Do you love to write? If you’ve always dreamed of writing a great Australian novel but lack the motivation to make a move, start with flash fiction. Flash fiction is a great way to get motivated before conquering a novel-length piece of work. But don’t be fooled. It’s an art in itself and not for the faint-hearted! What we’re saying is, it is not easy by any stretch of the imagination, but perhaps less daunting!

What is flash fiction?

Flash fiction is one of the most fascinating and creative forms of writing today. It’s a micro-story of between 150 and 1500 words and is incredibly rewarding to write and read! It’s fast and fun, but don’t be surprised if it’s not as easy as expected.

Characteristics of flash fiction

There are many tips on how to write flash fiction, but these are our top five and are a great way to get started on your story!

Brevity

Flash fiction demands concise writing. The challenge is condensing a full and complex story with compelling characters into fewer than 1500 words!

Jump into the action.

A great flash fiction story pulls the reader into a world in full swing. So, make sure your story jumps right into the action in the first sentence.

Introduce few characters

There’s no time to create fully formed characters, so inject as much personality into your characters as possible. For the same reason, limiting the story to no more than one or two characters is important.

Beginning, middle and end

It might be short, but it must be a complete story with a beginning, middle and end. This sets this genre apart from a prose poem, which might explore emotions or memories.

Twist or surprise ending

The ending should shock or surprise the reader and must offer a resolution to be a satisfying read. It needs to provoke thought about the true meaning of the story.

Famous flash fiction

One great way to learn how to write flash fiction is to read flash fiction! If you’re looking for inspiration, read these flash fiction stories from authors who do it like pros!

Angels and Blueberries by Tara Campbell

‘Little Things’ by Raymond Carver

Baby Dolls by Becky Robison

‘The Weight’ by Ann Enright

Girl by Jamacia Kincaid

‘The Hostage’ by Amelia Gray

Housewife by Amy Hempel

‘Courage’ by Daniel Smith

Taylor Swift by Hugh Behm-Steinberg

15 fun facts about flash fiction

1. It’s a complete story told in fewer than 1500 words
2. It goes back to prehistory, including fables and parables, such as Aesop’s Fables
3. Forms of flash fiction date back to 19th-century authors – notably, Walt Whitman
4. In the 1920’s flash fiction was referred to as the ‘short, short story.’
5. In Japan, Michio Tsuzuki made flash fiction popular during the post-war era
6. Flash fiction became its genre in 1992
7. The term was coined by James Thomas, who co-edited anthologies Flash Fiction America, Flash Fiction International, Flash Fiction Forward and 72 Very Short Stories.
8. In 2020, the Harry Ransom Centre at the University of Texas established the first curated collection of flash fiction artifacts
9. Hemmingway wrote 18 pieces of flash fiction that were included in the first short story collection, In Our Time (1925).
10. ‘For Sale, Baby Shoes, Never Worn’ is a famous, early short, short (six words!) fiction written by Hemmingway.
11. Flash: The International Short-Short Story Magazine is a print journal dedicated to flash fiction
12. SmokeLong Quarterly, founded by Dave Clapper in 2003, brings the best flash fiction to the web.
13. In 2017, The New Yorkerbegan publishing a series of flash fiction stories online every summer
14. Flash fiction goes by many names, including microfiction, microstories, short-shorts, short-short stories, sudden fiction, postcard fiction and nanofiction
15. Robert Shapard and James Thomas were influential editors who polarised the genre when they published “Sudden Fiction” – a series of flash fiction in the 1980s

Learn to write fiction!

If you’re interested in learning about the writing process, take a look at our range of writing, editing and communication courses today. You’ll find everything from courses in journalism to writing for children and biographical writing.