Brevity seems easy (after all, we live in a hashtag world). But it’s not. What if 100, 500 or 1000 words is all you’ve got to take a reader’s breath away?

We will examine the craft of writing short-short stories.

- Differentiate between forms of flash fiction.
- Understand fundamentals of craft terminology and how these elements function within very short stories.
- Compose petite prose with a complete story arc while strengthening your editing skills.
- Develop an awareness of how to read as a writer which will inform all of your writing.

Suitable for all levels, we will primarily focus on very short fiction across genres. Learn to write short narratives with a full story and character arc. Instructor will provide examples and various writing prompts.

Britta Stromeyer Esmail is the author of the award winning picture book Raina’s (UN) Happy Birthday and Finalist for the Bellingham Review Tobias Wolff Award for Fiction 2021. She is an editor of Tuxedo Literature & Arts Journal and the associate editor for FastForward Magazine. She teaches creative writing workshops for adults and youth, grades 5-12. She holds a Certificate in Novel Writing from Stanford University, an M.A. in International Communication from American University, and is currently an MFA’23 candidate at Dominican University, CA. She is a member of and advocate for the National Writing Project Council, the Society of Children's Books Writers and Illustrators, and the 12x12 Picture Book Challenge. Her second picture book, Look at Me. Who Do You See? is forthcoming in 2023.