Wednesday Writing Therapy: 9 Thanksgiving Day Flash Fiction Shout-Outs

I started writing flash fiction before I found it in the world—and I'm still full of wonder when I encounter it. Surely not a definitive list, here, in no particular order, are nine (9) things I'm thankful for in the world of flash fiction.

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Dave Clapper & SmokeLong Quarterly. I had the pleasure of working with Dave and his staff for a number of years, and I continue to admire SLQ's ability to find the varied new and established voices in the world of flash. And those author interviews add so much to the pleasure of reading each story, kind of like getting a backstage pass to each writer's process.

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Rose Metal Press . The deadline for their fourth annual chapbook contest is fast approaching, and each book they put out is a winner, from Claudia Smith's the sky is a well to a peculiar feeling of restlessness (the four chapbooks of short short fiction by Amy L. Clark, Elizabeth Ellen, Kathy Fish, and Claudia), and the more recent Geoffey Forsyth's in the land of the free and Sean Lovelace's how some people like their eggs. Also, I've been using their field guide to flash in my flash fiction workshop—and it's a terrific guidebook. And I really, really loved Carol Guess's prose poem collection Tinderbox Lawn.

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Zoetrope Virtual Studio. It's here I discovered flash fiction and the writers who inspired me to aim for brilliance (something I'm still shooting for). These writers whose work I first glommed onto included Nance Knauer, Ellen Parker, Jeff Landon, Kathy Fish, Myfanwy Collins, Beverly Jackson, and dozens of others.

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Kim Chinquee and Joseph Young. Kim's ability to create entire histories with one word, to imply in a sentence what it takes novelists chapters to do has redefined flash fiction for me and made me see the power of compression and implication. I think of her as the face of flash fiction, too, and that's good, because it's a very fine face. And Joseph Young's exploration into finding all the ways that micro fiction works as both matter and anti-matter makes reading each successive project of his an exciting, artful thing to look foward to. Be sure to read Kim's Oh Baby  and Joe's Easter Rabbit .

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Guest Bloggers & Writers. They've written very cool entries, and have included  Laura van den Berg, Ethel Rohan, Christopher James, Sean Lovelace, Michael Kimball & Joe Young, Stefanie Freele, Curtis Smith, Lauren Becker, Sarah Black, Eric McKinley, Roman Colombo, Sarah Etter, Jess Bouchard, Anne Willkomm. Also, writers such as Jeff Landon, Ron Carlson, Joanne Avallon, Victoria Redel, Kim Chinquee, Joseph Young, Chad Prevost, Tao Lin, Ramon Collins,Tim Jones-Yelvington, Kathy Appelt, Brandi Wells, Mary Tabor have given reprint rights to us for their work and/or answered our questions. 

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Ink Pot. I know it no longer actively publishes work, but I had the sincere pleasure of working with Beverly Jackson, Myfanwy Collins, and Carol Peters—and the care they took with me and my flash fictions and short story (my first publications!) gave me the confidence to try again elsewhere. And the work they published can still inspire you at the Ink Pot archives. One of the first print & online markets to embrace flash! 

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Flume Press at CSU at Chico. They had to cancel this year's fiction chapbook contest due to budget constraints, but I know they're working hard to come back. Sherrie Flick's I Call This Flirting made me want to be a flash fiction writer. 

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Matt Bell. He's everywhere, and wherever he goes, great flash fiction follows. Be sure to check out his newest project, The Collagist  (with Dzanc Books).

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Readers. Readers of flash fiction rock, not only because they might all be writers of flash fiction also, but because, well, without them, trees would fall in the forest and not make a sound. And a special shout-out to the readers of FlashFiction.Net on Turkey Day 2009. Since August, there have been 25,000 page views. And that means the interest in flash fiction is as strong as ever. Woo-hoo!