Flash fiction – typically defined as short stories of 500 words or less, although guidelines may vary from publication to publication – is a notoriously tricky beast to conquer. Once tamed, though, you can use the form as effectively as a story four times its length – it’s just a case of avoiding certain tempting pitfalls and capitalising on the key elements of story-writing.
Jump into the Action
Forget sitting back and setting a luxuriously descriptive scene – with such as short piece of writing, there just isn’t space on the page. Instead, find a way of instantly transporting readers into the thick of the story, be it an unfolding event, a character's emotions, or a revealing dialogue.
The reader needs to know the context and underlying feelings of the story within the first few lines in order for a satisfactory plot and conclusion to unfold within the strict word limit.
Focus, Focus, Focus
There is no room for padding in a piece of flash fiction. Work out what you want to happen in your story, weed out the basic actions and plot events that need to be covered in order to keep your reader informed and get rid of the rest. Don’t tell us how so-and-so made her way to her boyfriend’s house to tell him she was leaving him for his brother; simply begin the scene with her already at his house, confession pouring. Whether her car broke down or if it was raining on her way there is of no importance.
Make an Impact
Something that you should always be aiming to do is make an impact with your readers. This can be in the form of a shock, typically with a twist at some point in the story, or with intensity of emotions and empathy towards your characters. This isn’t easy in 500 words, which is why you need to decide exactly how you want your readers to feel and how you are going to lead them to that point before you’ve written a thing.
Flash fiction is a whirlwind read; it should leave your readers breathless and that’s why you need to make sure it’s packing as big a punch as you can muster.
Watch Your Language
A universal rule of short fiction writing is that every word counts. This is definitely the case when writing flash fiction – with only 500 words to play with, not a single one can be wasted. If you’re describing something, don’t be tempted to fall into the traditional ‘lists of three’ pattern. Instead, choose one punchy word that delivers the weight of all three. Word choice is at its most crucial when dealing with very short pieces – every single word has to earn its place and add something to the story.
Ditch the Similes
Some writers lean on the crutch of similes for descriptive writing, and this is fine, ordinarily, but not advisable when writing a very short story. The words ‘like’ or ‘as’ in the context of a simile are superfluous to requirements. Take the following example:
Simile: ‘Her hair was as luminous as midday sun’ (word count: nine)
This could easy be converted into a metaphor: ‘Her hair was (luminous) midday sun’ (word count: five or six, depending on the inclusion of the adjective)
Or, perhaps better still, you can eradicate the comparison, simply informing the reader, instead, that ‘her hair was luminous’. There’s no need to say it in nine words when you can do as good a job in four.
A Means to an End
Personally, I would recommend following this rule for any sort of fiction writing, be it flash, a short story, or even a novel, but it is doubly important in this case. You must know the ending of your story before you start. If you’re planning a twist ending, start crafting the clues and diversions from the very first sentence. Set the reader up for the surprise in your first scene or paragraph. Even if the story doesn’t incorporate a twist, you need to be clear exactly where it is going and how it will conclude if you are to be economical enough with your scenes to create a satisfying read in less than 500 words.
Write Now, Count Later
Despite not having thousands of potential words at your disposal, try not to obsess about the word tally as you write. It will cloud your thinking and make you over-edit. Instead, be mindful of the ‘rules’ for writing flash fiction, but write whatever you think is potentially necessary for the story. The-fine tuning of a very short piece usually takes place afterwards – delete anything that does not advance the plot or the reader’s understanding of a character. Revise your descriptions and adjectives – is there a more efficient way of creating the same effect? Could that simile be replaced with a metaphor, or even a single adjective? Is the beginning effective or could the story actually start at a later point?
After all this gradual tweaking, your word count will start to pull itself in and you can begin to work towards the magic number, whatever the word limit for your chosen publication or competition may be. Don’t forget that some include the title in the word count, so always double-check when submitting.
Finally, another rule that applies to all writing: Read it, re-read it, then leave it a few days and read it again. It’s a test of patience, but reading through with fresh eyes does help to determine whether your story delivers the impact it should.
Amanda John - Amanda John is an award-winning fiction writer who also contributes factual articles to writing, parenting, and food/lifestyle ...
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