Tag Archives: Jude Higgins

Hermit-Crab Hangouts

picture of a red crab in the yellow shell of another creature

picture by David Clode, Unsplash

A Hermit crab, lives in the empty shells of other sea creatures. A hermit crab flash fiction story finds a home in the form of some other kind of prose. Recipes are used quite commonly to create fictions. For example, stories about relationships, romance, break ups. Just think of those recipe verbs, fold, mix, sprinkle, whisk, bake, simmer, stew, beat…

We’re running The Great Festival Cup Cake Contest through May, June, July and August for a Hermit-crab style 150 word max micro in the form of a cup-cake recipe. £5.00 an entry with half the proceeds (minus paypal charges) going to the winner and half to the Huntington’s Disease Association charity. Book bundle donated by Ad Hoc Fiction for the runner up. Closing date 31st August. Diane Simmons, one of our festival directors, who was also a judge for the flash-off challenges on the first festival day in March, is judging this competition.

Woman with chin length greay hair smiling. Sparkly necklace.

Jude Higgins

Our other Flash Festival Director, Jude Higgins is now running a FREE hour-long hermit-crab hangout every Thursday 5.00 pm – 6.00 pm BST, Beginning Thursday 6th May for those who want to try out their hermit-crab recipe flash fictions. We’ll cover ideas for light and fluffy, dense, funny, sweet, salty, surreal, speculative, dark and historical cup cake micros using a variety of cup-cake recipes. We’ll also try out other styles of hermit-crab shells, which could be combined with a recipe. For eg. a multiple-choice recipe story or other types of instructions and lists. Bring your ideas and your recipes. Contact Jude {at} flashfictionfestival {dot} com for a recurring zoom link. Hope to see you there for some flashy fun!

share by email

Our First Flash-Off Winners!

Photo by tuva-mathilde-loland, Unsplash

Diane Simmons and Robert Barrett were our Great Festival Flash-Off judges on the first festival day, March 27th. They set three writing challenges: The Signature Challenge which Diane judged, The Technical Challenge which Robert judged and The Showstopper which they judged jointly. Writers had one week to complete their stories and we had a substantial amount of entries for each category. Thanks so much to everyone who gave it a go. And thank you very much to our judges for their great prompts and for taking on their own challenge of cloning Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith from The Great British Bake Off (which inspired the three writing tasks). Many congratulations to the winners! Virtual celebratory cake and fireworks for all!
Read in Full

share by email

Great Festival Flash Off Anthology!

Great news for all Festival Flashers! Ad Hoc Fiction, our award winning short-short press will be publishing an anthology of flash fictions from the Great Festival Flash Off. It will be available to buy from the adhocfiction bookshop and on Amazon worldwide in kindle and paperback. And as with all our competition anthologies, all contributors will receive a free copy of the book, posted worldwide.

To be included:

  • the winning and short listed stories from the three Flash Off challenges each month, selected by the wonderful monthly judge-duos;
  • stories submitted that were started by participants in any of the workshops on the six festival days;
  • the winners and shortlisted from the ‘Cupcake’ micro contest.

The ‘Cupcake micro’ contest is undergoing an exciting re-vamp currently and more details will be posted about that shortly.

This anthology will join three others from our face-to-face festivals. Jude is pictured in festive attire with them here.

Do book to be in with a chance of winning a prize and being published in our anthology.

If cost is a barrier to participating in any of the days, contact us. We have some free places for each month of the series.

share by email

Summer Solstice Stories with Jude Higgins

photograph by Royston Hunt www.earthnotes.co.uk

Last minute opportunity! Join an extended version of the workshop I was going to offer at our cancelled festival, on Zoom on the day of the Summer Solstice, Saturday 20th June 3.30 pm – 6.00 pm BST. I like writing flash fictions inspired by myths, dreams and fairy tales and have had several published. Most recently my micro ‘Persephone Holds a Q & A on Zoom’ on NFFD 2020 Flash Flood. I’d love to enthuse you all to tap into this rich vein and write fiction on the longest day of the year, when myth abounds.
Booking for this workshop now closed. Contact Jude (jude at judehiggins dot com) if you want information about other workshops she might run

During the time we’ll take a brief look at summer solstice stories and the ways mythological stories are structured and I’ll give you four exercises and ideas to create your own contemporary summer solstice flash fiction myths.

You’ll have writing time in the main group, followed by time in small break-out groups after each writing exercise to meet other flash fiction writers from around the world to chat and share or discuss your drafts. You’ll come away with four new drafts and also, within the price of the ticket, you’ll have an opportunity to get feedback from me on one draft after the workshop if you send me your piece.

It will be a fast, fun and friendly session.50 places maximum. Beginners and experienced writers welcome. All proceeds go to funds for next year’s festival which we plan to organise for June 2021. £30.

Find out more about the three other things happening during the festival weekend. Flash Fiction Festival Friday Readings with presenters who would have run workshops at the cancelled festival. June 19th.
Novella in Flash readings, Sunday June 21st
Free micro contest with lovely prizes. Open now. Closed June 18th. Announced June 20th.
Find out more about me and my other workshops at judehiggins.com

share by email

New Raffle Prizes for the Flash Fiction Festival

We’ve already been given some great raffle prizes, which are listed on our sponsors’ page, which you link to from the banners on our home page, and we now have some more prizes described below. We’re donating to Air Ambulances South West this year, a charity supported by Hall and Woodhouse, who haves sponsored a full price place at this year’s festival and have donated a £40 voucher for an evening meal in one of their restaurants

It’s Ad Hoc Fiction’s fourth birthday this week and as well as donating their services to compile the Festival Anthology Three after this year’s festival they are also donating a birthday bottle of ‘Ad Hoc Pinot Noir’ for the raffle. We think writers who have not had their 150 word micros accepted for the ebook some weeks, may find the label of this bottle fitting.

Thank you also to Nancy Stohlman, Damhnait Monaghan, Santino Prinzi, Jude Higgins, Tara Laskowski, Nod Ghosh and Michelle Elvy who are donating books.

And a further thank you to Nod Ghosh who is also donating some of the lovely glass pendants she makes. Some examples of them are pictured here.

share by email

Flash Fiction Festival 2018

We were thrilled with the success of the Flash Fiction Festival, this year entirely funded by Bath Flash Fiction Award, and directed by Jude Higgins with the help of a great festival team.The festival took place at Trinity College, Bristol 20th-22nd July. Everything was brilliant, including the weather. The full programme of events began with readings on Friday evening and continued with workshop, talks, book launches and general fun with very popular impromptu festival karaoke organised by Helen Rye and Christopher Allen.

    Participants and workshop leaders travelled from many different parts of the world to come to the festival. Here’s Roberta Beary, who came from Ireland, with our festival curator, Meg Pokrass.

Read in Full

share by email