Our 14 judges have been hard at work over the last few days—and the last few months—narrowing down the field in our now-annual competition, The SmokeLong Quarterly Award for Flash Fiction (The Smokey), to the 60 titles you see below. Thank you to everyone who participated in this competition. We wish you all success with your work and hope that it finds its perfect home.
Our judging process, as well as our general editorial process, is anonymous. If the judges recognize an entry and are able to identify the author, the judges immediately recuse themselves, and the entry is assigned to a new judge. All entries in this competition were assigned to two judges first. If one of the two judges voted maybe, the entry was assigned to the senior editing team (the second round of judging).
Each of the stories on the long list sparked a discussion among our judges, and they are all still in the running to win The Smokey this year. Anonymous judging is ongoing. If you see your title(s) on the list below, please feel free to share your elation on social media, but please do so without identifying your work.
The SmokeLong Quarterly Award for Flash Fiction – The Long List
A Murmuration of Emily by Lily Lalios
Afterglow by Tiffany Harris
Altitude by Robin Wilder
Amy’s Mom by Emily Rinkema
Another Failed Test by Seán McNicholl
Aunty Dolly Won’t Die by Renesha Dhanraj
Bad Mouth by William Huberdeau
Before the Stars Rain Down by Iiris Linkola
Between Chamisa and Rengyō by Mizuki Yamagen
Brassicaphobia by Catherine Liu
Bridges We Can’t Uncross by Mizuki Yamagen
Call me Marvellous by Philippa Bowe
Correlation by Elaine van der Geld
Cut Flowers by Dana Wall
Desert Religions by Zoe Flavin
Discontent Warning – Amputated limbs are typically incinerated as medical waste by Rosaleen Lynch
Even the Blade by River Franklin
exoskeleton by Pawny Cech
Grooves by Jay McKenzie
I Learned Too Late Not to Save Things by Amina Gautier
I Miss Angelina Jolie by Gargi Mehra
It’s Not the End of the World by Jaime Gill
How to Lose Your Scarf by Rome Smaoui
John by Sharon Wahl
Little Coffins by Elisabeth Gonzalez
Lower Mandible by Rachel Robb
Man Spelt Backwards by Chi Pham
Mars is not as dry as they told us by Mizuki Yamagen
Mother Said I Was Air by Dawn Miller
Ms. Pac-Man in the Maze by Sarah Chin
Mushroom Girl by Maria B. Olujic
My dog looks like a Republican by Severin Wiggenhorn
National Bird by Jesse Ackles
Non-Existent by Sabina Khan-Ibarra
Not My Husband by Chrissy Alhart
Pickle Juice by Kelly Pedro
Picture Day by Eileen Tomarchio
Plotnick by Eliza Gilbert
Plummer Park by Chris Wu
Public Record by LM Fontanes
Sand Fleas by Alix Cabral
Savior by Seth Gleckman
Silent Disco on the Blue Line, 07/07/23 by Chad Ohm
Silver People by Daniel McDermott
Skirting Around Orange Trees by K. T. Downs
Sometimes Grief is a Moonrise by Allison Field Bell
Special Occasion Italian Restaurant by Valerie Fox
The Burning Vows by Julialicia Case
The God-Line by Chanel Sutherland
The Magnanimity of It All by Tracy Dubin
The Smoke of a Thousand Pyres by Savera Zachariah
The Solid Fullness of Empty by Debra Daniel
The Waiting Room by Edward Ariel
(They Long To Be) Close to You by Binh Do
Trapeze Jesus by Geoffrey Veneklasen
Unnova by Daniel Woodruff
When My Father Loses the Sight of Himself by Debra Daniel
Where Bon Bons Play by Sam Ligon
Wild Gazelle by Glenn Orgias
Zombie Duck by Sara Hills
The core workshop of SmokeLong Fitness is all in writing, so you can take part from anywhere at anytime. We are excited about creating a supportive, consistent and structured environment for flash writers to work on their craft in a community. We are thrilled and proud to say that our workshop participants have won, placed, or been listed in every major flash competition. Community works.