forward to it. That should be #42.

Here's the preface. Suggestions welcome.

Table of contents

>>17574640

Posting a (*) one just for fun (and as a bump...poor OP keeps having to recreate the thread each time).

The following was written entirely by AI given the prompt, so some of the conversation does come out a bit odd. Overall, though, it’s a kinda funny sketch.

>Two incompetent would-be criminals plan a bank heist

Man #1: Hey, we should rob that bank.

Man #2: Yeah, okay.

Man #1: Hey, since we're going to rob the bank, let's make a plan.

Man #2: Good idea - let's do it! But wait -- what if we get caught?

Man #1: I know -- let's not get caught!

Man #2: What if they catch us? What will we say?

Man #1: Well... since we are the ones who committed the crime, it would be our word against theirs. They would have to believe us.

Man #2: Yeah, but the cops don't like to lose, and they don't like to admit when they're wrong. What then?

Man #1: We'll tell them we had accomplices who helped us. It's better to have ten people saying you're innocent than to have one person saying you were alone.

Man #2: That's true...but will we actually have ten people on our side?

Man #1: Maybe.

Man #2: So let's do it. We will be caught, that's for sure, but if we get caught and we tell the truth, at least we'll have friends who believe us.

Man #1: Yeah, but what if no one believes us?

Man #2: Oh. Hey, I got an idea. Let's barter our word for money. If we can convince them to let us go in exchange for money...

Man #1: But we don't have any money!

Man #2: We may not have any money now, but we'll have plenty after we rob the bank!

Man #1: Well, what if they catch us first, and we have to pay money we don't have?

Man #2: Well... we can't just refuse to pay the money.

Man #1: I know ... we'll just kill ourselves.

Man #2: That's an idea -- but wait... What if we get the money before we rob the bank?

Man #1: How?

Man #2: By robbing a different bank.

Man #1: I like the way you think!

If you see this post while browsing /lit/, you have been visited by the leather-boy of flash fiction writing. Write a story in this thread or you will be subjected to homoerotic spanking.

>>17577050
a bump from page eight. i'll probably do one in a few hours.

bumparino. im working on one for 'a boy discovers they can talk to bears' but it might take a while...

>>17577958
>>17574165
Don't worry if the thread isn't up when you finish. I'll make another one soon enough.

>>17577958
aloha anons, im back

>A boy discovers they can talk to bears

Sunday morning and the kid slipped out of bed. Into linen breeches and top, tie their long black hair back with a strip of leather, reach under their bed to grab the longbow and arrows, then out the door and into the cool summer morning. The kid was going deer hunting.

It had rained the night before and the kid felt the damp grass beneath their feet, a feeling that never failed to comfort them. They walked the dirt path that took them from their house through the village, past the church and into the forest. Birdsong was all around them, light and angelic trills, deep and arborous echoes both near and distant. The sun fell through the gaps in the canopy, sending down great beams lighting up the flora and fauna.

The kid goes down the river and follows it down to the lake, hoping some deer or rabbits will be grazing nearby. Much to their disappointment, there’s no sign of life here, not even the birds. So the kid resorts to fishing then. They go down the edge of the lake, roll up their trousers and wade in. The cool water provides a much-appreciated relief from the encroaching summer heat. They load an arrow onto their bow and stand perfectly still for a minute. Waiting. Waiting. The kid sees a fish flit by and fires: a hit! Right through the eye as well. The kid collects his arrow and wades back to the edge of the lake, takes the arrow out and puts the fish down on the bank, then goes to resume their position again. Another five minutes pass; another fish is collected, this time pierced through the side. The kid stays out there for a good hour before leaving with three more, skewered neatly along one of his arrows.

As they head back upstream, going back to the village, they hear an unusually sonorous voice coming from behind a thicket of bushes.

"Yeth!! I’ve goht wohn!" The voice says, followed by the sound of crunching bone and noisy swallowing.

The kid crouches low, leaves their arrow at a nearby tree and slowly advance. They reach the bush just when they see the river beyond, in the middle of which is a huge brown animal, swallowing the remains of the fish they had just caught.

Jesus Christ! The kid thought, and scrambled back behind the bush.

As the kid watched, they thought the creature resembled a dog, in the way that it moved and its small ears.

"Mmm, that was a nice one," the voice said again.

The kid rapidly looked around, thinking someone had said that, until they realised it was coming from right in front of them.

"What the hell is happening," the kid whispers under their breath.

This animal, unknown to the child, ponders the water briefly before diving in face first, returning with another spasming fish between its jaws.

(1/2)

>>17578953
"H-Here," the kid said, "this is for y-you."

The kid tosses it up to the animal and they catch it before dropping down to all fours.

"Mmm, I haven’t had one of these before," it said.

The kid tittered. "Good, right?"

"Wait… you can understand me?!" They both said at the same time.

The kid promptly passed out.

*** [author's note: when u format this in the doc OP this is meant to be centre]

When the kid came to, the sun was spreading across the sky the colour of blood. The huge brown animal was lying down next to them, keeping them warm with one eye open.

The kid jumped, before remembering what had happened. The animal raised its head, snorted, settled back down.

"H-H-Hello," the kid said.

"So," the animal said, "you’re finally awake." Its deep, resonant voice seemed to rattle the kids bones. "I was wondering how long you would be out for."

"Ummm."

"Thanks for the food, by the way," the animal said.

"Hey!" The kid said indignantly. "You weren’t supposed to eat all of it! That was going to be my dinner!"

"Oh don’t worry," the animal said, "I can get you plenty more."

"You can?"

"Come on." The animal got up. "I'll show you."

(2/2)
thanks for doing this again OP, this'll be my third entry now (my other two being >>17552484
and >>17535443), and i think it's not too bad so eh, why not.

prompts:
>A singer discovers they can hypnotise people with their voice
>A schizophrenic gets lost inside their own hallucinations
>A shark discovers shark fin soup

>>17573960
>There's a prairie dog problem in the big city
"GET ON THE FUCKING GROUND" cried the masked Prairie Dog in the gas station. His rifle held steady, his eyes burning with hate. "You, get up. I want everything in the registers and one of those 5 day old Hot Dogs!" he growled at the clerk.

William slowly picked himself off the bright linoleum floor as he carefully started to put the cash in a plastic bag like a crowed of covid panickers in a Supoermarket. Blood started to drip from his nose onto the cash. Wiping it away, he dumped the change into the bag and ran to the hot dog rollers and quickly prepared a meal for his host.

"Quickly, quickly you cocksucker, give me the bag!" the Prairie Dog commanded as he kept the rifle squarely pointed at the William. The clerk slid the bag and the hot dog to the rifleman as he knelt and took a few bites of the Hot Dog. Nibbling it with the effacingly of a Beaver chewing wood, the Prairie Dog spat out the last bit and looked into the bag.

"Blood? The fuck is this shit?" the Prairie Dog screamed as he shot William in the head. Turning quickly to exit the store, the Prairie Dog looked to his left and his right, before checking the cash again. A smile crept over his face, years of problems were over, now he could buy a ticket back to Washington to see his famil-

When the customers finally lifted their heads, they saw that the Prairie Dog had vanished with paper money strewn onto the ground. It was after someone checked the CCTV footage that they discovered the rodent had neglected checking overhead when he came out, for in only 4 frames of the footage did it show a hawk carrying him away.

>>17579572
heh

>>17573960
>A chef cooks a meal for a very unpleasant guest
cooking this one up

>>17578953
>they hear an unusually sonorous voice coming from behind a thicket of bushes.
>"Yeth!! I’ve goht wohn!"

^These lines did a fantastic job of placing a very exact voice in my head. I was about to comment about how much I liked it until...
> "Mmm, that was a nice one”
Wait, why not “wath a nithe wohn”? I realize it may be a pain for the reader, but it’s a talking bear! I’m fine having to work a bit. I kind of liked the bear speaking in a deep, precise, lisping voice (wish I could have called it a ‘Bear-itone’)

Props for leaning into the prompt using an ambiguous pronoun...it’s so hard to make ‘they/them’ pronouns flow well, I think it’s an interesting writing challenge and ‘the kid’ is a very clean solution to it.

I’ve liked all three of your submissions so far, they all have a very similar feel (early society, man being close to nature, a hint at a broader magical world)...you got 2 more, make ‘em count!

>>17580488
wow, thank you so much anon. seeing as this is just a first draft for me i'll def keep working on it, but i love your suggestion of making it a lisp so i'll do some editing and post it again here

thanks again anon :)

>>17580488
ok, so going from "Yeth!!"...

The kid crouches low, leaves their arrow at a nearby tree and slowly advances. They reach the bush just when they see the river beyond, in the middle of which is a huge brown animal, swallowing the remains of the fish they had just caught.

Jesus Christ! The kid thought and scrambled back behind the bush.

As the kid watched, they thought the creature resembled a dog, in the way that it moved and its small ears.

"Mmm, that wath a nithe wohn," the voice said again.

The kid rapidly looked around, thinking someone had said that, until they realised it was coming from right in front of them.

