I Can't Possibly Be Wrong All the Time

It’s August, so I went through my social media feeds and grabbed all of the MicroStories I’d tweeted during the month of July.

As a reminder, these represent story-essences composed using no more than 269 characters (so I could tweet them with the hashtag #MicroStory.)

Usually, I only tweet Science Fiction and Fantasy #MicroStories. July was pretty much no exception.

For really great #MicroStory action, please follow @MicroSFF, the Twitter account that inspired me to participate in this minimalist writing exercise. That feed puts out great science fiction and fantasy MicroStories all the time.

(I want to make it clear that @MicroSFF is *not* a Twitter account of mine. Their flash-fiction tweets are excellent. Mine are okay.)

Expanding out into space, making allies was crucial. Humanity’s leadership decided to prioritize alliances with races that were very different from us, to minimize conflicts over resources.
That’s why we’re at war with the Angels, and friends with the Ticks.
#MicroStory

By terms of the alliance treaty, the Tick vessel was obligated to provide aid in response to our distress call. But, honestly we’d rather just take our chances adrift and in stasis.
But we were now afraid that the Ticks might not want to pass up free blood.
#MicroStory

Some nights, we’d just go out and look up at the sky. It wasn’t really entertainment.
We’d watch the stars because one day They might come back.
We’d have to fight them, with pitchforks and prayers from snake-handling pastors.
Or else the world would be round again.
#MicroStory

Orbital platform problems usually had the same root cause: bots from Flat Earth societies getting access.
These software packages could do everything but look down.
#MicroStory

“Our army was destroyed? But we had more troops.”
“The invaders have a wizard, my king.”
“Have we not a wizard?”
“Actually, your highness, I’m more of an astrologer.”
“Pray that your star charts are useful in war.”
#MicroStory

“Just yield,” the bandit said. He held up his broken sword. “I was so good with a sword, the masters gave me this one to teach me humility.”
The caravan guard drew his blade.
“I know the tradition. I killed so many men with my broken sword, the masters took it away.”
#MicroStory

The Woman with a Knife for a Heart and the Man Who was a Shark stopped at the door. His magnetic eyes did their thing.
“Five people inside. A lot of metal on them.”
“It’s four with guns,” I said. “And me.”
“Why am I even here?”
“To kill anyone she doesn’t kill first.”
#MicroStory

The Apocalypse was bad, but would have been worse if the Singularity hadn’t happened at the same time.
Decades later, doomsday preppers and their children emerged from their holes finding transhuman tribunals rather than an exploitable uninhabited world.
#MicroStory

The transhuman candidate at the 2032 presidential debate defended their “Positive Thoughts Health Care” policy stance against the criticism that their body was filled with expensive nanotech, keeping them fit and healthy.
“Why can’t both work? But thoughts are free.”
#MicroStory

Thank you to everyone who reads and enjoys my small stories. I tweet flash-fiction at irregular intervals on my Twitter account, @patman23. At more regular intervals on Twitter, I’ll be talking about my dogs, or television (mostly Game of Thrones), or raking leaves off of my lawn.

Header image is a picture of my dog Willow. I won’t have heartburn if people want to share it around (it is a pretty funny picture of her desperate face) but attribution would be nice.

Want to read my earlier MicroStory collections? I have my first three years’ worth of stories HERE

In general, I’m fine with anyone using the text of my MicroStories for non-commercial use. (Look how cute I am, thinking someone wants to make a t-shirt from one of my flash fiction bits. I say cute, but you can substitute in some other, more appropriate, adjective. I’m not the boss of you.)

© Patrick Sponaugle 2019 Some Rights Reserved