The obligatory end-of-year wrap-up post you’ve been waiting for

The year in writing, recognition, loss, and life

If nothing else, 2024 for me was a year of transition and disruption. And — I hope — a year I learned to be more grateful and empathetic.

After 40 years of full-time work, much of it in academia, I entered a new phase of life last January. Some call it retirement, but it has hardly been that. My pursuit of creative writing and some freelance work has kept me busy enough. In addition, my wife and I and our cat had a couple of health scares that made us reevaluate our values and gave us greater insight into the workings of the U.S. health care system, the good, bad, and ugly of it. We also mourned the passing of a few friends from our church family and continue to honor their memory.

In other words, a lot of life happened in 2024. Here are some highlights from the year:

Continue reading “The obligatory end-of-year wrap-up post you’ve been waiting for”

Friday Five: Q&A with writer/’Art of Flash Fiction’ Substacker Kathy Fish

‘I sort of fell into flash writing before I knew there was such a thing.’

Although the Thanksgiving holiday is now behind us and we in the USA are deep into the throes of the holiday season, I’d like to extend Thanksgiving’s sense of gratitude just a bit longer with today’s Friday Five Q&A with writer Kathy Fish. Like many writers, I am grateful to Kathy for her example, her teaching, and her generosity of spirit.

Author and ‘Art of Flash Fiction’ creator Kathy Fish.

Kathy’s work can be found in a vast array of literary magazines and anthologies. She’s even in The Norton Reader! Her works also appear in PloughsharesWaxwing Magazine, Denver Quarterly, Mississippi Review online, Wigleaf, Best American Nonrequired Reading 2018, W. W. Norton’s New Micro: Exceptionally Short Fiction, and Flash Fiction America (W. W. Norton). Visit her Publications & Awards webpage for a more complete list.

In addition to being an exceptional writer of flash fiction and longer works, Kathy encourages many of her fellow writers through her Substack/newsletter, Art of Flash Fiction. Any writer wanting to become better at the craft — whether flash or otherwise — ought to read this newsletter. Through it, Kathy shares her perspectives on writing with an emphasis on flash fiction. In addition, she offers writing workshops, online and in person.

Read on for a brief — but longer than flash — look into Kathy’s perspective on writing, her influences, and advice for other writers.

Continue reading “Friday Five: Q&A with writer/’Art of Flash Fiction’ Substacker Kathy Fish”