Do you like to write stories? Win a cash prize in the flash fiction contest I've put together!

Enter MysteryAuthors.com's "Dead Giveaway" Flash Fiction Writing Contest!

MysteryAuthors.com is pleased to announce its second annual short-short fiction competition--with a twist! Write your best mystery tale in 1,000 words or less--using one of the following lines as your first sentence. Each of these are first lines taken from published mysteries written by our judges!

Your first sentence MUST start with one of the following:

That looks more like human sacrifice than a wedding ceremony. --(taken from Driven to Death by Carolyn Rose)
He fought for breath, his heart pounding fast. --(taken from Cock of the Walk by Wendy Laing)
It lay in wait, blazing eyes of amber piercing the inky darkness. --(taken from A Kink in the Tale by Lisa Logan)
Amelie would never forgive them for murdering Mathieu. --(taken from Beneath the Morvan Moon by Courtney Mroch)

The best story will win 1/2 of the total entry fees submitted for the contest AND will be published on our site. Honorable Mentions will also be posted on the site. (All rights remain with the author.)

Enter your own original, previously unpublished stories only. (Previous publishing in a small-circulation newsletter or web site is acceptable.) Stories should have an obvious beginning, middle, and end. No excerpts from larger pieces, please. Entries will be judged on artful use of plot, characters, and setting, so send us your best work!

Email submissions to . "Dead Giveaway Entry" should appear in the Subject line. Paste the story into the body of your Email with no special formatting or HTML--no attachments, please. At the top of your entry be sure to include your name, Email address, Title of the piece, and word count. A brief bio can be included as well (or we'll request one should your story win). You may submit entry fees before or after Emailing your submission, BUT your piece will not be forwarded for judging until receipt is confirmed.

NO entries will be accepted prior to contest opening or after the deadline.

Contest opens for entries June 15, 2006.

Deadline for entries is August 1, 2006

Entry fee: $5.

All entries are final (no revisions accepted) and are to be the sole work of the author. The judges' decisions are final. Void where prohibited by law. Sorry, members of mysteryauthors.com and their families are not eligible. By entering this contest the Author agrees to let MysteryAuthors.com post the winning piece(s) on the site for no less than six months. After the six-month period the Work may be archived indefinitely on the site unless the Author specifies otherwise. The author may request removal of their work from the site by Emailing the site administrator at .