"What the hell is happening," the kid whispers under their breath.

This animal, unknown to the child, ponders the water briefly before diving in face first, returning with another spasming fish clenched between its jaws.

The kid slowly rises and creeps back to the tree where they left the skewered fish and returns to the bush. They go beyond, tentatively holding the arrow in front of them. At the scent of more fish, the brown animal turned its bulk toward him. It rose up, standing on its hind legs, and towered over the kid. They quickly took a fish off their arrow and extended it on front of them.

"H-Here," the kid said, "this is for y-you."

The kid tosses it up to the animal and they catch it before dropping down to all fours.

"Mmm, I haven’t had wohn of thethe before," it said.

The kid tittered. "Good, right?"

The animal emitted a low rumble which seemed to be an agreement before it dropped the fish, slack-jawed.

"Wait… you can underthand me?!" They both said at the same time.

The kid promptly passed out.

***

When the kid came to, the sun was spreading across the sky the colour of blood. The huge brown animal was lying down next to them, keeping them warm with one eye open.

The kid jumped, before remembering what had happened. The animal raised its head, snorted, settled back down.

"H-H-Hello," the kid said.

"Tho," the animal said, "you’re finally awake." Its deep, resonant voice seemed to rattle the kid’s bones. "I wath wondering how long you would be out for."

Ummm.

"Thankth for the food, by the way," the animal said.

"Hey!" The kid said indignantly. "You weren’t supposed to eat all of it! That was going to be my dinner!"

"Oh don’t worry," the animal said, "I can get you plenty more."

"You can?"

"Come on." The animal got up. "I’ll thow you."

>>17579572
I like this scene -- fast and humorous with a strong ending. Good work!

>>17580753
Cute and cozy story. Updated this section. Pic shows the ornamental break used in place of asterisk or hash.

>>17580753
>"I’ll thow you."

Haha, this last line is so much funnier now!

>>17580350
“A full course meal,” said the man on death row.
“Don’t fuck with me, Chef,” said the warden on the other side of the bars. Next to him, a skinny boy in an apron held a notepad and a pen.
“I can assure you I am not.”
The warden clicked his tongue.
Chef turned to the skinny boy. “Why don’t you surprise me?”
The skinny boy didn’t know what to say. He had never seen this kind of attitude from the other inmates here.
The warden sighed. “You got that, cookie?”
“I, uh,” the cook startled.
“Go on, then!”

The cook looked at the warden then at Chef then closed his notebook and left.

“So. How long do we have left?”
“You,” said the warden, “have got till evening. Personally I can’t wait.”
“Perfect,” said Chef, smiling.
“What are you so happy about?”
Chef didn’t answer.

The cook returned with a tray when they were in the middle of a confession.

“Sorry, Father, one second.” Chef stepped to the bars. “Ah, how exciting— wait a minute.”
The cook stopped mid-air from opening the tray.
“Son,” Chef said, taking off his glasses, “what are you doing?”
“Your last meal? Sir?” The confusion was palpable in his voice.
“I ordered a full course meal.”
“Yes… and here it is.”
“A full course meal consists of an appetizer, a main course, and a dessert. Which culinary school did you go to?”
“I went to high school—”
“What’s the problem here?” The warden stepped in.
“I regret to say that this is not what I ordered,” Chef said.
“Well I regret to say I don’t give a shit.”
“Sir, I have a right to enjoy the last meal of my choosing that the state must provide. Now I have already specified what it is that I—”
“Alright, alright!” the warden shouted. He glared at the cook. “Take that shit back and give this asshole what he asked. And get it right this time,” he said, pointing at his face.
Chef returned to his bunk. “As I was saying, Father, if God leaving his Son to die on the cross isn’t filicide, then what is?”

An hour later the cook returned with a cart. Chef left the priest’s side, who was nodding off, and came to meet him. The tray was opened. Chef adjusted his glasses.

(1/2)

>>17581174
“Much, much better, son. Bold choice of apéritif, I must say.”
“You gave this bastard wine?” the warden roared, rising from his stool.
The cook slinked back from the warden’s looming figure.
“Now, now,” Chef said, “he did serve what I asked.”
The warden grumbled.
“Is that velouté de champignons I see?”
“What?” the cook asked back, wiping on his apron.
“Cream soup.”
“Yeah.”
Chef nodded approvingly as the cook lifted the trays one by one, until they reached the main course.
“Son,” he said, “what colour is that wine?”
“White.”
“And what is that that you did a very good job in preparing for as the main course?”
“A burger.”
“Made with what meat?”
“Beef.”
Chef looked at the cook and smiled weakly.
“We don’t pair white wine with beef, son.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” the warden cut in.
“This is a basic culinary principle. It’s regrettable but I cannot be served something—”
The warden’s nostrils flared with rage as he kicked the cart, sending plates crashing down the death row. The cook jumped back. The priest jolted awake.
“I swear to God I will choke you myself, you—” the warden said, baton unsheathed.
“I wouldn’t suggest you use His name in vain in front of the padre.”
“One last chance!” the warden roared, then grabbed the cook by the collar and said, “If you fuck this one up, I swear to— just go!”

The cook fixed his apron and ran back to the kitchen.

When he came in with a new cart, deep orange was shining from outside.

“...and what about Abraham? He was more than ready to sacrifice his own child. Eager, even.”
The priest was about to reply when the cart arrived. They all came standing around it: Chef, the cook, the warden, and the priest.
“Go ahead, son,” Chef said softly. “Serve it.”
With hands almost trembling and neck burning from the warden’s gaze, he unveiled the main course.
“Voilà!” Chef exclaimed. “A beautifully crafted sole meunière! This shall go along perfectly with your white wine, my boy.”
The cook just stared at the fish and chips on the plate.
“Well, let’s bring it in!”

The warden unlocked the door and the cook wheeled the cart into the cell, bringing it before Chef sitting on his bunk.

Chef smiled at his last meal and looked up at the skinny boy in an apron.
“Be proud of your work, son,” he said to the cook. “This is almost too good for a man to eat.”
The cook looked away and smiled meekly. The warden rolled his eyes.
“Father, would you lead us in thanksgiving?”
The priest nodded. All four closed their eyes and hung their heads in solemn prayer.
Then Chef opened his eyes, grabbed the bowl of cream soup, and slammed it straight into the warden’s face. He was laughing as the warden beat him with the baton, laughing through bloody lips and cut teeth, and laughing still as they dragged him to the gravel range where the firing squad waited.

“Mea culpa…”

Later, the cook walked to the other end of the corridor, towards the kitchen, with newfound faith in his title.

(2/2)

hope i got the french right

>>17581174
ayy, this is my prompt! i gotta say, man, you killed it. short and sharp, with a brilliant ending. i also love your use of dialogue as the driving force for the story as i tend to get hung up on narration, so i could learn a thing or two from you.

>>17580897
damn, that looks so cool, thanks anon!

>>17581318
cheers bro, i had fun

After three days the life raft had formed into a sort of hot tube, of stagnant salt water, piss and spilled whisky. A man, shaggy bread and tan lay in the sun baking like pottery clay. With his last reserves of energy he was ready. With one true flex of his back mussels he flopped himself out of the raft and into the dark ocean water. His skin cooled like tempering steel in oil. Leaving his eyes open he saw only void. He let himself with a bit of struggle against the will to life take in the water to his lungs. A painful jerking came about his body against his will. “In a few moments I’ll be dead.” He looked up and could see the suns obscured by rings of water. Its color muted and tinted into a gold and cyan kaleidoscope. The whisky bottle being without density sunk past him as his body's lizards mind tried to resist death. Darkens now. Nothing. Coughing up water, Gasping for air, heat, most heat. A loud moaning. A whale, like Jonna, had been swallowed by a whale. Stink, the mouth of this leviathan smell’s like rotting fish. He sat there mindless, in shock. After three days at sea he tried to kill himself, drunken off a surviving bottle of McCullen's, his head pounded from dehydration. “What a comedy is death.” Now he felt a rushing, “This whale will swallow me? I'll burn in its stomach acid. Do they have stomach acid?” But the motion to consume him did not occur. Instead now a sudden flash of light came, He was back above water. And there in the midday sun was another man, in fact there were two men, both looked Indian. There faces in pure shock. “Better play this cool.” And with grace REDACTED jumped from the whale's mouth onto the deck of the boat. “Any water?” The two now as he could clearly see, yes there were Indian men staring back. In what he assumed was Hindi they slowly started to speak. A thick Dravidian accent form one of them. Then a splash of water misted the boat and rocked it. The whale had gone home it seems. “Water?” REDACTED asks if he were impatiently in line at the bank and not instead say, being saved by a whale after trying to drown one's self after being lost at sea for three days. One of the men nodding their head in that Indian side to side wobbling way. “Sir.” And ran to the stern of the ship, and brought back a plastic bottle of water. Downing the whole thing in only a few massive sips REDACTED, let out a loud relieved and refreshed sigh. “More?” He asked. They brought more, and as he began to drink the second bottle another splash and mist of water came over the boat. On the deck thudded an empty whisky bottle. It’s lapel read “McCullen’s”.

