A Look into Flash Fiction

[Click on image for a
flash fiction challenge]

By Moristotle

I found challenging Michael H. Brownstein’s examples of flash fiction (and micro fiction) stories. I have so far managed to write a few that I thought were okay. One of them, “Jesus on a High,” even adhered to the exact upper limit of the prescribed word count of 100, including the 9 words of its opening quote from Karl Marx. I remember the pleasure of whittling the words to exactly those 100, which took me many drafts. They were not an easily found 100 words, just like an article I recommend says:

Flash fiction might be shorter, but it’s not easier [emphasis mine]…many long-form authors find it more challenging to write…Forcing yourself to stay under 1,500 words will help you clean up your prose. [—“What Is Flash Fiction? Meaning, Characteristics, and Examples,” by Krystal N. Craiker]

1,500 words?! That’s 15 times as many words as the 100 I was shooting for with “Jesus on a High.”
    But might the term “flash fiction” just be the latest fad, trying to take the place of “short short story,” as I understood the concept from high school and college English courses many years ago, as simply

a very short piece of prose fiction, much more condensed than the average short story. [“short short story,” dictionary.com]

    But the situation with “flash fiction” actually seems much more complicated (and interesting) than I suspected. Look at Wikipedia’s entry for it, which, besides an aka, currently lists seven  varieties:

Flash fiction, also called minimalist fiction, is a fictional work of extreme brevity that still offers character and plot development. Identified varieties, many of them defined by word count, include

1. the six-word story; 
2. the 280-character story (also known as “twitterature”); 
3. the “dribble”(also known as the “minisaga,” 50 words); 
4. the “drabble” (also known as “microfiction,” 100 words); 
5. “sudden fiction” (750 words); 
6. “flash fiction”(1,000 words); and 
7. “microstory.” [numbering & emphasis mine]

    According to that entry, a flash fiction limited to 100 words is a “drabble,” which

is said to have originated in UK science fiction fandom in the 1980s; the 100-word format was established by the Birmingham University SF Society, taking a term from Monty Python’s 1971 Big Red Book.

    Monty Python?! The entry goes on to discuss writing competitions; for example:

In drabble contests, participants are given a theme and a certain amount of time to write…Wilfrid Laurier University conducted a “100 Words Centennial Drabble Contest” in commemoration of its 100th anniversary in 2011, in which contestants were asked to write about “inspiration, leadership or purpose.”

    I’m reminded that Michael alluded to writing-competition guidelines in February this year in the preamble to his column, “The Philosophy of What 
(and three other [examples of micro flash fiction])”:

Below are four examples of micro flash fiction. Very limited word counts. Simple rules: some have to be ten words or less while others—per guidelines [emphasis mine] —give you more leeway: up to fifty words.

    I can’t knock writing competitions, because, as I’ve reported on this blog, I’ve entered a few myself in recent years. It’s fun. And we can just laugh at all the new terms for a short short story.

Copyright © 2023 by Moristotle