Flash fiction—also known as short short fiction, sudden fiction, or "a smoke long" fiction—has been around since Aesop's Fables, but it's never been more popular, with magazines and websites now dedicated solely to it. It even has its own national day.

In this Litro Lab episode, I talk to flash fiction writers David Gaffney (Sawn-off Tales, Salt, 2006), Tania Hershman (The White Road and Other Stories, Salt, 2008; My Mother Was an Upright Piano, Tangent, 2012) and Calum Kerr, director of National Flash Fiction Day (NFFD), about what makes great micro-fiction. We also hear some of their ultra-short stories, among pieces by Franz Kafka and Vanessa Gebbie.

Featured stories (in this order):

"Vegetable Mineral" by Tania Hershman, from My Mother Was an Upright Piano, Tangent, 2012.Read by Tania Hershman

"The Cares of a Family Man" by Franz Kafka, translated by Willa and Edwin Muir, from A Country Doctor, 1919. Read by Greg Page

"Flight" by Vanessa Gebbie, from Jawbreakers, NFFD, 2012.Read by Claire Lacey

"Happy Place" by David Gaffney, from Sawn-off Tales, Salt, 2006.Read by Kenny Reid

"Who's the Boss" by Calum KerrRead by Richard Koworld

"Of Human Kindness (Buenos Aires)" by Vanessa GebbieRead by Claire Lacey

MUSIC CREDITS:'Piano Between', Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

—Emily CleaverSee full article at http://www.litro.co.uk/?p=30641