Editor’s Note: Today we are very proud to host Ruschelle Dillon, author of the humor-laced horror collection Arithmophobia, for a great article on the popular writing topic of Flash Fiction. After you read the post, be sure to check out the information below it about Arithmophobia! It’s a great read you don’t want to miss out on!
When You Gotta Have a Quickie:
Whip Out the Micro Story
By Ruschelle Dillon
It’s known by many names, such as flash fiction, drabble, nanotale or mini saga. Each one is measured by a word count. Flash fiction is usually 1,000 words, whereas drabble or micro fiction is merely a staggering 100 words. Yep, flash is the ‘quickie’ of the writing world. It throws you up against the wall, asks you “Who’s your daddy?” and leaves you vaping vanilla bean bliss.
Flash isn’t a new hipster fad, like man buns or steamy goat yoga. Flash has been around since the dawn of the written word. In fact, poetry can be tucked in the flash category as it’s usually brief and leaves the reader with the need for a cigarette… or a strawberry cheesecake vape. Yum.
Readers of flash want to be…satisfied. After they’ve done the deed (of reading you perv) they purr, “Oh yeah. That was good.”
As a writer, don’t think that because your piece is 1000 words or less it will quickly write itself. That’s a negatory my friend. Crafting flash takes care.
Some of you may think, “Why bother?” Slap that silly thought out of your thick skull. Writing in the constraints of a word count is a fantastic exercise in editing for one. Writers love to think every word and phrase written is their child. Well guess what? Some of your kids are ugly. That’s not to say a phrase or sentence can’t be tucked away in its little internet bed until it reaches puberty. Sometimes our kids need to go through puberty so they can be released into the world elsewhere.
These little nuggets are perfect to craft when you are between stories or when your muse decides to go see her mother in Pittsburgh for a few weeks. Find a daily Twitter prompt on #Flash Dogs, or try your hand at penning a 100 word little ditty on The Horror Tree’s weekly Trembling with Fear and submitting it to them for internet publication. I know many author’s whose tiny crumbs eventually became full blown short stories.
So how do we create a brief visceral piece that gives our readers the oh so happy ending, even when the plot outcome is not so happy?
It just so happens, I have a little list…so you’re welcome.
1. Try only one position in the Kama Sutra, not all of them.
Think of flash as a snapshot in time. Pick a situation and write to it.
For example: This was the year I would kill it. The bastard would finally pay for taking advantage of me in my youth; for killing my best friend’s dog and murdering the only girl I ever loved. Once again, I wait in the middle of this godforsaken pumpkin patch. Oh Great Pumpkin, where are you!
One place. One time. The idea and action are clear. The Great Pumpkin really screwed Linus and he wants revenge. Quick and dirty.
2. Speaking of dirty…You don’t need all the dirty talk.
This isn’t a novel. You don’t have 5 paragraphs to describe the scent of the pumpkin patch or what Linus’s blanket looks like 50 years later. Who cares anyway? You have only a few words to hit someone in the feels. Make em count.
3. It’s all about the orgasm.
Those words you so carefully chose should lead up to a big finish. It’s just like the quickie; you rev ‘em up and put a smile on their face. Flash is also known for the twist ending. There’s a REASON you cherry-picked those particular words and sentences. They all lead up to that one beautiful moment.
In my example, you were thrown into the singular action of a man who wanted revenge on someone. But the ending revealed MORE than that. There was a twist that should have made you go…Oooh. Cool. Well, that’s what I was going for anyway.
Flash is not the place for cliffhangers or open ended, vague endings. It’s a big fat no-no. And just like the “quickie” you want them to go Oh Yeah and not…ehh that was…nice…I guess.
Everyone needs a quickie now and then. Working on micro fiction can fuel you creatively without the weeks, months or years of dedication you need to pen a short story or novel. It’s a method of self-control, getting to the good part without all unnecessary foreplay.
There are sites all over the www begging you to try your slow hand at the genre. What have you got to lose? Your flash fiction virginity? Trust me. You’ll like it.
Book Synopsis for Artithmophobia: Adam is a young preacher, with a loving wife and a child on the way. His family, his congregation, and his affinity for one particular science fiction movie are enough to keep him happy with his life. But when a new member of that congregation begins to haunt him at seemingly the worst possible moments, he begins to question the weight of his life’s responsibilities. Can he handle being “the one” – the one so many look to in times of need?
Detective Oswald Quinn is not so happy with life. His marriage has not turned out quite as happy as Adam’s, but his responsibilities have become just as heavy. The latest of these burdens have led him to the investigation of a serial killer who seems to seek perfection in the number 3.
Meanwhile, Scott seems completely unburdened by responsibility, save for his endless pursuit for a full glass at the bar. The drinks should be flowing freely on May 5, or “Cinco de Mayo”. But on this date, Scott discovers a failure much more haunting than an unquenchable thirst.
Arithmophobia is a collection of short stories that leads you on a journey to consider the sometimes haunting, sometimes humorous impact of numbers. Whether it be the value we assign to our lot in life, a date on a calendar, or the numerical magic that mother-nature can offer, Arithmophobia’s nine stories examine the magic and mystery that begins at the intersection of life and a single digit.
Amazon Links for Arithmophobia
Print Version: https://www.amazon.com/Arithmophobia-Ruschelle-Dillon/dp/0998113271/
Kindle Version: https://www.amazon.com/Arithmophobia-Ruschelle-Dillon-ebook/dp/B078BXK2DN/
Barnes and Noble Link for Arithmophobia: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/arithmophobia-ruschelle-dillon/1127683404?ean=9780998113272
About the author: Ruschelle Dillon is a freelance writer whose efforts focus on the dark humor and the horror genres. Ms. Dillon’s brand of humor has been incorporated in a wide variety of projects, including the irreverent blog Puppets Don’t Wear Pants and novelette “Bone-sai”, as well as the live-action video shorts “Don’t Punch the Corpse” and “Mothman”. She also interviews authors for the Horror Tree website.
Her short stories have appeared in numerous anthologies and online zines.
Ruschelle lives in Johnstown with her husband Ed and the numerous critters they share their home with. When she isn’t writing, she can be found teaching guitar and performing vocals and guitar in the band Ribbon Grass.
Author Links:
Website: www.ruschelledillon.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ruschelledillon.author/
Twitter: @RuschelleDillon
I do love a good flash… story.