Interview With Maja Zysk, Summer 2022 Flash Fiction Runner-Up

I'm excited to interview Maja Zysk, one of our runners-up in our Summer 2022 Flash Fiction contest. Before reading our interview, please read her story Rockwell's Missing Portrait then come on back.

First, here's a bit about Maja:

Maja Zysk is an award-winning fiction writer and poet, with work* appearing in North American Review, Mid-American Review, The Briar Cliff Review, Reed Magazine, and elsewhere. Born in Poland, grown in the Sierra Nevada, and matured in the Valley of the Sun, she currently casts her anchor in the PNW’s Columbia River. When not waltzing with Sasquatch, she wrangles a toadstool princess, chips away at a novel, and ferments things. Maja’s first chapbook of poetry, Soil, was published in 2020 by Finishing Line Press. (*Work published under the name Maja Zmyslowski)

--- Interview by Nicole Pyles

WOW: Congratulations on winning runner-up in our Summer 2022 Flash Fiction contest! Your story was raw, and tragic, but very real at the same time. What inspired this idea? 

Maja: The term "latchkey kid" inspired the story. Certainly, there are children who gain independence when unsupervised and it's a positive thing, but there's an element of parental intention and choice that comes into play. There are millions of parents who don't have access to adequate childcare, and my piece was a reflection on that, as well as a commentary on the high cost of medical care, mental health, and how often we only bandage the symptoms rather than treat the root causes of such issues. 

WOW: You really reflected the raw reality of that in this story. Did you know the ending before you wrote it or did it take many revisions to get to the ending that was published? 

Maja: I'm a pantser, not much of a plotter. The ending surprised me when the words came out. It saddened me, but that was the point I was trying to make: it's not all happy endings out there. 

WOW: Absolutely. Excellent point. I love the title of your story. The Rockwell paintings seem to portray this idea of "America as it should be" but your story reflects parts of America in its raw, real form. What inspired you to choose this title and cultural reference? 

Maja: I've always been a fan of Americana, and Norman Rockwell's artwork of everyday life shows the best of times. However, the scenes depicted in my story are also everyday life. My husband titled the piece. I didn't have a title and asked him to frame the story for me, and that is what he came up with just seconds after reading it. It's a perfect title, and I don't think the story would be as strong without that exact one.

WOW: It really is the perfect title. What are you working on now that you can tell us about? 

Maja: I recently finished a full-length manuscript, a sexy nerdy rom-com focusing on mental health, weird science, and love, of course! I'm in the process of querying agents - woo! 

WOW: That's so exciting! I see you also work on poetry and even had a poetry collection published! How does your poetry writing influence your creative writing? 

Maja: Poetry is my first love. Whether free-form or structured verse, poetry is like having a bit of magic in your back pocket. You can carry a poem in memory, recite it like a mantra. Applying an economy of language and focusing on sensory impacts is a skill that I've brought over into my creative writing. Poetry lets you play with words, sounds, and images, and this only strengthens a paragraph in longer fiction. 

WOW: Great point! So, I'm curious: what surrounds you as you write? 

Maja: I romance myself. We're talking candles, flowers, cuppa. 

WOW: I love that! Makes sitting down to write like a date with your characters. Do you have a particular writing ritual you like to do that you can tell us about? 

Maja: Before I sit down to write for a long stretch, I harness some energy by putting on headphones and dancing to "Paris" by Else. Then I perform a series of yogic breaths and high-five the universe. Tap into that flow state! 

WOW: That sounds amazing! I'll have to do that myself. Congratulations again on your story and best of luck on your book!

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INTERVIEW WITH MELISSA BALICK, RUNNER UP IN THE SUMMER 2022 FLASH FICTION CONTEST

 

Melissa’s Bio:

Melissa Balick is a deeply unconventional nanny who lives in Oakland, CA with her partner Jon and her haunted, world-weary dog Willow. She spends much of her time hiking through California redwoods or scaling rocks on the Pacific coast, peeking into tide pools and imagining life as a hermit crab. Her work has appeared in Flash Fiction Magazine, 101 Words, and will soon appear in Hungry Shadow Press. 

You can find her on practically every platform, from Medium to TikTok, @melissabalick.

If you haven't read "Restaurant" yet, take a moment to explore this story and then come back to learn about Melissa and her writing.

