Small Stories: Five Short Flash Fiction Stories

In his article titled "Extremely Short Flash Fiction: Three Stories by cam" Chris Mills issued a challenge for other writers to attempt to write some very very short stories. These are nowhere near as short as those Chris was able to write but they are the best I could come up with given both the preferred minimum word count and my ability as a flash fiction writer. I hope you enjoy at least one of them. They are still quite short so shouldn't take too much of your time. Thanks for reading.

Mark wiped away a tear, his soot covered hand leaving a black smudge across his cheek. How could these cowardly bombers sleep at night after taking the lives of innocent children?

This was the part of a firefighter's job that he hated.

Just then Mark stopped feeling sorry for himself as he heard a faint cry, and began to dig frantically through the rubble that was once a child-care centre.

Although this story may seem a little fanciful it is indeed based on fact. Check out the following link:

"Did you hear that noise?" Danny asked his best friend.

"Yeah, it came from the kitchen," Trent replied, "Do you think it's a burglar?'

"Could be. It kind of sounded like footsteps, but I'm not going in there!"

"Your folks picked a good night to go out and leave us home alone. Use your cell phone and call the cops."

The police arrived promptly, and in a slightly bemused tone one officer addressed the two young boys, "Well, we've apprehended the offender, " she said, "He's a little crabby at being caught but at least he didn't pinch anything."

The boys blushed embarrassedly as the male officer held the intruder up .. a giant sized mud crab.

The water poured down heavily, dancing a tarantella on the roof and windows.

"When will this ever stop?" asked Sarah anxiously, "I'm feeling claustrophobic cooped up like this."

"Stop exaggerating!" scolded her husband John, as he eased his foot down onto the accelerator. "It's only a car wash for God's sake."

"My husband's home! Quick, hide in the closet!" she yelled.

Frantically, he jumped off the bed naked and raced to the closet, slamming the door behind him.

Slowly it dawned on him. "Hey, this is my house!" He banged on the door but it was locked.

Ignoring his protests she calmy dressed, removed the wallet from his trouser pocket, and walked out the door. "Nice doing business with you."

A heavy sorrow hung in the air, as the coffin was lowered into the grave. Most mourners wore black and the grieving widow sobbed under her veil.

The deceased watched from behind a tall marble monument at the back of the cemetery. His deception had worked. They were burying the wrong man.

He was free at last.

What is flash fiction? Definitions can vary depending on the market, but generally, complete stories of fewer than 1,500, 1,000, 500 or even 300 words can be classified as flash fiction. Other terms it is sometimes referred to are: short-short stories, immediate fiction, sudden fiction and micro fiction

What is micro fiction? It’s a subset of flash fiction—those super short stories typically told in 1,000 words or less. Once again definitions vary, but generally, micro fiction is any story told in 300 words or less, and could even be as short as a few words.

"I think of flash fiction as being one part story, one part poem. Plot matters less than mood and telling details–yet it does matter. I try to search for a subtle pivot, a surprising juxtaposition. I try to write to the drift of a story rather than in its grain. The joy of flash fiction as a writer and a reader is found not only in the words of the story, but in what is left out–the absences can be almost spectral, haunting what’s been told, only guessed at. Sometimes, a short short is like playing the Ouji board. You have to settle for a small part of the story and let your imagination communicate with the other side to know the rest of it."

Grant Faulkner - Editor of 100 Word Story