Walking the Tightrope

Two Ekphrastic Prompts, Plus April's Publishing News

I’m pleased to report that I’ve written 27 flash story drafts so far this month (!), and have just three more to go to finish out my self-imposed challenge of writing a flash fiction draft a day for the month of April!

In the works now is a reflective post about what I learned during this 30-day writing challenge; although I’ve done these month-long challenges before, I glean new insight each time, and this time was no different. In the meantime—until that reflective post is actually ready—I wanted to share two more ekphrastic prompts that I used for inspiration this month. (See my previous post for the other ekphrastic prompts I’ve used.)

Stepping onto the Tightrope: Anticipation

I used the below print, Tightrope Performer by Yasuo Kuniyoshi, for inspiration for two of my April drafts. The cool thing about this prompt is the innate tension. In both of my drafts, the whole story leads up to a moment that the reader doesn’t even witness. It’s literally all about the anticipation, the zero hour tension.

Prompt 1: Capturing Zero Hour Tension

Tightrope Performer by Yasuo Kuniyoshi (1936).

In the book A Treasury of American Prints (1939), edited by Thomas Craven, where the above print comes from, the description of Yasuo Kuniyoshi’s Tightrope Performer begins, “This delicious composition has ‘zero hour’ tension. The acrobat is poised on her aerial platform, ready to take off across space.”

Anything can happen when the tightrope performer takes her next step. The tension comes from not knowing.

Prompt: Write a story in which a character is about to walk out on a tightrope, either literally or metaphorically. Work to capture that “zero hour tension” by increasing the stakes with each sentence or paragraph.

This is a prompt that can be used over and over again.

Your goal with this prompt is to capture the moment(s) “just before,” leaving a question in the mind of the reader as to what happens next.

Your character, of course, does not have to be a tightrope performer. They could be any kind of performer or no performer at all. Think of any high-stakes circumstance.

Distortion

Below is the ekphrastic prompt I gave myself today, based on another print from A Treasury of American Prints. Like with Tightrope Performer, John Marin’s Downtown New York also creates worlds of possibilities for stories!

Prompt 2: Funhouse Mirrors

The description from A Treasury of American Prints reads (in part): “Downtown New York is typical of [Marin’s] aloof style—a thoroughly mature production of one of America’s most accomplished technicians…. While Marin has gone far on the road to distortion, grace remains, and this personal impression of a New York scene is easy to look at and, as personal idiosyncrasy, difficult to quarrel with.”

I love the use of the word “distortion” here, even though it is not necessarily what I would have chosen as a descriptor. I love everything about this print because of the perspective it offers. To me, it’s a bustling vision full of excitement. I love the energy in it!

This print is a reminder that we all see and experience the world differently.

Prompt: Write a story in which a character’s world distorts in some way. If it helps, think of funhouse mirrors, the way they show you something different from what you’re used to seeing. Who’s to say what reality really is?

Downtown New York by John Marin.

And though it’s pouring down rain as I write this, I was able to fit in a delightful 3.5-mile walk earlier when there was still some sun, and snapped this (below) shadow selfie. I was thinking of the “distortion”/funhouse mirror prompt when I took this photo, the way my body looks stockier in the shadow than it actually is, the way the shadow has distorted my size. Or, at least, it’s distorted what I generally perceive myself to be. What if the shadow is actually the “truth” and my general perception is the distortion?

Shadow selfie from my afternoon walk, 4-27-26.

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Publishing News

This month, I had three stories published:

• “Something Called Love” (Rawhead Journal)

• “How Much Is It Worth to You?” (Gooseberry Pie)

• “Strangers” (Gooseberry Pie)

Additionally, I finally got my hands on a copy of the 2026 Ghost Parachute anthology! I ordered it from my local indie bookstore, but you can also find it online.

The Ghost Parachute anthology.

I’m delighted to have a story, “All the Ways You Can Bring the Dead Back to Life,” included among the 175 stories in this anthology! My story was originally published in Ghost Parachute’s online journal in 2024.

A glimpse of my story in the anthology.