-----interview by Sue Bradford Edwards-----

WOW: What was the inspiration for Restaurant?

Melissa: I’ve had acute climate anxiety all my life and I'm also a professional babysitter/nanny, so I think a lot about how much we hide these problems from children, who are too busy trying to figure out how to even be a person to get saddled with the weight of the problems of the world. 

I remember in particular that I babysat a little boy the day after the 2016 election when I lived in Los Angeles. Everyone I walked past that morning looked downright zombified, and I was also suffering from feelings of profound dread and panic. The boy's parents and I exchanged broken, devastated looks with each other, and then their 2.5 year old son came to the door and I transformed instantly into a person who would not, could not allow the terrible news for our world harm even one morning of this child's life. I smiled, I played, I got downright cheery. He deserved to have his fun and play and enjoy childhood. I'm sensitive to how easily children pick up on our cues and reflect them back. So "Restaurant" came from that idea, the way that parents will pretend to eat the balloon, act like there's nothing to worry about, to rescue their children from the harsh realities of what is happening on our planet. 

WOW: How did "Restaurant" change during the revision process? 

Melissa: This one didn't change very much from when I first wrote it. 

WOW: It is such a tight story. How do you tell which details deserve space in the brief word count and which have to go? 

Melissa: First of all, thank you for saying it's tight. To be honest, looking back, I would add another sentence or two. I regret not including any sensory detail of the deflated balloon, because I find them to have a particular physical presence that would have evoked childhood in a visceral way. 

In general, I tend to only like stories where, at the end, I feel like I understood the story and what it was trying to say. Most short stories that are well-received do nothing for me except make me throw the book against the wall because I did not understand the point of that story or often, even, what happened in it. But they get published and win awards so I suppose that's what other people want. Not me, though. I like a tight story. I don't want readers getting bored or confused at any point in my stories. So I write the kinds of stories I like, and hope for the best. 

The whole process of writing is pretty much a mystery to me. You never know what other people will love or hate. All I can do is write what feels right to me, what captures the spirit of what I'm trying to say. Occasionally it resonates with other people and I can't control that. I can only write what resonates with me. 

WOW: That's so true.  You can't control the reader so write what you love. What does a typical writing session look like for you? 

Melissa: I'm an erratic writer at best. If I'm inspired, I might sit down and bang out a story in a day, then revise it about 16,000 times. I find it literally impossible to make myself do anything I don't want to do and the consequences of not doing something will have to outweigh the benefit of getting it done by a lot before I'll actually do it. Even this interview request -- you can't tell me I wasn't the last one to respond and answer. 

So, when it comes to writing, if I sit down and actually do it, I just do it. I don't know where it comes from or what it looks like. I can tell you that I don't do what everyone says to do, which is to vomit it all out on the first draft and fix it later. I suffer over every sentence the first time I write it, then suffer over it another dozen times, then put it away for a couple months, pull it back out, and suffer over it at least another five times. I can't recommend this method to others, but I'm being honest, this is what I do. 

WOW: I'm glad you've found what works for you, but I have to admit, I slap the whole thing down before I fine tune it.  What can you tell our readers about your current project? 

Melissa: I don't exactly have a current project. I have a couple novels I wrote and haven't finished editing. I have a lot of ideas. I can't see myself pursuing literary writing with any seriousness. I read almost exclusively literary fiction but I hate rejection and part of me would rather crank out genre fiction for self-publishing than try to compete in literary writing and keep losing all the time. The whole question of whether or not I'll keep writing with any seriousness is very much undetermined at this time.

WOW: I'm sure I'm not alone in hoping that you do continue to write as the mood strikes you!  Because I for one will be looking for more of your stories since tight stories that don't leave me guessing appeal to me as well!

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Interview with Melinda Hagenson: Summer 2022 Flash Fiction Contest Runner Up

Melinda’s Bio: Melinda Hagenson taught college English for twenty-five years before taking an early retirement to focus on her writing. She placed second overall in NYC Midnight’s 2019 Flash Fiction Challenge and has been recognized by the Wisconsin Writer’s Association for both poetry and short fiction. Melinda is currently trying to summon the courage to start querying her first novel, a family saga consisting of linked short stories, several of which have already been published. Her work has also appeared in Flash Fiction Magazine, WOW! Women on Writing, and several anthologies. Melinda lives in northwestern Wisconsin with her husband and two cats. You can follow her at www.melindahagenson.com. 

