WANTED: New Flash Essays

For upcoming editions of the weekly Short Reads email, we’re looking for original (as yet unpublished) flash nonfiction work.

We’re especially interested in work that makes us see the world through fresh eyes—whether by approaching a familiar story or situation from a new angle or by taking us somewhere unfamiliar.

Because of formatting constraints, submissions should be 1,250 words maximum.
Important notes:

• For now, we are accepting nominations from active Short Reads subscribers only.
• Not a subscriber? It’s FREE to sign up for the weekly email here. (Or, for early access, become a supporting subscriber here.)
• At this time, we are unable to accept multiple submissions.
• Thanks to our supporting subscribers, we pay a modest honorarium of $50 upon publication.
• We do not charge reading fees.

We are only able to consider 100 submissions total.

Call will close when this threshold is reached or on 10/24/2025, whichever comes first.

Questions? You can email us at staff@short-reads.org.

Recent calls

PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED FLASH ESSAYS
Date closed: July 21, 2025
Expected response time: Fall 2025