Wright the next part of this story.

>>17581185
Great story!

>>17579572
That was funny.

>>17581422
Is this supposed to be a prompt or a story?

>>17573960
>An alien finds something surprising at the crash site of its spaceship

Barox excreted parsox from his maxmox glands when he saw the two legs sticking from the front of the spacecraft. Again, Barox glanced and again, more parsox.

*Clorx!* Barox transmitted to his 3th in rank spounx. *They're bipedal!* and conveyed the disgusting scene to them.

*No, stop showing that oh Yinx- my maxmox* Clorx conveyed back. *Now I have to clean up the Xotorium! Thanks Vixnix!*

*Its not my fault that you decided to chug a flask of dihydrogen monoxide you Vixnix!* Barox returned, *I wanted to go to the local gas giant and mingle with the iceoforms, but nooo we had to give the local infestation a quick buzz to ^^Show them who's 4arx!^^*

*Fine, whatever. Will it make you feel better if we deposit our excess isotops in their atmosphere before we go?* Clorx countered

*Fine, but only if over one of their great bodies of fluid. Help spread it quicker across their ecosystem.*

>>17578104
Sorry I was delayed by some real life stuff for the last twenty four hours, it’ll be tomorrow

>>17584011
Idk why, but I love that the aliens don’t use quotation marks...

Have you seen that elsewhere? Different types of communication being indicated through punctuation? I kinda like the idea that telepathy (or w/e their ‘transmission’ is) has a non-vocal indication.

Also, the story is funny...but dem quotes! I think that idea will stick with me.

>>17584768
Huh, I hadn't even noticed that they'd done that. Based.

>>17584768
part of it arose from the fact that I can't really do italics on a Kurdish Underwater Basketweaving Forum. so I worked with what I had. that said I have a vague sense that I've seen it somewhere else before so I won't claim credit

>>17573960
>An artist finds the ultimate inspiration but doesn't have a brush or pen

Gerald ran into the giftshop, shoving old and young alike. Gerald wandered into the art museum looking for inspiration, but only in jest. So inspiration gave him the spark, but only in jest.
Gerald eyed the Mona Lisa pens next to the register and grabbed one, only for the security guard to tap him on the side of the shoulder with a baton.
"Sir... can I assume you paid for that?" hissed the officer as he tapped the shoulder not once, not twice, but thrice.
"Look, I know what I want to create, I can feel it, so please just give me some space!" the artist answered with a sniff as he clicked the pen and popped out the receipt tape from the depressingly white dispenser.
"Sir, drop the pen and please leave." the guard politely commanded, but was still ignored as the was searching for the right spot to start. The pen was about to touch paper when the guard sighed and grabbed the Gerald's hand.
Squeezing, the artist cried in pain as he dropped the pen hitting the ground not once, not twice, but thrice.
"Come on, lets get you out of the gift shop an-" the guard stopped as Gerald started to slam the man's arm again and again trying to free himself from the iron grip he found himself in.
"If you ... don't let me ... go now ... the greatest work ... in the 20th century ... will go ... uncreated you ... cretin!" the artist exhaled with each strike. Unfortunately, what Gerald could not know was how when the guard was a baby, his Father would call him cretin. And how when he was 15, his father called him cretin and the boy repaid his father with a black eye. And when in the boxing ring, the only truly beautiful fight he had ever had the privilege of the one where his opponent called him cretin.
And so the guard slammed Gerald against the white art wall of the museum and began his work. Each strike of the Baton was met with a cry of pain and a streak of blood. Over and over again, not once, not twice, not even thrice did the Guard stop. But eventually his muscles grew weary and the real cops had finally showed up. And in the end there was a red angle placing her hands atop a beaten and dazed Gerald's shoulders.

>>17585202
Nice.

>>17575603
>how
>by robbing another bank
kek
>>17578953
I like the spaghetti spill when the bear shows up. Talking animals have come up a lot in this anthology. I hear that in some countries they ban books because of talking animals. Makes me sad, this anthology will never pass the CCP censors now.
>>17579572
Funny and fun. Made me hate prarie dogs.
>>17581174
>what culinary school did you go to
>i went to high school
pretty much every conversation i've ever had with a linecook in two lines. very good story.

>>17585202
>>17584011
>>17581174
Looking forward to reading these today!

>>17573960
>>A wise old man defeats a time-dragon

The old man produced an pot, some water, and an open flame to the time-dragon.
"If your powers over time are absolute, then watch this pot of water boil." the old man said as he poured the name brand water into the pan and started the flame.
"Foolish mortal, any task you present, I can accomplish. And when I accomplish this, your daughter will be mine..." chuckled the dragon, starring into the pot.
"Now remember, if you stop looking at the water for any reason, I win." the old man started to walk out of the cave. "And as a dragon of your stature, you can never break your word, less you lose your powers."
"Yeah yeah..." the dragon muttered as he focused on the pot of water
Three hours passed. Nothing happened.
The dragon grunted, and used his powers to fast forward time.
Hours passed. Nothing happened. Exhaling, he moved faster in time.
Days passed, still the water would not boil. Focusing harder he made time move faster.
Still nothing.
...
10^100 years later
...
The dragon cried "What manner of foolishness is this?" as he lifted his head to reveal... nothing. An endless void stretched before him. Screeching like a incel deprived of his tendies, the Time-Dragon produced a warp to send him into the past. Back in time he went, past the Reckoning of the Greenlanders, past the North Korean global empire, past the building of the Utah border walls. Back and back he went until he found himself outside the cave, where the old man was exiting.
"YOU TRICKED ME!" he cried out pointing at the cheeky old man.
"And you took your eyes off the pot of water. I win."

>>17585202
nice

There was a thread on /lit/ yesterday in which the OP asked for literature that ridicules today's "woke" culture. I used it to come up with a short story inspired by the negative aspects of the #MeToo movement.

>1/3

When asked what she considered her most important achievement, the former President answered emphatically.

“Without a doubt, it has to be the E-Sister Act.”

This was followed by a shot of the talkshow’s audience. The majority of the all female crowd had got up from their seats and were clapping. Some of them were whooping. After the applause quieted down, a close-up shot of LaBrea Wilson returned to the screen and she continued her answer.

“Because, as a black, African-American woman of color,” she said, pausing for effect, “I know what it’s like to be a victim.”

Another shot of the audience followed. This time, the camera made a swooping motion over the rows of spectators. The majority of them were now whooping. A close-up shot of Real Talk’s host, Shanice Thompson, revealed there were tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

“You fucking cunt,” Benjamin muttered under his breath as the show, again, switched to a close-up of the former president.

He had lost count of the amount of times he had seen this part of the interview, which was already being dubbed Interview of the Year by most news channels. It had gone viral, which meant avoiding it was virtually impossible. However, Benjamin had not expected to be confronted by it in a coffee shop, though. Yet, there she was, Mrs. President, yammering away like she had done the previous four years.

Benjamin tried to ignore it by looking out the big windows of L’année En Cours. He hated this particular chain of coffeeshops more than others. Their pathetic, pretentious attempt at making everything look and sound French got on his nerves. However, February’s in this town were cold and he’d had enough of standing outside waiting for Marcel — it was starting to look suspicious.

>>17590055

>2/3

Marcel was Benjamin’s “connect”. He wasn’t very punctual, but the finger prints he sold were the most reliable Benjamin had come across. They weren’t cheap, though. Benjamin was parting with over half of his wages on a monthly basis.

The finger print business had sky-rocketed ever since the E-Sister Act had come into force. The act was, indeed, the culmination of President Wilson’s career. A staunch feminist, she had set up the organisation that had launched the SHE-FAB (Sexual Honour and Equality For All Beings) campaign. Among other aims, the organisation sought to end what it viewed as rampant misogyny in the AI wife-doll business.

Such dolls had become incredibly popular in the 2040’s. The dolls’ temperature, lifelike heartbeat and highly developed speech were functions most valued by its users. On top of their extensive sexual functions, the dolls were even capable of simple tasks such as frying an egg and folding clothes.

Benjamin owned three, all of them manufactured by Japanese company E-Phrodite. His first purchase, the classic, yet luxurious “Swedish Model A”, was recommended to him by his work colleague, Ahmad. Astonished by the doll’s ability to cuddle, her compelling questions and seemingly genuine interest she showed in his erotic fanfiction, Benjamin was encouraged to buy two more. Both were part of the Asian Anime-Hybride range.

Things changed when the act came into place.

Firms manufacturing the interactive sex dolls were required to make severe adjustments, including the installation of the government-issued, misogyny-free software. The most significant change in the operating system was that it gave the doll the ability to refuse sex. It did so by registering tiny changes in body temperature and blood levels through the finger tips of its user.

