From the Night Train statement of being, regarding Firebox Fiction:
“In a steam locomotive, the firebox keeps the engine going. At Night Train, we define Firebox Fiction as short stories of 1,500 words or less, bursting with creative fire.”
Since writing this, many have asked: “So, what do you mean by creative fire?”
Here’s our answer:
— Creative fire is something surprising buried in something familiar. Heartbreak, elation, the distillation of the human spirit with its failings and triumphs and need for love.
— Creative fire is darkness that spikes the hairs on our arms and heads and disturbs something deep in our own dark selves. It’s absurdity that punches the solar plexus with something true.
— Creative fire is composed in sentences that are remarkable; sentences that are the best they can be, that reverberate, that tell a story, a new story, or an old story told a new way.
The sum total of these sentences, for Firebox Fiction, should be about 1,500 words — or less.
So that’s it. If you think you’ve got the creative fire to feed Firebox Fiction, we look forward to reading your work.
Submit here: http://www.night-train.org/submissions/
Cheers, and get writing.
~ The Editors
Anna Lea Jancewicz 