Short SHorts Notes & Examples by Quarto

11/28/10 4:04 PM

Espresso Stories

sJRqup (or gign in)... lost your

~ espresso stories ~ tales you can swallow i n a single gulp

NEW! Top 100 Stories

new stories

Creative Writing

'Done' 'q99d Byg'

'Sbs^'

This is espresso stories, an idea by the writers Chris Worth and R.P. Bird. It explores a literary form for today's frothed-up, on-thehoof, want-it-all-now consumer lifestyle: complete stories that take no longer to read than an espresso takes to slurp.

'Famous last words' •Ti^^ Pu4(jmR' A little while longer' 'Belladonna'

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top genres

MASTER'S 0E6fiEC

Brief Oddities (556)

aiidsJiL(45o)

The most basic rule is that they're just a sentence or two, totalling 25 words or less. Less hard-and-fast - but equally vital - are a theme, plot, characters, and narrative development. Everything you'd see i n any good story - but short enough tofitinto the time it takes to reach the bottom of that bitter little cup, as you ponder on how even the briefest experiences can make life more meaningful.

E p i c Romance (/uO

Miwi intrpgpggipns (409) l^aughing in tte M (305) NQJr the night (274) 'Burb brevity f2'^Q) NewYorkI/)vef2'^2) Spell Realism (243)

Ifpgt in Lgvecraft C241) — list genres

top authors U l v Silverheart f-^eol K t e n MgVgY (259) tjgon titian f22Q^ Y e s e f B a f - O q (226) Joan MahafFv (20A)

Learn > Scriptwfiting SlorytoMino Character Creation

It's inspired by Augusto Monterroso's famous story, 'The Dinosaur'. The goal's to become the web's biggest collection of the shortest stories, showcasing both new and experienced authors worldwide. Why not sign up (it takes less than a minute) and submit a few of your own?

rvtfug mimggtgr C157) g^ y t o n Hove (127)

Mglinda <j<?iBa^gz (^9) Mick Mather fii-^) M.T. Dierbeckfiiil ...list authors

ONLINE

FULL SAIL UNiVtRSITY. INFO

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This site is a hobbyists' venture, created b y a team of professional writers who love literature. Use of this site is free but see our legal stuff first. If your stories keep getting rejected, check out some

writing tips- Enjoy!

http://espressostories.com/

legal froth ^ privacy foam h o m e contact US - site map read the top ^oo stories?

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11/28/10 3:55 PM

jhortshortshort.com : Short-short Stories by Bruce Holland Rogers

shortshortshort.com

Short-short Stories iRi^wuce Holland Rosers

About B'lice

Aleut Shc'-t-Snor- Srories

S::ir.'-V; Stones

Who Suis

Since January 2002, for just ten dollars U.S. a year (twelve Canadian, ten euro, or six poundsr sterling) subscribers have been receiving short-short stories by Bruce Holland Rogers In thelrj email boxes. Most of these readers must like what they're getting, since the majority renew.) Stories go out three times a month, and they are an unpredictable mix of literary fiction, science! fiction, fairy tales, mysteries, and work that is hard to classify. Thirty-six stories for ten dollars. That's about twenty-eight cents a story. Q i i h c r r i n f i n n cfrkrioc a r e h o f u / o a n 7 0 0 a n H

7 ^ O n w n r H c Innn

We accept payment by check (to Bruce Rogers) or by PayPal. Bruce Holland Rogers

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PayPal

1485 E. Briarcllff Lane Eugene, OR 97404-3268 U. S. A.

ittp://www.shortshortshort.com/about_short_short_stories.htm

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Flash Fiction Online

11/28/10 3:53 PM

Flash 11/2010, #1: Gina Sakalarios-Rogers

Canine 401(k) Ed listened to the six o'clock news on the booking officer's small radio. The reporter described him as remorseless, a cold-hearted murderer. He slumped in the hard plastic chair, cuffs pinching his wrists. According to the reporter, Ed's twenty acres was a killing field containing "massive piles of dog carcasses and bones clearly visible from the air." She described... Read more: HTML

