How We Edit at Microcosm

An Editors’ Manifesto and a Writer’s Behind the Scenes Guide

ℹ️ This is a living document that we’ll update as we learn and grow both as an editing team and a flash fiction publication.

It covers principles that guide our editors and we’re sharing it for transparency and extra guidance.

Our Focus

At Microcosm, we look for flash fiction stories that show us, like an eye viewing through a keyhole, a larger deeper world. One that teaches us about our current human condition.

This is an aspirational challenge for all writers to think on deeper themes and larger ideas even within their tiny stories.

• We mainly publish flash fiction or articles on flash fiction.
• Sometimes we allow creative provocations or requests for collaboration.
• We mainly publish stories between 100–1000 words.

We believe that:

Flash Fiction is a great way for new writers to learn the basic elements and instincts of a story so that when they approach larger works they have greater success.

That new writers, new to fiction or writing in general, with a bit of help, direction and intentional public practice can become better writers faster than by noodling around by themselves in private.

We will only “Pass” on:

1. Non-fiction (but craft articles on flash fiction are allowed).
2. Poetry (flash fiction that includes poetic elements but remains full stories are fine).
3. Unintelligible word messes that we believe are beyond saving in a reasonable time frame.

What We Will Give:

1. An honest read of your story and help with your idea, formatting, and appropriateness to Microcosm’s overall tone.
2. Suggestions on how to improve it, these are never instructions on how exactly you must rewrite to make us happy. They’re ideas and suggestions. But we may pass on your story if the core issues are not addressed.
3. If we pass on your story we will tell you why and how to do better next time. We may in the future direct you to our guides to give deeper and more consistent answers (that also saves the editors from repeating themselves).
4. We’ll ask what you’re trying to do, your submission might be a mess and this mess might hide a gem. We’ll try to understand your intention before we pass on a story.
5. More than one round of iteration depending on the needs of the story and the editor’s time (this is non-paid volunteer work, for your and own growth and passion).
6. A timely response to your submission (keep in mind weekends and timezones of the editors). Zane is SAST or CET (GMT +2) Mark is Arizona Time (MST, which is GMT -7) Paul is Eastern (Toronto, GMT -4)
7. A collection of guides on What Makes A Complete Story, How to Avoid the Slushpile and How to Format Flash Fiction at Microcosm (in the near future, Zane has big plans!).
8. A second opinion, if we’re uncertain about your story we’ll ask another editor to take a look before rejecting your story. A rejection requires two votes.
9. Engaging prompts and more difficult challenges, that at times are related to core craft elements or topical issues in our world.
10. Two or three posts a day, we limit the number of posts to a couple a day to allow for useful exposure for all stories (we can’t promise views in the Age of Relational Medium). We use US Eastern Times for morning and lunchtime reads. Medium’s Algo values daily publishing.

From Our Writers We Want:

1. Open-Minded Collaborators who take feedback and try to incorporate it. All our feedback are suggestions, it is your story in the end. If you feel strongly, say so, we’ll help you express it more clearly.
2. Community Engagement, that’s where the magic happens. That’s where real learning and friendships start.
3. Commitment, there’s a reason we ask you to say “Challenge Accepted!” to start writing with us. We want you to be excited, engaged and regular writers. We’ll prune writers who sign up but don’t submit any stories.
4. The understanding that they can improve over time. We’re committed to helping other writers, because it’s fun, it helps us learn, and it gives back. But remember you may suck now but you will get better. We will use a Writer Ladder to mark your progress (to unlock harder challenges or longer stories).
5. To Be Kind and Classy, we won’t publish anything offensive or hateful. We will remove writers that harass or are mean-spirited.