flash fiction Archives

A monstrous feminine figure emerges from the ocean. A large ship sits on top of her head.

Dredge

by Choo Yi Feng and Jes & Cin Wibowo 3 March 20239 March 2023

In this surreal piece on environmental decay, imageries of monsters, economic collapse, gross ecological excesses, guilty pleasures, and hints of internalised queerphobia all coalesce into a blend of poetic cosmic horror. While not explicitly portraying identifiable elements of queerness and ecology, Yi Feng’s piece manages to capture the ambient strangeness of queer ecology in its atmosphere.

An illustration of a hand holding a cockroach.

Fiction

Survival of the Fittest

by Ara Tirta and Jes & Cin Wibowo 3 March 202310 March 2023

Written in the form of a stage play script, Ara’s work managed to convey the essence of queer ecology as originally theorised by Timothy Morton. In the words of their cockroach character, “Gay penguins, lesbian squirrels, bisexual dolphins, sex-changing fishes… all sorts of things are out there. Nature doesn’t have a label for all these things.” Who could say no to a cockroach philosopher?

An illustration of a person and various animals running into the embrace of an indigenous goddess.

Fiction

Hers

by Audris Candra and Jes & Cin Wibowo 3 March 202324 March 2023

Audris’s story is one written in palpable anger as they explore the idea of queer ecology within Sundanese indigeneity. As gender is forced into a binary and nature is being relentlessly exploited, it is unbridled cosmic wrath that will come together to bite us back.

A man and a woman guides a trans woman to dance. In front, we can see a motorbike.

Fiction

Battery

by Korionto and Jes & Cin Wibowo 3 March 20239 March 2023

Another exploration of traditional elements, Korionto’s work sets itself under the hints of a post-apocalyptic world where abandoned temples host power cells and dancing can recharge batteries. But it’s not really the dancing that gives energy—it’s the collective care that queer people show one another, the care needed to be able to overcome their internalised transphobia and other prejudices, allowing them to love themselves fully.

A duck and a human watch a krathong in the river.

Fiction

A Little Duck’s Longing

by Jing Ying Yeo and Jes & Cin Wibowo 3 March 20239 March 2023

It’s not only humans that can feel loss and longing from an unexpected and untimely death. Jing Ying’s work explores the emotional impact of human death on nonhuman animals, subverting the tired ecological trope that nature would be better off without humans. In this beautiful work, a little duck is saddened by the death of a human kin, the reasons of which are left to the reader’s interpretation.

An illustration of two young girls holding hands facing each other in a river.

Fiction

Taman Rainbow is My Home

by Violacea Low and Jes & Cin Wibowo 3 March 202320 March 2023

A deeply personal narrative written with the vibes of a diary entry, Vio’s story emanates warmth in its nostalgia as well as resilience in its outlook. A truly beautiful piece you wouldn’t want to miss.

Fiction

Outside

by Stephanie Dogfoot and Row Yow 16 February 202216 February 2022

In the future, Singapore is protected from soaring temperatures by a plexiglass dome known as the Fishbowl. Who would want to live Outside? But when May ventures Outside, she finds something she could never have in the Fishbowl.

Announcement

New Naratif is Running a Creative Writing Pilot!

by New Naratif 31 May 20211 July 2021

Update [as of 1 July 2021]: The pitch window for this pilot is now CLOSED. Thank you to all who submitted. At New Naratif, we believe that imagining a better […]