In This Issue: Jake Freivald

In This Issue "Canine 40Kk)>" a mainstream story by Gina Sakalarios-Rogers, kicks us off. "Dragons!ayer" by Peter McLean seems like a fantasy, but it's really not. You'll see what I mean and, I hope, get a chuckle out of it. Bruce Bruce Bruce! His colunm is about repetition, and his exemplar is "Love Is Strange." Our Classic Hash is a Lord Dunsany tale, "The Hen." The characters are birds, but their foibles are human. Our next issue will be up in mid-December. Read

HTML

"Pride's Prison" Read afreeonline short story about school bullying and help avert future tragedies. Pass It on and help bullied kids cost free. Laugh and cry! Very poignant. Has fantasy element. PG-13. Your ad here, right now: $0.30

www.fishpublishing.com Flash Fiction Online Writing Course. Tailored one-to-one tuition Your ad here, right now: $0.06

Flash 11/2010, #2: Peter McLean

Dragonslayer Krin looked sheepishly at the dead bear.

http://www.fIashflctiononline.com/

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â&#x20AC;˘lash Fiction Online

"Well," Mika suggested, "I suppose we could always just, you know, say it was a dragon." She was sitting on a rock a little way off, under the shade of a forest oak, checking the fletchings of her arrows. She'd put three shafts into the poor bear before Krin even got close to| it. Read more: H T M L

Classic Flash #44: Lord Dunsany

The Hen All along the farmyard gables the swallows sat a-row, twittering uneasily to one another, telling of many things, but thinking only of Summer and the South, for Autumn was afoot and the North wind waiting. And suddenly one day they were all quite gone. And everyone spoke of the swallows and the South. Read more: U F M L

Short-Short Sighted #26: Bruce Holland Rogers

Again Again Again: Repetition One of the first things I learned about English prose style, far back in the ancient days of grade] school, was that I should vary my vocabulary. Repetition of the same word (other than prepositions, conjunctions and articles that have to be repeated often) displayed a lack of art. If| I were writing a paragraph about a rose, then I should next refer to it as "flower" and then perhaps refer to its "petals," rather than writing "rose" in three different sentences. Read more: H T M L

Flash 11/2010 #3: Bruce Holland Rogers

Love Is Strange T h i s story collection Repetition".

is a n exemplar

for Short-short

Sighted

#26, "Again Again Again:

Todd and I were having a beer at the Folsom Grill, and I said, "You know, I saw Angela again | today." "Yeah?" he said. "Where?" "At a department store. She was there with some guy named Jim. Scruffy beard. Kind of unkempt. I wanted to wish him better luck than I had with her, but I didn't. I really should http://www.fIashfictiononline.com/

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Halloween Candy Review | Nonsense Reviews

1/18/10 11:08 AM

Halloween Candy Review I Nonsense Reviews

M & M s : "Melt in your mouth, not in your hands." So true. But do you know why they don't melt in your hands? Because this candy was specially designed for the U.S. Military during World War 11. Allow me to break it down: sugar and chocolate = gives you energy; non-sticky fingers = you can keep f i r i n g your gun at those damn Germans without having to pause to wipe your hands off. By the way, in case you were wondering, this is all 100% tme. Frankly, I think the secret nulitary nature of M&Ms could be played up a little more in the current ads, instead of using, say, those computer-generated talking candies that creep me out. "Whether you're in the mood for shooting terrorists, insurgents, or your own Army captain, M & M s are the candy for you. ... M & M s : because it's time to kill.'" Plus, eating the green ones means that you're a virgin: "//a h a , you're a v i r g i n ! " Or eating the green ones means that you're a slut: '"Slut!" I can't remember which. But I think I can resolve the debate. Let me put it this way; if you're spending excessive amounts of time worrying about the color of candy that you eat, then you're a virgin. Grade: A-minus

Kool-Aid: I was in the store the other day, and I saw that they have introduced a newflavorof this called "Clear Kool-Aid," formerly known as "Sugar." Hurray for marketing Anyway, Kool-Aid rocks! Who didn't love "the Kool-Aid Man"? Nothing could stop that motherfucker; not walls, not brick walls, not even more walls. And in addition to "the Man" himself, Kool-Aid is also the drink of choice for grazy Soyth American cultists who want to commit mm suicide via poisoning, Qh Yeah! ...This information affects my admiration for Kool-Aid not a whit, but stiU, good to know.2 Grade: A http://thefastertimes.com/nonsensereviews/2009/10/27/review-of-candy-snacks-and-cereal/

