Thread by @MaureenLangloss

I keep asking myself: What makes a flash work? What? What? I keep failing at the answer. Such an elusive thing to explain. It’s more an I-know-it-when-I-see-it situation. So I made a list of some stellar pieces that stand out in my mind & I’m going to thread them.

I’m going to start with God, of course. Where else?

From Joy Williams’ ninety-nine stories of GOD ⬇️⬇️⬇️

Next up: Kate Chopin, of course. The Story of an Hour from 1894. Yep, flash is an old soul. bit.ly/2Dh11Ao

By @weoleson in @SmokeLong for the structure, for the straight-forward language that hides so much complexity beneath: "I take it from my sock drawer and open it before it’s ready. I’m greedy. I’m wasteful." bit.ly/2xo1j4v

Of course, @HelenMcClory for the language the punctuation the weird the emotion the characterization the rhythm the shift in rhythm

Taken from her collection On the Edges of Vision

Pick any @kathyfish story you want & it will teach you what good flash is. But this one in particular strikes my fancy. How she maintains the word play while still giving us a story, a plot. From her collection Together We Bury It

Just pulling this story up to get its link I could not help but re-read. For the emotion in it. For the truth. @Rumaan in @Wigleaf: bit.ly/2GL6HQ2

Who doesn't love a wolf in leggings? The one, the only @MrBearStumpy in @MoonParkReview bit.ly/2x7WEES

Behold: the perfect flash. Perfect first line. Perfect last line. Perfect again and again and again. By @megiddings in @threadcountmag: bit.ly/2GKwHec

One of the greatest writing talents I know: @The_Big_Quiet. I've come back to this story for inspiration many times (from @NecessaryFic): bit.ly/2IGavrs

This next one is CNF but I can't resist including it bc it's electrifying. Weaves together so many different elements into one fantastic whole. And the grackles! By @knownforms @CheatRiver bit.ly/2Lt7g4j

The first time I read Because I Wanted to Write You a Pop Song, something changed in me. Like a receptor I didn’t have before was born in my brain. Read any @KaraVernor story & you will never be the same. Here’s one of my faves. @splitlippress

The boyfriend stories. Impossible to pick just one. My very favorite reading at AWP17 was @thisyearsboy @splitlipthemag. So dark. So funny. So sweet. I'm posting a link to this @the_mondegreen, but thinking of them all bit.ly/2Lqk0ZL

Huge thank you to @thelegitKAR for introducing me to the incredibly moving work of @karissachen. This story @Gulf_Coast is probably my favorite. I just marvel at what she accomplished with POV. bit.ly/2s9Je5O

This story by @maddieanthes has stuck with me because it gave me a reaction in my actual body. I couldn't breathe. My heart raced. I was amazed she could make a story about mental illness/depression so physical. @MolotovLitZine bit.ly/2kqqjzT

Jean Toomer's Cane. @tylachelleco called it a novella in flash back at AWP17. A ground-breaking, earth-shattering work. I can still remember where I was sitting when I read it in college. If you haven't read it, please do. Not giving you a link bc you must read it ALL

And to end this thread: a dead man on a sofa. To remind us that flash wasn't born yesterday. I give you Anton Chekhov: bit.ly/2IM8ztE