flash fiction – Page 5

On her website, Emily Rinkema introduces herself as a “writer of short things.” But if the cliche “good things come in small packages” applies to the craft of flash and micro fiction, Emily’s work exemplifies it.

Take this gut punch of a first paragraph from “Amy’s Mom,” which took third-place honors in Frazzled Lit‘s 2025 short story contest:

After Amy’s mom drops dead, like literally drops right in her driveway, groceries spilled all around her, we sit in my basement and get high and plan what to do if ours do too. Meaning our moms. Meaning if they just drop dead.
Emily Rinkema, “Amy’s Mom”

If you want to keep up on what’s happening in the world of literary magazines, you should be reading Becky Tuch‘s Substack newsletter, Lit Mag News. This bi-weekly newsletter lives up to its billing as “a resource for all things lit mag,” and in a sector awash in newsletters about the writing craft, Lit Mag News is a must-read.

Portrait of Becky Tuch, writer, editor, and creator of Lit Mag News. — Author and Lit Mag News creator Becky Tuch

Each issue features “the latest goings-on in the world of literary magazines,” Becky explains on her about page. Those goings-on include information about new magazines, calls for submissions, contests, job and fellowship opportunities, grant opportunities, trends in lit mag publishing, and “controversies, scams, and the occasional smidge of lit mag gossip.” The writing is always conversational, often entertaining, and delivered in a breezy and easily digestible manner.

Category: flash fiction

Friday Five: ‘writer of short things’ Emily Rinkema

Friday Five: writer, editor, and Lit Mag News creator Becky Tuch