Using the integrated Artificial Intelligence, the doll would activate the feature whenever it sensed its partner (usage of the word “user” or “owner” was to be discouraged) was angry or if the partner did not engage in extended or foreplay or if the partner had refused to cuddle after a previous sexual encounter. The doll would shout “No!” and every one of its orifices would close. Much to the chagrin of those who had purchased such dolls, the feature was also often activated at random and would, sometimes, remain permanently activated.

It was the only way to teach men about consent, the campaign claimed.

>>17590077

>3/3

Physical changes to the doll included realistic proportions (a doll’s body was now required to match the average height and weight of an American adult woman) as well as an in-built menstruation mechanism. Choosing a doll’s ethnicity was also prohibited. Instead, one would receive a randomly selected doll.

At first, hackers found ways to circumvent the updated dolls, making it possible to have unlimited sex with them like before. However, the dolls were then updated again, this time using state-of-the-art technology developed by NASA. From then on, any attempt to circumvent or alter the updated soft and hardware would lead to the doll sending an immediate warning to the Crime Unit Neutralizing Trauma squad, a federal agency set up to put a stop to physical violence against women, both biological and inorganic in nature.

The first men to be punished for iRape received prison sentences in excess of 30 years. This soon put a stop to any attempts at interfering with the software.

However, it wasn’t long before Benjamin had got sick of the hours of foreplay before sex, the hours of cuddling after it and the embarrassing trips to the shop to buy tampons. Through the clandestine image board Artificial Affection, he made contact with Marcel, who promised him actual human fingerprints he could wear over his own fingers that would crack the doll’s software and make unlimited sex a possibility once again. The only drawback was, because of the security systems in place, the fingerprints had to be changed each time the doll went through a menstrual cycle.

Outside the coffeeshop, Marcel and Benjamin nodded to each other across the street and started walking to the bridge where they had done some of their previous deals.

“Got some good ones, today,” Marcel said. Adding that they were fresh. Benjamin had long since stopped thinking about where Marcel got the skin tissue from. He was just glad he had found Marcel. The less you know, the better. After handing over the e-Wallet with the amount of bitcoin Marcel asked for 10 fingerprints, Benjamin grabbed the little surgical bottle and stuck it down his pants.

As they parted ways, Marcel turned around and asked Benjamin the following: “Hey, man.. at this stage, wouldn’t just be easier to walk up to a real girl and talk to her?”

There was a long silence. Then they both burst out laughing. It must have been the fifth time Marcel had told the joke, Benjamin thought as he chuckled his way home.

>>17588848
clever

>>17588848
Fire goes out in a couple hours, water evaporates in a few days, pot rusts and falls apart over a few centuries...what’s this dragon doing looking at rust pile for 10^100 years? Seems like once the sun absorbed the earth into a red giant (5x 10^9 years) the dragon might safely call it quits.

>>17591420
It's a joke dude

>>17590055
Nice, I'll make it "unprompted" like a couple of others

Adding a bunch of stories now

>>17590089
Any chance you can trim it to 1,000 for the word limit?

>>17585202
This might be the most tragic story so far.

>>17584011
I like how you wove weird alien words with a short plot. The characters have... well, character and it's easy to imagine them bickering.

>>17581185
This is clever. Well done! A good scene.

>>17588848
Heh, not bad. Some readers might miss the joke, but whatever.

>>17584011
Based and xpilled

>>17574165
>>17574615
>>17578104
>>17584516
Finally finished, this is for "A man crosses an ocean by himself"

The ocean stretched on before them, seemingly forever, the horizon over the sea was not that of a curve below sight, it was the point at which detail would become too great for human comprehension. He could see many islands of myriad colours across the distance, some sweeping in archipelagic curves, others clustered together haphazardly, some alone. He was dressed just as he had been in the ambulance; he turned to look at the dark figure next to him, the voice of which seemed to speak into his mind rather than his ears. YOU HAVE TO CROSS IT ALONE.

“Where’s everybody else,” THEY ARE FURTHER ALONG THE SHORE, THE DISTANCE IS SO GREAT YOU CANNOT SEE THEM “does everyone have to cross it by themselves?” NOT EVERYONE, ONLY THOSE WHO LIVED WITHOUT FINDING THEIR TRUTH, MOST PEOPLE DO NOT, BUT FROM YOUR TIME IT IS NEARLY EVERYONE “what about those who don’t cross alone, how do they cross together in these little boats?” THEY CROSS IN GREAT SHIPS, SWIFT AND LARGE OF MANY SHAPES. “What truth do you mean anyway, I was a successful person, I was generous enough and-” IT DOES NOT MATTER HOW MORALLY YOU LIVED, THERE ARE MANY ALONE IN THE OCEAN THAT WERE SAINTS AND HEROES TO THOSE AROUND THEM, THERE ARE THOSE ON THE SHIPS THAT YOU WOULD CONSIDER MONSTROUS, BUT THEY FOUND THE TRUTH THAT PASSED YOU BY “that doesn’t seem very fair.” YOU WOULD UNDERSTAND IF YOU FELT THAT TRUTH, PERHAPS YOU WILL FIND IT OUT THERE. The figure disappeared; the man stayed watching the sea for what seemed to him hours before he boarded the small boat. As he found his balance, he realised that he knew how to work the rigging; the knowledge had been given to him. A wind blew from the shore into the sea and he set off.

The weather was varied the winds inconstant, he journeyed from island to island for rest and shelter, a haphazard mix of places they seemed, many nothing as one might expect from such overall balmy climates. There where the landscapes he expected; palmed sandy islands and jungled volcanoes rising from the deep, but some surprised him. He found islands of shady temperate forests, patches of marsh and swamp within the sea, he even swam below briefly to see how soft soil could be supported, there must have been land everywhere he thought; the wet soil sat inexplicably floating above a dark abyss, which shot terror into his heart. He made immediately for a jungled pinnacle far off by days of sailing; he remained on the island surviving of breadfruit and plantains for some time.

(1/2)

>>17595558
WHY DO YOU REMAIN HERE? “It’s the deep; I cannot bear to put myself above it” YOU WILL BE LOST HERE, IN A HELL OF YOUR OWN CREATION, YOU WILL BE ALONE FOREVER. The figure vanished and left the man alone, he stayed there for apparent years of time. At first his solitude was peaceful among the trees, the animals that lived there with him, he wondered if this was their afterlife as well as his. He felt comforted from his fear but as time wore on, he felt a weight of loneliness that he had not felt in his sailing alone, and the safety of the island had become monotony. The fear had been dulled and the knowledge of loneliness drove him to conquer it; he did not know it yet, but the first flicker of truth formed in him. He returned to the shore he had shunned since his landing, to the boat he had abandoned, it was untouched by the time apart. He pushed the boat out and set sail once again.

Now he travelled without fear, passing islands of appearance he had little familiarity with, primeval visages of huge conifers and cycads; mossy islands of low and weak vegetation dotted with tall fungal growths. He passed stranger sites still, weird lands familiar but changed; younger visages than he had ever seen from a world older than his time. He landed on the island to explore it, his fear of the unknown gone, in a grove of blue fractal blossoms above white blooming glass he sat. He closed his eyes and in contemplation, he found his truth. The dark figure stood beside him, he spoke to it without opening his eyes, “What’s at the end of the sea?” THERE ARE OTHER SHORES NOT FAR NOW FROM HERE, A PLACE YOU MIGHT CONSIDER PARADISE YOU WILL SEE IT AS YOU LEAVE THIS ISLAND; BUT THE SEA GOES AROUND AND BEYOND, THERE IS NO TRUE END TO THE SEA. The man left the grove and set sail again, he now passed in site of other ships. Thousands of small sailboats all travelling towards the shining towers he saw in the distance, as they approached Paradise a large ship passed them, raucous with singing, which the small boats began to pick up in a wave following them, all singing together. Paradise was an endless chain of islands running perpendicular to their travel. Lands and cities of myriad appearance connected by bridges high above the many straits to the sea beyond. The man stayed in paradise for much time revelling with others many he had known in life and far more he had not; he was happy, but grew restive. He stood on a rope bridge between islands gazing into the new sea “I think I want to leave” THERE ARE ALWAYS SHIPS READY TO LEAVE, THOSE WHO HAVE FOUND TRUTH SELDOM STAY IN PARADISE, THEY TRAVEL BEYOND EVENTUALLY “where to?” A NEW LIFE, NEW DISTANCES, SIGHTS MOST SWEET AND STRANGE, I CANNOT TRULY KNOW WHAT LIES BEYOND, IT IS NOT FOR ME, IT IS FOR YOU. The man stayed a while longer in Paradise saying goodbye to those he knew that would stay, others he boarded a great swift ship with, into the new distance.

(2/2)
988 words

almost to fifty. keep it up flashchads

>>17595806
Do you know how many left?

>>17573960


OP, the badger, enjoyed his home. Secure, cozy, and supremely well lived-in. While a harsh winter raged above, his burrow was all light and laughter. With his goodnight kiss, OP closed the door to his boys’ room and ambled up the hall. This was his favorite time of the day, with all the little ones in bed, he would boil a kettle of hot water and pour himself an herbal tea.

