Nothing has made a big of a splash in speculative fiction these days as flash fiction. Be it the influence of the internet, short attention span, or limited funds for editors; most of the publications in the market are not only open to flash fiction but some publish it exclusively.
K C Ball is the editor of “10Flash Quarterly.” I had the pleasure of reviewing her “Writer of the Futures” winning story recently (I liked it), and was curious if the fiction she picked for her ezine matched the quality of her writing.
The first thing I noticed was a couple of authors who seem to be everywhere (Cat Rambo and Jay Lake) they publish short works of speculative fiction. A couple of others looked vaguely familiar but most are new to me. Writing compelling works of fiction in under a 1000 words is tough. In fact, I know more than a few writers who won’t even try, citing it as impossible to tell a story well in so few words. Let’s see if this bunch can prove them wrong.

Accompaniment by Keffy R. Kehrli

Jonas can’t stop playing the guitar, literally. It’s the first time he’s picked up the instrument, and now he can’t stop playing because of a compulsion spell. Jonas is the hired muscle in a crime duo working a scheme to ensnare fairies, now he is doomed play forever. His partner helped him get into this mess but now has happy feet and is ready to ditch him. Too bad Jonas can’t stop him.

This story wasn’t drawing me in when at first. It wasn’t until I got halfway through it before I finally got what was going on. The writing is first class but the plot didn’t seem that special, until the end. Well worth sticking with. I liked it.

A La Mode by Karina Fabian

The protagonist is a detective who hasn’t had a job in awhile. A thug offers him a very nice deal. Eliminate the favorite in a beauty contest for him. Lots of cash, gold and jewels for him, and the girl is a certified virgin. Much more than a close-to-broke dragon-detective can turn down.

The story is set up like a classic detective tale, except the detective is a scaly dragon. Cute concept, but too brief to pull off well in under a thousand words. Ms. Fabian did great in the amount of space she had but the entire story appeared to be written for an eye-rolling punch line.

Aliens by D. J. Swatski

The Bauxal have come to Earth and destroyed Buenos Aires as a demonstration of their power. Jason has been monitoring them on his computer. The aliens demand tribute for membership into their Federation. They have no idea what they are up against.

This story has a very nice twist halfway through. Jason and his friend Reilly are the centerpieces of this historical moment. The story left me wondering about the two boys but it didn’t lessen the appeal of this fun piece.
Recommended

As Is by Sandra M. Odell

Hank is poking around Gary’s garage when he asks what the strange exercise bike looking thing is. “A Time Machine” is what Gary claims. Gary’s prodding friend wants to know all about it, but Gary insists it doesn’t work. But a friend like Hank won’t let it be. A guy like that has to find out the hard way.

Very cute and funny. The story isn’t at all disappointing, even if Hank doesn’t like the results he discovers. Likely the most fitting time machine story I ever read.

Brown Bottle Nostrum by Jay Lake

The protagonist is the only living relative left to put dear departed grandpa’s house in order. Ever since he was a kid, he wondered what the brown bottle with it’s duct taped top labeled ‘facial’ had in it. Now that the odd old man isn’t around to warn him, he can finally satisfy his curiosity.

It is hard to find fault in work written by a pro like Jay Lake but this piece had one hint too many for me. I knew what was going to happen a paragraph before it did, therefore the reveal did not come as a surprise.

Data De Morte by Lorna D. Keach

Shelby has performed the harrowing tasks the Dark Lord has demanded of her – slaying beasts, solving mysteries, polishing floors – and now she has one last task to do before she can be accepted in the hallow ranks of evil, help him catch up on paperwork. But even Shelby has standards, and being asked to use the wrong computer may be asking too much from her.

This is a nerd becomes hero in nerd universe. Some clever writing but it was just too silly for me to call this story funny.

Open-Door Policy by David S. Grant

The protagonist is the new guy in the office. The men all form a circle each morning, never talking, just commiserating in a glum group. The protagonist doesn’t know why they’re all maimed, and silent, but he just wants to fit in. Lola, the boss, is eager to oblige.

This is an entertaining piece of sadism (not a real fan of it, mind you). Horror isn’t my first genre of choice but this tale is quite clever. Don’t understand why the group doesn’t take care of the problem but it wouldn’t have been much of the story if they did.

The Forbidden Stitch by Cat Rambo

The narrator speaks of a map tucked in a common book. The map is of a land of negative emotions and you are led to believe of the possibility you find yourself in it.

I’ve read many of Ms. Rambo’s works, some of which had bowled me over. The writing in this piece reflects her gift for words but the point of it was lost on me. I was left scratching my head, wondering what the story was about.

The Misanthrope by Janna Silverstein

The protagonist in this tale hates people, so when he discovers he has a talent of making his wishes come true, people who irritate him begin to drop like flies. A talent like this can have its down sides if you’re not careful. Then again, there’s always a sliver lining to the darkest of clouds.

Calling this one cute would be like calling a Rembrandt nice. Mildly funny but delightfully entertaining. Loved how the protagonist just rolled with the misfortunes he created.
Recommended.

With Gleaming Blades by Anne Patterson Friedman

Gordon is retired, his joints are failing, his mind may be going, and he’s bored. Melinda worries about the state of mind of her husband. He watches the same sword-slashing movie over and over. He vows to protect his wife from a monster he says is preying on the neighborhood. There is a serial killer lurking about, and Melinda begins to worry if the monster he is talking about lives in the same house with her.

I really enjoyed this story. It was fun. Losing your mind in your old age is tragic but if I lose mine, I want my dementia to be like Gordon’s. Unfortunately, this delightful tale nudged its way to silly by the end. Still liked it though.

Analysis

I’ve read quite a bit of flash fiction as of late. Some of the best and fullest stories I have viewed over the past year were done under a thousand words. The cast KC gathered is a testament on how over looked this emerging class of story telling has become. On my other review outlet (http://www.diabolicalplots.com/), I wrote flash fiction should have it’s own award category in Hugo, Nebula and all the rest. The stories in 10 Flash and plenty of others support’s my contentions.

An entertaining issue of short but well written stories.