A Year of Shorts: Flash Fiction

by Barbara Venkataraman (Editor), Jina S. Bazzar, James J. Cudney

A Year of Flash Fiction, what a blast! The challenge: capture a mood, a memory, or an experience, using exactly 100 words. Whether it's Halloween, the Holiday Season, Valentine's Day or the Dog Days of Summer, stories like Ice Cream Hero, Lemonade Stand, and The Prank take you back to your childhood, while others like Fever Pitch, The Panty Liner Incident, and Lemonade Stand evoke summer heat and the search for relief. Other stories like What's the Buzz?, Lazy Lake, and Change of Season leave you with a smile.

Enjoy stories by Goodreads authors Jina Bazzar, James J. Cudney, IV, S.J. Higbee, Sandra J. Jackson, Loretta Marion, Didi Oviatt, Carmen Radtke, Amy Reade, Rosemary Reeve, Kelly Santana-Banks, L.A. Starks, Josh Venkataraman and Barbara Venkataraman as well as authors Bob Beckman, Kathleen Fowler Costa, Eric Homberger, Jeff Homberger, Geoffrey Marion, Jodi Markley, Nico Morales, Julie Morrall, Alison Sullivan, Kaitlyn Sutey, and Vijay Venkataraman.

Genres: Holiday

160 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 8, 2021

About the author

Award-winning author Barbara Venkataraman is an attorney and mediator specializing in family law. Her works include: "The Fight for Magicallus", a children's fantasy; "If you'd Just Listened to Me in the First Place", a humorous short story; and three books of humorous essays: "I'm Not Talking about You, Of Course," "A Trip to the Hardware Store & Other Calamities," and "A Smidge of Crazy", from her series, "Quirky Essays for Quirky People."

Her Jamie Quinn cozy mystery series includes: "Death by Didgeridoo", "The Case of the Killer Divorce", "Peril in the Park", "Engaged in Danger" and "Jeopardy in July".
Her newest book has just been released: "Accidental Activist: Justice for the Groveland Four", a memoir she co-authored with her son about lessons he learned while working to exonerate four men falsely convicted of a terrible crime in the Jim Crow South. All of her books are available on Amazon Kindle.

Reviews

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is quite the clever collection of 4 books in Barbara Venkataraman's flash fiction series: Holiday, Valentine, Scary, & Dog Days of Summer. 100-word tales by various authors under Barbara's guidance... from funny to sad, shocking to heartwarming. I really enjoyed the collaboration of this team. I contributed about 15 stories, totaling 10% in the book. It was so cool to force myself to write with a maximum of words. Hope you'll give it a chance!

[Candace Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A super fun collection and I read both James J. Cudney’s and Didi Oviatt’s stories from here! The writing, dialogue, and creativity from them was on point! Also, even though they were flash fiction stories, they still felt full length! I especially loved the three holiday collections!

[Agnieszka · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with most collection of works by various authors there were some I loved very much (see list below), most were ok but I wasn't crazy about or didn't get them and a few I disliked more or less strongly.
I'm so happy that the authors took great care in term of language (only a few typos or incorrect words) though there are some minor formatting issues (additional spaces between words/sentences, nonuniform look of the table of content - as mentioned small stuff)

My only issue is you can't access the table of content from any part of the book - in most apps you can open a navigation panel with a table of contents and move to any story/chapter/part you wish from there - in this book you have to go to the cover and move a few pages forward to reach the table of contents. I solved it with bookmarks for the four parts but really wish it's something that can be fixed and we get an update with links in the navigation panel - full table of content would be perfect but I'd be glad if we got at least one for the four parts.

I wasn't very surprised I didn't care for most of the Halloween stories - they are seldom my kind of entertainment. So it was a nice surprise there was one I really loved.
I admit I'm a fan of Christmas stories and so I was really dissapointed there were only three I loved in this part and so many I didn't care for or plain didn't get the point of the story - this was a real surprise and not a good one, since I left the 'Holiday Shorts' for the end as a nice way to close this collection.
Another surprise was how many of the Valentine's stories I loved (usually I'm not much into romance or love stories) and the fact both of my most favorite stories were in this part of the collection: THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER by Jeff Homberger & NEVER STOP ASKING by James J. Cudney
I started reading at the end with the 'Dog Days of Summer' since we had a nasty heat wave at that time and some of those stories helped me to forget it for a short time and reminded me of those glorious summer vacations when I was a child and we went to the lakes or the beach.


