Monkey Puzzle Press

“The merchants and company have long laughed at transcendentalism, higher laws, etc., crying, ‘None of your moonshine,’ as if they were anchored to something not only definite, but sure and permanent. If there was any institution which was presumed to rest on a solid and secure basis, and more than any other represented this boasted common sense, prudence, and practical talent, it was the bank; and now those very banks are found to be mere reeds shaken by the wind. Scarcely one in the land has kept its promise. It would seem as if you only need live forty years in any age of this world, to see its most promising government become the government of Kansas, and banks nowhere. Not merely the Brook Farm and Fourierite communities, but now the community generally has failed. But there is the moonshine still, serene, beneficent, and unchanged. Hard times, I say, have this value, among others, that they show us what such promises are worth—I where the sure banks are.”

- Henry David Thoreau -

“The obligation that people feel to one another goes back to the very beginning of human history, as a natural, spontaneous act in human relations. Obligation to government, however, is not natural. It must be taught to every generation.”

- Howard Zinn -

“…while the ‘Lost Generation,’ the rebellious avant-garde of the 1920s often taken as a precursor to the Beats, was decisively repudiated by most of its members within a decade of its inception, the Beat movement in its various permutations continues even today, fifty years later, sustaining its veterans and attracting new adherents among those equally distrustful of official pieties and postmodern evasions, those committed to regenerative expressiveness that respects no boundaries or prohibitions.”

- Ann Douglas -

Monkey Puzzle’s 2nd ANNUAL FLASH FICTION CONTEST!

First Prize: $200.00 plus publication

Second Prize: $100.00 plus publication

Third Prize: $50.00 plus publication

Submit one story per entry, 1000 words or less.

$5.00 entry fee (check or money order) payable to Monkey Puzzle Press
We’re also accepting entry fees via PayPal:

Deadline: March 20, 2010 (postmarked)

Send your submission and entry fee to:

Monkey Puzzle Press
3116 47th St.
Boulder, CO 80301
Attn: Flash Fiction Contest

All submissions must include the writer’s contact information on the first page: name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. Include a SASE if you would like a reply via USPS.

We won’t be judging stories based on any particular content or context, just send your best piece of flash fiction! Please keep in mind that we do appreciate work exhibiting intelligence and creativity, socio-political-cultural awareness, and humor. To get an idea for the kind of work we like, check out our Issues page for free downloads of past issues.

Winners will be published in Monkey Puzzle #9!

All entries will be considered for publication.

For a flier, click here: Monkey Puzzle’s 2nd Annual Flash Fiction Contest!