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11/28/10 3:53 PM

Flash Fiction Online

have, though." I unwrapped a cigar. Read

HTML

TrotWeci for Irw? by

one writer's commitment to writing every day. "7 dare you to j o i n me. " Ads by Project Wonderful! Your ad here, right now: $1.40

I Home I Donations and Ads I Subscribe (it's free!) I Previous Issues I Podcasts (audio versions) I Author Pages I RashBlog I Rash Fiction Submissions I About Us I Contact Us I Other Goodies I Need a ccpy editor with apassion for sp ec u l a tiv e f i c t i o n ? Your ad here, right now: $0.04

Copyright ÂŠ 2007-2010 Flash Fiction Online and the authors of the individual stories and articles. All Rights Reserved. Email the Webmaster with questions or comments about this site. For other contact information visit our contact page.

http://www.flashflctionon(ine.com/

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Halloween Candy Review | Nonsense Reviews

1 /18/10 11:08 AM

Good n ' Plenty: According to my mom, this used to come in a box that you could then fold into a whistle, which you could then blow to create a "Choo-Choo" sound. Well, that sounds fun! But they changed the box because of fears that it could be easily tampered with by candy poisoners. To which I say: Motherfucking candy poisoners! Can't we have anything good and fun in this world without you trying to ruin it? How long? .. .For how long must we sing this song? ...So, as for the candy itself: I hke it! But everyone else thinks it's gross. Must have something to do with the Ucorice aspect. Plus, they look like pills, so when you were nine, you could "down" a bunch of them, and pretend that you were doing a whole lot of Quaaludes. You drink some Kool-Aid, you do some Good n' Plenty 'ludes, and then you can see through time, my friends... G r a d e : B-minus

Cheetos: Yuck! Plus, what is it with the yellow crap that becomes eternally stuck to your fingers? It's a battle to the death between unremoveable Cheetos crap and accidentally i n h a l i n g a bunch of powdered sugar f r o m a jelly doughnut, then choking and coughing on it for fifteen minutes for the title of "Most unpleasant side-effect of a food that was already, by itself, gross." Grade: D-minus

http://thefastertimes.com/nonsensereviews/2009/10/27/review-of-candy-snacks-and-cereal/

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Halloween Candy Review | Nonsense Reviews

1/18/10 11:08 AM

Baker's Chocolate: I think that this stuff was just created solely to mock little children. My mom baked a lot, so we always had some of it in our house. So... mom's out of the kitchen for a while: Chocolate! We have chocolate in the house! Let me just p u l l i t down f r o m the shelf open the box, and... EW! A G G H ! BITTER! NON-SUGARY! GROSS! And then, two weeks later, Fd stupidly try it again: "Maybe it won't be so bad this time... EW! AGH! BITTER!" I even tried sprinkhng sugar on the top of it before I ate it, but no, that doesn't work either. Save your time and money, people, 'cause Baker's Chocolate gets a grade of: F

Trix: Silly rabbit, Trix a r e for kids. But why? Are rabbits allergic to Trix? Will eating Trix cause them to lose their glossy pelt and become rabid? There must be some compelling reason,right?To deny a desperate rabbit breakfast cereal for so long? But no... it just turns out that kids are assholes. But, if you're an aging hipster like myself, you might remember that in the early 80s, Trix actually had a phone-in contest to decide if the silly rabbit should be able to finally have some goddanm Trix. I instantly dialed the 1-800 number and voted "NO!" However, the final results of the contest â&#x20AC;&#x201D; which I actually had to go and research in order to write this review â&#x20AC;&#x201D; were: 99% - Y E S , give liim some cereal already. 1% = N O , cereal is had for rabbits.

