Here are my top tips for writing good flash fiction:
1. Read lots of other flash fiction. I really can't recommend this enough - and it's so easy for flash fiction! Google flash fiction in the genre you want to read/write - there are so many available online. The great thing is they only take a few minutes to read!
I would also recommend keeping a note of the flash fictions you have read, and this counts for any reading you do. It can also be helpful to keep a few notes about what you particularly liked/what the author did well. This way, when it comes to getting inspiration you can find what you're looking for straight away!
2. Try some free writing. I have made a post about free writing before, but essentially you just start writing and don't stop until your time is up. For a flash fiction, I'd recommend around 10 minutes. Once you've got the bulk of your writing done it's much easier to go back and edit!
3. Once you're ready to start writing a proper piece of work, think carefully about your genre and ending. These two go hand in hand. If you're writing a horror piece, how are you going to set up the ending based on other events?
This might seem daunting for a flash fiction, but your reading should help with this. There are ways to set things up without using too many words.
4. Don't try and achieve everything you could in a novel. One of the biggest things you'll learn from writing flash fiction is good editing skills. Remember: it's ok to cut your work down! If there's a particular scene you can't bear to get rid of, keep it for another story, but acknowledge it doesn't need to be in this one. Flash fictions can be as short as a few lines, so no editing is too much (provided it still makes sense).
5. One big thing you can cut is exposition. We don't need to know your character's whole life story! Instead, drop us into a scene. If there's anything that desperately needs setting up, consider how it could be explained within the scene rather than before. This way your story is much more interesting and fast-paced.
6. Finally, you need a resonant ending. A final line that has stuck with me is from Meat, one of the short stories we read earlier on:
Imagine how unbearably, how unutterably cold the Universe would be if one were all alone …
As Hermione Lee described it, a flash fiction should be like a polished pebble. It should be complete, well finished and beautiful by itself.
Happy writing!
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