Micro Fiction & Flash Fiction

1. Micro Fiction & Flash Fiction An Overview :)

2. Micro fiction, also known as flash fiction, is a style of fiction that is characterized by being very short in length. There is no widely accepted definition of what defines the length fiction in this genre. These stories are generally less than 400 words in length.

3. Things to Be Mindful of: • Length matters! Micro fiction/flash fiction is short. • Because of its short length, you really have to make your words count. • As the writer, you must be willing to edit and re-edit to really keep the word count low.

4. Formative Assessment: Flash Fiction Baby shoes: for sale, never worn. By Ernest Hemingway. • Read the sentence above. Think it over carefully. What does it mean? How does it make you feel? 2) Hemingway’s words above have been called a “six word novel.” Why do you think this is so? 3) Write a “short-short story” of your own, not to exceed 10 words.

5. Our next piece Our next piece of writing is going to be a “flash fiction” piece, modeled after the Boise Weekly’s Fiction 101 contest. Our writing focus for this will be on description and imagery. The Flash Fiction final draft will be due in class on October 15th. As a summative grade, every student will read their Flash Fiction piece for the class that day and will answer audience questions about the composition of their story.

6. More on the Boise Weekly’s Fiction 101 Contest Each year, the Boise Weekly holds a publication competition entitled “Fiction 101.” • All participants must enter a piece of flash fiction that is EXACTLY 101 words –no more and no less. • If your story is accepted, it is published in the Boise Weekly and the winners receive a cash prize http://www.boiseweekly.com/boise/11th-annual-fiction-101-contest/Content?oid=2785443

7. “Runways “ Bernie shrunk a foot when he signed the divorce papers. He crawled into his parents' vast basement and assembled model airplanes while his mother watched Jeopardy upstairs. Planes littered the floor. Bernie built a knee-high airport, runways splaying down the hallway. He slid from one wall to the other perfecting his tiny world, imagined racing down the terminals. Tiny trees grew at the airport's entrance, surrounding a molded plastic statue of a soldier throwing a grenade. Bernie built benches where tiny men and women sit next to each other. They watch the planes come and go but never fall in love.

8. Last year’s grand prize winner ($400.00 cash prize) Genghis For his birthday I sent Genghis Khan my copy of Leaves of Grass. I left the handful of dog-ears folded. He wrote back, "Wow! What a shot in the arm! My fires had indeed been smouldering. I'll write again soon. All my love, GK" Some years later, I get a postcard: "Aloha from the Caspian! I'm about to take a dip, couldn't help but think of you. Hope you're well. Ever vigilant, GK" One step at a time, I suppose. I just hope he one day gets to catch a glimpse of his soul reflected in a well-tended bed of azaleas.

9. Description and Imagery To help us learn how to “make our words count,” each day we will be doing practice detail writing in class. Each will focus on using one of your five senses as you write. Today, we will focus on “taste,” “sound,” and “touch.”