Favorites:
Halloween - Scary Shorts: 33 stories
HAUNTED HOUSE by Barbara Venkataraman

Christmas - Holiday Shorts: 31 stories
OPPOSITES ATTRACT by Barbara Venkataraman
GOING THE EXTRA MILE by Jeff Homberger
SNOW ANGEL by Barbara Venkataraman

Valentine Shorts: 29 stories
THE SMART ONE by Jeff Homberger
PUPPY LOVE by Barbara Venkataraman
THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER by Jeff Homberger
FULL CIRCLE by Barbara Venkataraman
RENDEZVOUS by Barbara Venkataraman
UNMASKED by James J. Cudney
THE APPLE OF MY EYE by Barbara Venkataraman
NEVER STOP ASKING by James J. Cudney
DAVE'S FLAT TIRE by Didi Oviatt
KILLER LILIES by Barbara Venkataraman

Dog Days of Summer: 47 stories
SODA PUP by Nico Morales
FINDERS KEEPERS by Loretta Marion
FEVER PITCH by Carmen Radtke
IT'S SUMMERTIME SOMEWHERE by Amy Reade
THE CAREGIVER by Rosemary Reeve
ETERNAL SUMMER by Jodi Markley
A DOG'S SENSE OF TIME by James J. Cudney


Thank you so much!

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A whole bunch of 100 word stories based around various holidays, notably Christmas, New Year, Valentine's Day, and especially Halloween. No Arbor Day for some reason.

Most of them are very effective. I was fairly impressed.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Year of Shorts Earns 5/5 Seasonal Surprises...Clever and Fun!

Flash Fiction is a unique writing challenge Barbara Venkataraman made to herself, her writing family, several colleagues, and me; a challenge to address a special theme and “capture a mood, a memory, or an experience using exactly 100 words.” They could be poignant, thought-provoking, reminiscent, or cleverly funny, but only with 100 words...easy peasy! Not so fast! I can’t order pizza or my favorite coffee elixir in 100 words! In this complete set, the four flash fiction books are combined in one collection, and the exciting part is additional vignettes have been added for more fun!

Scary Shorts earns 5/5 Bags of 100 Bones...Entertaining Halloween Fun!
Using a Halloween theme, authors created vastly different takes on the season from unfortunate standard options on a new car to a treadmill from hell, skeleton crew to costumed cuties, candy corn to pumpkin patches, trick or treaters to grim reapers. Each author has their own voice, humorous or spooky, using descriptive narrative or filled with witty dialogue. Short vignettes that are more treat, but be careful of the trick!

Holiday Shorts earns 5/5 Santas and More...Entertaining Christmas Fun!
Using the holiday season, these mini stories, thoughts, quips, and surprises captured the idea of giving and getting with Santa and elves, family and friends, customs and traditions. Some snippets are poignant, others are humorous, some make you think, and others have an air of comeuppance. However they are painted, all fun and well worth the time.

Valentine Shorts earns 5/5 Hearts & Giggles...Entertaining Valentine Fun!
With a Valentine-themed using exactly 100 words, these “heart warmers, morsels of mirth, and love notes” turned out to be an experience worth taking! Each author brought a different style, a different voice, a different perspective, but all wrapped in the hearts and flowers of the season. It was fun, endearing, and even a humorous read. However, like my favorite chocolates several stories begged for more!

Dog Days of Summer Shorts Earns 5/5 Cold Lemonades...Absolute Fun!
Summer can be viewed through a multitude of perspectives, and readers are entertained not only by their perspectives on the summer season, but also their varied viewpoints, writing styles, and emotions readers feel. Each passage, from its personal memories and daydreams meant to distract to a bit of fun and some comeuppances, often has a punchline that makes you gasp or giggle or question, “Well, what next?” For me it was also turn the page and read some more!

[Micky Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique concept for short stories! This is a collection of 4 books, each with a different main theme. Each short story is 100 words or less and tells the entire story. As with any collection, some stories were quite good and some were just ok, but it was fun to see what the authors would come up with and an entertaining way to while away an hour or so!

[Barbara Venkataraman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fun project! And I loved working with so many talented authors.

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots and lots of quirky, funny, scary, interesting, entertaining and shocking shorts from different authors over different seasons. And especially the "exactely 100 words" stories are amazeballs, kudos to the authors!