If you haven't done so already, check out Melinda's award-winning story "A Caste of Thousands" and then return here for a chat with the author. 

WOW: Congratulations on placing in the Summer 2022 Flash Fiction Contest! What excited you most about writing this story? 

Melinda: I don’t remember consciously thinking of this story’s premise. Much of the first draft just appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, as if I were merely a transcriptionist providing the fingers it needed in order to get typed. It’s always exciting to me when that happens. 

WOW: That is an exciting feeling! What did you learn about yourself or your writing while crafting this piece? 

Melinda: This story’s first draft reminded me to just get out of the way and let it come, in all its imperfect ugliness. I fight a fairly relentless battle between the left brain and the right brain, the right being the creative half or Muse, and the left being the Writing Police or Inner Editor. While the Muse is trying to get something down, the Inner Editor is constantly whispering that it’s all crap and I should go find something else to do with my life. While writing this story, I managed somehow to convince my Inner Editor that although she has a vitally important job—I assured her I would spend much more time editing and revising the piece than I would on its first draft—she needed to wait her turn! 

WOW: Ah, such a relatable battle for writers. We’re glad you had the courageous to tell your Inner Editor to wait until your Muse finished. What have 25 years as a college English professor taught you about writing? 

Melinda: Literary analysis is similar to anatomy or biology or any other hard science in the sense that we (my students and I) were dissecting each piece we read or wrote, analyzing each of its elements both in isolation and in relation to its other elements. The more closely I peruse others’ work, the more I’m able to apply what I’ve learned to my own writing. 

WOW: What are you reading right now, and why did you choose to read it? 

Melinda: I’ve just finished a novel called Jadwiga’s Crossing (Aloysius A. Lutz and Richard Lutz), which follows a young Polish couple as they embark on their journey to America in the 1860s. I chose it because my own WIP (currently approaching what I hope are the final editing stages) is about a Polish immigrant couple and their descendants. 

WOW: Sounds like a fun way to conduct some research. If you could give your younger self one piece of writing advice, what would it be and why? 

Melinda: I’d tell myself to prioritize my writing sooner. Life seems long when most of it is ahead of you. There’s always plenty of time to get around to whatever it is you dream of doing one day. But there’s a degree of panic involved in realizing there are more years behind you than there are ahead. So . . . write more, submit more, have more courage . . . sooner. 

WOW: I love that advice! Thank you 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 and offers developmental editing and ghostwriting services to partially fund the press. Connect on Twitter @greenmachine459.

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Interview With Rachel Singh, Summer 2022 Flash Fiction Runner-Up

I'm excited to interview Rachel Singh, one of our runners-up in our Summer 2022 Flash Fiction contest. Before you read our interview, make sure you read her story Cosmos then come on back.

First, here's a bit about Rachel:

Rachel Singh is a writer who grew up in Florida and now lives in Atlanta, GA. She graduated from Emory University in 2020 with a BA in English & Creative Writing. She has written blog posts for The Atlanta History Center and news articles for Paste Magazine, and her fiction work has been published by WOW! and Still Point Arts Quarterly. More of her creative projects can be found on her website, rachelsingh26.wixsite.com/website, and you can also connect with her on Instagram at @rachelsinghsong. She is currently at work on a collection of short stories.

---- Interview by Nicole Pyles

WOW: Congratulations on winning runner-up in our Summer 2022 Flash Fiction contest! You captured the rise and fall of a friendship perfectly in your story. What inspired this idea? 

Rachel: I started out with the contrasting definitions of the title word, “cosmos”—how this word can refer to a type of flower but also the stars, and how dissimilar these things are while sharing the same name. This led me to think about a bond in which I could parallel that relationship of stark similarities and differences, and I decided to project it onto a childhood friendship. I feel the relationships formed with people you grow up with are so weighted by all the things we don’t yet understand about ourselves, particularly in the case of this story, self-image, and cultural identity. 

WOW: What an interesting insight that really makes me think, actually. The themes that jumped out to me in this story were self-acceptance, identity, and social perception, especially when growing up. Were those the themes you intended to capture in this story? And do you commonly write along those topics? 