.. .1 beheve that my single phone caU constituted the enture "negative one percent." .. .And so, we were treated to a commercial where a bowl of Trix was finally placed in the rabbit's trembling hands, and he got to desperately wolf it down. I think he may even have wept in gratitude when he finished the bowl. .. .Of course, by the end of the commercial, the kids went back to telling the rabbit to fiick off, and retumed to pushing him down and setting him on fire so that he couldn't reach the cereal box. Mean! But see, the reason that I voted "No" was... isn't this just plain meaner than never giving him any "Trix" at all?3 To be denied a ghmpse of paradise for so long, and then to be allowed one fleeting taste of it before having it all rudely yanked away ... weU, you decide. Is it better to touch perfection, even if only for a secorui... or is it better to be allowed to dream of it forever, never truly knowing it, without the coarse interference of so-called Platonic "reality"? ...Pretty deep, and kind of a good question, eh? ("...OA, silly rabbit! .. Advanced epistemology is for kidsV^)

http://tliefastertinrjes.com/nonsensereviews/2009/10/27/review-of-candy-snacks-and-cereal/

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Halloween Candy Review | Nonsense Reviews

1/18/10 11:08 AM

ANY-way. As for the cereal itself, I never ate it. Is it any good? Grade: C

FOOTNOTES:

1) So... I would like to pause here and take a moment to apologize for the vague and — let's face it — inaccurate title of this entire Review column. Kool-Aid is neither a snack nor a candy. It is a "drink." And Baker's Chocolate is not a snack or candy either. Allow me to do you the courtesy of being blunt: I just wrote down some stuff about food items that I wanted to make fun of, and then threw them all together. I got lazy. I am sorry. I HAVE REGRETS. 2) Although it is a little creepy that the Kool-Aid Man is carrying around a small pitcher of himself in the drawing. This is the equivalent of me running around being like: "Hey, do you guys want to try some of my nice delicious blood plasma? Here, it's tasty and fantastic! Have some!" 3) Actually, this is not 100% true. The real reason that I voted "No" on giving the rabbit Trix was this — as a kid, I was a big stickler for tradition. ...Seriously. I was like, '*Eut if he gets to eat some Trix, then that ruins the integrity of the entire concept!^' Seriously. I am in no way making this up. Oliver Miller was bom in Philadelphia, and attended George Washington University and Sarah Lawrence College. He is currendy writing a book of reviews, entitled (excitingly) "The Reviews." He also writes another Rgag more ^boyt Oliygr Miller ->

Readabihty version 0.5.1

http://thefastertimes.com/nonsensereviews/2009/10/27/review-of-candy-snaclcs-and-cereal/

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\bout Us - Short, Fast, and Deadly

11/28/10 4:16 PM

Short, Fast, and Deadly About Us VS^dcome to Short, Fast, and Deadly. An eLit Mag where brevity reigns and the loquacious are sent to contemplate their sins in the rejection bin. Don't be afraid Write Short. Write Fast. Above all, write Deadly. You'll be fine. Short, Fast, and Deadly is published by Joseph A. W. Ouintela. Fresh kills are posted on Sundays, ostensibly because it's on this day that God is too busy to notice. Think you have what it takes? Then send us prose written in 420 characters or less (Yes, that's characters, not words). Otherwise, just brew a cup of coffee. Sit back Enjoy the carnage. You won't have to pay attention for long. We promise.

By the way, what's up with "Sneak Peaks"?

Senior Editor/Instigator : Joseph A. W. Ouintela Copy Editor: Caisa Landin Copy Editor: Anna Swanson

Recent Updates: 21 Nov - i^o Posted 14 Nov -149 Posted i-^Nov - Deadline for 153: "The Year in Review" extended to 30 Nov QZJSQX-148 Posted Q2 Nov - 201Q Pushcart Nominations Announced ni Oct - \d7 Posted 24 Oct - id6 Posted 21 Oct - Last Themes aimounced for 2010: i53:"The Year in Review"; iss:"Revolution:Revelation" iQOct - "Letters from the Egg Carton" by Rebecca Bohn released at Deadly Chaps iZ_Q£t-i45 Posted 10 Oct - i44 Posted: "Whine and Cheese" 22LQ£L-i43 Posted Q2 Oct - November theme for 149: "(Word) Art and Lies" (Closes 30 Oct) 01 Oct - Submissions are re-opened 26jSeE.-142 Posted 22 Sep - Short, Fa§t, and Deadly mentioned as a launching pad for writers on the internet in The H i n d u 10 Sep : Verity Hill's "No Necro For Tito" released at Deadly Chaps 08 Feb : Check Out Who's Reading S,F,&D

http: / / www. s hortfastanddeadlv.com/

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Hint Fiction | W, W. Norton & Company

