November's Death Match

I've been scratching my head for the last couple weeks, trying to figure out how to get people to compete this month. It's November (which you probably know) and most of my writing friends are, like myself, wrapped up in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I'm thinking they're all so busy, they aren't going to be in any mood to write a new flash piece for this month's competition.


So I had an idea.


Compete with your novel.


Whether your a NaNo participant or just happen to have an awesome novel you'd like to throw into the ring, this is your chance! This month, submit the first 1,000 words (you may finish a sentence/paragraph if necessary) of your NaNo novel or non-NaNo novel. Any topic allowed, it must, however, be a true YA piece. No need to edit, keep it nice and raw, in it's original state. We'll all understand.


If you'd like to compete this month PLEASE read through the rules to make sure you've got it right.


IF you have a blog, post it to the blog by Wednesday, November 17th at Noon CST and send the link to karlykirkpatrick@gmail.com. Make sure to put FLASH LINK in the subject.


IF you DON'T have a blog, but would like to participate, email me your story by Wednesday, November 17th at Noon CST and I'll post it to the YA Flash site. Email it to karlykirkpatrick@gmail.com with the subject FLASH STORY.


All stories will be posted for voting on Thursday, November 18 and will remain open until Wednesday, November 24th at Noon CST. Only votes that fall between those dates/times will count. No anonymous votes can count.


Prizes: If we get 10 or more entries, I will announce the top 3 as winners and they will be invited to join the YA Death Flash Anthology ebook. The Grand Prize Winner (the one with the top votes) will also get a signed copy of the paperback, Into the Shadows, my debut novel. I will announce the winners on Friday, November 26th.


Now's your chance to put your baby out there and see if your story and writing has what it takes! Tell your friends, family and followers to stop by from November 18-24 to cast their vote! Good luck!

Game ON! Get Writing!

 Thanks to J.L. Jackson for coming up with this month's story idea!

You should now write 1,000 words or less on "CAMPING TRIP GONE WRONG."  Make sure it's for a YA audience!

 There are two ways to enter your story:

-If you have a personal blog, post the story there and email at (karlykirkpatrick@gmail.com) me the title and the link. Be sure to write (FLASH LINK) in the subject.

-If you don't have a personal blog, email me at (karlykirkpatrick@gmail.com) the entire story and I will post it here. Be sure to write (FLASH STORY) in the subject.

*To be eligible to participate as a YA Flash Death Match contestant, one must follow this blog in addition to following Karly Kirkpatrick and Michelle Sussman on either Facebook, Twitter, or our personal blogs. See the Details and Rules page for links! These rules will also be posted there for future reference.

stories/links are due to me no later than Sunday, September 19th at noon CST.


Voting will take place starting Monday, September 20th through Sunday, September 26th.

YA Flash's New Format!

After some careful consideration, I've decided to make some changes to how YA Flash Death Match operates, as well as up the ante on the prize. The goal of this site was to give unpublished YA writers a chance to be seen and read by others. Our first two Death Matches provided us with some great fiction, but I feel like we can do more.

With the new YA Flash Death Match, each month instead of being a contest between two writers, I'm turning into a Brawl for All. All of you can compete, every month. You may be in a Death Match between 3 writers or 20. Each month, you will have a week to suggest topics, a week to write your 1000 word or less YA flash fiction piece, and a week to vote.  Please note, you do not need to suggest a topic to participate. 


There are two ways to enter your story:

-If you have a personal blog, post the story there and email at (karlykirkpatrick@gmail.com) me the title and the link.  Be sure to write (FLASH LINK) in the subject.

-If you don't have a personal blog, email me at (karlykirkpatrick@gmail.com) the entire story and I will post it here.  Be sure to write (FLASH STORY) in the subject.


Once the stories are posted, anyone can vote, once, for the best flash. The story with the most comments is the big winner! Anonymous voters will NOT be counted. You can compete every month if you like. There will be no limits.

The winner will receive an invitation to be published in the YA Flash Death Match Anthology, to be published in ebook format after we complete one year of competitions. The anthology will contain the winners from July 2010 - June 2011. We will also choose some of our favorites from throughout the year to round out the anthology.

Our first two winners, Genevieve Ching and Beth Ford already have their spot.  Are you ready to win yours?

*To be eligible to make a topic suggestion or participate as a YA Flash Death Match contestant, one must follow this blog in addition to following Karly Kirkpatrick and Michelle Sussman on either Facebook, Twitter, or our personal blogs.  See the Details and Rules page for links!  These rules will also be posted there for future reference.

And so, my friends, let the games begin.  Tell a friend, tell 10 friends.  Let's make this the best YA Flash Fiction site on the web.

Post your story/scene ideas below.

You have until Sunday, September 12th at noon CST to throw your idea into the ring.

The writing will commence Monday, September 13th and stories/links are due to me no later than Sunday, September 19th at noon CST.

Voting will take place starting Monday, September 20th through Sunday, September 26th.

Good luck and happy writing!