Micro Fiction Challenge: Golden Sombrero Results
Posted by David Duhr in 
Welp, April is nearly over and I’m just now remembering that we have an open Micro Fiction Challenge, ye olde golden sombrero of March 31st. But hey, seems like a lot of y’all forgot about it too, as we have only seven entries for this one.
Seven good ones, though, and as usual it was difficult to choose a winner. With bonus points to J. Sommers for making us laugh and to Monica Teresa Ortiz for going a bit deeper, this week’s winner is … Jane Hilton! Jane made us giggle with her punchy tale of (what we assume to be) a couple’s breakup during an alien apocalypse:
“Those UFOs look like golden sombreros,” he said, looking up at the attackers.
“Fourth goddamn time you’ve said that,” she grumbled. “Listen, we need to …”
We were impressed by several things here: UFO makes a good word in micro fiction, a three-in-one package; “looking up at the attackers” imparts a goodly amount of knowledge in a short time; and we giggled at Jane’s decision to use “goddamn” instead of having her 25th word wrap the story up neatly. What does “she” grumble to “he” to close that line? I think it’s “talk,” as she’s about to give him the old “it’s not you, it’s me” while laser beams tear through people all around them. Or perhaps it’s “run?” Or read, or lean and loaf, or accentuate the positives–it could be anything. And that’s what makes this story work so well.
Jane Hilton, email us to claim your prize (a free 10-page proofread). The rest of y’all, thanks for playing, and check back early next week for the month of May’s Micro Fiction Challenge! (See how I just seamlessly made this thing monthly?)