11/28/10 4:15 PM

W. W. Norton & Company Logo

Hint Fiction An Anthology of Stories i n 25 W o r d s or Fewer Robert Swartwood (Editor)

A story collection that proves less is more. The

stories in this collection run the gamut from playftil to tragic, conservative to experimental, but they

aU have one thing in common: they are no more than 25 words long. Robert Swartwood was inspired by Ernest Hemingway's possibly apocryphal six-word story—"For Sale: baby shoes, never worn"—to foster the writing of these incredibly short-short stories. He termed them "hint fiction" because the few chosen words suggest a larger, more complex chain of events. Spare and evocative, these stories prove that a brilliantly honed narrative can be as startling and powerful as a story of traditional length. The 125 gemlike stories in this collection come from such best-selling and award-winning authors as Joyce Carol Oates, H a Jin, Peter Straub, and James Frey, as weU as emerging writers.

Book Details •

Paperback

•

November 2010

•

ISBN 978-0-393-33846-1

•

4.5 X 6.3 in / 188 pages

•

Territory Rights: Worldvride including Canada, but excluding the British Commonwealth.

Endorsements & Reviews "Some of these stories suggest entire novels in just few words. So, in this small book, you have a whole library. It's reading at the speed of light." — Robert Shapard, editor of Sudden "The

Fiction

and Flash

Fiction

perfect story collection for all of us with too Uttle time on our hands is a brilliant

reminder of the magic that happens when you string the right words together. A mustread for anyone who is or wants to be a writer." — Jodi Picoult, N e w York

Times

bestselling author of H o u s e R u l e s "The

stories in Robert Swartwood's H i n t Fiction

http://books.wwnorton.com/boolcs/Hint-Fiction/

have some serious velocity. Some explode. Page 1 of 2

^i^t Fiction | W. W. Norton & Company

11/28/10 4:15 PM

some needle, some bleed, and some give the reader room to dream. They're fun and addictive, like puzzles or haiku or candy. I've finished mine but I want more." â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Stewart O'Nan, author of L a s t N i g h t a t the L o b s t e r

All

Subjects â&#x20AC;˘

Anthologies

http://books.wwnorton.com/books/Hint-Fiction/

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SmokeLong Quarterly - Submission Guidelines

11/28/10 4:10 PM

Submission Guidelines SmokeLong publishes flash fiction up to 1000 words. The SLQ aesthetic remains an ever-changing, ever-elusive set of principles, but it most lilcely has to do with these Icinds of things: • • • •

language that surprises nan'atives that strive toward something other than a final punch line or twist pieces that add up to something, oftentimes (but not necessarily always) meaning or emotional resonance honest work that feels as if it has far more purpose than a writer wanting to write a story

