We want those stories that make a mystery out of the ordinary, that make the rational out of the mystical. We’re thrilled to partner with Guest Judge Tara Campbell, who will choose three prize winners from a shortlist.
Fractured Lit
2026 Micro Prize: December 01, 2026 to January 31, 2027
Fractured Lit has always been a place that celebrates small stories with big impacts. For the return of our Micro Prize, we want to honor stories of 400 words or fewer that tell a complete story and have us marvel at the depth of character and language. A guest judge will select three prize winners from the shortlist. We’re excited to offer the first-place winner $2,500 and publication, while the second- and third-place winners will receive $600 and $400, respectively, along with publication.
2026 Micro Class Series: November 01, 2026 to November 30, 2026
Join us for a four-part series of classes on writing microfiction! Each class will be a 90-minute generative writing session from a different micro master! Need a jump-start to your writing, want to try writing with extreme brevity, or just want to spend some time writing? We hope you’ll come write with us!
2026 Fractured & Fused Prize: September 21, 2026 to November 22, 2026
Objects break, and people shatter, but what’s fractured may be fused. For this contest, we’re looking for stories that utilize the tension and conflict in something being fractured, or that revel in the catharsis of someone finding what makes them complete after a shattering. We’re excited to offer the winner of this prize $3,000 and publication, while the second- and third-place winners will receive publication and $300 and $200, respectively. All prize winners will be chosen by our guest judge.
2026 Elsewhere Prize: July 20, 2026 to September 20, 2026
We want those stories that make a mystery out of the ordinary, that make the rational out of the mystical. Play with the edge of genre, but make sure your character is still the star of your story. The guest judge for this prize will select three winners from the shortlist. We’re excited to offer the winner of this prize $3,000 and publication, while the second- and third-place winners will receive publication and $300 and $200, respectively.
2026 Flash Fiction Open: May 11, 2026 to July 12, 2026
What we love about this contest is that there are no themes or restrictions on style. We want your most innovative and resonant flash and microfictions. Send us those pieces that lift us up, that take us down, that make us feel alive. A guest judge will choose one grand-prize winner and fifteen finalists from a shortlist of forty stories curated by our editors. The first-place winner will receive $2,000 and publication, while the fifteen finalists will receive $100 and publication.
2026 Ekphrastic Hopper Challenge: April 27, 2026 to May 10, 2026
For this challenge, we want stories inspired by the work of painter Edward Hopper. We hope writers will find fresh plots and unique characters hidden in the forefront of these dynamic paintings! We’re excited to offer the winner of this prize $500 and publication. All entries will be considered for publication at our regular rate of $75/$50, depending on length.
Fractured and Fused Prize Judged by Sherrie Flick Shortlist
We're back and thrilled to present the stories that made the shortlist for the Fractured and Fused Prize. Congrats to everyone! We had to make lots of difficult decisions and it'll only get harder from here. We'll be...
Flash Fiction is Freedom: An interview with Timothy Boudreau
Timothy Boudreau’s Love You, Miss You, Goodbye Forever is coming in March from Stanchion Books. Get your copy HERE or wherever you buy books. Guest interviewer Patricia Q. Bidar recently met with Timothy to discuss the...
Fractured and Fused Prize Judged by Sherrie Flick Longlist
What's fractured may be fused, and we were fractured and fused a million times over while reading these stories. We're honored to present these longlisted titles and will be back shortly with the shortlist, which will...
Fractured Lit 2025 Elsewhere Prize Judged by Jemimah Wei Shortlist
Another round of difficult decisions to narrow our shortlist to 20 stories to send to Judge Jemimah Wei! Congratulations to the shortlisted writers! We're all wondering who the winners will be! Collective Memory In the...
The idea that a work is finished is peculiar to me. Stories are alive. an interview with Patricia Q. Bidar
by Timothy Boudreau Patricia Q. Bidar’s Pardon Me for Moonwalking was recently released by Unsolicited Press. Get your copy HERE or wherever you buy books. Guest interviewer Timothy Boudreau recently met with Patricia...












