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American Short Fiction

Publishing exquisite fiction since 1991.

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FICTION

WEB EXCLUSIVES

Rockaway

—December 15, 2021

Rockaway

By Jack Kaulfus

In May, Amy called to say she was squatting in the caretaker’s quarters of the Rockaway Motel. She needed her car; she wanted to sell it. When I pulled her old Volvo wagon into the dusky parking lot, … [READ MORE] about Rockaway

The Chimp

—November 23, 2021

The Chimp

By Terese Svoboda

 Down slid the chimp. Not quite like a fireman, more hand-over-hand because the pole inside the four-foot-wide acrylic cylinder running floor-to-ceiling in the middle of my apartment had branches. … [READ MORE] about The Chimp

Days of Craving

—October 26, 2021

Days of Craving

By Elsa Court

American Short Fiction · Days of Craving by Elsa Court When I flew back to New Haven the day after the Texas wedding, my landlady’s house had acquired the smell of homecoming. She—my landlady—poked … [READ MORE] about Days of Craving

Child of God

—September 28, 2021

Child of God

By Genevieve Abravanel

https://soundcloud.com/americanshortfiction/child-of-god-by-genevieve-abravanel I was drunk. I mean, not usually. Not on a weekday. But that night, Bill had been out with Petra and then he’d texted … [READ MORE] about Child of God

I’ll Give You a Reason

—August 03, 2021

I’ll Give You a Reason

By Annell López

I met Maria back in the fifth grade. She was this skinny girl whose mom would always pack her salami sandwiches for lunch. When I think of Maria today, I think of those slices of salami stuffed inside … [READ MORE] about I’ll Give You a Reason

Ricky

—July 03, 2021

Ricky

By Whitney Collins

Carla felt sure she was the only rich girl to ever work the counter at Glazy’s Ham Depot. Carla hadn’t always been rich. Before Ed, she and her mom had once lived in a minivan for a year, so Carla … [READ MORE] about Ricky

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Issue 81

Guest-edited by Fernando A. Flores, featuring new stories by Yvette DeChavez, Julián Delgado Lopera, Carribean Fragoza, Alejandro Heredia, Carmen Maria Machado, Ruben Reyes Jr., and Gerardo Sámano Córdova.

You can preview the issue here.

NEWS

Read the winners of the 2024 Insider Prize

Read the winners of the 2024 Insider Prize

By ASF Editors

“Memories are a nuisance,” Peter wrote to one of our writers after reading his short story, “but nonetheless they seem to make us who we are, as this story confirms.” This year’s submissions told many stories burdened with memory, but just as many stared bravely into the face of hope, satirized the state of politics, speculated on the future of the world, or else built entirely new worlds to inhabit. In short, the stories written on the inside reflected the stories we wrote this year on the outside. Stories of human toil and dreams and everything in between.
 

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