Flash Fiction Tips Round-Up

Photo by Przemek Więch on Flickr

A few months ago, I joined the staff of Splickety Publishing Group as their new Associate Acquisitions Editor. I’ve been a fan of flash fiction ever since I had kids. It’s been a great way to squeeze a little fiction into my busy day. But I tell you what: there’s nothing like being on the editor side of the equation to pour a little wake-up call into your writing mug.

Oh. My.

The attention to detail! The strict adherence to the submission guidelines! The many, many submissions that (pardon me) are nothing more than “Meh.” And that’s not even counting the ones who don’t seem to grasp what a story is. (Hint: It’s not a moment in time captured through detailed description and heartfelt emotion. Something needs to happen, folks.)

Without further ado, here are some helpful articles on writing flash fiction. Most flash fiction tips boil down to the same basic things, so I’m loathe to repeat them here. If you read the following articles, you’ll get what you need.

The Flash Fiction tips

Meagan Briggs, a fellow editor at Splickety Publishing Group, shared some excellent tips in her guest post The Flash Fiction Challenge on Books & Such.

4 tips from Karen Woodward

Also from Karen: Why flash fiction is a good idea for authors and some Different story structures to try when writing flash fiction.

Some tips from Fiction Factor online magazine

Tips from David Gaffney (he has a really intriguing approach)

7 great flash fiction tips from Skylar Spring in Fiction Southeast

10 tips from J. Timothy King

Note: This assumes you already have a background in writing fiction. Almost all the usual fiction writing techniques apply… these articles just tell you how to adjust for flash fiction.