The Magic of Flash Nonfiction

The best flash pieces transport readers immediately and reveal dazzling truths with singular style, form, language, or slant. Essays of fewer than 1,000 words are fun to write and often easier to publish than longer pieces.

In this five-week online workshop, we’ll study and practice the magic of flash nonfiction. We’ll examine how a handful of exemplary brief essays and micro memoirs achieve their impact. We’ll identify the elements essential to flash nonfiction. We’ll discuss what such short pieces borrow from other forms and how they differ from prose poems or memoir excerpts, for example.

You’ll be prompted and guided to craft and refine your own flash nonfiction pieces. You’ll begin composing brief essays in class, based on a variety of prompts that are sure to spark new ideas and lead your creativity in unexpected directions. Then you’ll choose one of those beginnings to develop into a draft that you’ll receive light feedback on. 

We’ll discuss revision techniques, pinpointing strategies especially useful for this form. You’ll be invited to share your revised draft and solicit additional comments to help you develop your work further. (Sharing your work is entirely optional. Writers who choose not to share their work will still benefit from writing exercises and discussions related to form and craft.) Finally, we'll cover how and where to publish your flash nonfiction.

Learn more and register here.