Stone Soup holds a Flash Contest during the first week of every month. The month’s first Weekly Creativity prompt provides the contest challenge. Submissions are due by midnight on Sunday of the same week and should be under 1,500 words. Up to five winners are chosen for publication on our blog. The winners, along with up to five honorable mentions, are announced on the blog. Submit via our Submittable site. The Weekly Creativity prompts are intended to help you “break the ice” and start writing. The prompts, all written by students, just like you. The prompts are different from each other. Each prompt makes challenges you think, to be creative. You might note a few different ways you can approach the prompt. As a rule, we advise skipping the way that seems easy or obvious. Always give some thought to the point-of-view you are taking. Who is the observer? Are you writing from the “first person” perspective, through the eyes of your character? Are you the “omniscient” narrator who sees all and knows all? If you are writing a prompt every week, then think about changing your points of view from week-to-week. Every contest has its own winners’ page, where you can read all the winning entries for the month. We are currently working on the winner’s page, but we will announce this new page when we announce the October winners in the following month! We are proud of everyone who takes part in the contest. Thank you for trusting us with your work! Good luck! Flash Contest #72, February 2025: Create a story, poem, artwork, or musical composition that reimagines Valentine’s Day in an unexpected way—Our Winners and Their Work Our February 2025 Flash Contest was based on Prompt #313 (provided by the Stone Soup editorial board), which asked to create a story, poem, artwork, or musical composition that reimagines Valentine’s Day in an unexpected way while avoiding typical Valentine’s words like love, roses, and hearts, and instead, use unconventional imagery, themes, or emotions to express connection and affection. As always, thank you to all who participated, and please keep submitting next month! In particular, we congratulate our Honorable Mentions, listed below, and our Winners, whose work you can appreciate below. Winners “A Saint’s Last Whisper” by Wing Hey Chan, 15 “Pebbles” by Naomi Ng, 13 Honorable Mentions “Here’s Your Order” by Sophie Lin, 11 “Unhappy Very Unhappy Valentine’s Day” by Katherine Liu, 6 “A Pianist’s Soulful Melody” by Gavin Liu, 15 “Unveiled” by Lexi Neiman, 17, “Hidden Treasures” by Lily Wu, 12, “When the Silver Tip Dances Again” by Victoria Xu, 10 “The Ocean’s Bond” by Erica Zhan, 12 A Saint’s Last Whisper Wing Hey Chan, 15 A Saint’s Last Whisper In secret halls where whispers stay, a priest still dared to disobey. He joined the hands the law forbade, and for his crime, the price was paid. His final breath fades into gray. The cold bars whispered of despair, A frozen grip in the stagnant air, Where shadows clung to the damp stone walls, And silence echoed through endless halls. His soul, imprisoned, felt the chill, a slow, cruel bite, and time stood still. Behind the bars, he …Read More Flash Contest #71, January 2025: Create a story, poem, artwork, or a musical composition based off of the painting “Champs de Mars: The Red Tower” by Robert Delaunay using the ekphrastic method —Our Winners and Their Work Our January 2025 Flash Contest was based on Prompt #312 (provided by Stone Soup students Emma Hoff), which asked that participants create a story, poem, artwork, or a musical composition based off of the painting “Champs de Mars: The Red Tower” by Robert Delaunay using the ekphrastic method. As always, thank you to all who participated, and please keep submitting next month! In particular, we congratulate our Honorable Mentions, listed below, and our Winners, whose work you can appreciate below. Winners “Modernism’s Blinding Earthquake” by Gavin Liu, 15 “The Red Tower: When the Old Order Makes Way for the New” by Nathan Qu, 13 “Mr. Eiffel” by Derek Zhang, 11 Honorable Mentions “Through The Eyes Of Time” by Wing Hey Chan, 13 “I Remember” by Isabel Sands, 15 “The City of Gray” by Sydney Kesselheim, 12 Modernism’s Blinding Earthquake Gavin Liu, 15 Leaning city buildings crumple in the tower’s flame. Angels fall — or are they attempting to rise on Jacob’s ladder to evacuate modernism’s earthquake Sky’s gloominess tests angels’ golden wings to avoid fiery-red beams as Delaunay’s frantic mind holds no doubt of what demise modernity will bring— his desperate plea to Parisians to see civility’s tumbling collapse and the Eiffel Tower’s meaning— earth forgotten—unable to withstand the heavy iron, steel, and electric light as nature’s goodwill lags behind modernism’s deception. Nature’s resistance—crackling lightning striking Paris’s elegant tower made red— to unsnare people’s ignorance to instead wake in sun’s golden tower of love. The Red Tower: When the Old …Read More Flash Contest #70, December 2024: Write a short story from a blizzard’s perspective, a poem on your favorite part of winter, or create an artwork showing light and darkness —Our Winners and Their Work Our December 2024 Flash Contest was based on Prompt #311 (provided by Stone Soup students Sage Millen, Meleah Goldman, and Emma Hoff), which asked that participants write a short story from a blizzard’s perspective, a poem on your favorite part of winter, or create an artwork that shows light and darkness As always, thank you to all who participated, and please keep submitting next month! In particular, we congratulate our Honorable Mentions, listed below, and our Winners, whose work you can appreciate below. Winners “Snowflake” by Scarlett Yi, 13 “Snowflakes: A Winter’s Tanka Poem” by Matthew Zhang, 13 “From the life we left” by Dara Jin, 11 “Waiting” by John Gabriel Sperl, 12 “Snowflake Light” by Tang Li, 12 Honorable Mentions “The Wonders of Winter” by Evee Dev, 9 “BLIZZARD” by Julian Yang, 10 “My View” by Sharbani Datta, 10 “Winter’s Breath” Haoran Yang,
Contests
Flash Contest #72, February 2025: Create a story, poem, artwork, or musical composition that reimagines Valentine’s Day in an unexpected way—Our Winners and Their Work
Our February 2025 Flash Contest was based on Prompt #313 (provided by the Stone Soup editorial board), which asked to create a story, poem, artwork, or musical composition that reimagines Valentine’s Day in an unexpected way while avoiding typical Valentine’s words like love, roses, and hearts, and instead, use unconventional imagery, themes, or emotions to express connection and affection. As always, thank you to all who participated, and please keep submitting next month! In particular, we congratulate our Honorable Mentions, listed below, and our Winners, whose work you can appreciate below. Winners “A Saint’s Last Whisper” by Wing Hey Chan, 15 “Pebbles” by Naomi Ng, 13 Honorable Mentions “Here’s Your Order” by Sophie Lin, 11 “Unhappy Very Unhappy Valentine’s Day” by Katherine Liu, 6 “A Pianist’s Soulful Melody” by Gavin Liu, 15 “Unveiled” by Lexi Neiman, 17, “Hidden Treasures” by Lily Wu, 12, “When the Silver Tip Dances Again” by Victoria Xu, 10 “The Ocean’s Bond” by Erica Zhan, 12 A Saint’s Last Whisper Wing Hey Chan, 15 A Saint’s Last Whisper In secret halls where whispers stay, a priest still dared to disobey. He joined the hands the law forbade, and for his crime, the price was paid. His final breath fades into gray. The cold bars whispered of despair, A frozen grip in the stagnant air, Where shadows clung to the damp stone walls, And silence echoed through endless halls. His soul, imprisoned, felt the chill, a slow, cruel bite, and time stood still. Behind the bars, he carved a line, a final note, “Be ever mine.” The jailer’s daughter read his plea, the ink smeared as her eyes could see: but fate was set, he’d not be free. The years have passed, his name remains, a tale of loss, of bonds, of chains. Yet still, on this midwinter’s night, we speak his name in candlelight, his vow now whispered through the plains. Pebbles Naomi Ng, 13 A pile of smooth pebbles lies on Delia’s desk next to a crumpled velvet bag. She strokes the surface of one of the stones with her thumb. This one is ivory white, speckled with gray dots. This one is from the beach, the first pebble she’d received from him. He tripped, his foot caught in a tangle of seaweed. He yelled out. His knee fell on a seashell, the kind that kindergarteners doodle on pieces of paper. The kind with sharp edges. He sat up and cradled his injured leg, tears budding in the corners of his eyes. Delia ran to him. “Eli! Eli, are you okay?” she asked, prying her brother’s fingers away from his cut. “It huuurts,” her brother cried. “There’s salt in it. It hurts. It really hurts, Dee.” He buried his face in her shoulder. She hugged