If you haven't done so already, check out Isabel's award-winning story "The Dress" and then return here for a chat with the author.
WOW: Congratulations on placing third in the Winer 2025 Flash Fiction Contest! What excited you most about writing this story?
Isabel: I was both excited and intimidated by the risk it entailed. Magical realism isn’t for everyone, and it can sometimes be devalued as a narrative mode, by both readers and writers. I hoped to do something meaningful with it, as so many writers I admire do—express something about the relationship between mothers and daughters in a way that was both unusual and enjoyable.
WOW: Thank you for sharing that. Your risk has paid off! What did you learn about yourself or your writing while crafting this piece?
Isabel: I learned that each piece has its own energy, and if we try to control it instead of working with it, we can end up down the wrong path. I originally tried to write this piece as a longer short story with a larger cast of characters, wedding prep, discovery of a betrayal, and all this extra prose, but really it wanted to be a flash piece. I’m glad I threw out the longer version. It wasn’t working. As one of my writing instructors (Judah Leblang) once said, “Follow the energy.”
WOW: I had never thought of it before as each piece having its own energy, but that’s so true. I see that you’re a poet and have published your poetry, including a chapbook titled Beyond the Galleons. What connections do you see between writing flash fiction and poetry?
Isabel: The short forms are in many ways the hardest. Distilling things down to their essence takes so much work! I love the way Flannery O’Connor defined story: "A story is a way to say something that can't be said any other way, and it takes every word in the story to say what the meaning is." The same can be said for a poem. In both flash fiction and poetry, I see imagery and precision with language as key elements for creating that meaning. I think having a poetry practice has made me a better fiction writer and essayist, because there’s always a voice inside trying to get rid of the extraneous and really hone in on what’s vital, in every sense of the word.
WOW: That’s an excellent quote, and a very poignant connection between poetry and prose. What are you reading right now, and why did you choose to read it?
Isabel: I just finished The Testaments by Margaret Atwood, which I loved even more than The Handmaid’s Tale, and I just started the short story collection The Missing Morningstar by Stacie Shannon Denetsosie. I came across it while browsing online for short story collections, and when I went to check out the opening pages, I had that OMG feeling—the one that makes you HAVE to read a book because of the voice you encounter, and the gorgeous writing. I went to the publisher’s site to order a copy right away.
WOW: That HAVE TO feeling is every reader’s dream! Thank you for those recommendations. If you could give your younger self one piece of writing advice, what would it be and why?
Isabel: Stop worrying about whether or not you have talent. Grit is more important. There are many writers more gifted than you who won’t connect with the readers they might want to connect with, because they don’t keep submitting or, even worse, don’t keep writing. If you believe in the work, KEEP WORKING. Don’t give up. There’s room for everyone’s voice—not necessarily on the NYTBSL, but somewhere. Find the spaces that are meaningful for you and don’t worry about everyone else.
WOW: Excellent advice! Anything else you’d like to add?
Isabel: For some people, writing is an identity, not just an activity. If this is you, find people who get that about you, and support it, and celebrate it. We need those voices in our lives.
WOW: Thank you so much for sharing your story and your thoughtful responses with us. Happy writing!
Interviewed by Anne Greenawalt, founder and editor-in-chief of Sport Stories Press, which publishes sports books by, for, and about sportswomen and amateur athletes. Connect on IG or Twitter @greenmachine459.
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