I am back with more stories every day. Getting back into the swing of podcasting after a break. I haven’t stopped writing things, just not these and not publishing. Please listen to the podcast to get an update on my plans. I have had a lot of new followers and subscribers while I was on hiatus. I will get to your mentions, but right now I just want to get this story written and tell you about Flash Fiction and some plans regarding that.

One thing I will tell you today is that I am going to have Flash August Fiction. I’m going to promote it in case anyone wants to join me in doing some flash fiction that month. You might know that I had Flash Fiction February, where I did 29 brand new stories and podcasts in 29 days. In August, there will be 30 brand new stories and podcasts in 30 days. Maybe you want to experiment with that and try some with me. I hope so.

I’m not some kind of self-appointed writing guru with some kind of program or plan for you to become a great writer or something, but this is a great way to keep your head clear and explore your subconscious. I think of it as trying to see what my subconscious mind is trying to tell me.

A personal “formula” of sorts did arise from this, and I’ll get into that, but what is yours? You’ll probably have some kind of pattern if you do it with any consistency. I want to have that conversation. Mostly, I’m not as interested in the mechanics of writing as I am the phenomenon of the imagination, and how thoughts are derived and where they come from. That is a mystery worth exploring for me.

What is Flash Fiction?

You pick a word or a scene from a dream you may have had, and you just immediately start writing without any plan, and then see what transpires from that. It’s about 200–1200 words. I usually do mine in the early hours of the morning. Most days, I’m up about an hour before sunrise. I take a couple of notes about the first thoughts in my head, and then I take care of a few morning things and come back to my pad and start writing. Sometimes I write on location. I’ll have my phone with me, and if I’m in some secluded place, on a hike, or taking a walk, I'll tell the story. I simply make one up. That’s easy because people think I’m talking on the phone.

I’ll bet you can do that. Get in there and do a few of these. Maybe you’ll get addicted. We can tag each other, promote our stories together, and have a really nice time.

Finally, these are the worst of times I’ve ever lived through, collectively, as a country. It’s probably going to get really weird. This is the time that I have to encourage you to Smell the Inside of Your Nose. Do it Right now. Breathe, baby, breathe. We have to live as though things are going along normally, but there’s that stuff in our subconscious that we don’t want to suppress; we have to clear that out. Maybe a little Flash Fiction will help you deal with all of that.

I’m Herschel Sterling, and I’m here to help.

I wish you peace and safety and whatever love you can find.

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