Micro/Flash Fiction 2

Chasing Death, by Kimberly Holt-Whitlock
http://www.wingedhalo.com/mag/chasing.html

This flash fiction is about a child dealing with it's mother's death. The child and the father are the main characters. The child is waiting for the mother to return, not fully understanding that she is gone. The conflict is within the child, since it struggles to understand the death of its mother. The child simply believes that the mother is sad and crying, as she had in the past, and will return. The father explains that she is not coming back. The child chases the hearse down the road until it disappears and the child is unable to run anymore. The father consoles the child and says that death cannot be chased away, which is the theme of the story. Death is a part of life and cannot be escaped. However people react and deal with death in different ways. A child may not accept it, an adult is able to as adults have more life experience. This flash fiction is very short but still conveys a powerful message about how death is part of life.

Micro/Flash Fiction 3

Fog, by Alice Whittenburg
http://www.pifmagazine.com/SID/522/

Fog is a story about a man who is captured by fear. For years his fear held him prisoner in his room. For years he lived this way, missing only the varying natural light of the day. The man is the main character and he is not very complicated. He allows his fear to control his life, and lives in the dark, until he hears of a fog approaching the city. The fog completely envelopes the city and the man is hypnotized by it. Intrigued, he opens his blinds and allows the light into his room. A filtered, gray light fills his room. He finds the fog and the gray light comforting. He seems dependent on it, listening to the weather each day hoping that the fog will continue. The presence of the fog makes a difference in the man. He dreams that the fog gives him freedom to enjoy the outside world. He dreams of being a part of the fog and observing the outside world. He is drunk on the fog and obsessed. The fog becomes a crisis for the city but gives this man a new outlook on life. He tries to bring the fog into his home, but is not very successful. Wanting more and more of the fog he leans out his window and immerses himself in it. In a euphoric state he throws himself out into the fog. Having the fog around removed the man's fear, but when he throws himself into the fog, his fear returns. The man is more in tune to the fact that his fear returned than the fact that he is falling. Based on the fog's effect on the man and the way it is described (feels like the tail of a gray cat), it can be classified as a character. The conflicts are between the man and his fear. Fog has a theme of fear and the effect that it can have on you. Fog also shows how you can overcome your fear but how having no fear can be dangerous (the man's fearless obsession with the fog leads to his death).

Micro/Flash Fiction 4

Bath, by Mary L. Hamilton
http://www.rumble.sy2.com/stories/bath.html

Bath is about the character Marisol taking a bath. The elements are described in great detail such as how her movements affect the water. The work takes place in a bathroom tub. The main character is Marisol, however the water in the tub could be seen as a character also. The water is characterized in several ways. Metaphorically the water is described as a lukewarm blanket. The water crashes as tiny waves against the tub walls and invades Marisol's ears. The mood begins as very tranquil and relaxing, then moves to a very chaotic, conflicting feeling. The tranquil, relaxing feeling is generated from the description of the lavender bath salts filling the room and Marisol's body. The mood changes to being more chaotic once Marisol enters the tub and the water begins to rage. The conflict can be described as between the water and Marisol. With every movement of Marisol's body the water reacts, either subtly or crashing into the tub. Mary Hamilton efficiently turns an everyday activity into an epic journey.