him close. Delia can hear his voice in her head. That seashell was mean! Imaginary-Eli whines. Sooo evil. Later, after their mother had gotten a bandage for his wound, he handed her a little rock, ivory white, speckled with gray dots. “Did you know penguins give pebbles to those they love?” he asked, toying with a lock of her hair. “It’s a gift of affection.” She laughed. “I did know that,” she said. “But, ah… I think that’s for mating purposes, bud. Not for sisters.” “Well,” he huffed. “That’s why I’m not a penguin. But did you know that if the other penguin accepts the pebble, it can be used to build a nest and start a family?” “That’s really cool, Eli.” Now, Delia’s hand reaches for another stone, this one a little smaller than the previous, given to her on her thirteenth birthday. “Happy birthday!” Eli yelped, bounding into Delia’s room. “Dang it, now you’re five years older than me again.” Delia rolled her eyes. “I’m always five years older than you, there were just two months when I was twelve and you were eight.” Eli sighed loudly. “You’re no fun.” “I’m plenty fun,” Delia protested, getting up from her chair. “Come on, the sun is out. Let’s go for a swim.” “It’s too cold,” her brother grumbled. “Besides, I have something for you.” He reached into his pocket, fished something out. “You’re the best sister, Dee.” In his palm lay another stone, this one the size of a dime and the color of cloudy sky. “And you’re the best brother.” There’s a total of thirty-eight pebbles, collected over a period of four years. Some oblong, some round. Some a warmer hue, some a cooler one. Eli was always on the lookout for unique rocks, had wanted to be a geologist. She’s nineteen now, and tired of the mess in her dorm room. So she had opened every drawer and sorted through every item, when she had come across a little velvet bag filled with little stones. She wishes Eli were with her, and he could’ve visited easily, if… if… If he weren’t lying in a coffin, six feet under, in the cemetery four miles away. She had been driving the car when it had crashed. Had just gotten her license, was sixteen years old, was driving her brother to school. If she had just slowed the car by the tiniest bit, or hadn’t missed a turn at the previous intersection, they wouldn’t’ve been hurt. “I’m gonna unbuckle and take off my jacket,” Eli said, clicking out of his seatbelt. And then— A screech of tires. The crumpling of metal. Someone cried out. She wasn’t sure if it was her or Eli. She felt numb, like she couldn’t move. There was something resembling peace, resembling tranquility, wash over her. Then the pain. Something was crushing her leg, like a vice, and she couldn’t pull free. She glanced at her brother and saw him crumpled unnaturally, his head leaning against the shattered car window. His eyes were closed. She felt the world go silent. She didn’t even hear her own voice when she began to scream. She hasn’t driven since then, and chose to stay local for college so
Flash Contest #71, January 2025: Create a story, poem, artwork, or a musical composition based off of the painting “Champs de Mars: The Red Tower” by Robert Delaunay using the ekphrastic method —Our Winners and Their Work
Our January 2025 Flash Contest was based on Prompt #312 (provided by Stone Soup students Emma Hoff), which asked that participants create a story, poem, artwork, or a musical composition based off of the painting “Champs de Mars: The Red Tower” by Robert Delaunay using the ekphrastic method. As always, thank you to all who participated, and please keep submitting next month! In particular, we congratulate our Honorable Mentions, listed below, and our Winners, whose work you can appreciate below. Winners “Modernism’s Blinding Earthquake” by Gavin Liu, 15 “The Red Tower: When the Old Order Makes Way for the New” by Nathan Qu, 13 “Mr. Eiffel” by Derek Zhang, 11 Honorable Mentions “Through The Eyes Of Time” by Wing Hey Chan, 13 “I Remember” by Isabel Sands, 15 “The City of Gray” by Sydney Kesselheim, 12 Modernism’s Blinding Earthquake Gavin Liu, 15 Leaning city buildings crumple in the tower’s flame. Angels fall — or are they attempting to rise on Jacob’s ladder to evacuate modernism’s earthquake Sky’s gloominess tests angels’ golden wings to avoid fiery-red beams as Delaunay’s frantic mind holds no doubt of what demise modernity will bring— his desperate plea to Parisians to see civility’s