News
Brief Reviews of New or New(ish) Books

…in which NFFR suggests some summer reading for you by Patricia Q. Bidar, Lorette C. Luzajic, Keith J. Powell, and Robert Shapard, with hopefully more recommendations to follow (in the coming dog days).

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Call for Submissions: 10

If you haven’t started your 10-themed story yet, there’s still time. This theme celebrates NFFR’s 10th Anniversary. We’ll be open for submissions from July 1-15. Here are some previous NFFR stories touching on numbers (or counting) that might inspire. In the following stories, you’ll notice a use of numbers relating to concepts in the stories, dates, ages, and more.

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NFFR 2024 Flash Fiction Contest Longlist

Many thanks to everyone who submitted work to this year’s contest. Congratulations to all authors represented on the longlist. Good luck to all. We’ll announce winner and two honorable mentions being selected now by Nathan Leslie, in our upcoming December issue.

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The Truths Behind a Pumpjack Dare, Northern Alberta, 3rd July, 1991 by Kate Axeford

I’d hauled myself skywards on steep metal rungs. You were safe below, hurling taunts like stones. We’re two brothers, poles apart, but I’d climbed the ladder. I’d had to. You’d dared me to rodeo the Donkey.

Ernst Is Coming Home by Jack Morris

The rumours arrive on the dawn wind and by mid-afternoon the village ladies have landed in Leonora’s kitchen to disembowel the news.

After by Claudia Monpere

and after and after and nothing changes, just the names of the children. This one drew birds wearing hats. That one had an orange juice popsicle for an imaginary friend.

Prudence by Christy Stillwell

They put the shock collar on the boy and that was it for the nanny. First they put the collar on one another. They were professors in English and Philosophy, all of them smart people.

Rosetta Post-its by Guy Biederman

Los Gatos Tienen Hambre, says the post-it on the fridge. Since when did the cats learn Spanish, since when did they learn to write? The same could be asked of you, says another post-it.