New Guidelines

1. Naming your character after the word makes it too easy; let's avoid that!
2. Keep your follow-up remarks brief—just a sentence or two. The essence of a Drabble is to present a standalone story without extra context or sequels.
3. Writers are encouraged to maintain a draft of their follow-up notes, linking to the published piece. At the month's end, we might compile these into an anthology; I'd love your feedback on this.

For New Writers

It's essential to read this thoroughly—apologies for the lengthy content, but your editors are continually learning. The formatting details are particularly important.

> The next day's word will be revealed around 10 AM (CST) the previous day.

We currently have more than 30 requests to join our publication waiting for approval. I aim to add around ten new members today (Sunday), but my schedule is quite packed.

> Recently, I've shared a link to a title case converter, which can be found here: https://titlecaseconverter.com/

Paula Shablo has an excellent Clap/Highlight Statement. Feel free to modify it to fit your style, but here's the original:

> Drabbles are succinct—only 100 words. Please remain on the page for at least 30 seconds to ensure your stories are counted as read. Engage with the content—highlight, clap, comment—let us know you’ve visited! Thanks!

Updates

We're enjoying this journey, and while we wish we could read every submission, we're publishing over 30 stories daily and welcoming around 15 new writers weekly.

We review each story as we edit, but often lack the time to revisit and interact with stories after they’ve been published. We strive to engage, but as humans, we need time to write our own pieces, too.

> Therefore, please support your fellow authors by clapping, highlighting, and commenting on their work. Many newcomers could use some encouragement!

Please note, we may begin rejecting stories that either do not meet the word count requirement or lack titles in title case.

> We urge you to install Grammarly and pay attention to grammar. We want readers to enjoy our work rather than stumble upon errors. (And your editors also wish to carve out time for their own writing!)

Formatting Guidelines

As our writer community grows, we realize the necessity for clear formatting rules. Here they are:

Publication Formatting Rules

If you’re unsure how to format something, a simple Google search can provide answers.

Example Formatting:

1. Avoid lengthy subtitles; keep it concise and use title case.
2. Place the daily word above the image, framed as a quote.
3. Follow this format: Title (title case), Subtitle (subtitle case), Today's daily word is ______, photograph with credit, optionally include a clap and read statement, then your story. Conclude with a divider to indicate the end.
4. Any additional information should come last and be limited to a sentence or two.
5. For Serial Stories: If you decide to turn a Drabble into a series, do not link each story. Instead, create a list and bookmark it for convenience. References to ongoing tales should be included at the end of the current piece. Remember, the focus of a Drabble is a self-contained story.

Mary Chang from the Six Word Photo Stories publication recommends creating a template by copying a correctly formatted story.

Additional News

This is a fiction challenge.

Today's Word is Shown in the Image.

> If you write about a word other than today’s, it will be published around 10 PM. Our aim is to allow readers to explore all stories related to the same word together.

Mixing stories about different themes disrupts the rhythm. This challenge serves as a valuable learning experience, offering the simplest and most affordable form of education we can find.

> Thank you for your participation!

To ensure fairness, we adhere to Medium’s word count.

Please verify that your story, excluding the title, subtitle, and image caption, contains EXACTLY 100 WORDS. Highlight your story text and check the word count in the upper left corner of Medium. If the count is incorrect, we will note it and request adjustments. Be sure to check before submitting.

Medium's count may differ from that of Word, Pages, or Google Docs, so always verify on Medium prior to submission.

If you're using a mobile device, switch to the desktop site in your browser for accurate word count checking.

> Thank you once again!

> If you submit your story early, it will be scheduled for publication at 8:30 AM (CST) on the respective day. (I grew weary of sending individual messages regarding this.)

Random Word Drabble Challenge

This challenge is perfect for those looking to enhance their creativity, establish a writing routine, or simply enjoy the process!

Each day, I post a word for the next day, and your task is to write a Drabble (a story of exactly 100 words) featuring that word.

Tag your submissions with ‘random’ and ‘drabble’ to ensure they are categorized correctly in the publication, and remember to include the link to the day’s challenge.

This is a fantastic way to strengthen your editing skills. However, if your creativity leads you to a longer piece, please refrain from using the ‘drabble’ or ‘random’ tags to keep those works in the main section of the publication.

A Drabble is a concise fiction story consisting of exactly 100 words. Most flash fiction is categorized as stories under 1000 words, with many short-form publications limiting submissions to 150 words. I chose to focus on Drabbles to improve my ability to express ideas succinctly. (Grammarly concurs!)

Do you know any fellow writers interested in joining this challenge? Feel free to share this with them, and they can simply comment to get added.

I'm eager to read your stories!

This will be a daily post, so if you prefer not to be tagged, please inform me. Conversely, if you wish to be included and haven’t been tagged yet, just let me know.

We currently have 140 writers and received four more requests just after adding 14 new members. This challenge is thriving, and it’s incredibly enjoyable!