Flash Fiction / Short-Short / Prose Poem

[Dr. Drib]

I want to thank member Crich70 for giving me the idea to start this thread. He started a thread over in the Writers' Forum about Flash Fiction. Here's the link:

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=261251

There have been a number of ebooks and print publications devoted to Flash Fiction, which seems to indicate a resurgence in this form.

Often, there is a sort of cross-over between a Flash Fiction piece and a Prose Poem, with authors often indulging in both genres, even within the same piece of work.

Keep in mind that this is no place for self-promotion. We have a forum for that.

If anyone can recommend any titles that would fit in this thread, then please post a link.

Thank you.

[crich70]

Flash Fiction 40 Anthology - July 2009

In May 2009, Editor Unleashed and Smashwords co-sponsored The Flash Fiction 40 Contest. Writers submitted stories of 1,000 words or fewer on the Editor Unleashed forum. Maria Schneider, with the community's input, selected the winners. More than 280 writers took up the challenge and posted a story. Here, for your reading pleasure, are the top 40 stories.

Click

And at Smashwords as a whole there seem to be a good many collections.
Collections

[Dr. Drib]

Thank you!

I'll check out both of those links.

[kennyc]

As I've been focused almost exclusively on Flash for that past couple of years, I'll cut and past my response to a question about 'micro' fiction at another forum:

Yes, it(Flash/Micro fiction) should be a 'complete' story. One way to think of it is perhaps like a poem. A poem is complete on it's own and most are less that 100 words.

That said, there are many ways to tell such stories. The main thing you want to do is compress, compress, compress without losing any of the emotion. If it is done well it can tell a story as well as a novel.

Micro of course is a significant step beyond flash (typically 1000 or less).

I'm gonna throw out a couple of titles. The best guide to writing flash (not necessarily micro) IMO is the Rose Metal Guide to Flash Fiction which includes instruction, examples(some of best published flash) and prompts... in the same vein is the Rose Metal Guide to Prose Poetry.
If you really want to write these short forms they are invaluable.

A couple of suggested readings/anthologies/collections

Flash Fiction

Flash Fiction International

Lydia Davis writes some very short stories - some as little as one line. Her collected stories and Can't and Won't are both great!

Stuart Dybek is just simply amazing! Coast of Chicago and Ecstatic Cahoots!

Prose Poet David Shumate was the inspiration for my most recent collection.

Here's a piece in The Guardian I just found by Googling:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/201...-flash-fiction

There is a good article here from one of the well knows flash fiction editors: http://www.worldliteraturetoday.org/...d#.VVoWjflVhBd

I'll shut up now, but I could talk for days about this topic.

[kennyc]

A couple of online magazines/journals (there are loads)

MicroFiction Monday Magazine

Flash Fiction Online

Smokelong Quarterly

Nano Fiction

Vestal Review

Everyday Fiction

[Dr. Drib]

Much of this I was familiar with, but some of it I wasn't.

Thank you for taking the time and for posting additional links.

[crich70]

The net has given flash fiction a new lease on life. Really short fiction is perfect for such markets.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by crich70

The net has given flash fiction a new lease on life. Really short fiction is perfect for such markets.

Absolutely. I agree.

But I would also add that the resurgence of the short story form about 10-15 years ago may have fueled the interest in such a form.

Too, there has been an increasing critical reception to flash fiction in recent years.

[rkomar]

I'm not sure if it counts in this category, but Haruki Murakami was commissioned to write short stories for advertisements in the 1980's. A fascinating concept: http://www.openculture.com/2015/04/d...t-stories.html, http://neojaponisme.com/2014/11/20/m...short-stories/

[BenG]

Drabblecast (Strange Stories, By Strange Authors, for Strange Listeners) opens each podcast reading a 100 word story submitted by listeners. He also reads a longer story along with some discussion. The host, Norm Sherman, is an excellent narrator.

Originally they used their own stories and contributions from listeners, but now they often use material from established authors like Tim Pratt, Mike Resnick, Ben H. Winters, Terry Bisson, and Mur Lafferty.

Here's an episode featuring one of my favorite short stories, Bears Discover Fire.
http://www.drabblecast.org/2012/01/2...discover-fire/