tumbling collapse and the Eiffel Tower’s meaning— earth forgotten—unable to withstand the heavy iron, steel, and electric light as nature’s goodwill lags behind modernism’s deception. Nature’s resistance—crackling lightning striking Paris’s elegant tower made red— to unsnare people’s ignorance to instead wake in sun’s golden tower of love. The Red Tower: When the Old Order Makes Way for the New Nathan Qu, 13 Burst of burnished bronze Blasts archaic world order Into smithereens City’s lustrous lights welcome The twentieth century Mr. Eiffel Derek Zhang, 11 The gloomy city shines with light A shiny tower is beheld Emitting light as it’s shown Glowing bright in the sky Clouds of color surround the tower Red veins channel through As the sun shines in envy Drawing people like mosquitoes Symphony of awes heard from miles The soul of the Eiffel looks in pride The only star in the gray As time slowly grinds by The Eiffel tower stands still Breathing fresh air all it does The whisper of winds passes by People come to see the top The same their forebears had Years of respect has gone by Other places have gathered fame But the Eiffel still dominates Crowned the king of the sky Always to be remembered in the mind
Flash Contest #70, December 2024: Write a short story from a blizzard’s perspective, a poem on your favorite part of winter, or create an artwork showing light and darkness —Our Winners and Their Work
Our December 2024 Flash Contest was based on Prompt #311 (provided by Stone Soup students Sage Millen, Meleah Goldman, and Emma Hoff), which asked that participants write a short story from a blizzard’s perspective, a poem on your favorite part of winter, or create an artwork that shows light and darkness As always, thank you to all who participated, and please keep submitting next month! In particular, we congratulate our Honorable Mentions, listed below, and our Winners, whose work you can appreciate below. Winners “Snowflake” by Scarlett Yi, 13 “Snowflakes: A Winter’s Tanka Poem” by Matthew Zhang, 13 “From the life we left” by Dara Jin, 11 “Waiting” by John Gabriel Sperl, 12 “Snowflake Light” by Tang Li, 12 Honorable Mentions “The Wonders of Winter” by Evee Dev, 9 “BLIZZARD” by Julian Yang, 10 “My View” by Sharbani Datta, 10 “Winter’s Breath” Haoran Yang, 11 “A New December Day: A Shakespearean Sonnet ” by Erica Zhan, 12 Snowflake Scarlett Yi, 13 Winter is a great time to have your heart leave you tofeel your ears redden with fire andBe consumed by direSpeed I zoomAcross a field ofHardened glinting crystalsEach one with a bitterly cold tasteAnd then Fall andFly,FasterThanBliss And You Can’t Miss this feeling Snowflakes: A Winter’s Tanka Poem Matthew Zhang, 13 Billions of smallDancers, twirling in the skyFalling slowly downOne flake after anotherOne flake after another From the Life We Left Dara Jin, 11 Wintry trees on a lonely laneMoonlight shines on the frostLonesome flakes of snowDrop onto the deep wide planeThe meadows bright under the moonlightwhat once was gold is now whiteTree roots deep in the groundUntouchedUnblemished By the deep deep coldLife disappearsone by oneinto the lonesome cavernof their homethe only life in sightis single haresnow white against the backgroundwaiting for springthe once burbling rivernow silencedby the murderous icethe pine trees shagged thricesleeves of frostand robes of snowmake winter forthIn the bright of the moonglittering in maliceunblemisheduntouched Hundreds of miles awaya church bell tollsmidnightin the middle of nowhereAn owl takes flightthe natural winter wonderlandof snow and ice flourishing and beautiful unblemisheduntouched By man made designtrees swaying in the howling windsnow stubbornly holding onto lifeBaubles of snow, of icicles, floating in the airFrozen lakes, in the movement of nothingunderneath is a world of wonderPowdery snowglistening whiteslowly fallingfrom the perch in the skyinto the wildernessUntouchedunblemishedNature recuperates from harm. Waiting John Gabriel Sperl, 12 My favorite partof this chilly time,is known to manyas something cherished and loved. But for me,living in the land of lost hills,it’s a rarity,a squandered treasure. The silky sheetsof white galore,covering everythingin beauty incarnate. But now I watchthrough the window,and see nothing buta sad tomorrow. For the glassy brilliancethat so blessed the grass,now lays waitingup in the sky. Snowflake Light Tang Li, 12