We have a special place in our hearts, more often than not, for nan-atives we haveni seen before. For the more familiar stories—such as relationship break-ups, bar scenarios, temiinal illnesses—we tend to need something original and urgent in the wr'iter's presentation. We are all writers at SLQ, and we try to be sensitive to the nature of submitting your wori^—which we realize is often your very private and important selves—to strangers. We so appreciate your entrusting us with your submissions, and although author names and bios are available to us, the staff rarely. |f ever, accesses this information before reading each piece, In short, we want what all readers want from you—something sincerely and uniquely yours, something that stands up to rereading and lingers in our consciousness long after. Please submit your story using our online submissions form. Please spare our tired old eyes by including two retums between each paragraph. Seriously, some of us have deteriorating vision, and all of us have short attention spans. Break up your paragraphs with two retums and we will be etemally grateful. We publish on a quarteriy schedule, with publication dates mid-March, mid-June. mid-September, and mid-December. Submission periods for each issue vary fairiy wildly. Submissions are almost always open, however, for whichever issue is next to be filled. You may send your submission anytime. Our intent is to respond as quickly as possible. Please allow us up to four weeks to inforni you if we have accepted your v/ork for publication. You will usually hear from us much sooner. Simultaneous submissions are accepted. Please inform our editors immediately at editors@smokelonQ.com if vour work has been accepted somewhere else for publication. Multiple submissions are accepted. Please note one caveat: it is generally best to submit one piece at a time, as each author tends to have his or her own distinctive style. Reading three consecutive submissions by the same author often works against the writer. NEW: Please send no more than two (2) pieces per submission period. We are not interested in works previously published in online magazines. We do not consider pieces published only on your personal web site or blog to have been previously published, so we will consider those. We are interested in pieces that have only previously appeared in print, but only by solicitation. Online Rights: If we publish your woric, we require exclusive electronic rights to it for 3 months and non-exclusive rights indefinitely so we can include it in our online archives. Print Rights: We require non-exclusive print rights, for potential annual anthologies and promotional materials. All other rights remain yours.

http://smokelong.com/sub_guidelines.asp

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11/28/10 4:07 PM

^ews I Quick Fiction

News & Events 07/31/10â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Lovers of the short form take note! A s a proud sponsor of the Salem Literary Festival, Q u i c k F i c t i o n is hosting a series of events called T h e F l a s h T r a c k , including writing workshops, a killer reading, and

even monologue performances! Visit salemlitfest.com to learn more about all of the programming and

Saturday, September 18 9:30 -11:30 am Ghost Stories: Conjuring Phantom Narrative i n Short-Short Fiction Salem Theatre Company, 90 Lafayette Street, Salem, M A 01970 Instructor: Kenneth Calhoun $25 It's more than a vignette, less than a tale. It has all the anatomical parts of a full story, but hardly any of it i n writing. Rather, the short-short story has phantom elements that haunt the page, then the reader, extending the world of the story beyond the actual text i n every direction. If properly drawn into being, each story is alive with ghosts. This workshop will explore the phantom narrative aspect of micro-fiction, as well as strategies to author its presence without putting it on the page. Fee includes a copy of Quick Fiction. Register 12:00 - 2:00 pm The

Prose Poem: A n Introduction

Salem Theatre Company, 90 Lafayette Street, Salem, M A 01970 Instructor: Jefferson Navicky $25 The prose poem is capable of incredible poetic feats, able to make leaps of logic i n ways few forms can, and yet it is grounded i n the world of syntax and the methodical art of crafting sentences. This combination makes the prose poem a slippery form. The workshop will not attempt to grasp its slippery soul, nor attempt to make it any less slippery; instead we will embrace its grease a n d attempt to use it to our advantage. We will read a variety of prose poems while dedicating the majority of the class to the process of generating new work through a series of varied writing prompts. Fee includes a copy of Quick Fiction. Register 3:00

- 4:00 p m

Salem Theatre Company Presents Quick Fiction Salem Theatre Company, 90 Lafayette Street, Salem, M A Tickets: $10 Salem Theatre Company m i l be performing the stories of magazine Q u i c k F i c t i o n as dramatic monologues! N o pre-registration required; tickets will also be available at the door. Ticket price includes a copy of the magazine. Purchase Tickets 5:00

- 7:00 pm

Quick Fiction's Utter Amazement Gulu-Gulu Cafe, 247 Essex Street, Salem, M A 01970 F R E E Meet us at Gulu Gulu for a phenomenal line-up of readers whose work has appeared i n the literary journal Q u i c k F i c t i o n , including Steve Almond, Brian Evenson, K i m Chinquee, Myfanwy Collins, Michael Thurston, and William Walsh. We don't even know what to expect, other than a whole lot of utter amazement.

