fwriction

I’ve been reading through Amelia Gray’s AM/PM, and I now understand why Stacey Swann, editor of American Short Fiction, said, “The stories in AM/PM have ruined me as a reader of shorts. I will no longer be satisfied by the merely beautiful, the singularly clever, or the one big thought purely rendered. I want all those things in a two-hundred-word package. I want to be highly amused and deeply sad at the exact same time. Amelia Gray packs more power in a paragraph that I thought possible.”

In the wake of my Jets heartbreaking defeat, I was in need of wonderful writing for this morning’s story of the day, and Amelia Gray answered the call. I hope you enjoy these two pieces of flash fiction—”AM:3” and “AM:5“—originally excerpted in M Review, and that you go read some more Amelia Gray on your own.

from “AM:3”:

Remain Healthy All Day: Drink a spoonful of oil every morning. Reach up with your arms and extend your body to its full height. Use a warm towel to dry the cat. Consider a philosophical idea larger than your area of expertise. Avoid getting cancer, if possible.

from “AM:5”:

Charles knew what that look meant.