Flash fiction
From Free net encyclopedia
Flash fiction, also called sudden fiction, micro fiction, postcard fiction or short-short fiction, is a sub-genre of the short story characterized by limited word length. There is no "official" or exact word limit, but flash fiction stories are generally less than 2,000 words long, and tend to cluster in the 250 to 1,000 word range. "Traditional" short stories range from 2,000 to upwards of 20,000 words in length, and tend to cluster in the 3,000 to 10,000 word range. A good rule of thumb is that a short story (flash or traditional) is meant to be read in one sitting, unlike a novella or a novel.
Flash fiction differs from vignettes in that the works contain the classic story elements: protagonist, conflict, obstacles or complications and resolution. However, unlike a traditional short story, the limited word length often forces some of these elements to be unwritten, that is, hinted at or implied in the written storyline. Ernest Hemingway's six-word flash, "For sale. Baby shoes. Never worn." illustrates this principle taken to the extreme.
Flash fiction has roots leading back to Aesop's Fables and authors include Anton Chekhov, O Henry, Franz Kafka and Ray Bradbury. The Internet has brought new life to flash fiction with its demands for short, concise works. Ezines are a ready market for flash fiction works; however, many print magazines publish them as well. Some markets that specialize in flash fiction include SmokeLong Quarterly and Vestal Review.
One type of flash fiction is the short story with an exact word count. An example is 55 Fiction or Nanofiction. These are complete stories, with at least one character and a discernible plot, exactly 55 words long. Another is the Drabble, named after Phil Drabble, exactly 100 words excluding titles. Storybytes.com is a web site and email newsletter with stories whose lengths are powers of 2.
See also
External links
- Who Wears Short Shorts? Micro Stories and MFA Disgust Essay questioning the rise of flash fiction.
- flashquake – A quarterly online journal of flash literature, combining art, fiction, nonfiction and poetry to showcase the best flash around.
- Flash Fiction Writing Classes – Online flash fiction classes.
- Flash Forward – Flash Fiction news, discussion, and stories.
- AcmeShorts – Humorous fiction pieces 500 words or less.
- Shortshortshort.com – Short-short stories and flash fiction by Bruce Holland Rogers.
- [1] Bob Thurber: a flash fiction writer.
- Indeterminacy One-minute short stories paired with found photos.
- Vestal Review – The oldest magazine dedicated to flash fiction.
- Ediciones Efímeras Spanish Flash Fiction Editorial that publish free PDFs anthologies in spanish and english.