For six years I dated Ian, but only once we broke up did everyone close to me reveal they never liked him anyway. “We didn’t want to tell you,” my mother said. “We?” “Your father never liked him either.” She went quiet. “Ian’s tone was a little off. Do you know what I mean?” “He […]Read More

Featuring new stories by Jeffery Renard Allen, Jamel Brinkley, Mala Gaonkar, Anita Lo, Yasmin Adele Majeed, Emily Mitchell,  and Max Ross. Jeffery Renard Allen, “Orbits” You know, only a fool does something for free, the Champ said. I’ve been thinking about how to repay you. A word stalled on his tongue. It sounded like farty. She […]Read More

Christopher was the nicest man I had ever met and so I was engaged to him. We got engaged during his residency and I told people we would get married when he became a doctor, but he never became a doctor he became a physician-scientist at the university researching von Willebrand disease because he thought […]Read More

We are thrilled to announce that the brilliant Dantiel W. Moniz—author of the acclaimed story collection Milk, Blood, Heat—will judge our 2024 American Short(er) Fiction Prize. The prize recognizes extraordinary short fiction under 1,000 words. The first-place winner will receive a $1,000 prize and publication. Previous winners of the Short(er) Fiction Prize have gone on […]Read More

I don’t climb up the downspout to my window, don’t have to hope it holds. I’ve missed curfew, but I was with Lily; no one is holding their breath. I use the key under the crocodile planter—tangles of rosemary, sage, thyme, a whole world creeping out from inside its jaws—and I take off my shoes, […]Read More

Reading Time: 3 minutes Review by Rupert Dastur Perhaps the most unifying theme of Clare Fisher’s collection, The Moon is Trending (Salt Publishing, 2023), is the body. There is eating, pissing, shitting, slapping, spot-popping and fucking galore in this direct, unabashed book that’s filled with characters who question their identity and the very reality around […]Read More

For five years, Stephanie Macias has been reading and considering submissions to American Short Fiction, and she’s been instrumental in running our in-person events in Austin. A virtual Swiss Army Knife of artistic pursuits (she’s a writer, photographer, visual artist, musician, and editor), Stephanie is now set to bring her broad experience and enthusiasm for stories […]Read More

Last spring, I approached Nickolas Butler, internationally bestselling author of the novels Shotgun Lovesongs, The Hearts of Men, and Godspeed, to be the judge for this year’s Insider Prize, American Short Fiction’s annual literary award for incarcerated writers in Texas. He’d worked with incarcerated writers in the past, championing their work. His own writing explores […]Read More

Featuring new stories by Magogodi oaMphela Makhene, Ben Mauk, Joyce Carol Oates, Laura van den Berg, Ada Zhang, Hilary Bell, and Emily Hunt Kivel. Magogodi oaMphela Makhene, “Dr. bastards” He’s probably licking an ice-cream cone somewhere, Eugene Alexander de Kock. Out. Walking, petting his dog. Whites love their dogs. Part of the family, as they […]Read More

The fumes from the super limousine dirtied the snow. The vehicle stretched a full block. She could see her father’s kufi hat duck under the roof as he got inside where ninety-nine other members of his delegation sat looking like packaged food waiting to be microwaved. The limo drove off in a cloud of white […]Read More