Prompt #9

Let’s talk about clichés!

Sometimes it’s hard to avoid them, but remember: clichés and stock images stand out even more in flash fiction because there are fewer places for them to hide. Here is an example of a story that’s crammed with clichés:

Mark’s parents knew the score. They wanted to let sleeping dogs lie, but before they let the cat out of the bag, they wanted to kill two birds with one stone. They needed to go to the store, and they wanted to get Mark out of the house so that he’d stop playing video games for an afternoon. For Mark’s parents, it was love at first sight. She was an artsy-fartsy army brat, and he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. It was a meaningful relationship, and they did their best to keep things in perspective because they knew the world could be tough as nails. It was raining cats and dogs, and they only had a poor excuse for an umbrella to use. “I guess we’ll have to drive,” Mark’s father said. Mark and his parents got into the car. When Mark’s mother started the car, rock and roll music blasted through the stereo. Mark had been a good kid. He got good grades and only screwed up a few times. Yelling at her son would have been easy as pie, so she took the high road and held her tongue.

PROMPT:

Re-write some (or all) of this story using your own words. What would you add or take out to create subtext and make this story uniquely yours? Feel free to change anything and everything about this story (plot, characters, setting, etc.). We can’t wait to read what you come up with!

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