OP would sit in front of his fire, slippered feet AI chew from the iron grate. As the brew warmed him from the inside, he reflected on his day. Not an extraordinary day, nor a boring one...he did his job and he did it well, and that is all a good badger needs. He collected another six flashflies this morning, a respectable haul, and he set a new basket to catch some more overnight. He had nearly fifty now, fluttering in the woven cage, their glow bouncing off the burrow walls.

He hasn’t read the new flashflies yet, there was no rush. The quiet hours were the best for reading, the only sounds were the crackling of fire and the sawing and squeaking of his two sleeping boys up the hall.

OP paused a moment, something was off. His ears perked up, and his nose instinctively tested the air for danger. Still facing the fire he closed his eyes and surveyed his space. There was no draft, so the front door was still hidden from and marauding foxes. He smelled smoke in the air, the tea in his hand, nutmeg and clove from the night’s desert, and the familiar musky scent of the warren’s three inhabitants. He heard the popping of the logs, the wind shaking the door and - there it is - only one solitary, sleeping boy.

“What are you doing up, Anon” OP asked, eyes still closed.

“Couldn’t sleep”

“Did you have a scary dream?”

“No. No dreams at all, OP. I can’t go to sleep unless I have a story to think about.”

“I see now,” OP smiled “Do you want to read a flash with me?”

Anon didn’t reply, but instead ran over to the flashbox to look at the shapes fluttering inside.

OP had only just sat down in his chair, tea half full, but he knew Anon couldn’t wait. With a great release of breath, he lifted himself from the chair and clambered over to Anon.

“So which one should we read together tonight?”

>>17595943
No idea, I'm just happy this whole thing ended up working out.
>>17596280
2000% /comfy/

>>17596280
comfy and creative
>slippered feet AI chew from the iron grate.
not sure what this means though. the flame?

>>17573960
>An isolated town hears about the collapse of society for the first time

"What? Noooo" the bartender said as the man in the duster explained.
"I'm serious, Denver has fallen, along with Portland, Austin, hell even Detroit." the man in the duster responded, slamming his fist atop the bar and shaking his whiskey.
"Look, you might say that 'Civilization has fallen', but it hasn't, look." gestured the bartender around him. "We still have a police force, a mayor, hell we even have one of those meubers from the metubes. Civilization is just fine."
The man in the duster coat blinked silently, just staring at the bartender as he continued to clean his pristine glasses with a cloth.
"Tender, when was the last time you got on the internet?" he asked.
"Me personally? About two months ago when I got the congo to send me one of em scantily novels about a man who fucks inanimate or conceptual objects. I'd prefer not to go further in polite company but its the only use for the ereader I got for my birthday and i-" the bartender tried to continue.
"Wait, you're telling me the last time you tried to use the internet was months ago to get porn?" asked the man with a duster, with a look of amazed concern on his face.
"Why yes, and its NOT porn sir, its 'erotica'."
The man in the duster blinked for a few moments and took a shot.
"Look, just try getting on the internet now, go ahead, I'll wait."
"Why would I want to do that?" the bartender asked. "I'm quiet happy with the erotic novel I'm still working through'
"STOP!" screeched the man. "STOP CONFLATING USING THE INTERNET WITH PORN. JUST GO TO SOME SITE, ANY SITE!"
The bartender huffed and pulled his kindle from behind the counter. Tapping on it a few times, he face contorted with astonishment.
".... wait why can't I reach the ereader store?"
"BECAUSE there is no ereader store anymore, there is NO civilization to maintain the servers that feed your degenerate behavior! That's what I've been trying to tell you!" cried the man in the duster.
"Look, I've been patient with you thus far, but while civilization may have collapsed, there is no need to call me a degenerate. I'm going to have to ask you to leave." the bartender stated, putting his ereader down atop the ashen counter.
"... fuck it." the man in the duster laid paper on the counter and walked out.

>>17598298
Oops, typed on a phone last night...
>slippered feet inches from the iron grate

>>17598331
it was a nice piece

>>17598344
Just thanking OP for putting in the work to keep this great tread thriving. Looking forward to the final piece (maybe we should take out an ad, too! lol)

>>17573960
>>A woman realizes that spiders are basically cats

Another (*) entry here, just for fun.

“Arachnofilia”

On waking one morning, Susan suddenly came to the realization that spiders are, in fact, just small cats. It made perfect sense, really. Both hide a mischievous bite beneath a fuzzy exterior, both run for cover when you stomp through their territory, both love climbing her walls and hiding in her closets. Only a moment's thought was needed to complete the discovery, linking the two fond household companions. Susan was ecstatic.

As she sat, pondering the significance of her revelation, she spotted one of these small cats scurrying across the ceiling. She decided to name it "Clover". It wouldn’t do to have unnamed cats just hanging around her room. Shortly after naming her newfound companion, now skittering down her wall, she caught a glimpse of another amongst her window curtains. "So like a cat" she chuckled “I’ll call you ‘Leopold’,” as she scratched behind what she supposed were Leopold’s tiny ears. It would be fun naming all of them!

As silly as it sounds, she was once afraid of tiny cats! She would shriek and leap into a flutter every time one would creep from the corner of her room and skitter across the floor. She would call to her boyfriend to—

Oh no!

How many cats had he killed, and how many of these felicides had she been an accessory to? Her stomach crept into her throat. The joy of this morning’s discovery was instantly erased from her mind.

(1/2)

>>17599610

(2/2)

As she was dwelling on the dozens of tiny cats and kittens she’s had executed — their tiny bodies still twitching, shrouded in toilet paper, unceremoniously flushed away — Susan realized she had to atone. A small winding sensation tickled her ankle. She checked to see Clover crawling toward her.

“Oh, Clover” she wept, “can you possibly forgive me?”

Clover crawled up her leg and onto her lap. He walked up her arm and rested in her hands. She knew he understood, and he forgave her. She would never hurt another cat again, she had to tell the world to stop their brutal campaign to rid human dwellings of these tiny cats.

She would need some signs, posters, advertising of some sort. Susan picked up the phone and requested the supplies she would need. As she waited, she imagined the viral ad blitz she could launch...with only some poster board and sharpies she could even surpass E.B. White in raising the status of tiny cats in the public’s consciousness. In future years, “Arachnophobic” would be an accusation leveled at those still backward enough to use the term ‘spider’.

“It sounded like she’s in a much better mood than yesterday”

“Yean, what the hell happened? Everyone seems on edge.”

Frank, one of the hospital’s orderlies, had taken the weekend off. While he enjoyed having the same weekend schedule as the rest of his family, it seemed like every Monday he’d hear about all the crazy shit that happened while he was out.

“Susan attacked the woman who brings the therapy cats! She wouldn’t stop screaming, I think she convinced herself the cats were giant spiders or something”

Paper, markers, and glitter glue in hand, they opened the door to Susan’s room.

Many new pieces! I think we hit 50 in this thread. Eating lunch and I'll read them this afternoon.

>>17599793
Any chance we could keep going? I know we reduced down to 50 from the original plan of 100, but this has been fun. I understand if you need a break though, you’ve been really good at going through all of this, thank you. X

>>17600085
My vote is to call this one a wrap and a job well done, then go for a volume 2

>>17600085
>>17600292
I like the idea of continuing in a second volume. That will give me and the other writers a breather. I think that a published first volume will encourage others to participate in the next one. And we still need a cover! I'll start figuring that out on Monday (suggestions?) and doing a light editing pass on this volume. I really like the title Gifts Evil and Good (kudos to the anon who suggested it).

>>17599616
I really like the story arc. Great ending.

>>17598305
Weirdly intriguing. Activates the almonds.

>>17596280
A very sweet story. Thank you!

>>17595566
I'm still thinking about this. I like it quite a bit. It's mysterious and archetypal.

>>17600544
We could keep the cover in the same style as the /lit/ logo by making it a wood engraving (perhaps colorized).

Gustave Doré has hundreds of amazing prints, all so evocative. Unfortunately, I could not find a single one depicting Pandora.
>https://www.wikiart.org/en/gustave-dore
>https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/Gustave_Doré

There are some great paintings/engravings of Pandora’s Box (and many of the old paintings had engravings made of them if you look around):
>https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Pandora%27s_box
>https://www.alamy.com/search.html?qt=Pandora’s%20box

If there’s a direction you’d like to go I’d be glad to track down a good high-res print (pay for stock photo if needed, etc)

>>17601443
That's very kind of you. I think that could work very well in black and white. Pic related is intriguing and might fit the anthology, which isn't based on one theme or genre.

Anons should post more images! Also I'll have to hire someone (probably someone good on Fiverr) to make the typography. I have no skill with that kind of thing, sadly.

>>17601667
Forgot picture

>>17601443
That's a nice picture. I tried making it into a cover by fusing it with OP's cover title, and here's what I made. I tried to size it to the same ratio as a 8.5x11 cover, which is apparently standard for hardcover. Not sure what dimensions OP will be using for the cover.

>>17602371
Here it is in black and white as well.