Rachel: These are exactly the themes that I was attempting to capture, so I am glad that it worked out! Previously, I have found discussing my identity in my writing was too difficult, but as I’ve gotten older, I have realized that these conversations matter most to me, and perhaps that was why it was harder to pin them down. Lately, I have started to incorporate storylines related to my relationship with my heritage into my work. 

WOW: I love how our writing changes as we get older. I saw you graduated from Emory University with a degree in English and Creative Writing. What lessons did you take away from creative writing courses that still remain with you? 

Rachel: I feel that I learned a lot about how to maintain writing as a vocation from my professors. Doing warm-ups, giving yourself writing prompts, and just keeping a journal are exercises I’ve taken from my writing courses to challenge myself creatively and keep writing as a daily habit. I feel that workshopping also made me more in tune with what is excess and what is essential to the story while editing. Most importantly, my professors stressed how the structure of workshop won’t be there forever, and it is the continuous commitment and practice of writing that really matters. 

WOW: Yes! Commitment means so much when it comes to writing. I'm so glad to see you with us again! What, if anything, has changed about you and your relationship with writing since we last spoke to you? 

Rachel: I am so glad to be back! I think that having my work published by WOW! expanded my confidence as a writer and has encouraged me to experiment with flash fiction more, which I was always intimidated by previously. I also believe that I have started to ask tougher questions of myself when writing, sending myself back into childhood and considering how certain experiences shaped me. I am so grateful for the opportunities that WOW! provides for creative output. 

WOW: Those are the kind of questions that help us evolve as a writer! You say in your bio you are working on a collection of short stories. How is that going? 

Rachel: Some days are more productive than others, but it is exciting to be working on stories that are in conversation with each other rather than a stand-alone piece. I would like for the themes to expound upon ones featured in “Cosmos,” and feature narrators that are grappling with similar struggles of perception as women of color in a world where we are constantly contorted by social and aesthetic expectations. What is most exciting about this project to me is the ability to ask recurring questions within each story, but present different characters who confront the same issues in myriad ways.

WOW: I can't wait to see your collection come out. Congratulations again and please do keep in touch!

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INTERVIEW WITH BETSEY FIELD: SUMMER 2022 FLASH FICTION CONTEST RUNNER UP

 

Betsey’s Bio:

Elizabeth (Betsey) Field has had a rewarding career as a speech/language pathologist and autism consultant for over forty years. She is the author of Building Communication and Independence for Children Across the Autism Spectrum: Strategies to Address Minimal Language, Echolalia, and Independence (2021, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London). She does conference and webinar presentations on autism topics and is working on a creative nonfiction book about a child with autism and OCD.

If you haven't done so already, check out Betsey's story "Echolalia" and then return here for a chat with the author. 

WOW: What was the inspiration for Echolalia?  

Betsey: I wanted to share a bit of these characters’ challenges, hopes, and triumphs with others on the same path and with those unfamiliar with echolalia. In my career as a speech language pathologist, I’ve known many autistic children who communicate like Jeremy and their very concerned mothers. Having used in therapy the same intervention that I describe in the story, I knew from experience what the outcome could be.

WOW:  I have to admit that I've observed echolalia but didn't even know it had a  name.  This story is concise but packed with information.  What advice do you have for writers who may be new to flash and having trouble limiting their word count?

Betsey: Remember that there are different lengths of flash fiction and if one contest’s word quota doesn’t work, another might. I first submitted a 100-word version of “Echolalia” to a contest, and it got no recognition. Shifting to the 750-word option and using the very helpful critiques from WOW! Women on Writing was more successful. And a 300-word version was short-listed in Ireland’s Fish Publishing flash fiction contest. Before submitting, I received feedback from my local writing group, which helped with copy editing and clarifying what’s essential and what could be cut. Readers are a tremendous help, and your own editing should consider whether each word and sentence moves the story forward.

WOW:  You write about a situation in which many parents feel despair.  Yet you end your story on a note of hope.  Can you explain how to do this while maintaining realism in your story situation?

Betsey: I have no magic formula for this, but I’m glad you saw it that way. This story was only a small step away from non-fiction. Many parents do feel despair when learning of their child’s autism diagnosis, and Jody’s life was further impacted by the loss of her husband, but autistic children do make progress, parent involvement is crucial, and there is good reason for hope.

