Once upon a time, there was a lonely girl with aspirations to become a writer. She had written a story once, one that perhaps wasn’t that good. But it was her first child, and she honored it as such, but she knew it was time to move on.
She wandered from one kingdom to another, in search of the inspiration she needed to produce a new story. She tried her hand at many ideas she had accumulated over the years, but none of them ever matured.
Then one day, all her plans were thrown for a spin. A great sickness spread across the land. No kingdom was safe. Old castles fell, new ones were erected, and dormant ones revived. The lonely girl entered this castle, shivering in fear.
Those fears were quickly bated, though, for the occupants were some of the most amazing yet kind people she had ever met. They too had aspirations to become writers. Suddenly the girl felt less alone. Instead, she found a home.
The girl fit right into this castle and quickly welcomed newcomers with the same sweet vigor as the others. As the little family grew, and they realized that they had something special between them, they decided to pursue their dream together. They began writing in fun, not afraid to share with each other what strange new worlds their brains concocted.
When their stories accumulated in a tall pile in the attic, they thought they might as well send their stories out into the world. For why should they hoard these treasures for themselves when they could be doing so much good outside the castle?
They couldn’t let just any story out the door though. No, they had to put them through the toughest of tests. When the stories had matured through trial and error, the first of the little army was ready to march.
The girl was nearly as exhausted as the stories were, but she had hope the hard work would pay off. She looked around at all the excited, anxious faces in the room. They were writers now. Real writers. And their creations were going to make their own ways in life. She thought she should be nervous, but she wasn’t. She wasn’t alone anymore, and she was a better author now than she had ever been, and she was only going to get better.
So, with a deep breath, she stood with her comrades and helped them open the doors of the castle, and the stories rushed out to do the jobs they were created for.
***
I can find no other way to better explain the incredible journey I started nearly two years ago when the pandemic hit and I was forced to find friends through the internet. It was something I never expected to happen, to say the least. I mean, all my life I’d heard about the dangers of meeting people online. But I’m glad to say God led me to the exact people I needed to meet.
They encouraged me, prayed for me and with me, and inspired me to pursue my writing with a revived vigor I cannot explain. These people, even though I haven’t seen most of their faces, heard most of their voices, and they’ve never seen my face, have become a second family to me. It’s with this second family that I jumped with both my feet deep into the world of a self-employed full-time writer.
We started a flash fiction club and decided, just as in the story above, that these wonderful stories should be shared with the world. To be honest, it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I wouldn’t want to do this with anyone else. These are incredible, talented writers, and I’m honored to be included among them.
If you haven’t already, check out Adventuring Together: A Flash-Fiction Anthology on Amazon. Please be sure to leave a review when you’ve read through our first collaborative book and check out the pages of the other authors. Thank you so much for your support!
-Beth
Beth Freemont 