>>17602385
Here’s a high-res version for you, if we’re printing in full-size we’ll want to go with as crisp an image as possible.

Looking at OPs pages, I don’t think he’s doing 8.5x11...maybe it’s 5.5x8.5? Let’s wait for confirmation before you spend more time on it.

>>17602371
8.5x11 is huge, it will probably be whatever standard size is close to 5x8

>>17574640
Also, quick note to OP...
Could we also number the Unprompted sections? Just so one could refer to ‘Unprompted II’ etc.

If there is a volume 2, what if we used images as prompts? Looking through those Doré prints, each would be a great inspiration for a flash...and it would be really interesting to have an illustration to go with every entry.

>>17573960
Hey, how do I write flash fiction? I can write short stories and poetry the latter more so but flash fiction takes its own skill. Also, any good flash fiction collections I should pick up

>>17603348
Huh, thanks for the high res version.
I wasn't going to spend more time on it. I just threw the above cover mockups together in MSPaint to show what I thought might work well for a cover (white box with black text at the top and the image below).

>>17603497
For flash fiction, I try to just plan in paragraphs to limit the size. As in, I'll come up with a small story idea for the prompt and then assign one paragraph to each major bit. That way I don't write too much or too little. After that you can just edit to make it look nicer. Really, the best thing you can do is just start writing some flash fiction and see how it goes.

>>17574640
All these titles are formulaic as fuck. A handful of them might be charming but altogether they are nauseating

>>17590055
>Because, as a black, African-American woman of color
Totally redundant, unbelievable, and reveals the author's poverty of imagination. Parody has to be close to reality. The closer, the greater the effect

>>17603545
They’re not titles, each section is named for the prompt used. I agree that it makes the TOC look silly, but it means the reader is going into each story with the same context the author had when they started writing. One of the things that make many of these special is how cleverly the authors interpreted the prompt.

>>17603545
They’re what the writing prompts were, not formal thought out titles, retard. Do you not understand the point of the anthology?

>>17603545
There was a debate a few threads ago about the titles, and the consensus ended up being that while it's not a great solution, it's probably the best solution.
IMO it creates an interesting feeling where you know what prompted the story but don't immediately get to know what the author did with it. It makes the anthology a bit unique, which is nice.

>>17603767
Yup, I still think it's the right call. The few people I've explained it to like the idea quite a bit. It's an additional interest factor.

>>17603497
Think of a scene or a character and just go with it. An impactful moment. Or you can tell a story over a longer timeframe from a narrator point of view.

>>17603497
>Hey, how do I write flash fiction? I can write short stories and poetry the latter more so but flash fiction takes its own skill.
>>17458850

>Also, any good flash fiction collections I should pick up
This one.

>>17603767
Also, it’s too late to go back, since most authors have not been titling their pieces.

Came to give a second submission, glad to see there was another surge of posts. Can't wait for volume 2 thanks for setting this up guys

>>17603568
How do you know how people will describe themselves in the 2040's or later? Tell us, o wizened mogul of parody.

>>17605008
I think they're saying that throwing all of that stuff in there makes it stick out.

>>17606662
Did you read it?

>>17606871
Yes? Just put black, African-American, or woman of color. It's redundant.

>>17602385
Appreciate the idea, but design-wise this is really bad

>>17607063
What is your preferred design for the cover?

>>17603479
Good call. Making the changes now.

>>17606992
I meant the other ~1000 words.

>>17607095
OP, if you can tell me the dimensions of the pages, I can mock up a few cover layouts later today

>>17607402
That would be awesome, but I can't guarantee that it will be used. I think Coronameron had a good but simple cover. A similar design could be nice. Pic is the book size options on Lulu (the options probably decrease once they know the page count).

Coronameron:
https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/anonymous-/coronameron/paperback/product-vmdmmn.html?

>>17607486
I think we want to choose between pocket book, digest, and US Trade. Don't have a strong preference at the moment. Maybe one of the smaller two, because it's about 150 pages.

>>17607543
Also I think the cream option for paper is better than straight white, which can be harsh.

How much is this gonna cost OP?

>>17607543
I think, as an object, a small book would be quite nice, especially since it isn't very long. Coronameron was 6x9 because it had to fit 700 pages in

>>17607629
The minimum price Lulu allows me to set is $20 dollars I believe, or very close to that depending on the type of paper used and that kind of thing. I'll make it the lowest possible price with the formatting we want.

>>17607657
I like the aesthetic of a small book too.

>>17607543
I like digest, something taller reminds me of reading these within the threads

>>17607705
Nice cover. I'm pretty sure the title is "Gifts Evil and Good" instead of "Gifts Good and Evil" though.

>>17607739
Lol I’m an idiot.

>>17607543
I think the smallest size

>>17607948
Just keep in mind smaller = more pages.

>A girl finds a key that unlocks a very special door
Knock knock knock. A faint scuffle the only response. The young girl tried the handle again but she knew from previous experience that the effort would be a failure. She strained the handle in both directions until her wrist ached and then screamed in frustration until her throat ached too. She threw her hopelessly insufficient weight against the door but this rattled her more than the wood. The door remained closed, unshaken, and she imagined in her mind, amused.

A key then, or an adult. These were the only two options available to her if she hoped to open the door. They both would take time that she didn’t have to find but the key was closer and her previous explorations of the house allowed her to narrow her search to suspected locations whereas an adult could be anywhere or nowhere. She scrambled through the house in a desperate search that cost her painstaking minutes but none of her suspicions gave up the key. She considered an adult again but wasn’t the time for finding an adult past? The best time to have found an adult was when the thought had first come to her but now minutes had past and she didn’t have enough of them left to change her mind. This thought returned to her at least twice more as she continued her search and each time she pushed it away with the knowledge that she had even less time now than the last time she had had the thought. She started crying when she found the key. She wasn’t sure if they were tears of exultation or devastation. It was in the first place she should have looked, the key drawer.

The door that would define the rest of her life opened to the key without complaint, all its amusement gone. Anxiety bubbled up inside her as she braved a look beyond the door. The body hung limp a foot above the ground with a pale gold liquid running down one leg and dripping from between toes to form a puddle on the ground. The eyes stared at her wide and bloodshot but the person behind them had gone. The girl realised immediately that even had she opened the door in time she was not big or strong enough to have saved her mother. She should have gone for an adult after all.

>>17607985
Good point to remember. Also, the cover must be wraparound (front, spine, back) and meet Lulu's requirements. I'm guessing I'll have to pay someone to do it, unless someone here happens to have that expertise.

>>17608204
Destroyed.

Testing out this format with the title on the right. I'd like to credit it to /lit/ with the authors as anonymous (made clear in the preface).

>>17608249
Just need the final dimensions (and format needed) and I can do that. Pics posted here are all low res .jpg, final will print nicely.

>>17608204
nice. i like the second paragraph

>>17608325
I think >>17607775's approach was better with making the cover a different color. The white is too faint on the black and white version.

>>17608325
Either text needs to be bolder or the image needs to be darkened/colored for contrast.

Also, I think we should find a way to crop or block out the illustrator names at the bottom, they’re a bit destructing. The other two cover ideas do this in different ways.

How about:
>A /lit/ Flash Fiction Anthology
>By Anonymous

OP, how and when will royalties be paid? I'm down to my last box of cereal

>>17608843
pretty sure there's no profit but I assume you're joking

>>17608843
I was the one who submitted mine as “Anonymous”. I’d prefer BTC, but if you post your email I can also send over my venmo.

Awaiting your reply.

bump

>>17608370
Yes, for sure. I only wanted to see how it looked with the title on the right. I like this color >>17607775 but the text font seems too modern or something

>>17608339
Thank you, anon. I think the way it works is that Lulu provides a template for the cover after the dimensions and all other details are set. I made an email account litanthology@protonmail.com to send you the file. Email me so I have your account (use a dummy account or whatever you want).

Not sure if you need them but here are resources on making the cover. We don't need an ISBN.
https://lulu.boards.net/thread/581/help-dimensions-right-cover
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFtHJXweTqE

bump

looking forward to the final form
>inb4 it's a ruse and OP steals our stories to build his portfolio under his own name

>>17610716
The text font does seem a bit modern, but the older font you were using seems a bit too thin.

>>17614020
It's going to be a great anthology. I think anons have said they prefer a smaller book, so digest or pocket book is the way to go. Cream pages. The only thing left, really, is the cover and a last editing pass. I've read and lightly edited (if necessary) every story so far, but I want to do it again for typos.

I wouldn't do that. For one thing, everything can be traced back to these threads. It wouldn't do anything for my writing career except add a lot of risk. I currently have a three-book deal with an indie publisher and I'm outlining a novel that I want to sell to one of the big four. Plus this anthology has been a lot of fun and I want to do another in the future. Hope that puts any worries at ease.

I'm going to edit today and hopefully the cover anon posts again. Having /LIT/ on the spine of the book and then the title would be a nice feature. The cover should be simple but clean and effective, not far from what they posted earlier.

