2025 February Flash Fiction Challenge: Day 7
Write a piece of flash fiction each day of February with the February Flash Fiction Challenge, led by Managing Editor Moriah Richard. Each day, receive a prompt, example story, and write your own. Today’s prompt is to write a story based on a font.
As we wrap up the first week of the challenge (eek!), here are some housekeeping notes for anyone joining us:
1. There is no sign-up. All you need to do is visit WritersDigest.com every day this month and click on the day's prompt.
2. You share your works in the comments section. To find the comments, just scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page, write your story right in the text box or copy/paste (whichever you prefer!), and hit submit.
3. You don't need to share your work to participate. A lot of writers aren't comfortable sharing their work here. That's totally OK! The main thing is that you're writing something every day.
4. The system will occasionally flag stories for review. There is nothing wrong with your work; our platform does it randomly. We will be going through and releasing stories periodically between the hours of 9 a.m.–5 p.m. EST Monday through Friday. If your story is flagged, just sit tight. It'll be released!
If you've been a writer for any length of time, you probably have some pretty strong opinions on fonts. Editor-in-chief Amy Jones and I were just lamenting about Word's most recent update to Aptos! So, today's prompt is to write a story based on a font.
(Note: If your story gets flagged for review, be patient—we will be releasing comments every few hours throughout the weekdays of this challenge. Our system randomly flags comments for review, so just sit tight and wait for us to set it free! If you run into any other issues with posting your story, please just send me an e-mail at mrichard@aimmedia.com with the subject line: Flash Fiction Challenge Commenting Issue.)
Here’s my attempt at a story based on a font:
Ding Dongs
“It’s some kind of modern hieroglyphics,” the sergeant announced, pinning another page of the killer’s manifesto onto the board. “Look for patterns, frequency, compare it to other known ciphers like the Zodiac—rule out nothing.”
A rookie in the back raised her hand. “Sir? I think it’s actually just Wingdings.”
Since obtaining her MFA in fiction, Moriah Richard has worked with over 100 authors to help them achieve their publication dreams. As the managing editor of Writer’s Digest magazine, she spearheads the world-building column Building Better Worlds, a 2023 Eddie & Ozzie Award winner. She also runs the Flash Fiction February Challenge on the WD blog, encouraging writers to pen one microstory a day over the course of the month and share their work with other participants. As a reader, Moriah is most interested in horror, fantasy, and romance, although she will read just about anything with a great hook.
Learn more about Moriah on her personal website.