WOW: What else are you currently working on?  

Betsey: I am writing a second book, this one a work of creative nonfiction, about my adventures with an autistic child/teen with obsessive compulsive disorder and an extreme aversion to authority. Now an adult, he is collaborating with me on several chapters. The title will probably be “Meet Me Where I Am: Navigating the Intersection of Autism and OCD.”  I’m proud to say that the first chapter of this book, “Speech and the Postmaster,” earned an honorable mention in this year’s WOW! Women on Writing fourth quarter creative nonfiction essay contest.

WOW:  How exciting to be working with this particular co-author!  What advice do you have for writers who are new to the craft in 2023?  

Betsey: Whether you are writing as a hobby or starting a career, just do it. I have been writing progress and consultation reports all my life, but only published my first book (“Building Communication and Independence for Children Across the Autism Spectrum: Strategies to Address Minimal Language, Echolalia and Behavior”) in 2021. Now, I find that I am thinking about the next project before I finish the one I’m working on. I also recommend contests like those at WOW! Women on Writing that offer the option of critiques as a way to learn and improve.

 

WOW:  Thank you so much for sharing your writing process as well as your encouraging words.  I'm sure I'm not alone in saying that I will be looking out for more of your work.

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Interview with Michelle Hsu: Summer 2022 Flash Fiction Contest Third Place Winner

Michelle’s Bio: Before beginning her career as a TV writer, Michelle spent some time caving and conducting water research in the wilderness of Kentucky. After moving to Los Angeles from her sleepy Midwest hometown, Michelle worked at a plethora of film studios as an assistant, before breaking in as a writer on a soon-to-be-announced Amazon TV show. As a second generation queer Asian American, Michelle is passionate about diversity in media. With a penchant for writing sci-fi stories, Michelle seeks to infuse her genre content with metaphors about the queer, female, and POC experience. In her spare time, she enjoys long walks around her neighborhood, traveling to rural and rugged places, and watching rom-coms. 

Connect with Michelle via her website (m-hsu.com) or via Twitter (@_michellehsu). 

If you haven't done so already, check out Michelle's award-winning story "Sidesaddle Annie's Siren Call" and then return here for a chat with the author. 

WOW: Congratulations on placing third in the Summer 2022 Flash Fiction Contest! What excited you most about writing this story? 

Michelle: The story was borne out of my own personal experience at a bar called Oil Can Harry's. It was a queer saloon established in 1968 that sadly shut down over the pandemic. They had their own siren alarm, and the history of the place is something that's stuck with me for a long time. It was exciting to be able to borrow that piece of history, and fictionalize it in a way that I hope does justice to the people who celebrated proudly in that place. 

WOW: What did you learn about yourself or your writing while crafting this piece? 

Michelle: I work best on a deadline! I wrote this piece relatively quickly, then put it away and didn't re-read it again until a few days before the deadline. I find that given too much time, I'll pick away at my writing, usually to its detriment. When I'm passionate about a story, I like to write as much of it as I can in one sitting, then give myself time away from it, before coming back with fresh eyes. 

WOW: Thank you for sharing insight into your writing process! What affect has your career as a TV writer had on your personal creative writing or vice versa? 

Michelle: I think both styles of writing complement each other in the best way possible. Screenwriting forces you to flex a very specific muscle—stories can only be told visually and aurally. Audiences will not know what your characters are thinking or feeling, so as a writer you're forced to show, not tell. The skill translates well over to prose, because you're able to ground your readers in your settings. On the flip side, prose (especially flash fiction) requires you to tell a story in a really short amount of space. This skill translates well over to TV because you want to keep audiences as engaged as possible for as long as possible—so each scene, no matter how short it is, needs to have a punchy arc. 

WOW: It’s amazing to me to see how well such seemingly different genres can complement each other so well. Great connection. What are you reading right now, and why did you choose to read it? 

Michelle: I'm reading a lot of different things at the moment—producers, execs, and my team of agents will periodically send me books, articles, and comics to read with an eye towards adaptation. My reading list is endless and chaotic, but I wouldn't have it any other way! On my own time, I've been reading Deathless by Catherynne M. Valente; it's a book that's been recommended to me for years that I am finally getting around to reading. Her prose is masterful! 