Here are my favorites:

Haunted House
Personal Best
Postage Due
Dog Days of Summer
What's the Buzz
Change of Season

I only want to say one thing regarding Puppy Love: Please don't get a puppy while you are pregnant or have a baby. Get a trained dog or wait until the kid can take care of itself. To raise them together may sound cute but I don't think you really need the stress of that double responsibility and it will most certainly take away from your enjoyment of both.

[Nadine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me just say KUDOS to all the authors. Must’ve been hard to write a story so short and have people affected by them, whether it’s good or not. I personally liked all of them, but some more than others. GENIUS!!! Happy Reading :)

[Marseydoats · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fast,fun read.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish I was talented enough to review this collection in exactly 100 words.
It does indeed take talent and creativity to devise complete tales of 100 words.
From snippets about first attraction to inspiring stories of enduring love, childhood memories,
and nightmares devised purely from imagination (I hope)
there is something here for everyone.

Although horrifying, a few Halloween contributions made me laugh aloud or shake my head.
The Covid Crisis makes an appearance.
Cautionary reminders to be careful what you wish for.
Reading about the authors is as interesting as their contributions.

That's my review in 100 words.

[G. Jr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great collection of stories!

Writers use prompts to start stories. What a great way to entertain a reader. I loved working through the year and all the variety.

[Dana Busenbark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is full of short stories in this anthology. They're all 100 words. They're quick reads, but I'm not sure this was my cup of tea in that I'd get to the end and feel like, "I wish there were more to the story." They were cute and exciting; I just wanted more after finishing each. Some of the stories made complete sense within the 100 words, but others had me scratching my head. On others, I wanted the stories to be longer.

[Donadee's Corner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Booklovers, I'm thrilled to tell you about another fantastic book I devoured last year.

Barbara Venkataraman's book 'Year of Shorts' is a brilliant book of flash fiction. Barbara is a genius of this genre and this book is a splendid collection of flash fiction for every season, with stories about Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's, and Summer. I loved every single story in this book and found myself laughing and grinning at the clever twists and turns. She writes stories that are hilarious, moving, and insightful. This book is full of character and charm; you can read it in one sitting or enjoy it bit by bit. Either way, you will adore it!

Barbara also has a fantastic series of cozy mysteries featuring Jamie Quinn, a lawyer with a flair for solving crimes. Besides, she has written many other humor books. But we can't forget that she also coauthored one with her son, Accidental Activist. If you need some humor in your life, you can't go wrong if you choose any of her books!

• ASIN: B096Y7WBH6
• Publication Date: 6/8/2021
• File Size: 474 KB
• Print Length: 160 pages
• Genre: Fiction Anthologies, Literary Anthologies & Collections, General Humorous Fiction

[Julie Ditton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book collects the four short Flash Fiction anthologies that Barbara Venkataraman has compiled. She challenged herself and peers to write microfictions of exactly 100 words that fit the theme of the project: Halloween, Winter Holidays, Valentines Day, and Summer.

Each story in the book will invoke a mood or capture a memory. They will make you shiver, scowl, smile, giggle or sigh. They provide snapshots in prose of a small seasonal moment. Although the editor has written most of these stories herself, she has also included the works of several other writers. Like any anthology, the stories are hit and miss. Some of the stories missed the mark. But those stories might be the ones that delight other readers. I recommend this book for anyone who wishes to enjoy seasonal stories in bitesize pieces. Busy lives, short attention spans, the desire for variety, or the search for a storytelling gem are all reasons for the success of anthologies. This book is an ideal way to get a tiny taste of seasonal stories.

[Emily C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A YEAR OF SHORTS : FLASH FICTION by numerous talented authors is a medley of delights and emotions.

These authors have intelligently spun merely 100 words into some spooky, lighthearted yet emotional stories that have interesting characters, settings and plots!

With a cup of good coffee or any of one’s favorite drink or none, these tiny stories have the potential to brighten one’s day!

I recommend this FLASH FICTION to anyone who enjoys some good splendid short stories!

[Avis Witter · Rating 5 out of 5]

A compendium of really short offerings of 100 words each written by an assortment of authors, a lot of whom were new to me. I really didn’t know that you could pack so much thought on different subjects into so few words. Some were thought provoking, some were hilarious, some were confusing and so had to be read again. All were good in their own way although my favourites were the hilarious ones. It brings a whole new meaning to “short” stories.

[Marty Tool · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining collection of short stories by various writers. A range of subjects are covered, some better than others in this collection, but very enjoyable.