>>17615461
nice, good going OP

>>17607985
Yes but it’s not a hugely long book, so I don’t think it’ll make a difference. I’d like something that fits in my trouser pocket, which width/height has a huge impact on but thickness by page number doesn’t. For example, my standard penguins, even the very short ones like The Prince don’t fit in my pockets without bending, but my Macmillan Moby-Dick fits despite its length because Macmillan books have small width and height

>>17616419
>>17607985
Forgot pic

>>17616434
What about us who have a substantial hindquarters?

>>17616576
I’m mostly slim but I have a big twink ass, and I don’t have trouble

>>17616419
>>17616434
Thanks for this. I agree completely. We'll make it a pocket book unless anons have good arguments against it.

>>17616434
Based

>>17616828
>We'll make it a pocket book unless anons have good arguments against it.
Why not make it a book with pockets?

>>17615461
Editing pass done on first 11 stories. Plan to finish by Wednesday night at the latest.

I still find it funny that I managed to stumble on this anthology project despite hardly being on /lit/ and during my creative writing course.

>>17610951

Here's the latest.
Used a more classic font ('Bookman Old Style' in case anyone has any other strong font preferences)
Cropped to assume the Pocket Size (4.25"x6.87")
Left space for margin/bleed, assuming 0.5" spine for now...we'll get it exact when we have the final template.
Don't worry if the post here looks a bit pixelated, the full version is high-res

Thoughts on what to put on the back cover?

>>17619953
Should the /LIT/ on the spine be sideways as well? I'm not sure what the standard is.
For the back, maybe something else from F.S. Church, who drew the cover. Or possibly just a pattern.

>>17620091
No. But it should be in lowercase letters

>>17620111
On spines, text (such as author name or publisher) is horizontal if wide enough...I tried both ways and I think /lit/ looks better as pictured.

The text is lower case, but I’m using small-caps here (so they’re smaller versions of the capital letters). If we went true lower case we should probably do the same on the front cover.

>>17619953
It looks really good! Will think about possible tweaks. Not sure about /LIT/ vs /lit/. Lowercase might look weird.

>>17620091
Maybe lines from a poem about Pandora.

What have I done? — hush, hush, a softer sound
Another voice from the air.
Hear, thou luckless maiden, hear,
Cease thy sorrow, cease thy fear,
Tho' yon grim troop on mortal shore
Haste the tide of grief to pour,
Hope shall join the gloomy throng,
Hope shall breathe her cheering song,
And bending o'er the troubled heart,
Gently steal the poison'd dart,
Hope shall bid the tempest cease.
And whisper future hours of peace.

Still taking submissions or did you get all 50?
It's nice to see productive projects on the board. /lit/ is terminally /pol/ contaminated and I'm surprised when the catalog isn't full of twitter/frog/wojack

>>17620286
Uppercase would look much weirder and would be wrong

>>17619953
I feel the back should explain to a reader what “A /lit/ flash fiction anthology by anonymous” actually means.

What do you think of the following (open to all who want to re-write this in a better style...I just wanted to get the content down):

>This Flash Fiction Anthology is a collection of 50 short stories, all 1,000 words or less. The contributors are anonymous to the reader and to each other, yet all participated in the community which formed as this anthology took shape.

>The stories collected here have not been screened or heavily edited. Some contributors are seasoned writers, and others are just beginning. All bring unique perspectives and creative energy to the project.

>Each flash is based on a brief writing prompt, the authors are free to go wherever that prompt may lead them, the only limit is the length. Once a piece is finished, the author leaves a new prompt for others.


Also, I was thinking we could leave the last page as a list of prompts for the reader. All of the ones we didn’t get to.

>>17621067
Sounds ugly and cluttered. This crisp minimalist look is best
Why would it need a blurb? Is this intended to hit the mass market of retards who don't know what an anthology is?
I don't want some overdesigned shit on my shelf. Keep it clean and let the content speak for itself

>>17621067
>leave some prompts for the reader
What a great idea. Comfy as fuck. I don't think we should dump all unused prompts though, maybe 5-10 good ones

>>17620500
We reached 50, but one story was 100+ words over the limit and the author didn't respond when I asked if they would trim it down (they also didn't write it with this anthology in mind and got the prompt elsewhere). So, I'm replacing it with >>17608204 which was the last story posted.

>>17621067
We could do that or it could be the preface. Both are good options. I like the blurb, well done. Small grammar fixes needed in the last line though.

>>17621099
Do you think it would work better as the preface? The current preface could be improved. I want a brief explanation included somewhere in the book.

>>17621148
Good choice, it’d be a crime if the key story got left out in favor of one that didn’t really follow the format.

>>17621148
Shame I missed it. Godspeed flash anon, hope I'll be around for the sequel
>>17621161
Preface is a good place for it

>>17621148
>mfw a family member has been trying to get published for years unsuccessfully while I just wandered into a anonymous project and decided to participate because it seemed like good practice and exercise only to get published
not saying this was like a milestone achievement or anything seeing as anyone could just walk in and post, but man, I feel awful about it because they put their heart and soul into their work and I was wanting to get in good practice and feedback

>>17621099
Hmm, I like a minimalist approach the more I think about it. Maybe the subtitle for the cover should simply be "A Flash Fiction Anthology". Then a 3-4 sentence preface explains the rest. The editing pass is at 25/50.

>>17621148
put instructions in the book on how you signal another one of these is up and running so that if I decide to fuck off from /lit/ for a few months, I won't miss out

>>17621242
>deliberately encouraging people to join these threads
Sounds kind of shit desu senpai. Lurk or miss out, shit happens. Hopefully we'll get the next one and if we don't tough tit for us

>>17621242
Just check in every couple of weeks, this one lasted quite a while and it was just 50 stories, if you make a post asking if there is one at that time, someone will see who will know

>>17595558
>>17595566

>>17621352
>noooooo you can’t imply that war criminals get a better afterlife than me!
Dilate

>>17621145
>I don't think we should dump all unused prompts though, maybe 5-10 good ones
agree. perhaps we could also revive a few used by the * stories.

>>17621161
What if we put the current preface text on the back cover? It hits all the explanatory points, but OP's writing is much cleaner:
1: what is 'flash fiction'
2: these are all based on prompts
3: this is not a single anonymous author, but many

>>17621099
>I don't want some overdesigned shit on my shelf.
lol @ this thing being 'overdesigned'...
You're free to rip the cover off if you want to fully embrace minimalism, but the back covers of nearly every other book on your shelf explains what's inside...it's just what back covers do.

>>17621242

>>17621441
Low reading comp. I said it looks good and to not add a back blurb
>it's just what back covers do
Because it's a build in advertisement. Stop getting your books from barnes and noble
>how are normies supposed to know to buy it if the contents aren't promoted right in front of them?
Fuck em. This is an anthology by and for us
Put it in the preface like other anons said. That's the perfect place for it

>>17621067
I really like the last bit about leaving the remaining prompts for the reader. it's a nice way to make use of the unused prompts. The one issue I see is that OP was thinking about doing a second volume, so some of those might end up in the second volume.

>>17621686
So what? The prompts in the back of the book are just for fun

>mfw waiting for book

Is Lulu $20 minimum? It would definitely be cheaper to go with KDP on Amazon, I think you make make books $5

>>17622164
Yeah, I'm not seeing where they're getting $20. Looking at Lulu's site it seems like it should be much cheaper than that. Just look at this: https://www.lulu.com/pricing.. It seems like it should be more like $5 for a paperback or $12 for a hardcover.

>>17622377
OH NO NO NO IT WAS A SCAME ALL ALONG
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

>>17622539
OP was transparent about this from the beginning, what were you expecting?

And so, OP published the works that were not of his own, and the avant garde world of English prose ate it up. And OP made Millions, and came to live in a Mansion with a hot spouse on works that were not of his own effort. And as for the people who participated? Well, some say they're still ass blasted to this day. But that's a story for another time.

T H E E N D

https://blog.reedsy.com/lulu-publishing/

>>17622164
>>17622377
You're right, I'm seeing around $10 for a paperback. The last time I used the pricing tool, it was for a hardcover version, which was the original plan. I'm glad paperback is much cheaper because more people will read it. As I said recently in this thread, the price will be the lowest possible that Lulu allows, within the formatting we want. Paperback, pocket book, around 160 pages, cream paper, it should be about $10 according to the calculator.

I'm guessing the authors and other anons will want a print version. We should collectively decide on release strategy. I'm thinking at the moment of print version first then ebook a couple weeks later, or no ebook at all to make it more exclusive and special to get the physical copy. I prefer the latter option, but we'll go with what everyone else wants. If there is going to be an ebook, it should be released a bit after the physical so people who ordered the physical aren't late to reading it.

>>17624213
$5.99 USD not including shipping. I have no idea about Lulu's shipping costs but assume they are reasonable.

https://www.4channel.org/advertise

If we had a small mark-up, we could re-direct proceeds toward 4ch banner ads (and, as a bonus, we might see less of F. Gardner)

If we get enough copies out, it will likely improve the prospects for future volumes

>>17624213
Why not just immediately release the ebook? You've got the file, and anons who want to read it immediately can just do so, regardless of whether they ordered the paperback. Also, not sure why this is even a question now. Every OP has said that there will be a free digital version.

