https://soundcloud.com/americanshortfiction/to-deaden-the-nerve-by-christopher-notarnicola Marines sit on the ground with their feet in their hands, their bare knees against the wet morning grass to stretch their groins, to loosen their limbs, to gather themselves near the flight line behind company headquarters. They await the arrival of their instructor, the start of their next round of martial arts training. They wait to advance, to add to their takedowns and submissions, to harden their … [Read more...] about To Deaden the Nerve
NOTEBOOK FEATURE
She Said It Like She Meant It
There’s a cemetery on a mountainside in Kabul that’s running out of space. I read a New York Times piece about it years ago. A group of boys run grave maintenance, for a price, and one girl, six years old, works the mountainside with them. She brags like the boys about taking in mourners—too young to appreciate how much we mourners want to be taken in. She brags about what her father in Iran will bring her when he returns home. She prays for a Galaxy phone. I still think about her prayers and … [Read more...] about She Said It Like She Meant It
The 2020 Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize
We’re thrilled to announce that our judge for this year’s Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize will be the brilliant Manuel Gonzales, author of the acclaimed novel The Regional Office Is Under Attack! and the prize-winning short story collection The Miniature Wife and Other Stories. Gonzales's work is wildly inventive and deeply moving, and as he is a contributing editor to ASF, we're especially pleased to have him judge the contest this year. General Guidelines — Submit your entry online between … [Read more...] about The 2020 Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize
Now Closed: The 2020 American Short(er) Fiction Prize
We are thrilled to announce that Deb Olin Unferth, author of six remarkable books, including Wait Till You See Me Dance, Minor Robberies, and the forthcoming novel Barn 8, will judge this year’s American Short(er) Fiction Prize. The prize recognizes extraordinary short fiction under 1,000 words. The first-place winner will receive a $1,000 prize and publication. Previous winners of the Short(er) Fiction Prize have gone on to be anthologized in places such as The Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small … [Read more...] about Now Closed: The 2020 American Short(er) Fiction Prize
Web Exclusive Interview: Nora Lange
In Nora Lange's flash fiction, “Her Cousin Lena,” Rose records a long-distance phone call with her mother. Their exchange reveals a disconnect that, though often funny, describes the “love and horror” of a certain flavor of mother-daughter relationship. Haunting the conversation is the absent figure of Rose’s cousin, Lena, to whom the mother constantly compares her daughter, and who becomes the axis point of their unaddressed tensions. We chatted recently with Nora about her story and … [Read more...] about Web Exclusive Interview: Nora Lange
The Stars at Night 2019: A Bright Texas Celebration of Literature
Join us on Thursday, October 17th, for our 4th annual The Stars at Night, a bright Texas evening of brilliant company, joyful honky-tonk, and literary splendor. Tickets are on sale now, and will be available online until 3 p.m. central standard time on the day of the event. NOTE: Tickets will also be on sale at the door! Come for the country music and readings, and stay for the open bar, delicious food, silent auction, and the historic charms of Mercury Hall, complete with tea-lit gardens and … [Read more...] about The Stars at Night 2019: A Bright Texas Celebration of Literature