At each of the Flash Fiction Festivals (2017, 2018 and 2019) we’ve run a festival-long micro contest. This year, because the Festival was cancelled, it’s online and free for all flash enthusiasts whether you have been to the festival or not. Open for entries now and closing on Thursday 18th June at midnight BST. .

Your challenge Write a micro 150 words maximum prompted by the images in the photograph of the cacti garden in Arizona below.

The Rules: A previously unpublished piece pasted into the body of an email (no attachments) sent to
jude at flashfictionfestival dot com Up to 150 words. Subject line ‘Festival Micro’. No communication with the judge about the story. No author names on the stories, no stories accepted after the deadline of midnight BST, 18th June.

Your judge: Jude Higgins, Festival Director, pictured above holding the three festival anthologies.

The Prizes:
The first prize winner will receive ‘The Arizona Garden Collection’ a box of 12 beautiful notelets (including a card of the image reproduced here) generously donated by photographer Royston Hunt and the winning micro published on his blog to accompany the picture.(Check out his website to see this collection and all the cards he has for sale). In addition s the winner will receive one copy of any of the three flash fiction festival anthologies published by Ad Hoc Fiction

Two runners up will receive one copy of any of the three festival anthologies.

Results announced on Saturday morning, 20th June.
(Other festival events you might be interested in include Summer Solstice Stories, a workshop with Jude 20th June.
Flash Fiction Festival Friday, 19th June. Readings from festival presenters
Novella-in-Flash readings with authors from Ad Hoc Fiction, V, Press and Truth Serum Press, Sunday 21st June).

photograph by Royston Hunt www.earthnotes.co.uk