SmokeLong Quarterly

Nicole Rivas will be giving away a copy of her chapbook to the writer of the story she selects for publication this week (U.S. address only)!

Congratulations on your chapbook, A Bright and Pleading Dagger, published by Rose Metal Press last year. Can you tell us a little about your chapbook?

Thanks! Broadly speaking, the chapbook is a series of twelve flash fictions ranging from realist to magical realist. Rigoberto González, who wrote the excellent introduction to the stories, describes them as a “…journey into the dark and poignant experiences of women.” I wholeheartedly agree. I tried to capture the complexity of some of these experiences while working in a compressed space.

What books are on your fall reading list? Any favorites so far that you’d like to recommend to our readers?

I recently read and loved Rag by Maryse Meijer. It’s an incredible collection of stories–some of them flash–that’s crushing and tight and beautiful and everything I look for in short fiction. Otherwise, I’ve been enjoying graphic novels lately and especially recommend the graphic adaptation of The Handmaid’s Tale.

What do you think can make or break a flash fiction story?

This is a tough one that I don’t have a definitive answer to. What “makes” one flash story might “break” another one. That’s perhaps my favorite aspect of flash fiction; you think you’ve established some sort of ground rule, but then a story comes along and shatters it. I will say that the ultimate effect of a story is important to me. For example, sometimes it’s necessary to leave readers unsure, guessing, speculative. Other flash fictions seem to demand a firmer resolution. Figuring out which kind of flash fiction you’ve written is the trick.

What kind of story would you love to find in the queue this week?

I’d like to be jarred, challenged, devastated. Give me a messy situation with confidence all the way through. I’m also a sucker for good flash written from an unlikely perspective, human or otherwise. A couple of my favorites are Maryse Meijer’s “Rag,” and Dean Paschal’s “The Puppies”. It’s such a refreshing move to hear from something or someone that’s been enlivened, that’s been given a language all its own.