Anatomy of a micro-fiction

 
 

about the author

Name: Bob Thurber

Location Massachusetts, USA



contact

Website www.bobthurber.net



bio

Bob Thurber is an old, unschooled writer who worked at his craft for twenty years before trying to publish.

The recipient of numerous awards over the last decade, he has been called A maestro of micro-fiction, and The Sam Peckinpah of Flash Fiction.

Selections of his work have been used in numerous schools and colleges, on reading assessments, oral interpretations, and as models of compact prose.

 
 


First, we’ll read through the text — a micro-fiction of 150 words (the word limit for this particular venue) originally published online at The-Phone-Book.com



Three Days of Mourning



On the third day the old man took down a haunch of cooked beef hanging from the cabin's ceiling. The blade of his knife was razor-thin and passed through the meat without resistance. He was sixty years old and in mourning for his wife whose body still lay on the bed. He had been drinking now for three days without sleep and now he wanted to eat. He set himself a place at the table. He ate slowly, chewing each bite twenty times. The meat tasted dry and salty. As he ate he stared straight ahead at the stone fireplace which took up one wall. When he finished he would fetch a shovel and go to work. His wife had died peacefully in her sleep, and he imagined that was not a hard way to go. When his time came he believed very little effort would be necessary.

 

Anatomy of a MicroFiction


by Bob Thurber

 


Now let’s examine the anatomy of this simple piece. The text contains eleven sentences, each performing a small structural task. Each sentence doesn’t do much, but together they combine to do just enough.



1) On the third day the old man took down a haunch of cooked beef hanging from the cabin's ceiling.


Introduction of Time, Character, Place, and Main Prop -- the "haunch of cooked beef."


  1. 2)The blade of his knife was razor-thin and passed through the meat without resistance.


Character in action with Main Prop.


3) He was sixty years old and in mourning for his wife whose body still lay on the bed.


Physical and mental characteristics, and present situation.


4) He had been drinking now for three days without sleep and now he wanted to eat.


Character's reaction to event, and proposed goal.


5) He set himself a place at the table.


Character in action, moving toward goal


6) He ate slowly, chewing each bite twenty times.


Character in action with Main Prop.


7) The meat tasted dry and salty.


Character's sensory reaction to Main Prop.


8) As he ate he stared straight ahead at the stone fireplace which took up one wall.


Character's reflective delay.


9) When he finished he would fetch a shovel and go to work.


Character's proposed new goal.


10) His wife had died peacefully in her sleep, and he imagined that was not a hard way to go.


Character's reflection.


11) When his time came he believed very little effort would be necessary.


Character's emotional response, in summary, understated.



*

Now you write one. Use as many words as you need, but do try to keep it under 250. The shorter and tighter, the better. Once you have a working draft, read and edit the piece once every day (or twice a day, but no more than that.) Try to make each sentence better, smoother. Try to get two sentences to do the work of one. Perform this task for at least one week. Don’t cheat. Then, if you want, you can send it to me. But no more than one, please. And if I think I can be of any help, I’ll reply as soon as I can.


Looking for more examples of micro-fiction?

Here are Ten Small Fictions published by Turnrow, and later used for a creative writing class. And here are 60 Micro-fictions published by The Phone Book and fed to mobile phones.