The popularity of a short story has grown. The emotions that one feels, and the senses that are evoked in a novel are brought to us in all shapes and sizes via the net.

They make us stop and listen. In such a noisy, information-packed world, only a shorter story will do to grab our attention here and now.

The message to today’s writers is simple. Tell me something quick. Make me care!!

With this, the short story has mutated from a jelly-like cluster of sentences and ideas into its 100s of tiny offspring. Your imagination is the limit. So many great forms of flash can be written these days. Perfect for busy minds!

You can write a twitter story (750 characters), a dribble or mini saga (50 words), a drabble or micro fiction (100 words), flash fiction (including listicles, hermit crab, fast flash and others), a short story (up to around 6000, but some accept 10,000) or a novella (usually around 15,000 to 40,000 words).

And everything in between! These days you can write whatever your subconscious leads you to and then categorise it later. With the number of online literary magazines growing, there are hundreds, if not thousands of places to submit your work for publication.

All sorts of stories can be shared on the internet these days. I remember having to wait for the weekend for our weekly trip to the library back when I was a young girl.

Nowadays, it’s mind-blowing how easy it is to slip into the mind of another human via the click of a button on your electronic device.

OK so I’m going to set you a weekly task on a Monday. So, this week’s task is to read a short story and tell me what you thought of it. Here is a list of popular stories:

https://reedsy.com/discovery/blog/best-short-stories

Enjoy!

The link below is something I’ve come across recently and it is as impactful as it is accessible. Each series focuses on a different group of people or specific loss. It’s mind-blowing how powerful these pieces can be, especially when read as part of a series.

https://www.humansofnewyork.com/?mc_cid=869182ba00&mc_eid=3553f44ec1

Please don’t be shy to comment below on your own favourite stories or flash. The more recommendations, the better! Let’s broaden our minds!!

I look forward to discussing your thoughts, in our private group, on this and maybe even having a go at some of our own…

Peace and Love,

Sidra