Molly Lanzarotta, London Independent Story Prize 3rd Round 2024 Flash Fiction Winner, 'Memories of a Tsunami Unseen'

London Independent Story Prize 3rd Round 2024 Flash Fiction Winner - Memories of a Tsunami Unseen - Molly Lanzarotta

Photo caption: Molly Lanzarotta at a writing residency in one of the historic Cape Cod, MA dune shacks. No electricity means: no distractions!

When did you get into writing?

Expressing myself through writing has always been central to how I engage with the world. Over the years I’ve encountered what the novelist Tillie Olson described as “silences”—those long eras of inopportunity experienced by many women artists. To all writers facing those tough periods, I say: you will write again! Never doubt it.

How often do your write? Do you have a writing routine? And what inspires you to write?

Finding a group or writing partner that requires you to deliver new writing every day really helps. I know that sounds like a huge commitment but developing such a requirement changed my writing life. Knowing that I need to deliver a piece of writing daily (even a paragraph) silences my internal editor and pushes me to experiment and follow images, inclinations, obsessions, and whims.

How does it feel to have your work recognised?

Recognition helps! Writing on you own requires stamina and blind faith. Never give up on writing that you know is good writing, no matter how many times a story or poem gets declined. Write because you believe in the writing.

What is the best and the most challenging thing about writing fiction?

I relish the discovery in writing – I never know my ending when I start.

How did you come up with the idea for your LISP selected story?

Years ago, an acquaintance from Alaska mentioned the earthquake of ’64. One image from her musings stuck in my head: that of her dad in a phonebooth while the water was rising. One day I idly just started looking up facts about the quake and the tsunami that followed, but I soon realized I wasn’t interested in the facts, I was interested in how a child might imaginatively connect events and developments in her life back to such a touchstone event.

Tips on writing short or flash fiction.

Don’t admonish yourself that you should be writing a novel. I finally accepted that I am a shortform writer—I love writing flash fiction and poetry. The way I see it, a novel creates a world; a short story gives you a window into a world; flash implies a world. How much can you convincingly convey in 300 words? It’s a formidable challenge. It’s like watercolor painting—so much can change when you squint.

What’s the best and the most challenging thing about competitions?

The Best

If you’re longlisted, or shortlisted, or even get a nice rejection note (“you made it to the final round!”) it’s affirming.

Challenging

The odds are long. Brush your shoulders off when you get a rejection. I heard of a famous writer who made a sculpture out of hundreds of rejection letters (actually – I think I read about this in a rejection letter).

Do you recommend that writers give LISP a go?

Absolutely – I find the whole LISP endeavor and its creative amalgam of storytelling modes so inspiring. Go for it!