Reminder: Early Bird Discount Ends Tonight!

"sorry you got an email"

A fellow Substacker signs all his newsletters with, “Sorry you got an email,” which I find hilarious. Anyway, apologies for this rerun. But first…

THIS THURSDAY: Substack Live Interview with Darien Gee of Writer-ish!

Heads up! I’m going to be interviewed by Darien Gee on Substack Live THIS Thursday, August 7th at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time U.S. As subscribers, you should see a notification for this at the top of the mobile app or via the website on your computer. I’d love for you to join in and ask questions if you wish! I’ll read a couple of pieces and share a writing prompt as well.

ICYMI: EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT ON UPCOMING WORKSHOPS PACKAGE DEAL EXPIRES AT THE END OF TODAY (AUG. 4TH)

Registrations are now open for my upcoming 3-IN-90 workshops. They are $60 each, but THROUGH TONIGHT YOU CAN GET ALL THREE FOR $125 ($180 value). See info and link to register below.

I’m excited to announce a new round of my popular 3-in-90 workshops! I’ve run twenty-six of these so far and they are my favorite classes to teach. Note: There’s a substantial discount if you register for ALL THREE workshops THROUGH TONIGHT.

REGISTER FOR ALL THREE THROUGH MONDAY, AUGUST 4TH FOR THE BEST DEAL

All sessions run for 90 minutes from 1:00 - 2:30 Eastern Time U.S. and will be recorded. Everyone who registers will have lifetime access to the recording. (Some writers prefer to watch the recording and work through the prompts on their own time.)

$60 per session. EARLY BIRD SPECIAL: Get all three sessions for $125 through MONDAY, August 4th. Best value!

“Just attended this class with the wonderful [Kathy Fish]. This morning my head was empty of ideas, now after Kathy’s prompts it’s positively SWIMMING with ideas. Thank you! 🤩” ~June Gemmell

In these 90 minute live sessions (on Webex, similar to Zoom) you will:

• Learn new concepts in flash fiction

• Acquire new flash writing skills & tools

• Be inspired by the best exemplars of published flash fiction

• Write to prompts aimed at breaking through writing blocks

• Innovate with the flash form - Be prepared to surprise yourself!

• Have a blast writing in a safe and supportive environment

“Went into [Kathy’s] constraints-centred 'Freedom in Limits' flash workshop feeling nervous, and have come out of it feeling empowered to approach my writing in new ways knowing that fresh insights can appear 🙌 Thanks Kathy!” ~Amber Aspinall

WORKSHOP DATES & DESCRIPTIONS:

Sat., August 16th, 1:00 - 2:30 pm Eastern Time: “Resuscitating Your Draft: Experimental Tools for Flash Fiction Recovery”

Do you, like me, have several drafts gathering virtual dust in your files that you open every now and again, hoping to revise, but they just feel dead on arrival? Beyond fixing? This is not about revision. It’s about throwing your draft a lifeline. In this lively, hands-on workshop, I’ll introduce some fun, unconventional methods aimed at breathing new life into your flash. Expect to leave this class with fresh momentum—and maybe even a resurrected draft. Bring your troublesome draft(s) and a willingness to get a little weird.

Sat., September 13th, 1:00 - 2:30 pm Eastern Time: “How Does It Feel? Writing Emotion from the Inside Out”

Before we can effectively and powerfully render emotion on the page, we must first understand how emotion is experienced. Drawing on the sensory-based approach of Robert Olen Butler and the Stanislavski acting method, I’ll guide you through techniques for conveying powerful emotion in the very limited space of flash fiction. Through a series of prompts and timed exercises, you’ll write from memory and the body, channeling feeling through visceral detail and immersive storytelling. Expect to come away from this workshop with three deeply moving flash drafts in hand.

Sat., October 11th, 1:00 - 2:30 pm Eastern Time: “The Weight of Stillness: Crafting Quiet Power in Flash Fiction”

Those who don’t know how complex, layered, and subtle it can be, think of flash fiction as, well, flashy. Yes, it can be explosive, dramatic, even shocking. But it can also be much more nuanced. We’ll examine how stillness, restraint, and sensory detail can create deeply resonant flash fiction. Drawing inspiration from masters of minimalism, we will engage in short readings, craft discussions, and writing prompts focused on mood, atmosphere, and the unspoken. Expect to leave this session with three drafts of surprising power and beauty.

ABOUT ME:

The author of five short fiction collections, Kathy Fish has been teaching writing workshops online and in person, worldwide, for twenty years. Her work has been widely taught and anthologized, with stories published in Ploughshares, Guernica, Swamp Pink, Electric Literature, Denver Quarterly, Best American Nonrequired Reading, the Norton Reader, Norton’s Flash Fiction America, and Fifty Great American Short Stories (forthcoming 2026, Modern Library/Penguin Random House).

She has been honored with a Copper Nickel Editor’s Prize and multiple appearances in both the Wigleaf Top 50 and the Best Small Fictions series. Her newsletter, The Art of Flash Fiction, has been named one of the 20 Best Creative Writing Substacks by Writers at Work. She is very grateful to the Ragdale Foundation and the Kerouac Project for their generous support of her work.

Thank you all so much. I am extremely honored by your continued support and enthusiasm for what I do. Let me know if you have any questions. ~Kathy