Instead of beating yourself up about not writing that novel, tell a shorter story with the help of RNLI Helm and Writer Eleanor Hooker. You might even get published ...

Flash fiction has one rule: stick to the word count. Some flash fiction is as short as six words, some as long as 1,000. It can about be anything you like: it can be sad or silly, thought-provoking. or trivial. Flash fiction might not take long to write, but it’s all in the edit. Eleanor Hooker is a poet and well known in flash fiction circles. Eleanor also volunteers as helm and shares RNLI stories as lifeboat press officer at Lough Derg Lifeboat Station, Co Tipperary. Even when Eleanor’s immersed in her fiction, she’ll drop it for the RNLI. ‘If my pager goes off, I go. There has only been one occasion when I forgot to hit save!’ Eleanor was awarded first prize by Richard Skinner in the Bare Fiction Flash Fiction competition in 2016. She stresses that anybody can give flash fiction a go – plenty of winners of flash fiction competitions are first timers. 

ELEANOR’S TIPS TO GET YOU STARTED
For inspiration: If you’re stuck for an idea, use prompts – try interpreting the shape of a Rorschach inkblot, or think about a piece
of clothing – whatever’s resonating with you. Believe in yourself: Don’t think about the audience, the reader. That can be paralysing and you’ll already be a step away from the integrity of the story. It’s between you and the blank page. Don’t be afraid.
No need to shout: When there’s a huge drama you don’t have to make a huge noise. On a lifeboat if a casualty’s screaming and shouting, you talk quieter. Do the same with your writing. Revise, revise, revise: You hear the phrase 'it wrote itself'. That rarely happens. Pare it down to its skeleton, what’s essential. Let the reader
fill in the gaps. Adverbs are the enemy of writers. The killer line: The story should hold the reader to the end. The last line can be a revelation or a secret. It should have a sense of completion, but it can resonate with the reader for the rest of their lives.

Enter a competition: Winning writing competitions certainly gets you noticed. Much is down to luck. Keep to that word count! Trial and error: Rejections can be soul destroying, but you need to break through the urge to give up. You must persist and try again,
as Samuel Beckett said: 'Ever tried. Ever failed. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.' For a chance to get your work published
in Lifeboat and win a copy of Flash Fiction: 72 Very Short Stories, enter our Flash Fiction

Competition. Write up to 300 words on the theme of saving lives at sea, and send your entry to [email protected] with ‘Flash Fiction Competition’ in the subject line. Sorry, but we cannot accept posted entries for this competition. The winning story will be chosen by Eleanor Hooker.
Closing date: 10 February 2017.
For T&Cs go to RNLI.org/LifeboatCompetition.
COMPETITION
Words: Bethany Hope | Photos: Shutterstock, Gerardine Wisdom