Collects more than one hundred short stories, each with no more than twenty-five words.

Ten years ago, Jerome Stern, director of the writing program at Florida State, initiated the World's Best Short Short Story Contest. Stories were to be about 250 words long; first prize was a check and a crate of oranges. Two to three thousand stories began to show up annually in Tallahassee, and National Public Radio regularly broadcast the winner. But, more important, the Micro form turned out to be contagious; stories of this "lack of length" now dot the literary magazines. The time seemed right, then, for this anthology, presenting a decade of contest winners and selected finalists. In addition, Stern commissioned Micros, persuading a roster of writers to accept the challenge of completing a story in one page. Jesse Lee Kercheval has a new spin on the sinking of the Titanic; Virgil Suarez sets his sights on the notorious Singapore caning; George Garrett conjures up a wondrous screen treatment pitch; and Antonya Nelson invites us into an eerie landscape. Verve and nerve and astonishing variety are here, with some wild denouements. How short can a Micro be, you wonder. Look up Amy Hempel's contribution, and you'll see.

A collection of horror–inspired flash fiction, featuring over 40 new stories from literary, horror, and emerging writers—edited by Lincoln Michel and Nadxieli Nieto, the twisted minds behind Tiny Crimes: Very Short Tales of Mystery and Murder In this playful, inventive collection, leading literary and horror writers spin chilling tales in only a few pages. Each slim, fast–moving story brings to life the kind of monsters readers love to fear, from brokenhearted vampires to Uber–taking serial killers and mind–reading witches. But what also makes Tiny Nightmares so bloodcurdling—and unforgettable—are the real–world horrors that writers such as Samantha Hunt, Brian Evenson, Jac Jemc, Stephen Graham Jones, Lilliam Rivera, Kevin Brockmeier, and Rion Amilcar Scott weave into their fictions, exploring how global warming, racism, social media addiction, and homelessness are just as frightening as, say, a vampire’s fangs sinking into your neck. Our advice? Read with the hall light on and the bedroom door open just a crack. Featuring new stories from Samantha Hunt, Jac Jemc, Stephen Graham Jones, Rion Amilcar Scott, and more!

Presents a collection of short stories about significant moments which marked a turning point in the lives of young protagonists by such authors as Anne Mazer, Alan Stewart Carl, Dave Eggers, and Peter Bacho.

Presents over seventy short stories five pages long or less by such American authors as Joyce Carol Oates, Ray Bradbury, Langston Hughes, and Raymond Carver, and includes authors' commentary on the genre.

WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS Nova is a free man. Having just walked away as a non-sanctioned hit man for the U.S. government, he's purchased a classic Mustang to drive across the country. But when his car breaks down in the middle of the Nevada desert, Nova ends up in the small town of Parrot Spur. There's something strange about Parrot Spur. Something ... off. Maybe it's the fact the town is full of ex-servicemen. Maybe it's the fact the abandoned mine might not be abandoned. Maybe it’s the fact the knockout brunette in the bar is clearly more than what she seems. In the end, none of it matters. What matters — and what Nova is soon going to learn — is that in the desert, the only thing that rains is bullets.

An anthology of bite-sized tales represents the work of some of today's best fiction writers and includes Rick Moody's definition of an armoire, Lydia Davis's sojourn into the world of cats, and Dave Eggers's exploration of narrow escapes. Original.