Six Tips For Writing Good Flash Fiction

I've written – literally – hundreds of flash fiction stories since first discovering the form back in 2013. Even allowing for the fact that these things are all a matter of taste anyway, I don't pretend to be top of the class. As general editor of Friday Flash Fiction, I find it rather humbling to discover what other writers can do in the space of 100 words.
 
But I've seen and read many thousands of flash fiction stories now, including more than a few that have been submitted to Friday Flash Fiction but rejected. Here are a few tips about what, in my view, makes for successful flash fiction.

1. Flash fiction should be a story. It might seem obvious, but even in the space of a hundred words, there should be some sense that something happens, even if only a tear falls. The famous story often ascribed to Hemingway – 'For sale, baby shoes, never worn' – gets that sense across somehow. Flash fiction is not descriptive prose about a beautiful piece of scenery, say.
2. Your words are precious and should be used sparingly. The best flash fiction almost always has to be heavily edited. Getting rid of needless fluff from your over-long first draft is part of the fun, to be honest.
3. The words should speak for themselves. 'Show don't tell' applies even more to flash fiction than to novels. Personally, I find an author's exclamation marks irritating: I shouldn't need to be told that something is meant to be funny, it should be obvious.
4. You need to write well. Spelling, grammar and punctuation should be spot-on, and words should be used correctly. Check the dictionaries if you're not sure.
5. Check your work carefully. Writing flash fiction is great for developing your language abilities if English is not your mother tongue. But don't assume that the site editor will correct your mistakes – it's your job to send in material that is absolutely perfect. Get someone else to look over your story before you send it in.
6. Finally, follow the site instructions. Check the word count. You have no idea how many submissions fail because they're one or two words over (we do check). Nor do we accept serialised stories – the story should begin and end in the space of 100 words. It's important to complete the submissions form correctly, according to the House Rules – every publisher expects that. And of course don't cheat or take advantage of the publishing site by posting material that isn't yours, or by persistently re-submitting material that has already been published. For security reasons, we don't accept submissions sent via proxy servers or virtual private networks. Finally, Friday Flash Fiction is really intended as a once-a-week challenge. We've been having a bit of difficulty with writers who swamp us with several stories in quick succession. Please try to space them out.

By the way, I can tell how rarely these tips are read. Our rejection rate is surprisingly high...
 
Gordon Lawrie
March 2023