Sunday, September 19 10:00

am - 1:00 p m

Flash Fiction Crank Salem Theatre Company, 90 Lafayette Street, Salem, M A 01970 http://quickfiction.org/news/

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11/28/10 4:07 PM

News I Quick Fiction

Instructor: Chip Cheek $25 Throw off the shackles of habit and explore new terrain without committing to a full-length story or novel. In this three-hour seminar, we'll crank out as many new stories as we can, using writing prompts designed to unleash your imaginative brilliance. At the end of the class, y o u H walk away with an assortment of diamonds in the rough. W e l l also discuss a handful of published stories and places where you can submit your work. Be ready to write until it hurts! Fee includes a copy of Q u i c k F i c t i o n . Register 3:00

- 4:00 pm

Salem Theatre Company Presents Quick Fiction Salem Theatre Company, 90 Lafayette Street, Salem, M A Tickets: $10 Salem Theatre Company will be performing the stories of magazine Quick Fiction as dramatic monologues! N o pre-registration required; tickets will also be available at the door. Ticket price includes a copy of the magazine. Purchase Tickets

04/22/10—Help out Haiti with Tv^tter fiction. 04/13/10—Join us Wednesday, April 21 at Enormous Room for a Literary Death Match! Christen Enos will represent Q u i c k F i c t i o n and head off against Edmond Caldwell, J a y Wexler, and Karyn Polewaczyk. The night's judges will include Reva Williams, Rob Crean, and Pagan Kennedy, Get more info and order tickets here. 03/01/10—Blake Butler's S c o r c h A d a s has been named 1 of 5 finalists for The Believer Book Award. Go, Blake! Read it before everyone else in the world does. 01/13/10—Michael Czyzniejewski, who has a new book out, has been getting some great press recently (and by proxy so have we). Read an interview at F i c t i o n W r i t e r s R e v i e w . 12/15/09—Aaron Burch's chapbook. 11/30/09—The Dirty Water Reading Series presents its annual "Dysfunctional Family Holiday" reading at Grub Street H Q on Saturday, December 12, featuring holiday-themed mad-libs and short readings by Jane Berentson, D J Dolack, Bill Donoghue, and William Walsh. A s with other installments of the Dirty Water Reading Series, the event promises to be more than your typical reading. There will be audienceparticipation mad-libs, raffle prizes, free food, spiked eggnog and other drinks, and even some holidaythemed fiction and poetry by the authors! 11/29/09—Just nominated for 2009 Pushcarts: Kirsten Rue's Spelling, Salvatore Pane's Fences Fly By, Dylan Nice's Their Health, and Randall Brown's It Doesn't, 03/29/09—The Dirty Water Reading Series presents Cowgirls & Couplets: A Reading Rodeo! Sunday, March 29, 7:00 pm at Grub Street i n Boston. Q u i c k F i c t i o n has roped in Blake Butler for this one, 03/28/09—Quick Fiction's Afternoon Delight! Saturday, March 28, 5:00 p m at Front Street Coffeehouse in Salem, Featuring delightfully quick readings by Butler, Enos, Foley, Calhoun, Bangera. 03/17/09—Quick Fiction was featured i n Daily Beast Lit Mag Round-up, 01/01/09—AWP! Through the incredible support of Emerson College, Quick Fiction will be in Chicago at Bookfair Table 432, Just think of counting backward from four and you'll be thinking of us. A n d we hope you will [think of counting backward] and come and say hi! 09/19/08—The

Dirty Water Reading Series presents Beer Steins and Frauleins at Grub Street (160

Boylston St, Boston) on Sunday, September 21 at 7 pm. featuring mad-libs of famous German writers and short readings by Rauan Klassnik, Aimee Pokwatka, Francine Rubin, and A m y L. Clark. A n d of course, German beer! 08/25/08—We were ranked #4 in New England by The Boston Globe! 07/14/08— For the ease of your social networking Facebook, http://quickfiction.org/news/

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11/28/10 4:07 PM

^ews I Quick Fiction

07/01/08-The Dire Literaty Series is hosting A m y L. D a r k on July 11 at Out of the Blue for a B B Q at 6, music at 7, and readings at 8. Hope to see you there! 05/31/08—Quick Fiction and N O O Journal are hosting a Book B Que on June 23 at Brookline Booksmith. Myfanwy Collins will represent the journal. Food at 6:30. Readings begin at 7. 03/11/08—The Dirty Water Reading Series presents Get Lucky at Grub Street H Q on March 16 at 7 pm. featuring mad-libs of famous Irish writers and short readings by Sommer Browning, Steve Himmer, Felicia C. Sullivan, and Quick Fiction's Nina MacLaughlin. 02/14/08—An intendew with Quick Fiction's editor i n chief on W^igleaf. 01/27/08—Quick Fiction + Chip Cheek will be at A W P (table 281 compliments of Redi\dder, who we can't thank enough). Stop by and say hi! 10/06/07—10/23

