The Sunshine Award
Hi all. I was recently given the sunshine award by fellow blogger friend Jennifer Eaton. Please go check out her blog! She writes a lot of helpful posts for writers.
Taking a cue from her, I’ve decided to have a little fun with this award. :)
The rules are fairly simple:
1.) Thank the person who gave you this award and link back to them in your post (Done!)
2.) Tell us some things about yourself. (Done! See below)
3.) Nominate 10 bloggers (I’m turning this one on its head –thanks to Jennifer’s great idea. See below)
4.) Let these lovely people know they’ve been nominated (New twist. See below)
So, without further ado… a few things about myself that I haven’t told you already:
1.) I secretly like getting caught in the rain. I walked for a mile in the rain with my toddler today. My husband thought I was crazy.
2.) I’m a rabid Emily Dickinson fan. She’s amazing.
3.) I love Downton Abbey. Did I tell you that already? 
4.) I have secret plans to rewrite a famous Edith Wharton book with fairies. *grins*
5.) My seventeen-month-old learned how to kiss this week. I’m smitten.
So, instead of just nominating 10 bloggers, I’ve decided to host a little contest instead. Tell me, can YOU be sunny?
If so, show me! Post 100 words or less of flash fiction in the comment section below (no pressure –all in good fun) and I’ll pick the top 10 for the Sunshine Award. The only requirement? You use the word “sunshine” somewhere in that hundred words.
So excited! I’ll leave this open till next Saturday, so you have an entire week to get your comment in. I’ll announce the winners next weekend. If more than 10 people enter, I’ll try to get a poll up for you all to vote.
(Oh, and if less than 10 people respond, then everyone wins! Yay, readers!)
UPDATE: To make it more fun, I’ve decided to throw in a gently used copy of Word Painting: A Guide to Writing More Descriptively by Rebecca McClanahan to the person with the top flash fiction pick. Good luck guys!
I am so impressed. Way to do a call to action. You’ve really knocked Robert’s Day 12 assignment out of the park. ;~) I’ll think about it for a day or so and come up with something.
Yay! Thanks April! Can’t wait to hear what you come up with.
So your baby is giving you kisses now, and I’ll bet they are sloppy ones, too
They are the best kind. Congrats on that milestone, and on your sunshine award as well. You really are a ray of sunshine! 
Aww, thankies. They are sloppy ones! It’s one of the few times in life when I don’t mind that drool is smeared all over my lips and cheeks. So precious.
Congrats on your award! Now that’s a new twist on the awards… smart lady.
I’m allergic to contests so I’ll be cheering from the peanut gallery.
Thanks, Elizabeth. I have to give the credit to Jennifer, though –she’s the super smart lady in question.
It took a lot of convincing to get her to come all this way to Cabo San Lucas with us. But as we watch her dine on the terrace overlooking the pristine beach, awash in sunshine with undulating waves racing merrily to shore, we knew it was well worth the effort. Already she looks less tense. There is laughter in her eyes again. She has developed some color just from lying by the pool in the afternoon.
She needed to leave it all behind, albeit for a week. Working on the documents, packing away his things, any and all traces of their life together, the creditors, the lawyers. Surely, they can all wait.
YAY! The first flash entry. Congrats, Mary-Ann. I love the imagery. Amazing how such a short flash peice can give you glimpses into an entire story behind the scenes.
Valerie lifted her face to the warm sunshine and took a long breath. She smiled as Reuben reached over and covered her hand with his own. She had worried about possible sea sickness, but the cruise ship seemed as steady as her own front porch. To think she had been considering divorce just 6 short months ago. When Joshua, their youngest, left for college, she had become unbearably lonely. Her husband was seldom home and never seemed to have time for her. She had been sure he was having an affair with his store manager, a young, pretty, single mother.
Ah, more, more! Flash is such a tease. I was just getting sucked into the details about her ex-hubby. Thanks for entering, April!
A cavern of sorts. Off to the left was a scree of old fruit jars cascading from the break in the ceiling. A beam of sunlight cracked through the forest floor above and sent gold flecks of dust to bury the memories. Joe chuckled. “Looks as if we found an ol’ distillery’s bottle return.” Bob added, “And it looks like the kids have found out about the chillin’ properties of natural springs.” Bob angled for a 6-pack midstream. Stepping into sunshine, a sound belched out of the natural echo-chamber. Made grown men’s skin crawl into goose flesh.
Of course the 100 word limit…makes my last sentence seem as if the sound stepped out into the sunshine instead of the men! LOL I will recycle this idea for the Gamely Thursdays section of my own blog! And give you full credit, of course.
Oh, what a vivid picture — I can totally see these guys. Such a creepy cool setting, too. I can totally picture high-schoolers making out there on weekends.
Thanks for entering, Lara!
