Just a page or two in length, flash fiction is quick and easy to learn, yet endlessly rich and challenging to write. Flash can be realistic or fantastic, heartfelt or ironic, as simple as a fairytale or as fragmented and allusive as a postmodern novel. Its singular power is the sense of imaginative freedom at its core—the “flash.” World-renowned writers like Kafka and Kawabata have done some of their most evocative work in the genre. 

This weekend intensive course is designed for writers who want to explore the creative possibilities of flash fiction. We will talk about the origins of flash and how it works, read a variety of published examples, and generate work of our own through in-class and take-home exercises. We will share our writing with the group. 

Over the weekend, you will write in-class and take-home flash exercises, read published flash fiction, and share work with the group. You’ll learn about the origins and types of flash fiction, the role of conflict in creating story, the power of image and metaphor, and the relationship between text and subtext. By the end of the weekend, you will take away at least two new works of flash fiction, and a list of ideas for ten others. 

In this workshop, we will generate new writing through guided exercises and prompts; offer feedback/first impressions on writing you produce in our weekend.