Some of the challenges of crafting a well-told story include being able to determine how it begins, how it ends, and how to keep the narrative flowing smoothly throughout the middle section. Many well-known and well-respected authors can tell great stories in 300 pages or more, while some can do it in 200 pages and sometimes less. But what if you were able to tell a captivating story in just 50 words?
This week’s guest is Justin Deming, who runs his own Substack page called
. His newsletter has flash fiction, also known as short stories, and Deming invites readers to create stories using only 50 words, based off a certain prompt, with his “Fifties by the Fire” series. It could be a word like sphere, or even a particular image, and users can write a fictional story or even poetry based on the prompt. Deming just recently released his first book, “50 Fifties,” which is available to purchase on Amazon and wherever books are sold online.When I conducted this interview with Deming, he was in the process of trying to get his book to be available for purchase in local bookstores. We talk about that, the inspiration behind him wanting to write short stories, and what’s next in store for him. The full interview can be heard in podcast form above or viewed in video form below.
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Justin Deming | Telling Stories in 50 Words