Opium's Literary Death Match at The Kitching. Including Pedro Ponce representing

Quick Fiction. $7 entry fee gets you a free copy of Opiums: Bad Company.7 p.m., 512 W. 19th St. (@ioth Ave.). 09/16/07—The

Dirty Water Reading Series presents

Keggers

and Clif&iotes at Grub Street H Q on

September 23 at 7 pm. Brian Foley will read for Quick Fiction. 05/21/07—Issue 11 Release Party. Saturday, M a y 26 @ 7:00 p.m. Author readings by Jake Ruiter, Mary Beth Caschetta, and Andrew Michael Roberts. Music by Jeremy McKeen of Ulysses. Beer, wine, and goodies! Feed Your Head Books, 272 Essex Salem M A (directions). 05/20/07—Spring Fever at Grub St (160 Bolyston St., Boston) @ 7pm. Readings b y Peter J a y Shippy, Sarah Sweeney, Megan Bedford, and Elisa Gabbert. 03/12/07—3/12 Big Party to Celebrate Small Press M o n t h ! Great Scott i n Allston. Starts @ 6 03/10/07—3/10 Quick Fiction Reading at Feed Your Head Books 2:00 02/27/07—2/27-3/3 Meet Quick Fiction at the A W P bookfair! Copyright © 2001-2010 Quick Fiction.

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Page 3 of 3

Quick Fiction | stories in 500 words or less

11/28/10 4:06 PM

REVIEW

EIGHT MINIATURES ON SUDDEN FICTION IN GENERAL, AND SUDDEN FICTION LATINO IN PARTICULAR BY

Sudden

PEDRO

PONCE

F i c t i o n L a t i n o : S h o r t - S h o r t S t o r i e s f r o m t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s a n d L a t i n A m e r i c a . Edited b y Robert Shapard, J a m e s T h o m a s , a n d

Ray Gonzales. 336 pages. W . W . N o r t o n . $15.95.

M y vocation found me in the aisles of a church goods store. I was too young to appreciate the irony of crucifixes and other religious articles being on sale, stripped of sacramental power by their price tags and presence in bulk. At the same time, I was probably no more reverent than I was during family trips to the fabric store; i n short, I was quickly bored. At some point during this particular excursion, I came across a framed picture of Jesus at floor level. If you stood at a certain point i n relation to this image, the Lord's eyes appeared closed, perhaps in agony, perhaps i n the transport of destiny fulfilled. But w i t h only the slightest shift in one's angle of perception, the eyes would shoot open, a trick of design no doubt intended to evoke spiritual awakening, or the \dgilance required of Christian living. I was not so perceptive as I later tearfully struggled to explain to my parents how the picture had somehow come to life. Read the rest Âť

FROM

ISSUE

BOBBY KENNEDY AND HIS SEA LION SANDY BY

ANTHONY

LUEBBERT

Robert Kennedy retumed from work, entered the front door of his large white house, Hickory H i l l , kicked off his shoes, removed his suit coat, loosened his tie, walked over the black and white tiles of the hallway floor, past the enormous black Newfoundland named Brumus, five children, the governess, a nurse, three maids, past the open doors leading to the rooms all painted i n bright reds and greens, unbuttoned his shirt, tousled his hair, walked out the back door past the iguana and the sea turtle, removed his shirt, his belt, his pants, headed towards the swimming pool where a young sea lion sat poolside, and he (in just shorts and socks) and the sea lion dove into the cool water. Kennedy opened his eyes under water; he saw the animal beside him. He lifted his head above the surface of the water. "The weather is good today, Sandy," he said and flipped to float on his back. "Really nice. There's fresh sardines i n the barn; let's go." Read the rest Âť

Also from Issue 17