I know –darn word limits. I hate the things myself (obviously, if you’ve ever seen me post my MS word count – *ducks head in shame*).
Fun contest, but I’m swamped. Just want to say I love your blog. Met you through Bob’s challenge!
Thanks, Lynn. I’ll be sure to stop by your blog. Yay, MNINB challenge 2012!
The sand formed a gleaming, golden carpet, frayed at the edges by the lapping waves of the ocean. Gulls hung on the air, silent, white tick marks on a blanket of blue.
Francine sighed and dropped the teasing postcard to the floor, returning her attention to the view outside.
Rain hammered the conservatory windows with a dreary monotony that made the light hearted message from her daughter all the more smug. When would England finally get some sunshine?!
~o.O I don’t think I’ve ever written something that short in my life. Yikes!
Love this, Ileandra. Like I’ve said before, you have a way with description!
Hey there,
I stumbled on your little contest while going though the wordpress readomatic (or whatever it`s called now) thing. And thought I`d give it a shot.
He pushed the rusted screen door open and stepped out of the porch into the bright morning sunshine. Hand shading his eyes he looked down the lane, saw her walking slowly up to the house.
Barefoot, shoes dangling in one hand, bottle hooked tight in the other. Her dress flapped and fluttered, wind lifted it, exposed the fresh red welts on white thighs. She stumbled every few steps.
He started to head out towards her, to take hold, to make her safe. But stopped himself.
She saw. Her chin lifted, raw, split lips parted, sun reflected off her serpentine smile.
later gators.
Thanks for stopping by, Craig! Welcome to my corner of the digital universe.
I’ll be posting winners next weekend.
I love this idea, but my fiction is so…not sunny. Not that it’s depressing, per se. It’s just rarely “chipper”.
That said, I have no entry, but I applaud your idea.
Did you see Craig’s? His was “dark” sunny. You could do beach zombies!
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Oh, bless you Craig. E.B. – this is a fun little challenge. Thanks for the chance to flex some flash fiction muscles!
–
“I know when you’re going to die,” he said, glancing up at her. “Saw it last night, in my dream.”
Katy looked at her nine-year-old nephew. Caught in the afternoon sunshine, his eyes were too clear, too bright for the solemn nature of his words.
“That’s awful, Peter. Was it a scary dream?”
He shook his head. “No details, but it’ll happen soon. Very soon.”
“Why are you telling me?”
“So you’ll be ready,” he replied, shrugging. His pink mouth held a half smile.
“Well, thanks for the tip.” Katy sighed and ran her fingers through his hair. “You weirdo.”
Love this! Thanks for entering. Amazing you did so much with dialogue in such a short space. I’m always amazed at the creativity of writers. We could rule the world if we banded together.
Here’s a stab at it. Thanks for the fun challenge!
The early morning sunshine flickered across Dad’s face, but he didn’t seem to notice or care. His eyes were fixed on the salt shaker, looking but not seeing. He took a long, strident slurp from his mug. Ellie, as she watched him, was reminded of a story she had read years before about a clarinetist who could sustain a note indefinitely by being able to exhale through her mouth while inhaling through her nose. Ellie wondered if her father shared this gift, when he disappointed her by pausing to swallow and sigh.
Thanks for entering, Mike. This is so fun! I know most of your genres, so it’s interesting to see what writers from each genre bring to the table. I just love Ellie’s internal thoughts here about whether her dad can exhale through his mouth while inhaling through his nose like a clarinetest.
Sunny? Or not sunny? Well, if nothing else this was a fun break!
Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy. Sunshine in my eyes makes me seriously pissed off. If this stupid photo shoot wasn’t over soon, I was literally going to die. My cell had been off for like 20 minutes. A whole generation of gossip will be dead and gone by the time I catch up. Mom had totally screwed me over by getting all famous and stuff with her teen lit book, Urgent Kisses. The only thing that book made we want to do urgently was throw up. Making out was pretty much ruined forever.
Wow! What an awesome voice –this totally sounds like a teenager. That’s hard to do, especially in less than 100 words. Thanks for entering, Lauri!
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I’m just getting used to this Blog which is full of good stuff. I like your reponses to the award. And well done on receiving it
Thanks, Peter!
Found your link thru the MNINB group. Here’s my flash:
We anchor ourselves together brace against the wind swim the sunshine to the secret place that grows the wildest, whitest, fawn lilies.
Down the hill, a narrow path, between blistered, granite cliffs, the thick scent of the sea in an undulating landscape of trees and mosses.
The lilies fade to eye-shut tight white
In my left hand a scepter of wild blooms. In my right hand a message from the wind:
Bow down, bow down, bow down to the breeze.
I breathe the sea, I cast myself into my senses. The bouquet is complete. A merry melody in my hand.
Wow, I think I can taste the salt and smell the sea air. Lovely, Veronica! Thanks for entering.
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