Long Story Short: Flash Fiction by Sixty-five of North Carolina’s Finest Writers

by Marianne Gingher

This extraordinary collection gathers short-short stories--none longer than 1,800 words--by some of North Carolina's best contemporary writers, including Doris Betts, Orson Scott Card, Fred Chappell, Sarah Dessen, Haven Kimmel, Robert Morgan, Lee Smith, Elizabeth Spencer, and Daniel Wallace. The stories are compulsively readable. The spellbinding elements of brevity, variety, and surprise conspire to keep readers flipping pages. Comic, tragic, magical, fantastical, provocative, disturbing, luminous, the short-short form proves a reliably elastic and dazzling medium for every writer featured.

In one flash of literary artistry after another, these sixty-five established and emerging writers remind us why we read to laugh, to learn, to feel, to be discomfited and challenged, to be transported, and to make enlightening and enduring connections with the world outside our own skins. Long Story Short will appeal to legions of fans who already delight in reading many of the North Carolina authors included here and will introduce them to extraordinary writers they have not yet discovered.


Max Steele
Anthony S. Abbott
Daphne Athas
Russell Banks
Wilton Barnhardt
Doris Betts
Will Blythe
Wendy Brenner
Amy Knox Brown
Bekah Brunstetter
Orson Scott Card
Fred Chappell
Kelly Cherry
Elizabeth Cox
Quinn Dalton
Angela Davis-Gardner
Sarah Dessen
Pamela Duncan
Pam Durban
Clyde Edgerton
Tracie Fellers
Ben Fountain
Philip Gerard
Marianne Gingher
Gail Godwin
Jim Grimsley
Virginia Holman
Randall Kenan
John Kessel
Haven Kimmel
Carrie Knowles
Telisha Moore Leigg
Peter Makuck
Michael Malone
Doug Marlette
Margaret Maron
Jill McCorkle
Philip McFee
John McNally
Heather Ross Miller
Lydia Millet
Katherine Min
Courtney Jones Mitchell
Ruth Moose
Robert Morgan
Shelia Moses
Lawrence Naumoff
Jenny Offill
Elizabeth Oliver
Michael Parker
Peggy Payne
Joe Ashby Porter
Denise Rickman
David Rowell
John Rowell
Deborah Seabrooke
Dave Shaw
Bland Simpson
Lee Smith
June Spence
Elizabeth Spencer
Melanie Sumner
Daniel Wallace
Luke Whisnant
Lynn York

Genres: Short Stories

218 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Dee • switching to Pagebound!]

The problem with short stories is that a good short story is amazing, and a mediocre short story might as well be a bad one. Because of this, short stories are not my preferred medium, but I still wanted to read this book as it’s been on my shelf for probably close to a decade.

Of 65 short stories in this anthology, I really only enjoyed about a dozen. There are some pieces which really shine: hey brother; Where Love Is; The True Daughter; Registry; Life on Mars; Sex, Love, Death, Sex, High School; and Laura, Linda, Sweetie Pie.

My favorite stories were hey brother by Bekah Brunstetter and Registry by Sarah Dessen, both of which I feel made the experience of this anthology worth it for me. The aforementioned stories are 5 stars, but a handful of brilliant pieces can’t save what was otherwise a collection I did not enjoy.

It was worth it for these stories, though.

[Amber the Human]

I don't recall what author that I like was part of this collection, but for whatever reason it has been on my list for a long time and I finally got around to putting a hold on it at the library. There was one story that will always stay with me, about the essence of human nature. For that, I am thankful I got it.

[Eric Railine]

Sadly disappointing. I'm a huge fan of short-shorts/flash fiction, but the vast majority of these stories ....aren't. Even most of the "name" authors don't represent themselves well. Skip this one.

[MB Shakespeare]

65 short stories by NC authors. Fantastic! Great reading - my first intro to so many wonderful writers.

[Peg]

A specialized book. Appreciated primarily by those of us who are fascinated with Southern Writers.

This collection of short stories had a criteria of no-more-than 1,800 words. Authors include Fred Chappel, Lee Smith, Elizabeth Spencer. ".. these sixty-five writers remind us why we read fiction: to laugh, learn, feel, be discomfited and challenged, be transprted, and to make enlightening and enduring connections with the world outside.

[Becky]

This was a very good book of short short stores or flash fiction. I am from North Carolina so I love to read the books from authors in NC and based in NC. If you like really short stories you will love this book. I did not like all 65 stores but who would. There were some that were exceptional and I definitely want to read more of that author. This was a good book to get a taste of an authors work to decide if you want to read more from him/her.

[Katharine Sadler]

I'm not a big fan of short stories, but I was still surprised to be so underwhelmed by this book. I think that the only criteria for publication was that the writer be a published writer from North Carolina, and not necessarily a good short story writer. In my opinion there are very, very few truly good short story writers, and I did not find that these short-shorts lived up to my expectations.

[Kate Elizabeth]

2.5
I read this in three sittings and felt differently about it each time. The second reading was the best - I loved it then - but it can be hard generally to read a collection of flash fiction, because just as you warm up to a new story, it ends and another begins. I liked it overall, and I especially enjoyed learning more about writers from North Carolina.

[whitney]

I read 1-2 stories every night for a month. I loved reading so many North Carolina authors- many former professors, many authors I've heard of all my life- and to feel a "short" connection with them and my time at UNC.

[Kathleen]

This was a GREAT read. Many of these really packed a punch. Ok, a few I did not get but maybe I read them too fast. Still, a great show case for NC writers.

[Erin]

A collection of short stories from NC authors. Some I couldn't understand or didn't like, but I was impressed by most of them. It's amazing how much story can be crammed into such a small space.

[Lianne]

Flash fiction is a new genre for me. At first it feels like the fast food of fiction but it is so not. Glad I picked up this book and was reminded that NC fiction is so diverse and rarely boring.

[Kristin]

Interesting - the sort of Daisy Duke length short (stories) that make me think of Carver. Some better than others (duh, it's an anthology) but some gems in there among the rest of 'em.

[Amanda Nan Dillon]

Loved 80% of this book. Gingher did an awesome thing, tracking down all the authors who call NC home and compiling these flash fiction stories. Love love love!

[Anthony]

Great collection. Fans of southern style should check it out.

[Marylu Sanok]

Very nice little book short stories were generally great