WOW: Thank you for that recommendation! If you could give your younger self one piece of writing advice, what would it be and why? 

Michelle: Write what you want to write, and not what you think people will like. It's something that I try to keep in mind even now as I think about what I want to work on next. I feel like writers often feel the pressure to chase trends. What's popular right now? What's going to resonate with audiences the most? Frankly, I don't think those are helpful or productive questions to ask. It's impossible to predict or control how audiences will react to something you've written...so all you can do is write from the heart. Write a story that is as close to your own truths as possible, and someone somewhere out there will probably resonate with it, too. 

WOW: That is excellent advice. Thank you! Anything else you’d like to add? 

Michelle: Huge thank you to the judges, and congrats to all the other writers! I've been a longtime fan of WOW!, and am excited to continue reading everyone's brilliant works! 

WOW: Thank you for sharing your story and for your thoughtful interview responses! 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 and offers developmental editing and ghostwriting services to partially fund the press. Connect on Twitter @greenmachine459.

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Interview with Myna Chang, First Place Winner of Summer 2022 Flash Fiction Contest

Myna Chang’s chapbook, The Potential of Radio and Rain, will be published by CutBank Books in 2023. Her writing has been selected for Flash Fiction America (W.W. Norton), Best Small Fictions, and CRAFT, among others. She has won the Lascaux Prize in Creative Nonfiction and the New Millennium Writings Award in Flash Fiction. She hosts the Electric Sheep speculative fiction reading series. Find her at MynaChang.com or @MynaChang.

interview by Marcia Peterson

WOW: Congratulations on winning first place in our Summer 2022 Flash Fiction competition! Can you tell us what encouraged the idea behind your story, “Special Recipe: Book Club Dip?” It reminds me of a hermit crab essay, but it’s fictional.

Myna: This story started in a generative hermit crab flash workshop offered by Cheryl Pappas. We talked about a variety of forms, ranging from simple lists to detailed product reviews and more. The recipe format appealed to me, probably because I enjoy reading about all the fancy foods I’ll never prepare myself. Also, I kept thinking of a silly red car parked in front of a neighbor’s house. The two ideas combined and ballooned from there.

WOW:  It's a fun and clever piece, and I love the last italicized line. Why do you write flash? What makes it different for you?

Myna: When I first started writing flash, I found 500 words to be my favorite length. The constraint forced me to make strategic choices in both the theme and specific words. After a few years of practice, I’m now flirting with 200-250 words. Can I grab a reader’s attention and present a full character arc? Can I leave them with a memorable image, a feeling of resonance? This is tough, but it’s extremely satisfying when it works. After writing flash and micro, short story writing feels almost wasteful!

WOW: What are the most common mistakes made by new writers when writing flash fiction and what advice would you offer to help overcome them?

Myna: I think it helps to look at flash as a unique type of writing. Flash isn’t simply a shorter version of a short story, it’s a completely different animal. You have to capture the reader immediately and genuinely engage with them. What does the reader bring to the story, and how will their own experiences color what they read? Flash stories often invite the reader to step into the narrative, in a sort of collaborative space, making the unsaid elements take on greater importance. A good way to see this is to read your favorite flash journals in depth. Review each story a couple of times to find the layers of meaning, study the word choices, and think about what the author doesn’t explicitly say.

WOW:  Your debut chapbook, The Potential of Radio and Rain, will be released next year. What you tell us about this project, and the process of completing it?

Myna: The Potential of Radio and Rain is a collection of 23 loosely-linked micro and flash pieces, rooted in the shortgrass prairie region of the US. Once I realized I had almost enough stories set in this landscape, I wrote a few more to fill in the gaps. Then I spent a ridiculous amount of time rearranging the pieces to best bring out the connections among them. The manuscript won CutBank’s 2022 Chapbook Contest. We’re now in the process of choosing cover art, which is very fun! We expect it to be available sometime in the first quarter of 2023.

WOW: Congratulations on your manuscript's win and the upcoming release! What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever been given?

Myna: “Go ahead and end that sentence with a preposition if you want to!” — Great advice from friend and phenomenal writer Marcy Dilworth.

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For more information about our quarterly Flash Fiction and Creative Nonfiction Essay contests, visit our contest page here.

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