>>17624351
Anyone who wants to read it immediately can go to the older threads. All the stories have been posted for free.

>>17624341
Not a bad idea, but I have doubts about the effectiveness of ads here. We'll see how other anons feel about it.

>>17624637
Which is why it makes no sense to delay the digital version

>>17624748
Yeah, if the digital version is delayed, I feel like someone from here would just compile a pdf.

Is the A Stray Dog Wants to Become a Samurai author here? The text is confusing about whether or not the dog is fighting for the emperor.

>>17627098
He accidentally helped the Imperial faction by getting in the way of the Shogunate remnant force which had meant to fight for.

>>17627359
Got it, thanks! That's what I thought happened but I wanted to be sure it wasn't a mix up.

Editing pass is at 33/50

>>17607486
Never heard of Coronameron. Has /lit/ made other community written books before?

>>17628368
Yeah, I compiled a bunch of them a while ago: >>/lit/thread/S17435133#p17440394.. They're good for a laugh but there isn't much quality in there. The Flyting Thread one is funny through and has some good poetry.

>>17628465
Impressive, good work.
Do you expect this anthology to be of equal, or higher quality than these previous collected works?

>>17628488
I think it's far higher quality than the other things. As far as I can tell, most of the other works were just written in a public Google doc, so there was no editing or quality control at all. Most is just pure shitposting.

>>17607705
I've been back and forth on it, but I think this version is the best. The lettering is crisp and minimal. Is it possible for cover anon to try with the title on the top part of the image? That might help balance the space.

>>17629108
Meant the one after (Evil and Good) >>17607775

>>17573960
What's the final gamer word count?

>>17629495
30,599 words and 15 left to edit. Hopefully it will be up on Lulu by the end of the week or weekend.

>>17608325
The title placement of this is appealing to me, although I feel it could use some padding, as to not hug the rightside edge as much. This solely pertains to the placement however, as I'm very impressed by the most recent iteration.

I'm fairly new to /lit/ but quite excited by this project. I can't wait to be able to place an order. Is it possible to allow for both a softcover and a hardback version to be purchasable?

>>17629643
godspeed OP. speaking of quality, should there be standards? few stories here are actually good, most are mediocre to boring (including mine), and there are some that are just kinda bad. you also sound too kind/lenient in your responses to all the stories. then again i'm aware this isn't a place for critique, and that judging pieces like a proper journal would raise questions about who the judge might be and defeat the fun of it all. i'm fine with how we're doing it now. just some thoughts

>>17629807
Vetting by votes would be my recommendation. An end all, be all arbiter is basically asking to sanitize the end result
Let people vote on what's good enough to make it in
Though this should all be for a sequel. Just send this one

>>17629807
Not OP, but I think that even if they're meh, it's still fine. We'd be waiting for quite a while if we only took the highest quality submissions. There's only one that I can think of that should be pulled: >>/lit/thread/S17455716#17457399 (Unexpected Catch III).

>>17629807
There’s something I like about it being unfiltered. No one was trying to please any editor, they just wrote what they wanted. Some were beautiful...and some were Unexpected Catch III.

It’s actually shocking how good the overall quality was. I suspect that the shitposting may go up if there’s a second volume. It’s probably far too late to include voting for this one, but how would you propose it would work if we try it in the future? We’d have to contend with samefagging, anons being different each day, and the thread being split between new entries and butthurt rejects.

>>17629807
The quality is much higher than I anticipated. In my view, there are many strong stories. I'm very impressed with the styles and storytelling skills. There are many grammar mistakes and typos, but they are easily fixed. One of my favorite stories needed a lot of minor edits. The completely ridiculous stories like An Ape Farts Loudly in the Human’s Ears are few and add balance. The variety is a big factor in how fun the anthology is to read.

>>17629944
While that system has benefits, I wouldn't run an anthology that way. I think there would be too much bickering in the threads, camps would form, and potential contributors would be driven away. The focus should be on the writing. It's a community activity and positive energy is essential. I also set out to encourage anons who don't write much or are nervous about it to write something fun in a low pressure, low commitment project. They often have great storytelling skills and are rough around the edges with grammar, which is perfectly fine with me. I could implement higher standards in the next one, depending on the volume of stories, but this one went so well that I'm not sure if I'd change anything.

>>17629945
That one is borderline in my view, but it's also silly and juvenile in a way that adds a breather in the middle of the collection and contrasts against other stories, highlighting their qualities. It also reminds the reader that the anthology is not meant to please everyone. It's okay if they don't enjoy every single story. I will also say that Unexpected Catch III is not boring.

>>17630419
Incredibly based anon. I assume you have all the stories compiled and together? Please tell me you have a version where they haven't been edited
As a bit of a shitter, I'd love to be able to look through a collection of pre and post edit works. Especially mostly amateur ones

>>17630502
Not OP, but I know many of the submissions were edited/revised by the authors in subsequent posts...idk what you would consider the raw version to be.

>>17630614
Sounds like OP has spent a decent amount of time editing. I'm sure they were rough enough to be good practice for identifying mistakes before he started

>>17629108
I’ve got a few versions here for the hive-mind to react to.

[ORIG]
>no change from post above

[ALT1]
>title in top right (contrast not great, but I could darken behind if needed)
>/lit/ true lower-case and un-rotated on spine
>preface text as placeholder on back, centered

[ALT2]
>title in bold font, centered
>/lit/ in true lower-case on front
>/lit/ rotated on spine
>bold back text, red font, paragraph format
>added image to back

Goal wasn’t to create only three options, i tried to address as many ideas as possible, so tell me the best elements of each.

>>17630725
I dislike pretty much every change in both variations
Original nailed it

>>17630415
if we actually implement voting, believe me, only a few people would actually bother to post any stories.

>>17630725
I like the original cover, but ALT1 is also good.

>>17630725
I'm a fan of the new position of the title on ALT1, and the backside introduction as well. I felt the rotated /lit/ had a romantic quality to it, but I do prefer it to be lowercase.

I personally am not for neither the new fonts, or the illustration on the back of ALT2

>>17630725
Prefer the original one, except for a lowercase /lit/ on the spine (horizontal and vertical both look good).
Wouldn't mind a back-cover text, but as it is in the alternatives the text is too big or centered (and I prefer how the mirrored back-cover image is less obscured by white in the original)

>>17630725
alt 1 because I don't know what the fuck /LIT/ is

>>17630725
lowercase /lit/ please

>>17632370
So I’m hearing:
>Front: ORIG or ALT1.
>Spine: ALT2 (keep rotated, but lower case /lit/)
>Back: ALT1 (though try to make the white a bit more transparent)

Is it ok to keep /lit/ in small caps on the cover (as long as we change on the spine)? Changing to true-lower, as I did in ALT2, looks kinda sloppy...

Any edits to the text/layout of the back on ALT1?

>>17630725
Have you considered pic related text variation? Thank you for all the work!

Other than that, I like ALT2 spine and ORIG back. The back can be blank because there is a preface, which I think is good to have inside as an introduction.

>>17630502
You could screen cap or webpage save or something the archived /ffa/ threads. A good number of stories are still available that way.

>>17632491
[ALT3]
>true lower case for spine and bottom of cover
>rear cover less transparent
>added glow around text to make it more legible (I think it looks gimmicky, lmk if any of you like it)
>changed the text a bit (again, lmk if this is making it better or worse)

>>17632971
Will try that next
If no text on back, should it still be lightened or just a full-color reflection of the front cover?

>>17630725
I like the ALT3 spine, ALT1 cover, and ALT1 back the best.
I do think that the white on the back should be pure white (with the fade around the edges). It looks a bit weird as it is.
It also might be a good idea to move the bottom bit about "A /lit/ Flash Fiction Anthology By Anonymous" down a bit so it's not covering the box. Not sure if that would work though.

>>17633077
There’s room to move down a bit more before we get to the margin/bleed...I’ll give it a shot

>>17633106
[ALT4]
>title centered at top
>subtitle/author lowered
>back just a reflection of front

[ALT5]
>title and subtitle moved to top
>back cover changed to pure white w/ faded border

>>17633342
The back and spine of ALT5 look good, but the cover of ALT4 is better. The subtitle on ALT5 is a bit too hard to see against the background. I think ALT1 still has the best placement for the main title, since that way it's on a consistent background.

Bump

>>17634848
While this thread is focusing on editing and formatting the anthology, I (not editor-anon) started a thread for those who want to continue creating and reading new flash fiction.

The editing is done. However, the quotation marks go back and forth between " and “. I'm going to go back and make them consistent. Hopefully I'll catch all the aberrants. I left regional spelling differences, like realize vs. realise, to respect each author's style.

Somehow I included a repeat story, so #46 will be filled by >>17599610

>>17635002
consistently “”, I hope; thanks for the effort

>>17634897
Thank you! Great idea.

bump