Tommy Dean lives in Indiana with his wife and two children. Tommy Dean is the author of two flash fiction chapbooks Special Like the People on TV (Redbird Chapbooks, 2014) and Covenants (ELJ Editions, 2021). Hollows, A collection of flash fiction was published by Alternating Current Press. He is the Editor at Fractured Lit. He has been previously published in the Atticus Review, The MacGuffin, The Lascaux Review, New World Writing, Pithead Chapel, and New Flash Fiction Review. His story “You’ve Stopped” was included in Best Microfiction 2019 and 2020 and the Best Small Fiction 2019. He won the 2019 Lascaux Prize in Short Fiction. His interviews have been previously published in New Flash Fiction Review, The Rumpus, CRAFT Literary, and The Town Crier (The Puritan). He has led writing workshops for the Barrelhouse Conversations and Connections conference, The Lafayette Writer’s Workshop, Bending Genres, and for Kathy Fish’s Fast Flash. he is currently teaching at the Dallas Writer’s Workshop.

“Tommy Dean brought such energy and enthusiasm as a guest teacher in my workshop! He has a gift for sparking creativity and innovation in writers. As a gifted practitioner of the short form and a knowledgeable and inspiring teacher, he is sure to bring fresh insights and expertise to his own classes as well. I’m excited for any writers lucky enough to work with him!”

-Kathy Fish

Previous Workshops Have Sold Out Fast!

Don’t miss out on what 2024 has to offer! From learning how to create the feeling in a story, to testing your limits with brevity and word play, we cover all bases to turn you into a crisper, more innovative flash fiction writer.

For information on upcoming workshops and how to register, follow this page or email Tommy at thomasrdean13@gmail.com.

Looking for a 2024 mentorship? I can help you take your flash to the next level!

Click here for more information!

Lost in the Woods: Writing Immersive Settings in Flash Fiction Zoom Seminar

May 4th, 2024 10:00AM ET – 12:00PM ET

Cost: $75

Join writer Tommy Dean for a generative writing session focused on creating dynamic and immersive settings for flash and microfiction. We’ll look at model texts and get inspired by writing prompts. Participants will have the opportunity to start 5-6 drafts during this session.

Flash fiction’s diminutive word count necessitates setting the scene and/or revealing the location of a narrative quickly but specifically and uniquely if you want to form compelling stories. Tommy’s workshop will explore ways to create vivid settings that will add depth to any story, and enthrall your reader!

Is This How It Ends?

Wednesday, May 22, 2-4 pm EST

Cost: Pay what you can/want

Join writer Tommy Dean for a two-hour generative writing session focused on finding the perfect ending for several flash pieces. We’ll look at model texts and use prompts for different ways to end a flash piece. Participants will have the opportunity to start 5-6 endings during this session. I’ll also provide my Endings Handout with even more example flashes!

Email me at thomasrdean13 at gmail.com to sign up!

This was such a fabulous, generative workshop. The material for each day provided us with a craft essay that illuminated elements of the micro form, readings that showed these elements in practice, and prompts that gave just the right amount of guidance – enough to take away the paralysis of sitting down to write, but not so much that it felt too limiting. Tommy’s feedback, and that of the other participants, was warm and encouraging, and worked to recognize the best in our work and build our confidence. The pieces I wrote during this weekend are some of the writing I feel proudest of. I’ve come out with a stronger understanding of structure and construction of character and desire in a small space, and am feeling so inspired to continue to apply what I’ve learned to future projects.

-Wendy Wallace