Submissions are due by May 31st. Please follow the normal submission guidelines (here) but also include Nature Contest in the subject header so I know it is for the contest. One contest submission per person (though you are free to submit as many nature-themed stories for regular posting as you want).

Remember, I’ll still be posting non-contest-related posts on a daily basis, so keep sending in your stories, on any topic!

The rules are simple:

1. All stories must somehow engage with the theme nature. Be creative.
2. The story must be exactly 100 words, not including the title.
3. Only one submission per person. All entries are due by May 31st.

Starting in June, I’ll for the most part post the stories in the order I received them, but I will keep the winning story for last.

Life had become so boring, so beige boring. Every day it was hound the maids, light the candles, greet the guests. Then along came prophecy! What’s not to believe about a witch, let alone three? Once again, my world oozed with possibility.

Beginning April 1st, each month I’ll be opening up submissions based on a particular theme or genre. Every day, I’ll post one story for the contest, saving my favorite for the last day of the month. (I’ve amended this part of the contest, because it didn’t make sense when entries were still incoming. I will post the stories as they come in, and then announce the winner at the end) Assuming we get enough submissions, that will be 20 or so stories a month. And that’s in addition to the general submission stories I’m already posting.

Basically, it means you’ll get to enjoy two stories a day instead of one. Plus, some lucky writer will get to tell their readers they’ve won a flash fiction contest.

For month one, starting in April, the theme will be Historical Fiction.

The rules are simple:

1. All stories must be set in a time period pre-2000.
2. While it doesn’t need to be obvious, there has to be some indication within the story what the time period is. This might be anachronistic costume or technology, archaic language, or anything else you can imagine. Be creative.
3. The story must be exactly 100 words, not including the title.

That’s it. Start writing. I hope I get plenty of stories, so spread the word.

After some time where I let the website coast, I’ve refocused my attention on making sure I post stories on the regular. Thanks to everyone who’s been submitting stories even when I was slow about getting them posted.

It’s always been my dream that A Story In 100 Words would be a community exercise, where authors can come together to share their work and improve their writing. I really believe in the 100-word exercise and I want to share that with everyone, whether you’re a professional writer, an aspiring creative, or just someone interested in telling stories as part of their personal journey.

With that in mind, I’d LOVE to hear from you about what else you would like to see from the website. Is there anything besides stories you think would be useful/interesting?

A few ideas I’ve had:

• Story Prompts
• Featured Authors
• Writing Tips
• Contests

I’m sure that you creative people have your own ideas. Please feel free to write in the comments or drop me an email at doc@entropy2.com and let me know what kind of content, in addition to more stories, you’d find valuable.

I’ve also started a new mailing list after allowing my last one to lapse (it had been so long since I sent out an email, that MailChimp deleted it). That means I’m starting over completely and all those people I had signed up have been lost to the ether. I’d really appreciate you taking a second to sign up here. There will at most be one message per month (and likely a lot fewer). While we’re at it, you can also follow me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/entropy_squared. I promise at least one cute photo of my beagle every week.

Thanks as always for your continued support, whether you are sending in stories, or just reading them. I think the fact that we’re creating a global community of writers is extremely meaningful.

Remember when I used to send out the occasional newsletter? Well, it’s been awhile. In fact, it’s been so long that MailChimp deleted my account. So I’m starting over.

Based on the fact I went a whole year without accessing my MailChimp, I don’t think I need to explain that you won’t receive many emails from me. But as an aspiring writing professional, having a core audience is essential, and I’m committed to making it work this time.

What can you expect from the occasional Entropy Squared newsletter? Well, I’m glad you asked. I’ll be featuring 100-word contributors, providing writing updates on my own projects, and sharing exclusive stories you won’t find anywhere else. There will also be some fun links and videos that fans of this site will likely enjoy.

Like this:

Here’s the link for signing up: http://eepurl.com/gANT09

I’ve been struggling with my comment plugin for a while. I’d set up Disqus comments, but they got disabled and I finally gave up on fixing it and reverted to the default commenting system.

I just created a new Disqus login and it seems to be working again. Hopefully this fixes the problem and I hope it fosters more commenting/discussion on the site. We have a lot of great writers contributing stories every week and it would be nice to foster more of a community, especially since we have writers from all over the world.

For my American readers, enjoy the holiday. For everyone, keep submitting your stories. I’d much rather be sharing your stories in this place rather than my own.

I’d like to apologize to both Perry and Kelli for the mistake, and thank them again for taking the time to be interviewed for the newsletter.